If you’ve spent any amount of time on the Internet, you’ve run across a blog. A blog differs from a website in that it expresses the opinion and personality of the author. Many times a standard website will simply be an online brochure about your health club. But a blog allows your personality to shine and allows your members and prospective members a chance to get to know you and your business more intimately.
We are in a world of hyper-connectivity and relationships. Social media platforms such as Facebook and Twitter allow people to sneak a peek into the mind and lives of others. Whether you have chosen to embrace this trend or not, it isn’t going anywhere; in fact it is increasing. Blogging is a great way to enter the social media world and satisfy the voyeuristic needs of your members and prospects.
If a prospect in your area searches online for a health club, and arrives at your blog, they will spend more time reading what you have to say than they would on your club’s website or on your competitors’ websites.
From a search engine optimization standpoint, Google loves blogs. They tend to search blogs faster than standard websites, because the information is current and always changing. Google feels that if the information is constantly changing, it must be fresh, relevant information that people will want to see. Google in turn places your blog higher in the rankings for your selected keywords.
Speaking of keywords, anytime you write a new blog post, be sure to use keywords and phrases that people in your community would be searching. For example, if you live in Louisville, KY, you would want to mention key phrases such as “health club in Louisville Kentucky” in some of your blog posts. “If you’re searching for the best health club in Louisville Kentucky, your search is over!”
Another great thing about blogs is that you could have your blog set up and live on the Internet in less than five minutes. The two most popular blogging platforms are found at www.wordpress.com and www.blogger.com. You simply set up a free account, choose a template, and start blogging. Many business owners prefer to either hire a web designer to customize a nicer template or they have the blog located on the health club website. I recommend the latter so that Google will give your health club website equal weight in its ranking system.
Blogs are a great loyalty and retention tool. The more information you post that is of interest to your members, the more they feel you care about them. Post articles on anything health and fitness related: nutrition, effective exercises, back pain, flexibility, strength training, cardio, weight loss, fitness myths, etc. You can also easily post videos to your blog on these same topics as well. Prospects and members will love seeing certain exercises demonstrated on your blog.
Blogging is not difficult. It is very simple to do and it has many benefits to help you sign up more new members, increase retention and boost your ranking in the search engines. So take the next five minutes to set up your blog and you will find that it is one of the best things you can do for your health club.
Curtis Mock is an author, speaker and consultant to health clubs worldwide. He is the Executive Director of GymSuccess.com.
