Congratulations! You made it through the slow summer months!
The final days of summer have come to a close — the kids are back to school and the holidays are just around the corner — and this is the time of year when successful fitness clubs begin ramping up marketing efforts.
While the standard marketing strategies like direct mail, online and Facebook advertising are all good options for your fall marketing strategy, this month, I’d like to talk about three specific audiences that you can target this season.
Students: If you live near a college campus, reach out to the local Greek council about recruiting on-campus ambassadors. Greek organizations are always on the lookout for fundraising and community engagement opportunities, and this allows you the chance to generate new memberships while funding their fraternity or sorority (and it doesn’t hurt that this is ridiculously cost-effective). You provide the promotional materials, mark them accordingly to make sure you know which leads came in from their efforts, and cut them a check at the end.
If you aren’t near a college campus, you can replicate these same efforts with high school clubs and student councils.
Teachers: Once you have the students coming in, how do you reach their teachers? In a lot of school districts, offering a special teacher and faculty rate is enough to earn you an advertisement in the monthly faculty newsletter, or even an old-school payroll stuffer in their paychecks. In other cases, you can sponsor a breakfast on a professional development day and give a brief presentation about your club and the services you provide, specifically for teachers. School personnel typically schedule these events a few months in advance, so contacting your local school district and asking to speak with the head of the teachers union is a good place to start.
Businesses: Make October “Employee Appreciation Month” at your club! Fall is a great time to reengage local business owners and human resources representatives, and present them with a special offer good for the fall months of October and November. This is another fairly affordable grassroots option that is best executed before businesses get wrapped up in year-end priorities.
No matter what your fall marketing plan entails, remember to follow the first rule of marketing — actually have a plan! No matter what size community you live in, or what members you’re targeting, marketing without a plan is like driving without a map. You might get to where you want to go, but there’s probably a faster and more effective way to get there.
By Patrick Strait, communications manager for Snap Fitness.
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Rachel Zabonick-Chonko is the editor-in-chief of Club Solutions Magazine. She can be reached at rachel@peakemedia.com.
