The time has come, it has arrived. The New Year’s Membership Surge is here for club owners and sales staff to rejoice!
The waves of resolutions have, graciously, come upon your club and new member agreements are being sold left and right.
Any club owner would be happy right now, but not you. Not you, because you realize that New Year’s season really only means preparation season. Like a good marathon, the year is only beginning – and this initial burst of revenue from out of the gate is more about a strong start than a strong finish.
A good club owner understands that the name of the game isn’t how many memberships you can sell, but rather, how many members you can keep coming through the door.
The end-game for a club owner should always be retention – no if’s and’s or but’s.
Here are 3 simple ways to keep your members around the club after the New Year’s Surge.
1. Give your Members Free Stuff
Who doesn’t like free stuff!? Nothing sounds better or creates as much incentive as a free giveaway. The health club industry is unique in that virtually every service and product has the potential to be discounted and sold as a value-addition. The possibilities are endless.
Free training session, free yoga class, free protein smoothie, free anything! Partner with a local business and offer something like a “Free Cheat Day on Us” at your local pizzeria! This is a great way for you to keep your members walking through your doors while building your loyal following.
2. Celebrate their Accomplishments
Always keep in mind the value you provide to your members. Your club is the place where they come to achieve their personal, and sometimes professional, fitness goals. When a member reaches their weight goal or when they best a personal record – you have the perfect opportunity to make them feel valued; to make them feel like their successes are yours!
When a member does something of merit, give them some free publicity on your social media accounts, voice their accomplishment over your intercom system – even the tiniest bit of engagement can go a long way in making your members feel valued and motivated to keep coming back.
3. Invest in Retention
Just as our software provides your club with a tool to manage the day-to-day of your business, there are various tools and services at your disposal designed specifically to help you retain your members. Products such as MiGym and TRP (click on the links to check them out) are solutions aimed directly at improving member retention rates and, as such, provide you with the perfect opportunity to retain members beyond the busy season. A strategic retention investment is crucial to your club’s success.
Let’s be clear.
Any consumer becomes a repeat customer if there’s incentive for them to be. The same rule applies to the health club industry.
For your members to want to come back, your club must be ready and able to provide them with a reason to do so. It’s about creating a loyalty to your brand – building up a solid core of your members that empower and create incentive for other prospects to join.
How do you achieve this? Simple. Your club and its offerings should revolve around your members, not the other way around.
Retaining your members should be the heartbeat of your operation. The ability to retain members, translates into your ability to maintain a steady cash flow. Cash flow is what keeps your business pulse going. It is what, ultimately, defines your ability to stay above and beyond your bottom line.
