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Apr 25
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Handling late cancellations for your fitness business

By Fitness business management archives and news, Gym and studios

Throughout my many years managing big-box health clubs and consulting with other fitness businesses of all types, the issue of how to effectively handle cancellations was always top of mind.

Cancellations can be a major hindrance to any fitness business.  The amount of lost revenue that adds up if you’re not properly protected can reach staggering numbers.

But the issue with how to handle cancellations can go deeper than just the loss of revenue.  How you approach the conversation with your members or clients is one of the most critical, yet sensitive topics to have.  So in essence, this isn’t just an accounting issue, it’s also deeply rooted in customer service and speaks to you, your culture, and how you run your business effectively.

How many times has this happened to you… You get up at 5am, throw on some clothes, and get to work just in time for your 6am client. You might arrive a few minutes early and get the chance to check your email when low and behold, at 5:40am there’s an email from your 6am client stating they had to cancel. Great way to start of the day, huh?

This is why it’s critical that you protect yourself and your business with a policy that works. Now depending on what type of business you run and whether it’s a class setting, SGT, one on one training, there can be a lot of variations.  For training clients, typically what I’ve seen work best is a 24-hour cancellation policy – sent from the client to the studio owner, gym owner, or trainer, etc…IN WRITING. Anything less than 24 hours they get charged, simple and straightforward.

For class settings, this can vary widely.  Some businesses provide a window of being able to cancel anywhere from 4 hours up to 10 hours before class without penalty.  If the participant of the class goes past that time frame, I’ve seen a small penalty assessed (anywhere from $5-$20) depending on where you’re located and what is the norm.  Additionally, if it goes past the allowed cancellation time many fitness businesses employ a strict “no-show” policy where the participant is billed $15-$30 (sometimes more).

There are many variations of these policies, but it’s critically important to have one in place. Do not fall victim to the “nice guy” mentality when a client might try and guilt trip you out of charging them.

To go one step further, I did a lot of research through our member base here at the  Fitness Business Association (FBA) and spoke with numerous types of fitness businesses and below are four ways to handle the conversation with clients or class participants.

Make sure, as a business owner yourself, you implement these strategies asap.

  1. “It’s all about setting up expectations from the start. It’s on the bottom of every email I send underneath my signature. If there’s no confusion about the policy, they won’t question it.”
  2. “I say that this policy is in place ‘to protect my time and our instructors’ time’. The most important thing to say though is that judging cancellations on a case-by-case basis would be completely unprofessional and compromise our integrity. Otherwise, your clients will think you will make a special exception for them because their situation is special.”
  3. “Here is a rough outline of what I say to clients. Sometimes I soften it up if I’m talking to clients I know well…As you know, we have a 24-hour cancellation policy here for all training sessions so you will be charged for the session you missed today. I set time aside and prepare for each appointment I have and I’m only paid for the appointments that I complete, so, this policy is in place to protect my time. Judging cancellations on a case-by-case basis would be completely unprofessional so I apply the policy uniformly and fairy to all my clients. I’m sure you can understand how important this is in terms of protecting my professional integrity.”
  4. “In an attempt to be as understanding and flexible as possible, I always allow my clients to make up this session within the week that they canceled if there is a time that works conveniently for both our schedules. So let me know if and when you would be free to make it up. Thanks for your understanding”

As you can see from the above examples, it’s a sensitive topic that should be handled with care.  The last thing you want is to make your client feel embarrassed at any point in time.  You never want these types of conversations to happen in public and should always be handled privately.

Remember, whether you’re training in your home, at a studio or gym, if you run your own studio, gym, or club – you are a business and you need to protect your business.  It’s never too late to integrate one of these policies into your business.

 

Apr 25
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How to thrive as a personal trainer: What’s your niche?

By Fitness business management archives and news, Gym and studios

How do you ensure your job as a personal trainer is benefitting your clients and is highly rewarding for you, too? Here, FitPro, the largest organisation in the UK for fitness professionals, dives deep into how you can thrive – and not just survive – as a personal trainer.

Personal training is a career of early starts and late finishes. Let’s face it: it’s not just a job, it’s a lifestyle. It’s not unheard of for 50 hours spent at the gym to translate into 25 hours of actual personal training – there are often gaps between clients, even if you’re a whizz with the scheduling.

