INDUSTRY INSIGHTS
lighting – all of which must be designed to make the space intimate but also energetic. Technology is having a crucial influence too. Almost
weekly, it seems, new interactive ‘exergaming’ options hit the market, many of them designed for health club spaces. Great audio-visual technology can enhance exercise and make our clubs better places to be. New research commissioned by Les Mills from The Nielsen Company gives some clues about where this might be going. Nearly two-thirds of our statistically valid sample of 2,400 gym members around the world – including Europe – owns or has access to a gaming device such as a Wii, Xbox 360 or PlayStation. Even among those aged 65 and older, one in 10
owns such a device. One-third of these gym-
goers already use their gaming devices for home exercise. Surely that share will increase as gaming programmers get
even better at merging games, exercise and fun into a single experience. Needless to say, this technology presents
a potential revolution that
challenges the traditional health club model of exercise as hard work.
MORE SOCIAL
Success comes not only from relationships with our customers, but also from building connections between our customers. As my
One-third of gym-goers use a gaming device for home fitness
74
friend and industry consultant Michael Scott Scudder says: “No-one ever left a gym because they made too many friends or were having too much fun.” Group exercise is a good place to start building a social
environment – and it can be lucrative. It’s a truism that most really successful clubs do group exercise very well, and a high percentage of clubs that do group exercise well are highly successful. But group exercise isn’t the only way to build a social atmosphere in health clubs. Other opportunities include: • Small group personal training – six to eight people joining up for PT – can create camaraderie and friendships akin to that of a sports team. Participants renew their training, and gym membership, over and over because of the results they get and the friendships they make. • ‘Clubs within a club’ can build social networks and loyalty. Some clubs host extra activities every night – healthy cooking, wine-tasting, personal development and nutrition lectures, and so on. Other examples include club- organised training for marathons or charity cycle rides.
THE TRUE ‘HEALTH’ CLUB Our third and more difficult task is to move from being the centre of people’s exercise experience to being the centre of their total wellness. True ‘health’ clubs will exist only when we help people grow from interested party to hobbyist to expert to fanatic when it comes to both their own health and the wellbeing of their wider community. You might widen your organisation’s health focus by, for example: • Developing your own regular newsletter with educational tips and inspiration on health, food, exercise and avoiding toxins in the environment. This positions you as more than just a gym – you become a wellness provider. Even if you partner with a local expert and hire a ghostwriter, put your photo and signature on the newsletter and you’re developing a personal relationship with thousands. • Linking your health club to other providers in the community. Host seminars. Educate your staff and have them model and advocate wellness in their one-to-one contacts with members.
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