Kyle Harrod at Maximum Fitness realized people needed to see results to feel like their membership was worth the cost. He developed his club to be focused on its members and get them exactly what they were searching for.
Kyle Harrod has spent years walking through gyms and watching members never get results. He has seen them sit down on a piece of equipment with no understanding of proper form or how the machine actually functioned. “I noticed the lost look in many people’s eyes while they wondered around the gym,” Harrod explained. “I wanted to create a results-driven gym with accountability being number one.”
Finally, in response to his concept, he opened Maximum Fitness on Feb. 7, 2008 in Mount Washington, Ky. Maximum Fitness has helped people achieve their goals by giving them everything they’ve needed to succeed. He started with only three clients and a large-competing club five miles away. “I had adversity staring down at me,” he said. “I made personal training very affordable by doing only 30-minute sessions which increased my market reach. The business grew quickly through referrals into what it is today.”
One of the main factors behind weight loss – nutrition – has been hard for many clubs to incorporate. However, Harrod discovered early on that they would be able to retain members by helping them achieve great results. Part of that effort involved intense customer service and nutrition counseling. “We make check up phone calls and e-mails periodically to evaluate our member’s progress, or we discuss missed classes or sessions,” Harrod said. “We will even call and check the client’s food habits for the day.”
The vast customer service has been the major contributor to continually getting new members. Aside from member referrals, Maximum Fitness has helped people get in great shape and lose weight – an aspect of fitness many people have not been able to accomplish on their own. Through the online testimonials of many of his members, Harrod has been able to use real-life people in his marketing campaigns.
The testimonials have benefited Maximum Fitness with its new social marketing initiatives. Harrod said they have tapped into the Facebook and Twitter social-marketing strategies and the member testimonials have helped them capture the attention of potential members via the Internet. The social networking has also given them the ability to stay connected with current members throughout the day.
Programming at Maximum Fitness has been another major key to Harrod’s success. He understands that members have a desire to see results quickly; therefore, he has developed Maximum’s programs to be based on a four-week schedule with two or three days a week. This system has reinforced Harrod’s belief that successful fitness requires more than just time spent in the gym. “We help motivate clients on a individual basis by making them accountable to themselves,” Harrod said. “People come here to get a better body and if they aren’t seeing results, we want to find out why, quickly.”
Harrod knew that by helping people achieve results, his business would grow. “The most important thing I did was begin to change bodies,” he said. “I knew the more people that achieved results, the more business would come my way.” His business philosophy of caring for every aspect of his members has yet to fail him and has continued to bring more new members his way.