However, a savvy personal trainer will use this time well, getting the admin and client programming done and performing their own workouts. After all, personal training is a strenuous business. PTs must be robust and comfortable being on their feet all day, providing demonstrations of technique, which requires a lot of practice. Not to mention being sociable and energetic all day!

To be a successful personal trainer, you need to gain the right qualifications. Most courses begin with a Gym Instructor (Level 2) qualification, which gives you the basics, before moving on to the Personal Trainer (Level 3) qualification to upgrade your knowledge and coaching skills so you can work with people on a one-to-one basis. There are also specialist qualifications, some of which we will mention here. You also need to be insured, which is a legal requirement for a personal trainer.

So, let’s discover which type of personal trainer you are and how you can thrive in your chosen specialism.

There are many niches to explore as a personal trainer. If you can discern early on what type of coach you’d like to be – for example, working with special populations, athletes or aspiring beach bodies – you can concentrate on building a strong business model with specific skillsets gained through qualifications, plus a solid understanding of the area you’d like to work in. Let’s take a look at a few of those areas here and how you can thrive in them:

1. Special populations

Special populations are diverse. You may choose to work with pre- or postnatal women to facilitate a healthy birth, pregnancy and start to motherhood, or you may work with children to encourage a lifelong love of exercise. Perhaps providing disabled people with training opportunities that support a healthy life is what moves you, or you may choose to work with the ageing population, helping elderly people to enjoy activity in their later years and reap the benefits it brings. Alternatively, you may wish to support those who have been ill or injured, working on a referral basis with other professionals to help clients return to doing things they enjoy. Each avenue offers unique challenges for you.

To thrive as a special population’s personal trainer, you should:

  • meet your client where they are – at their current level of ability – while planning progressive, smart training programmes to aid their development
  • build trust – being patient, a great communicator and having the ability to inspire will help you to build trust with your client
  • know your onions when it comes to your client’s specialist area. Do your homework – but don’t overstep the mark. Refer back to other professionals if you need to
  • build a support network around yourself – having other health professionals you trust and can refer out to gives your client a wider scope of treatments and solutions.

Useful qualifications for a personal trainer working with special populations include Level 3 Exercise Referral; FAI; ViPR Active Ageing; ViPR Kids; and Pre- and Postnatal.

2. Sports specific

Whether you work with elite, semi-professional or recreational athletes, as a sports-specific PT you will be tasked with finding the margins that help make the difference between winning and losing. You’ll need to work well with other team members, such as coaches, managers and physios, to collectively create the ultimate grounding for success.

To thrive as a sports-specific PT, you should:

  • support your client to fulfil their athletic potential, strengthening movement patterns and energy systems that are particular to the sport and athlete
  • be able to work in conjunction with other professionals to create a team around the athlete
  • perform a lot of research into the specific sport you will be coaching athletes for, along with its movement and energy requirements
  • remain up to date with the latest scientific research
  • learn the skill of planning training blocks to work with the sporting calendar and competition needs
  • build trust and rapport with your athlete to create a successful programme.

Useful qualifications for a sports-specific personal trainer include strength and conditioning courses; Olympic weightlifting courses; and SAQ courses.

3. Body transformation

The primary goal of a body transformation PT is to help their clients look better. However, achieving aesthetic goals also increases people’s confidence, self-esteem and self-worth, as well as improves fitness and health. Achieving a weight-loss goal may also help a client to feel mentally stronger and improve classic health markers, such as the risk of heart problems and diabetes.

Once clients achieve their targets, body transformation coaches can progress their clients’ achievements further, for example, building and sculpting muscle or reducing body fat.

To thrive as a body transformation PT, you should:

  • understand muscle anatomy, and how to isolate and train target groups in a variety of different ways
  • understand metabolism and how to provide clients with the best nutrition plans to achieve the transformation
  • help and support clients to change their behaviours so they can make long-term, sustainable changes
  • be brilliant at motivation, to enable clients to remain engaged with their programme
  • be able to market yourself in a visual way to demonstrate the outcomes your programmes can achieve.

Useful qualifications for a body transformation PT include nutrition courses; behaviour change courses; and weight management courses.

4. Health and performance

Working as a health and performance personal trainer is great for those who want to help improve their clients’ health and fitness, feel stronger and fitter, move better and enjoy a more active lifestyle (often without pain or discomfort) – from playing with the grandkids to getting outside for long hikes and everything in between. Health and performance PTs will also work with clients who are recovering from injury or illness and feel they need some extra help to get them to where they want to be.

