Engage Now: Maximizing Retention for Your Most Profitable Year
We all know it’s cheaper to keep a member than to try and get a new one. In short, it’s good for your business’s profitability to have your members return each month. And, as consumer expectations shift, it’s more important than ever that your gym develops a strategy that ensures your new members stick with you long-term.
This post brings you some of the highlights from our recent webinar on retention, as well as pulling out some key insights from our newest retention eBook. The most important takeaway from both is that member engagement plays a critical role in increasing retention. Engaged members are more likely to continue their membership, buy ancillary services, and refer friends and family to your gym.
Know Engagement Works
What exactly is engagement? Generally, engaged members tend to attend the gym regularly, take part in classes, use equipment, and interact with other members and staff. They may also take advantage of other services and amenities offered by your gym, such as personal training, nutrition coaching, or social events.
Engagement is fundamental to retention. The sooner you can internalize that the better. In this clip from our recent webinar, Bill McBride dives into some of the key statistics that relate to increased engagement and retention.
If members are more likely to stay if they workout 5 times in their first month, how can you best help encourage your new members to reach this threshold?
Focus on Customer Service
Providing excellent customer service will improve your members’ daily experiences exponentially. Members’ experiences are at the core of their decision to renew each month.
In this clip from our webinar, Debra Siena goes so far as to suggest that as a gym owner, you should strive to consider yourself in the hospitatlity industry to best foster retention.
Ensure all your staff are easy to identify and are seen cleaning, interacting, and helping members while on shift. If your front desk associate truly knows your members as they enter your doors it creates a lasting experience. Have your group ex instructors and trainers ready and available to create accountability for members to come back repeatedly
Understand Your Leading KPIs
What moves the needle with your engagement strategy? In this clip from our recent webinar, Rick Mayo dives into case studies that show how powerful it can be for a business to understand the key drivers in making the most effective and measurable results and then focusing on those.
Also, to retain members, hone into the value your membership provides instead of comparing it to local competition outside of your unique niche. Make sure you are moving the needle where it counts on the daily efforts you pour into your business.
If you’d like to level up on your member engagement and retention, take a look at our industry-leading IGNITE Engagement tool.
IGNITE Engagement is a single member-centric app enabling members to book, self-manage, and access content. It includes in-person, digital, and virtual engagement with native integration and real-time connectivity to the ABC IGNITE club management software suite to decrease the total cost of ownership while increasing member lifetime value and wallet share. Book a demo with us, and we’ll show you its magic.
