Are you a gym owner wondering how to increase your gym member retention? We got you. Check out these 5 tips to keep your members jolly & coming back for more.
What’s gym member retention?
Gym member retention measures how many members a gym can keep over a certain period.
In other words, how many of your members are:
- Happy with your gym services.
- Seeing results.
- Enjoying the overall experience.
- Benefiting from your gym.
And in return, continue to pay their membership so that more money lands in your biz bank.
In fact, member retention starts from the onboarding experience. Did you know that 87% of gym members who experience a positive onboarding experience keep coming back?
The moral of the story is?
First impressions count.
As a gym owner, it’s crucial to have a firm grip on member retention to keep your business running smoothly.
Here’s why.
Why’s gym member retention so important?
It costs five times more to obtain a new client than to keep a current one, and it’s also much easier to convince a current member to stay.
The crux of the matter is that retaining members is way more cost-effective than prospecting for new members.
Now, this doesn’t mean you stop prospecting altogether. Still, you can reduce the costs and resources required to find new members when current members keep paying for your gym services.
Additionally, laser-focusing on current members will spark the growth potential of your gym. Your current members add value, continue to pay, and are very likely to recommend your gym to others if they’re satisfied with your service.
Don’t underestimate how word-of-mouth can usher new clients through your door, and it’s organic with zero cost to your business.
Tips to boost gym member retention
It’s a win-win.
Increasing member retention builds a solid business foundation that equips you with choices. An endless fountain of revenue flows into your bank account because happy members keep paying. Therefore, a smaller budget is needed for advertising.
So how do you retain these loyal members?
Let’s have a look.
1. Invest in technology
Let’s face it. In this day and age, fitness studios and gyms need technology to enhance the member experience. You’ll win the member retention game if you add tech to your business model and budget.
When we mean investing in tech, don’t go buy all the software in Silicon Valley. However, you do need to give your members an unrivalled digital app experience that assists them with the following:
- Booking into class quickly for weekly planning.
- Catching a glimpse of the workouts to prepare accordingly.
- Checking who’s in class with them.
- Seamless payment methods.
- Good communication systems.
- Workout and injury tracking for goal maintenance & awareness.
This differentiation from your competitors will make your members feel special, ultimately securing their loyalty to your gym.
And if you make “getting to the gym” an easy ride using the correct technology, your member retention will skyrocket.
2. Member goals and metrics
Goals keep the vibes high. Keeping vibes high retains more members.
How do you do this?
By handing your members the ability to track their progress and achievements.
Ensure the tech you invest in has a feature that can log members’ performance and metrics.
For example,
- A PB deadlift
- Body weight & measurements
- A yoga progression
- Aerobic fitness level
- Benchmark workouts
Give your members the power to analyse their fitness journey through metrics. This will enhance their motivation to stay at your gym and get better results.
3. Personalise the gym experience
There’s nothing worse than feeling like a number instead of a human.
Don’t make the mistake of doing this to your members. Ensure you’re always searching for new ways to personalise the member experience at your gym.
For example, send members emails that address them directly. Or send them a birthday message on their special day.
Remember, your clients are handing their hard-earned cash to you. If you make them feel special, it will automatically justify their spending.
4. Monitor member attendance by using insights
No better way to improve than learning where to improve.
Finding a leak in your business model will assist in understanding why members are leaving or not coming to class.
For instance, you’ve noticed a low member attendance every Monday at 5 pm for the last 8 weeks. Bear in mind this is a peak class time.
How did you pick this up?
Maybe you noticed this issue by observing, but what if you didn’t grasp this with the naked eye or hear about it from your staff?
Negative trends have a sneaky rep of sliding under the radar, even with your best efforts to squash them. Often, you only pick them up when it’s too late.
To avoid this, start using innovative gym management software that gives you valuable insights to spot these negative trends so you can stop them in their tracks.
Using software to detect adverse trends keeps you proactive in making the changes to limit membership cancellations.
In other words, find the leak and plug it.
5. Ask for feedback
It’s super easy.
All you have to do is ask your loyal members for feedback on how you can improve as a gym owner and gym biz.
You’ll receive invaluable advice and suggestions from those who utilise your service daily. Who better to ask than your members themselves?
Best way to do this:
- Reviews & testimonials
- Questionnaires
# Reviews
Positive reviews and testimonials immediately endorse your fitness biz.
In fact, 88% of consumers trust reviews as much as personal recommendations. You can showcase these marvellous reviews and testimonials on your website as social proof.
Don’t be afraid of getting a few negative reviews. Every business has its chance to experience this. In the end, you cannot make everyone happy, and even though negative reviews stink like sweaty gym socks, you can learn a lot from them.
# Questionnaires
Another great way to learn and adapt is by handing your members a questionnaire on how you can improve the gym service.
For example, if you receive feedback that your gym needs better hygiene standards, then make sure that’s a project added to the top of your list.
Asking for feedback gives you the tools to change anything that’s making your members unhappy. Listening to their feedback, even if it’s negative, will assist in making your business better for all. You’ll retain more members because they’ll feel heard and answered.
In essence
Gym member retention is vital to keep cash streaming into your business.
It’s an indication that members want to be part of your gym because:
- They feel valued & heard.
- Their needs are met.
- The experience is top-notch.
- Results are achieved.
Grow your community, build your brand identity and get your member retention to a happy place by requesting this gym management software demo.
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