Gym owners, here’s a crazy idea – how about marketing New Year’s-style resolutions in March? The moment is perfect: COVID-19 vaccinations are rolling, cities are opening, and people are venturing beyond their bubble. And most people gained a bit of weight these last months.
In fact, health studies suggest the average person packed on an additional 12.5 pounds while sheltering in place.
Losing weight is the #1 New Year’s resolution.
No matter what study you read, losing weight or gaining physical fitness consistently tops the chart for ambitious resolution makers. Why New Year’s? It’s something called the discontinuity effect. Basically, when someone’s life changes — a move to a new home, an old year turns over, or, in our case, an easing of a worldwide pandemic — individuals seize the opportunity to improve a nagging problem.
Your members are not only going to be ready to return to the sweat and grind, they’ll be setting goals to do just that.
Gym marketing plan of attack
Take advantage of your digital offerings to coordinate both an advertising plan and a reward system for your members that encompasses all your methods of reaching members: social media, texts, email, in-house flyers, and even advertising!
Remember to review lists of former members through your gym management software. If you’ve never considered the rich possibilities inherent in sparking interest within wayward members, take a look at this recently released Gym Insight blog.
Health club promotion ideas:
- Design an advertising promotion similar to what you’d do in late December, emphasizing now is the time to lasso in those unwanted pounds.
- Offer irresistible deals designed to lure in reluctant members, such as: reduced-price personal training services; buy one membership, get one 50 percent off; or free specialty services/classes/products with new memberships.
- Coordinate a 60-day challenge where members can gain incremental successes while focusing on a long-term achievement. Research shows small steps outclass giant leaping efforts in helping individuals gain more ground with keeping resolutions — which is why signing up for a road race is an effective tool for keeping New Year’s resolutions.
- Sell the new you, too. Your gym is cleaner, better run, and more focused on client health and wellness than before the pandemic. Now it’s time for them to come back and learn how amazing you’ve become.
Post-COVID fitness boom = gym promo opportunities.
The pandemic slashed gym business across the country, but it also did something unexpected: It increased our interest in health and physical fitness. So even as we were moving less during the day, we discovered keeping COVID at bay meant staying healthy through food, nutrition, and daily exercise.
Simultaneously, fitness studios like yours doubled down, investing in digital offerings that increased productivity and streamlined operations. As Greg Maurer, company vice president of Anytime Fitness, stated in this NY Times article: “We are a way better organization today as a result of these challenges than we were a year ago because we had to get better.”
So, let’s take advantage of this confluence of craziness. Turn a negative into a positive and do what you do best – help people lose weight, gain endurance, and build strength and confidence in this new year of upside down mid-year resolutions. Tell me, what kinds of promotions do you think will work this spring?
Gym Insight
Our gym management software provides a clear, transparent picture into your company’s financials and offers a platform from which to run your business effectively. Our fully integrated software is built in-house, by fitness club owners. There are no cumbersome third-party plug-ins or complicated protocols, and it’s available for a single, low monthly subscription price — no hidden fees, no links to your payment processor. Call us today for a free demonstration on how we can lower your software management costs and free up more of your time and capital!