Creating long-term, loyal members is a vital part of building and maintaining a successful fitness business. Seasoned gym owners will confirm the importance of creating such an incredible member experience that people have no choice but to tell everyone they know. That’s why the fifth - and final - stage of the customer journey is advocacy.
This journey consists of five stages, and is the path your prospective members take as they go from being a lead to being a long-term member of your gym. The five stages are awareness, consideration, purchase, retention and advocacy.
The journey is important to understand, not only for analyzing how customers interact with your brand, but for determining the stages where you can improve. In case you missed the first four stages, check out awareness, consideration, purchase and retention here.
Today, we’re giving you all the info you need to rock the advocacy stage.
Five Tips for Gym Owners to Build Raving Fans.
The fitness industry is an extremely competitive landscape. So for gym owners, the value of loyal clients who’ll advocate for you cannot be overstated. From positive brand awareness to gym growth, the benefits of creating raving fans are countless. Check out these five ways to create such loyal advocates.
1. It’s Not About the Workout.
When’s the last time you heard someone rave about their run on the treadmill at the local big box gym?
The bad new is, people can get a workout anywhere. The good news is, you can create a one-of-a-kind experience that they can only get at your gym. And the great news is, that kind of experience is what will make your members tell everyone they know.
Think of it this way: People probably won’t remember the great cue you gave them to fix their squat. But they will definitely remember how you made them feel. And gym owners can find creative ways to provide that feeling through every stage of the customer journey.
Don’t get us wrong, the workout is an important part of what people are looking for. It’s important for members to achieve results in your gym. But think about the difference between providing training and prescribing a plan. If you know about someone’s specific goals and struggles, you can prescribe everything from movements to nutrition coaching to supplements. You can also connect them with like-minded members in your gym community for accountability and motivation. And that’s the difference between a membership and an experience.
2. Celebrate Your Members.
Celebrating milestones and PRs can be a game-changer for gym owners as they aim to create an incredible member experience.
Here are just a few examples:
- Use social media to share members’ stories or successes.
- Encourage community connection by sharing achievements in the Social Feed in the PushPress Members App.
- Host an annual awards banquet or member appreciation night.
- Send automated birthday or gym anniversary celebration texts in PushPress Grow.
- Start a committed club to recognize and reward consistency.
In terms of advocacy, an important focus is creating sharable content. Whenever you’re celebrating members or their achievements, make it as easy as possible for your members to share. That way, their friends and family are more likely to ask questions, prompting referrals.
Pro Tip: Automated workflows in PushPress Grow can save you time while celebrating your members. Want to find out more? Book a demo with our team today!
3. Results Drive Referrals.
The majority of your members came through your doors looking for results. They trust that gym owners know their stuff when it comes to fitness and nutrition. So in order to deliver the help they came in for, you have to help them get results.
If you can do that, the advocacy stage comes naturally. Think about that friend you haven’t seen in awhile that shows up for a coffee date looking fitter. What’s the first thing you say?
“Wow, you look great. What have you been doing?”
By helping your members get stronger and fitter, you’re opening the door for them to have referral conversations. Sometimes it’s hard for people to invite friends or family to the gym. But when the results are noticeable, people might just start inviting themselves!
4. If You Want Advocacy, Ask.
Sometimes, gym owners have all the pieces in place. Their members are getting results. They’re providing an extraordinary experience. They consistently share success stories on their gym social media. But if the referrals aren’t flowing in, they may be missing one critical step.
Tell your members what you want them to do. Be direct about asking them for referrals.
Many times, gym members don’t even realize that you’re looking for new clients. Other times, they might need an incentive. Either way, it’s critical to make it as simple as possible for them to invite friends and family.
Whether that’s creating an effective referral program or a simple, automated workflow to communicate the ask multiple times, the bottom line is to actually ask.
5. Let Merchandise Do the Talking.
For gym owners, advocacy is all about generating as many ideas as possible for members to spark up conversations about your business. Branded merchandise is a great way to get those conversations going outside the walls of your gym.
Maybe your members are reppin’ the new apparel design. Or they have a gym-branded Yeti sitting on their desk at work. Fun options like this will often lead to conversations, and open the door for your gym community to invite their connections in.
Pro Tip: Ready to build brand awareness and generate revenue with a new apparel order? Use PushPress Core to place a pre-order so you have just the right amount of inventory!
In Summary: Advocacy is Essential for a Gym Owner’s Success.
The final step in effectively ushering your customers through each phase of their journey is driving advocacy. In the competitive fitness landscape, word-of-mouth referrals from your community will always win over other forms of marketing.
Remember that it’s not about the workout. If you can create a one-of-a-kind experience for your members, they’ll tell everyone they know. Celebrate their milestones and PRs, and share their successes with the world outside your walls. Helping them get results will encourage others to ask what they’re doing to get those results. Don’t be afraid to be direct with asking your members to invite family and friends. And finally, throw in some branded merchandise to build brand awareness and generate revenue.
