It is still the beginning of the year, and after two full months of solid membership sales, Newtown Athletic Club (NAC) has a lot of new members to integrate into its programs. With that in mind, I want to talk about integration marketing, which is designed to get your members involved in the club through program participation. If this marketing is performed well, you will not only improve retention, but also increase revenue through program fees.
I think I can best illustrate the idea of integration marketing by telling you what happens in our club on a regular basis.
A year ago, NAC completed the construction of a brand new 12,000-square-foot fitness center, and it has helped us to grow our membership by over 30 percent in the past 18 months. That translates into literally hundreds of new members, most of whom are overwhelmed by what they see when they step inside. They have an almost “deer in headlights” look that could easily turn into a fight or flight response. The dilemma for them is “what do I do first?”
Of course we give them a fitness assessment and two complimentary workout sessions as part of their membership introduction. But even with this, we simply offer so much within the context of our fitness center alone, that they are sometimes stupefied.
Here are their choices: personal training, Pilates personal training, aquatics personal training, small group training, TRX small group training, boot camp, kettlebells, Parisi Speed School Training and more.
As they walk around the fitness center, perhaps between sets of leg presses and hamstring curls, they see all of these programs and activities happening all around them. They are probably intrigued, or at least curious, not only as to what they are looking at, but also how to find out how to get involved? Does it cost money? Do you do it alone or in a group? Do you have a choice? Do you have to register? Are there set classes or group times? There were so many questions, and for our members, so few answers.
That is when the light bulb went on for Jim Worthington, the president and owner of NAC, who came up with an idea. When your members have questions, they must be answered. Not answering them is tantamount to losing revenue.
We decided to answer members’ questions by installing a visually appealing information desk run by a personable and knowledgeable employee who could answer their questions. This desk is located right in the center of the fitness center area where all of the “lost” members were aimlessly wandering. Above the desk, a sign reads “ASK ME HOW.”
We also gave the person running the desk a computer so they could register members for programs on the spot. The information desk was fortified with promotional literature to educate the consumer. After the first week, we found that the personable and knowledgeable staffer was so busy that we had to add a second staffer of the same caliber to handle the questions.
There are two key factors that make this concept successful:
1) Placing the information desk in exactly the right place, where the highest amount of visible programming and traffic occurs.
2) Staffing the desk with the right type of personality. Personality is the key word here. A person who is comfortable speaking to people they don’t know, and who thrives on getting people to take action, is ideal.
In the first month of installing the information desk in the right location, with the right staff, we increased our program sales in that area by more than 10-fold. Where we had previously sold $100 worth of services, we now had sold $1,000 in services. This increased in revenue more than what was paid for the additional staffing.
The final key point here is that this concept relies largely on a “sales” approach and system. We are still experimenting with goal setting and incentives for this area, but the overall success cannot be denied.
Could you install a similar desk at your club? Make sure your members have easy access to information about your club’s programs. After all, if they don’t know they exist, or don’t have information about them, they’re not going to participate.
By Linda Mitchell, the director of PR, marketing and charitable giving for Newtown Athletic Club.
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Rachel Zabonick-Chonko is the editor-in-chief of Club Solutions Magazine. She can be reached at rachel@peakemedia.com.
The final key point here is that this concept relies largely on a “sales” approach and system. We are still experimenting with goal setting and incentives for this area, but the overall success cannot be denied.
We have tried and toyed with this idea on and off, but the problem is we are open 5am to 10pm. Do you staff during all hours, or do you stagger staffing? What have you found works best?