In today’s media-frenzied society, communicating your club’s marketing message can be like shouting over an oncoming train. In the maelstrom of ads, promises and gimmicks competing for everyone’s attention, how can you plant your brand in the minds of prospective members, communicate the value of a membership or get current members to more deeply explore your club’s profit centers?
Find Yourself, and Focus Your Message
One of the most crucial elements of marketing is figuring out your own brand, suggests Lisa Zoellner, chief marketing officer for Gold’s Gym International. Your brand is what you want consumers to associate with your club—it defines who you are and the direction you will take in the future. Representations of the brand can change, but the main message should be consistent throughout all of your communications. For Gold’s, the central idea of “strength” has been embraced since the brand’s inception, Zoellner explains. The Know Your Own Strength Campaign seeks to reframe the meaning of strength and demonstrates that strength comes in many forms. Whether it’s the strength to prevail in stressful times, to achieve your career goals or simply look better, the campaign demonstrates that strength isn’t always about muscle, Zoellner says. “We’re not running away from who we are and the fact that we are known for strength, just encouraging people to look at strength, and our brand, through a different lens.” To clubs that may still have yet to identify a brand or core audience, Zoellner advises, “Ask yourself: Why did I get in the business? What do I know about my members, and what have my messages been? Force yourself to commit it to paper,” she adds.
Sitting down to explore your own motivations and what members need can be a great way to reinvigorate your club’s message and get business moving in a new direction, shares Tony Wells, chief of Marketing for 24 Hour Fitness. In the past few years, 24 Hour has shifted from a fun, playful image to one that also embodies a sense of commitment and seeks to inspire more people to make positive life changes through member testimonials and real stories, Wells says. “We’ve gotten back to the basics and are trying to be more realistic and approachable.”
Finding a broader message to reach more prospective clients in a down economy may be a good way to generate interest in your club, as opposed to simply lowering membership fees, suggests Matt York, vice president of Marketing and Operations for Premier Fitness Marketing, which provides turnkey membership promotions and consulting for clubs. “They need to become creative and get away from price-point marketing…and start to touch people with messages of value and improved lifestyle,” York adds.
Cheryl Dion, director of Marketing for Lifestyle Family Fitness agrees that clubs should be educating potential clients to the benefits of health, so they come to see membership as an investment worth making. “It’s our position to continue to educate them that their health should still be at the forefront of what they do—and a club membership is a small price to pay for that.
Offer Value That Resonates
Communicating value to recession-minded audiences is crucial to succeeding in a challenging economy, says KT Remus, senior director of Marketing and Advertising for Urban Active Fitness Clubs. “Sell fitness, the dream of being fit, the ability to save money on prescriptions because (they) are healthier—the FUN elements of your club,” she advises.
In short, members want to feel they are a part of a bigger community, and clubs can use that to their advantage in a recession, says Lynn VanCox, CEO of New-York based Your MWR, which offers a Web site and blog solution for businesses who want to build community among their clients. “Clubs have been hit in this economy, but the successful ones seem to be really good at keeping members happy and engaged and asking for referrals,” she adds.
Providing members online access to workout plans, nutrition information and social networking opportunities is one relatively inexpensive but effective way to engage them and add value to their membership, advises David Greenwalt, founder of EasyClubFit, a Web-based program that provides health and nutrition information that drives users to a club’s promotions and profit centers. “(As a club), you’re going to be more likely to have someone read your marketing message if it’s directed specifically at them and you’re delivering quality content with it.”
Remind members why they joined, and do all you can to get them in the door and producing results, suggests David Wright, president and CEO of Creative Fitness Marketing, which runs sales and marketing membership drives for clubs. “If a club is not helping its members get results and, subsequently, they are not using the club, then they will speak with their feet.”
Get Smart With Technology
“We’ve seen more and more clubs embracing technology in a positive way,” VanCox says. “It’s essential for clubs to not only have a Web site, but a blog that cultivates community among members. This leads to longer client retention and raving fans, which leads to more buzz and more referrals.”
