It's easy to become obsessed with getting as many new members that are possible, but in today's competitive health club market, you need to ensure you hang on to the members you already have. Otherwise they will gladly take their money and their loyalty to another gym.
It's likely you have heard that it is 7 times more expensive to gain a new member than it is to keep an existing member happy. And you really don't have to make them "happy", you simply have to keep them content. The most important thing is to impress them enough that they renew or continue on their roll-over membership. Let's look at that for a moment. Would you rather spend $10,000 for marketing or $70,000 for marketing, if both would generate the same amount of member revenue? Obviously you would rather spend seven times less to get the same results!
That's not to say that bringing in new memberships is not important, because it most certainly is. But attracting new members should never come to neglecting the members you currently have. It's funny how salespeople are sticky sweet to prospects, but once that guest becomes a member, that salesperson rarely notices them again. Okay, maybe not funny it is actually quite depressing, considering your members are intelligent enough to recognize this change in behavior. Overpromising and under delivering are quite common in the health club industry these days. It is your job to make sure this does not happen at your gym!
Notice what makes your members happy.
Question everyone when they check in at the front desk to fill out a short survey. Ask both closed-ended questions and open-ended questions, allowing them to elaborate on what their concerns are. Ask if they have any recommendations and be sure to follow them, within reason.
If you are with a prospect and a member requests your assistance, be sure to oblige the member. The prospect will not be upset. Rather, they will notice that your paying members are valued and are taken care of. If you take that extra moment to help your existing member in front of your prospect, you can then use it as a selling feature. "I'm sorry. At least you should feel good that we would drop anything to help one of our members!"
Always pay attention to your members, always say hello and goodbye to each member, and make it a point every day to get to know some of your members a bit better. Ask them how their day is going. Ask how their family is. Teach them a new exercise. Introduce them to other members with similar interests. Ensure that you take care of your existing members and they will always take care of you. - 26221
It's likely you have heard that it is 7 times more expensive to gain a new member than it is to keep an existing member happy. And you really don't have to make them "happy", you simply have to keep them content. The most important thing is to impress them enough that they renew or continue on their roll-over membership. Let's look at that for a moment. Would you rather spend $10,000 for marketing or $70,000 for marketing, if both would generate the same amount of member revenue? Obviously you would rather spend seven times less to get the same results!
That's not to say that bringing in new memberships is not important, because it most certainly is. But attracting new members should never come to neglecting the members you currently have. It's funny how salespeople are sticky sweet to prospects, but once that guest becomes a member, that salesperson rarely notices them again. Okay, maybe not funny it is actually quite depressing, considering your members are intelligent enough to recognize this change in behavior. Overpromising and under delivering are quite common in the health club industry these days. It is your job to make sure this does not happen at your gym!
Notice what makes your members happy.
Question everyone when they check in at the front desk to fill out a short survey. Ask both closed-ended questions and open-ended questions, allowing them to elaborate on what their concerns are. Ask if they have any recommendations and be sure to follow them, within reason.
If you are with a prospect and a member requests your assistance, be sure to oblige the member. The prospect will not be upset. Rather, they will notice that your paying members are valued and are taken care of. If you take that extra moment to help your existing member in front of your prospect, you can then use it as a selling feature. "I'm sorry. At least you should feel good that we would drop anything to help one of our members!"
Always pay attention to your members, always say hello and goodbye to each member, and make it a point every day to get to know some of your members a bit better. Ask them how their day is going. Ask how their family is. Teach them a new exercise. Introduce them to other members with similar interests. Ensure that you take care of your existing members and they will always take care of you. - 26221
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Curtis Mock has quickly become the guru for fitness center marketing advice. You can sign up for Curtis Mock's fitness center marketing tip of the week and be sure to take advantage of your trial membership to the powerful fitness center marketing resource site created specifically for fitness center owners.
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