Gym Promotions for the Holiday Season (Black Friday and Cyber Monday)

The holiday season is right around the corner, and gyms across the country are gearing up for the busiest time of the year. From Black Friday through New Year’s Eve, gyms have an opportunity to gain an influx of new members. This is the perfect time to run gym promotions to attract new members—and reward existing ones.

You can tap into the energy and enthusiasm people have for self-improvement and savings with the right holiday promotions. The key is creating offers that provide real value while also driving new membership sign-ups and retention.

With so many great holiday promotion ideas to choose from, it can be tricky to determine which will be most effective for your business. Don’t worry—this blog will help you get started. 

Leveraging Gym Management Software in Your Holiday Marketing

Gym management software (such as ABC Ignite) can provide valuable insights to optimize your holiday gym promotions.

The built-in analytics and reporting in gym management software has the potential to provide you with a detailed view of membership trends and revenue cycles. Armed with these insights, you can pick holiday promotions that align with your members’ interests and drive new sign-ups as well as renewals during the promotional period.

Gym management software also makes it easy to track the performance of different holiday gym promotions in real-time. You see which campaigns effectively increase walk-ins, website conversions, and membership purchases so you can double down on what works. By taking advantage of data and automation, you can confidently create targeted holiday deals that boost your bottom line both during the promotions—and into the new year.

10 Effective Holiday Gym Promotion Ideas to Consider

To help make the most of the holiday season, here are some of the most effective gym promotions to consider:

1. Black Friday and Cyber Monday Deals

Take advantage of the frenzy around Black Friday and Cyber Monday shopping holidays by offering special gym membership deals on these days. Great examples of gym promotions include offers such as:

• 60% off enrollment fees.
• 50% off monthly dues for the first six months.
• 20% off a full year membership.

Remember to promote deals in the week leading up to Black Friday to build interest and excitement. You can also create a sense of urgency by framing it as a limited-time holiday sale on memberships. To maximize sign-ups, use email, social media, and in-club merchandising signs to inform current and prospective members about the upcoming deals.

2. Holiday Membership Bundles

Sweeten the deal by bundling gym memberships with freebies such as personal training sessions, fitness apparel, massage discounts, or nutrition plans. Offer an enticing holiday membership bundle as a limited-time gym promotion to attract new sign-ups.

For example, you could offer 50% off enrollment fees, plus 10 free small group training sessions, three free private yoga classes, a gym bag, water bottle, and $200 towards massage and nutrition services.

The more you can package together at one low price, the more valuable it becomes—and the harder it is for people to turn down.

3. Referral Promotions

One of the best gym promotions to grow your membership during the holidays is through referrals from existing members.

Give your current members an incentive to refer their friends and family by offering a free month of membership for every new member they refer. Make it easy for them by including a referral link they can forward or share on social media.

This is a great promotion to reward your existing members and get new memberships simultaneously. The new member gets a great deal on joining, while your existing member gets rewarded with a free month—it’s a win-win.

4. Buy One, Get One Free

The ‘buy one, get one free’ (BOGO) promo is a tried-and-true way to entice new members.

Offer this deal to anyone who signs up for a monthly membership during the holiday season. For example, if they pay for their first month upfront, the second month is free. This provides a strong incentive to join and offers new members incredible value.

5. Waiving Joining Fees

For people on the fence about joining a gym, enrollment fees can be a barrier that holds them back.

Remove this obstacle by waiving joining fees for anyone who signs up for membership during the holiday gym promotion period. Without this upfront cost, many will find your offer more appealing.

6. One-Week Free Trials

People are often hesitant to join a gym without first experiencing what it’s like. Give potential members the opportunity to try out your facility with no obligations with a free first week. This allows for them to check out the equipment, classes, and trainers while building their confidence when it comes to committing to a membership.

Be strategic with your free week offer by having people sign up for it via email rather than just showing up. This way you can follow up using email marketing and encourage them to join after their trial period.

7. Free Training Sessions

One of the best ways to get new gym members excited about your facility is to offer free sessions with a personal trainer. Having an expert show them how to use equipment and design an exercise program tailored to their goals makes joining much more appealing.

For example, you could promote that new members who join in December get up to five free sessions with a trainer to help get them started on their fitness journey. Ensure your trainers are on board to provide an amazing experience during these sessions, as this will help prove the value of joining.

8. Nutritional Meal Planning

Take your promotions to the next level during the holidays by providing free nutritional meal planning or prep when people sign up for multi-month memberships. This provides tremendous additional value beyond just gym access.

To do this, you could partner with an in-house nutritionist or local meal prep company to provide this service. Offering a full package of fitness and nutrition support to help people reach their health goals in the new year is an impactful incentive. The convenience of having nutritional guidance and meals tailored to their needs will make joining your gym—and sticking with it—much more appealing.

9. Instagram Promotions

Harness the power of social media by running a gym promotion on Instagram to attract new members. Offer a free trial to anyone who reposts one of your videos of trainers demonstrating a workout.

Encourage your current members to take part to really spread the word. Don’t forget to provide them with suggested captions to use when they repost the videos—it’s a great way to ensure they’re promoting your gym and your holiday offer in your brand voice. The more people who share the workout videos, the more potential new members will see the offer.

10. Google Reviews Promotions

Encourage happy members to share their positive experiences on Google Reviews by offering an incentive. Provide members a coupon code for one free month of membership when they leave a four or five star Google Review about your gym.

The reviews will help draw in new members as they research gyms to join. And it helps retain existing members by rewarding them for their loyalty and feedback. To redeem the coupon, have them show you the review they left from their Google account.

Boost Your Gym Business with ABC Ignite

The holidays are the perfect chance to promote your gym and attract new members.

If you’re looking to have your most profitable holiday season ever, consider ABC Ignite — the #1 rated gym management software. ABC Ignite’s analytics, automation, and member engagement tools can optimize your holiday gym promotions and help you run your business more efficiently all year long.  

Give your gym the gift of growth this holiday season by leveraging the powerful capabilities of ABC Ignite.