How have you reached out to new members this year? I bet you’ve already gone through a direct mail campaign, a referral program or a TV advertisement. Those age-old methods tend to be performed by the vast majority of clubs throughout the U.S. Today I was wondering, why?
Do you know for certain that direct mail and TV advertisements return results? You can’t directly monitor how many people viewed your TV advertisement, but you don’t question its effectiveness.
That TV ad probably reached a lot of couch potatoes that need to get up and join your gym, but they probably won’t. We know that we need to reach the 85 percent, but that 15 percent continues to grow and purchase more gym memberships. I spoke with a friend last week about the fitness industry. He made a comment that only 15 percent of the population works out in clubs. I said that those were pretty accurate numbers. He continued, and admitted that the 15 percent does a pretty good job of keeping a lot of clubs in business.
I agreed. The 15 percent is your bread and butter. However, where do you reach the 15 percent? Are they watching a lot of TV? Do you believe they really respond to direct mail? Maybe they do, but you don’t really know. This year, think about Facebook adverts.
In three months we will have to refer to this method of marketing as “age-old” as well, due to the speed of technology, but for now it can be your new cash cow.
Facebook adverts can promote your Facebook page, website or another special offer page. You can spend as much, or as little, as you’d like. You can also target your entire city, or a specific zip code. You are able to also target people with specific interests.
If you desire to advertise a new Group X class, you could target individuals that enjoy group fitness, Zumba, Les Mills or any other variation of Group X. These targets place your advertisement to the right on a consumer’s Facebook page. You can create a call to action so people that click on the ad have a purpose, or you can give them something free, but make sure they have to redeem whatever you offer at the club, and potentially sit through a sales presentation.
You can use this to target fitness enthusiasts in your area. Use this marketing method to reach that 15 percent and make sure you are squeezing it dry. Once you have reached all the fit members in your area, then you can start another Facebook advert to get people off the couch and into your club. Facebook adverts can reach people so much easier, and allow you more insights into your tracking than any other form of marketing available.
Tyler Montgomery is the Editor of Club Solutions Magazine. Contact him at tyler@clubsolutionsmagazine.com.
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Rachel Zabonick-Chonko is the editor-in-chief of Club Solutions Magazine. She can be reached at rachel@peakemedia.com.
