| IHRSA Report | Ask the Entrepreneurs
The Gift that Keeps On Giving
How do you keep members coming to your club during the busy holiday season?
u ANN MORROW, CEO Ellipse Fitness, St. Louis, Missouri
“Everyone’s a Member in December” is a promotion that we offer to attract new members before New Year’s and to hold on to existing members, who tend to slack off during the holidays. We offer boot camp classes at no additional charge and, with the assistance of a local grocery store, nutrition-coaching tours. To accompany the promotion, I came up with a quote that rings true for me: “People who make the time to work out in December will stay committed all year.” I believe that what our clients are looking for is a little bit of encouragement that keeps them moving forward. —|
VICTOR RAVELO, Owner Anytime Fitness, Starke, Florida
u
A constant, year-round effort is required to motivate members who don’t use the club regularly. Nothing is more effective than contacting them directly by phone or e-mail. Our franchise offers software that allows us to easily identify and access contact information for these individuals. Members like to know that they haven’t been forgotten. Often, one outreach attempt is enough to get them back on track. Also, there are some excellent YouTube videos, showing inspirational fitness success stories, which can be sent to them along with an e-mail message to provide additional encouragement. —|
LEIGH ANNE RICHARDS, General Manager MetroFitness, Montgomery, Alabama
u
To keep members motivated during the holiday season, we send out Christmas cards the day after Thanksgiving. Enclosed are two “12 Days of Fitness” passes that they can give to their friends and relatives while they’re visiting during the holiday season. It’s our gift to members for their loyalty, and it’s something they look forward to every year. During this time of year, when people tend to slip away from their healthy habits, several of our personal trainers also challenge clients to a contest to see who can keep from gaining—or even lose—weight between Thanksgiving and New Year’s Day. —|
Editor’s note: If you’d like to be profiled in this column, please contact Kristen Walsh, IHRSA’s senior editor, at
kwalsh@ihrsa.org. 96 Club Business Internat ional | NOVEMBER 2011 |
ihrsa.org
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