The Internet is an effective way to reach members when they’re not at your club, but keeping on top of technological trends is another way to create a valuable experience for members as well. Whether it’s offering the latest equipment or digital monitoring, many members want to know their club is on the cutting edge of technological advancements in the industry, according to Drew Stark, operations manager for California-based Intelametrix, producers of the Body Metrix System™, a handheld ultrasound body composition tool that scans tissue structure to measure fat loss and muscle gain. “The ability to scan and clearly show fat and muscle layers is a powerful tool for motivating change and encouraging clients to enter training programs,” Stark says. Anything that keeps members connected to their fitness goals is a big marketing tool for your club.
Work Proactively, Inside and Outside Your Club
In order to deliver a clear, consistent message to members and prospective clients, your club should be actively marketing your brand and services, not only through advertising campaigns, but by acting within the community, suggests Art Rothafel, president of California-based Private Label Fitness, which lets clubs put their own brand on online tracking journals, nutrition software, supplements and skin care items. Rothafel advises clubs to volunteer for public speaking opportunities, educational seminars and personal demonstrations related to health and fitness. “What works best is anything that is hands-on and proactive,” he adds.
One way to commit to working regularly in your club and your community is by creating a marketing calendar, which assigns tasks and projects to be done on a daily basis, Greenwalt advises. Even if you’re sending out 10 handwritten postcards a day, you will be making great gains toward increasing customer satisfaction by investing time, not necessarily money, in your club’s marketing.
In 2008, 24 Hour Fitness decided to market its personal training services by becoming the Official Fitness Center Sponsor of the United States Olympic Team. It held a campaign, where health club members could nominate a personal trainer to work the games in Beijing as a trainer, according to Wells. Not only were members engaged in the selection process, but they were also able to associate the training they received with the high-caliber training of Olympic athletes. “It gave us credibility and authenticity,” Wells says of the campaign, which ran as the national economy declined. “That helped us weather a pretty significant storm.”
Whatever your club size or clientele, there are a number of marketing strategies you could employ to communicate the value of fitness, as well as the services and products offered at your facility. It starts with developing a clear idea of what you want to be, identifying your core audience and its needs and defining what you are willing to do to set yourself apart from the crowd. It takes a daily commitment to hard work and clear thinking, but the benefits will be yours for years to come. – CS
Marketing Outside the Box: Would any of these strategies work for your club?
“A health club client of ours did online and offline marketing for a charity day they were having. Anyone could work out and take classes that day for $3 or more, and the money was donated to charity. Every (non-member) who came in to work out was given a free T-shirt, a sticker that said something like I Worked Out for Charity, a coupon book for discounts at local stores and restaurants, a free 30-minute massage session and a free nutritional evaluation. The only stipulation was that the prospects could only activate the goodies once they became a club member. And because it was a charity event, the local media picked up on it, and it was a great success.”
– Lynn VanCox, Your MWR
“I once saw a club announce that it was closing its membership and you needed to add your name to a waiting list to get on as a member. After three weeks, they had more than 100 people on the list.”
– Matt York, Premier Fitness Marketing
“An internal member appreciation board publicly thanks every single person who refers a member to join the club for the whole year. The person who refers the most for each month gets that month’s prize, and the person who refers the most members for the year gets a huge prize. This publicly acknowledges and thanks those members who support the club by bringing more members to the club.”
– Dave Wright, Creative Fitness Marketing
“A small studio that targeted Baby Boomers ran a campaign called “Be You Again!” Clients brought in old high school and college sports photos as well as (photos of) them at the beach, hiking, etc. The photos and individual bios were compiled into a “Be You Again!” ad campaign that ran in local newsprint, direct mail, Web, e-mail and in-house posters.”
– Art Rothafel, Private Label Fitness
INDUSTRY RESOURCES:
Creative Fitness Marketing
EasyClubFit
Intelametrix
Premier Fitness Marketing
www.professionalfitnessmarketing.com
Private Label Fitness
Your MWR
