It is easy to become obsessed with obtaining as many new members as possible, but in today's competitive health club market, you need to make sure you keep the members you already have. Otherwise they will gladly take their money and their loyalty to one of your competitors.
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 collecting new memberships is not important, because it definitely is. But attracting new members should never mean neglecting the members you currently have. It is funny how salespeople are amazingly sweet to guests, but once that guest becomes a member, that salesperson hardly notices them again. Okay, maybe not funny it is actually quite pitiful, considering your members are smart enough to recognize this change in demeanor. Overpromising and under delivering are commonplace in the health club industry these days. It is your mission to make sure this doesn't happen at your fitness center!
What makes your members happy?
Ask each person when they check in at the front desk to fill out a quick survey. Ask both closed-ended questions and open-ended questions, which will allow them to elaborate on what they like and dislike. Question if they have any special requests and be sure to implement 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 everyone, and make it a point every day to get to know a few of your members a little better. Ask how their day is going. Inquire how their family is doing. Introduce them to a new exercise. Have them meet another member with similar interests. Make sure you take care of your existing members and they will do so in return.
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 collecting new memberships is not important, because it definitely is. But attracting new members should never mean neglecting the members you currently have. It is funny how salespeople are amazingly sweet to guests, but once that guest becomes a member, that salesperson hardly notices them again. Okay, maybe not funny it is actually quite pitiful, considering your members are smart enough to recognize this change in demeanor. Overpromising and under delivering are commonplace in the health club industry these days. It is your mission to make sure this doesn't happen at your fitness center!
What makes your members happy?
Ask each person when they check in at the front desk to fill out a quick survey. Ask both closed-ended questions and open-ended questions, which will allow them to elaborate on what they like and dislike. Question if they have any special requests and be sure to implement 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 everyone, and make it a point every day to get to know a few of your members a little better. Ask how their day is going. Inquire how their family is doing. Introduce them to a new exercise. Have them meet another member with similar interests. Make sure you take care of your existing members and they will do so in return.
About the Author:
Curtis Mock has quickly become the go to expert for fitness center marketing advice. You can sign up for his fitness center marketing tip of the week and be sure to take advantage of your starter membership to the amazing fitness center marketing resource site created specifically for fitness center owners.
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