Improving Search Engine Optimization for Your Gym

You’ve likely put a lot of time and effort into building your gym. And you want as many people to walk through your doors as possible. Your website should be the same! It’s your online presence, so think of it like a virtual storefront. And when you improve SEO (search engine optimization), more potential customers have the opportunity to see it.

Ultimately, the goal of SEO is to improve your website’s ranking in search engine listings. This is a critical step because it makes your website more visible organically (versus paid).

Especially in the fitness industry, prospective members will likely do plenty of research before reaching out to schedule an intro. If you want your gym to be on their list of potential new gym homes, build a powerful website and improve the SEO as much as possible.

Your website should be easy to navigate and provide just enough information to get people to take action. Remember, if you answer every question they have, there’s no reason for them to contact you and start the conversation. Need some inspiration? Check out these ten examples of gym websites done right.

Now that you’ve built a great website, let’s get down to business...

Ten Steps to Improve SEO for Your Gym.

Once your powerful gym website is live, it’s time to improve SEO and start driving traffic to it. Here are ten ideas that you can start implementing today.

1. Use Key Words and Phrases on Your Website.

Think about this: When was the last time you searched something in Google and scrolled past the first page of results? When we search a key word or phrase, we want the most relevant information on the topic. And that’s why it’s so important to populate your website with the key words and phrases that your prospective customers are searching for.

Also, make sure you’re optimizing your site’s title tags, meta descriptions, headers and images with relevant keywords. Use descriptive alt text for images. On the technical side, ensure your website loads quickly, has a secure HTTPS connection and is free from technical errors. You can use tools like Google Search Console to identify and fix any issues.

Great news: If you’re a PushPress Grow client, this is already done for you! The Grow team are experts when it comes to gym website hosting. We create fully-optimized websites for our clients to help improve SEO. Want to learn more? Book a demo today!

2. Write an Intro Blog Post.

Google loves fresh content. It shows that your website is constantly evolving and providing value to your audience. And one of the easiest ways to create informative, relevant content is by writing a gym blog.

Start by writing an introductory blog post. Tell prospective members about who you are and what you do. Let your brand voice reflect the vibe at your gym and give people an idea of what the culture is like. Remember to include important key words and phrases. Once you’re ready to share it with the world, check out this help article on how to publish a blog post.

3. Consistently Update Your Blog.

Once your blog page is up and running, it’s time to make a plan for creating new blog posts. Your goal should be to publish consistently, keeping your content fresh. This doesn’t have to be complicated or overwhelming.

Take the same approach you’d suggest to your members with their fitness goals. Start with manageable, achievable goals. When you’re first starting out, aim to publish one blog per month for the first three months. Then, see if you can increase the cadence to two posts per month. The more posts, the faster you’ll improve SEO, but take it at a pace you can handle.

4. Link Your Social Media Accounts.

As most gym owners can attest, social media can be an incredibly effective tool for increasing gym revenue and retention. Your gym social media channels can give prospects an even closer look into your community and culture.

Further, your social channels can help to improve SEO for your website. To do this, simply ensure that each channel - Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, etc. - is linked from your website.

More good news for Grow clients! Did you know you can automate your gym social media posts? It’s true. The PushPress Grow Social Planner allows you to enjoy all the benefits of a rock-solid social marketing campaign while spending your time and energy elsewhere.

5. Optimize for Mobile.

By optimizing your gym website for mobile, you enhance the user experience. This can lead to higher engagement, lower bounce rates and better search engine rankings. And all of these things work together for the growth of your gym.

Mobile optimization includes everything from responsive design (adjusting website content to fit any screen) to mobile-specific features like click-to-call buttons. You can also try geolocation to provide relevant local content or promos for users based on their location.

6. Create Social Media Posts That Direct to Your Website.

Anything that drives additional traffic to your website will help to improve SEO. And social media posts can be a significant part of that strategy.

Whether your posts are informative, educational or entertaining, create a CTA (call to action) that sends your audience to your website. For example, let’s say you’re launching a habit-tracking challenge for current and prospective members. Create a landing page on your website for people to sign up and direct your social posts to that link.

7. Add Your Website to Your Email Signature.

Of all the ideas on the list, this may be the quickest one to improve SEO. Simply update the signature on your emails to include your website. And for a little added emphasis, find a way to highlight the link. This could be a simple as making it bold, changing the color or adding an emoji. No matter what, find a way to make the link stand out from the rest of the copy in your emails.

8. Submit Your Business Website to Directories.

Directories are one of the most powerful options to increase your local SEO. And while this is a similar strategy to normal SEO, location-specific results will be more effective for small businesses like your gym.

Consider submitting your website to as many directories as you can. For example, here are just a few options to get you started:

• Yahoo Directory
• Yelp.com
• Bing
• Google My Business (GMB) - see next item in list
• Yellowpages.com

9. Keep Your GMB Up to Date.

In a recent PushStart by PushPress course, Stu Brauer, owner of WTF Gym Talk, says your Google My Business listing is “one of the most underrated marketing tools out there for anyone who owns a brick and mortar business.”

In fact, here are four tips from Brauer to optimize your listing and improve SEO:

• Consistently Add Photos and Videos. Many gym owners set up their GMB profile and then forget about it. Brauer says it’s important to update it consistently, just like your social media. Ultimately, it shouldn’t be stagnant. He recommends doing a batch dump of videos and photos at least once a month. To make this easy, simply transfer these from your other social media platforms.
• Complete Your Profile. This might sound obvious but it’s easy to overlook sections of your profile as you fill it out. Brauer said the more information you can include, the more likely it will help you rank higher on Google searches. Therefore, fill out every question and update any changes, like operating hours.
• Collect (and Respond to) Reviews. We know online reviews are important. But what a prospective customer really wants to see is how your business interacts with customers. So when someone leaves you a review, take the time to reply to it thoughtfully. Brauer says, “This will show a humanistic side to your business.” (The same is true if you get a negative review. Reply, show empathy and make an effort to make it right).
• Create and Promote Offers. GMB offers business owners the ability to include offers. These can be short-term or evergreen promotions. Oftentimes, gym owners neglect to share current offers here, despite the high visibility. Brauer recommends including all your offers on your GMB profile, which can go a long way in encouraging prospects to act immediately.

10. Take Advantage of Backlinks.

A backlink is a simply a link from another business’ website. In terms of SEO, a backlink tells a search engine that your content is relevant through its connection to other websites and their audience(s).

Think of backlinks as a recommendation or “two thumbs up” from other websites. With that in mind, it’s easy to see how you can improve SEO by obtaining backlinks from relevant sources. The more you have, the more trust you’ll gain as a provider of pertinent information.

In Summary: Higher Traffic, More Leads, Increased Revenue.

In a world where prospective members will do their research online before ever walking through your doors, it’s imperative to have a powerful website. And once you’ve built the site, taking the time to improve SEO will pay off substantially with increased traffic and leads.

Start by building a website that features the key words and phrases your prospects are searching for. Then, include a blog and update it as often as possible. Link your social media accounts and create posts to drive traffic to your website. Add your website link to Fitlink, your email signature and most importantly, local directories like GMB. And finally, take advantage of backlinks from other sites.

This powerful combination of ideas is designed to increase viewership from future members of your gym. By giving them a glimpse into how you can help with solutions, they’re more likely to act, driving revenue and retention for your fitness business.

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