Stop and consider the best your club has to offer. You focused on your cutting-edge equipment, inviting club layout, affordable dues, and convenient location. Everything a member could ask for – right? Well, almost everything. All of those components are necessary for a successful club, but two more elements also come to mind. Elements that can’t be bought, but are priceless to your members. Attention, communication, and your ability to deliver these may be the deciding factor when it comes to member retention.
A key to providing a personal touch to your members lies in the functionality of your club management software. Rather than spending your valuable time entering and processing the ongoing data that your club generates, a high-quality software system will allow you to focus on your members and their needs.
Advantages for Your Club
By outsourcing your data management, you will benefit in two ways. First, your data will be captured and processed in a timely manner, with only minimal involvement on your part. And second, getting the most from your data will be easier and more efficient by using the advanced management and reporting tools available with a quality system.
When evaluating a software system, your club should have the ability to:
• View club and member information on a daily, weekly, or monthly basis.
• Create reports that allow you to track and analyze your data, for example, billing and payments, membership sales and usage, receivable income forecasts, collections to date, and point-of-sale totals.
• Tap the marketing value of your data by sending email messages or postcards to your members. Examples include birthday greetings, special offers, guest passes, and reminders to infrequent club users.
• Communicate with software support representatives using innovative tools. For example, web-based message centers that track incoming and outgoing messages in an online conversation.
• Learn and master the software systems using online help and other training tools designed for self-paced learning.
Advantages for Your Members
A quality system should make it easy for your members to access information pertinent to them. For example, an integrated system will allow members to retrieve personal information from the software provider’s website.
When evaluating a software system, your members should have the ability to:
• View an online copy of their membership contract, including start and end dates.
• Review payment information, including down payments, remaining balances, and monthly statements.
• Send billing and payment messages to the software provider directly.
Special Requests
A value-added software provider will accommodate special requests that you might have regarding personal service for your members. For example, they should be able to handle all of the details of your membership renewals – from tracking expiration dates to sending renewal notices and reminders.
A full-featured system will monitor member renewal dates. As the renewal dates approach, they will contact your members (via email and a postcard) with a reminder to renew their membership. Plus, you should be provided a renewal list, allowing you to effectively follow-up with each member. This personal touch will do more for your retention rate than a special offer or merchandise incentive.
The More You Know
The more you know about your members, the better! The ability to quickly access important member data – including: contact information, membership agreements, and usage history – allows you to quickly, and accurately, respond to your members’ questions and requests.
Your software system should allow you to:
• Maintain current contact information, making member correspondence more accurate as mailings will be sent to the correct location.
• Answer membership agreement questions and review agreed-upon terms by viewing an electronic version of a contract on your computer.
• Track how frequently your members are using the club. For those who are not visiting regularly, you can offer additional assistance or encouragement. (The extra attention may be just what they need to commit to their fitness program.)
Fast-Action Changes
A well-designed software system should allow you to easily – and immediately – make changes to your member information. This fast action demonstrates a responsiveness that will not go unnoticed by your members. Certain changes, such as EFT or credit card changes, are extremely time-critical. When such changes are processed immediately, you can avoid delayed payments, charge-backs, or even returned checks.
Front Desk or Back Office?
Where would you rather be? Greeting members at the front desk, responding to their needs, getting to know them and their fitness goals, or sitting in the back office, entering data, printing statements, collecting payments, and filing contracts. If you love the fitness industry, then you love your members, and out front is where you’d rather be! This scenario is possible with an integrated package of software, online services, and off-site data processing. Don’t settle for anything less!
Terri Blattenbauer is the Vice President of Apex Management Services, a leader in club management software and receivables processing. She can be contacted at 800.317.2739, x117, or by email at terri@apexmanagement.com, or visitwww.apexmanagement.com.
