NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 10 LETTERS write to reply
Do you have a strong opinion or disagree with somebody else’s views on the industry? If so, we’d love to hear from you – email:
healthclub@leisuremedia.com
mobile marketing: the power of instant connection I was interested to read the experts’ suggestions in your recent marketing feature (HCM Oct 10, p51). For all of their wealth, even the biggest sports clubs have so far failed to wake up to the unique opportunity presented by mobile marketing to nurture their fan bases and drive new revenue. As Generation Y has grown up, the
role of websites and social networking has developed naturally, allowing fans to swap notes about games, players and what they’d like to do to the referee! This brings together fans dispersed across the country, drawing them closer into the game and making them feel part of the wider membership. Text messages are typically opened
“No objective data to substantiate claims about service levels and attrition”
industry must move beyond anecdote to be taken seriously
I read with interest your editorial on low cost clubs (HCM Sept 10, p3). I was particularly interested in two claims: the first regarding increased level of interaction between fitness staff and members due to lack of reception duties, and the second regarding attrition rates. I’ve spent many years reporting
on membership retention and its determinants, and it’s not uncommon for clubs to make claims about service levels and attrition. However, in over 20 years of looking at such claims, I’ve never seen any objective data that substantiates them. Using the very latest data I have access to, it still seems that only one in 10 members who make a club visit will be spoken to by the fitness staff. Are there independent, objective measures of the level of service received by members in low
6
cost clubs? If not, is the industry happy to just accept such claims at face value? We also have to question the validity of
claims about membership attrition, as in general the industry continues to use the wrong metric for this – one that prevents comparisons between clubs and fails to give any indication of the rate at which members leave, or how long they stay. If the industry wants the health sector
to take it seriously, it has to move beyond anecdote. When I show commissioners and policy-makers how clubs calculate attrition in an attempt to show the rate of leaving, they don’t believe me – it’s so obvious to them that it provides a false indication of how long members stay that they don’t understand why it’s being used. melvyn hillsdon associate professor of exercise & health behaviour, university of exeter
Read Health Club Management online at
healthclubmanagement.co.uk/digital
immediately. This presents an incredible opportunity to get up close and personal to fans at very short notice. It offers a cheap and highly effective way to sell leftover tickets or promote a replay event, directly targeting those most likely to be interested. And the more clubs interact with their fans, the more data they can gather – data that can be used to hone future communications. As your feature suggests, this is also
a lesson health clubs can learn when it comes to interacting with their members. gary corbett chair, oxygen8 communications
Texting members could be a great way to build interaction with clubs
november/december 2010 © cybertrek 2010
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