To thrive as a health and performance PT, you should:

  • understand human movement and, therefore, be able to identify and address movements and systems that require improving
  • be able to progress and regress exercises in creative ways to suit the needs of each individual client – one size does not fit all – finding bespoke ways to help clients overcome their barriers with confidence
  • bring a fun element to your functional training
  • be able to communicate with clients honestly and clearly, explaining the complexities of the human body in a way a client can understand.

Useful qualifications for an HPC include Biomechanics Method; Pain-Free Movement Specialist; ViPR LMT1 and 2.

Whatever your choice of specialism as a PT, it’s important to keep moving forward, adding to your skillset and reviewing your knowledge. Read more about FitPro’s courses here.

 

 

 

 

Apr 25
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Personal trainer

Switching to Gymcatch: some answers to common questions

By Fitness business management archives and news

Switching to Gymcatch is super easy for both; you and your customers. We have helped many fitness professionals make the switch with ease so that they can do more of what they love. Here are some of the most common questions we get asked. 

I don’t want to pay for two systems at once. When do I start paying?

Gymcatch is free for the first month so you have a full month to transition from your old system. If you need longer to transition, just speak to our team who will be able to help you. We don’t want you to be paying until you’re ready!

Is it easy to move my clients over to Gymcatch?

Yes we make it easy for you to import your client base, to create accounts for your clients and for clients to create their own accounts and find you on Gymcatch.  Switching to Gymatch is super easy, there are step by step guides for whichever route you want to use.

Do you have support?

Yes we have live support during office hours and you can book an appointment with our team at any time.

If clients have pre-paid on my old system, can this be reflected in Gymcatch?

Yes, if you have clients who have bought memberships or blocks (or any other product) from you, you can add the equivalent product to their account on Gymcatch. Then when they log in, they’ll see that service there.

How long does it take to set up my Gymcatch account?

Setting up on Gymcatch can take as little as few minutes depending on how the complexity of your business model. If you have a busy schedule and lots of different pricing structures it will take a little longer but even the most complex businesses should be up and running in an hour or so. And if there’s anything you’re struggling with we have set guides for all our features, and a support team ready to take your questions.

How can Gymcatch do what I need for so much less than my old system?

We’ve got a different business model to many of our competitors. We’re priced so that basically any independent fitness and wellness business can afford to use us. So we cost between £10 and £24 / month with no additional costs.

We would rather have more customers paying less whereas more expensive systems concentrate on serving a smaller number of businesses who can pay more.

We don’t compromise on core functionality though. So you get native mobile apps and all the core features an independent fitness and wellness business needs.

But what we don’t offer are features that only a small percentage of our customers will use. But for the core features for you and your clients that has everything you need – we’ve got it covered.

So our pricing isn’t a catch with either an inferior service or hidden charges down the road, we just want to keep our prices low and serve a bigger part of the industry.

What if I decide Gymcatch isn’t for me?

First of all we’d recommend giving it time. We don’t necessarily do everything exactly as you are used to and exactly like your previous system does. Sometimes we find that clients don’t realise just how much functionality Gymcatch has when they can’t see it straight away. So check our feature demos and with our support team who can help.

If after all, though, you decided Gymcatch isn’t the right fit for you, then you can cancel any time. There’s no tie-in or minimum contract left.

Ready to switch? Let us help you run your business! Gymcatch is free for the first month so you can test all its features and functionality. Start saving time, money and increase your revenue!

If you want to start saving time, money and increase your revenue check out our fitness and wellness booking software for more information.

 

Mar 22
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In-person fitness class

How to price your in-person fitness classes

By Fitness business management archives and news, HIIT and group

Pricing your in-person fitness classes is probably one of the most difficult decisions you have had to make for your business. Here, personal trainer, Anna Martin shares her top tips on setting your prices right.

Know your area and your target market

Every area has a price ceiling. This is going to differ depending on where you are and your local demographics. So it’s important to benchmark your price against other local fitness providers. The closer the service the better the comparison.

For example, while you can compare the price of small group training at a gym to the price of a dance fitness class, you have acknowledged that it’s a different experience and market and the client’s willingness to pay will differ. It’s important to understand what’s driving fitness consumers’ decisions to buy your services.

Most of us want to charge a fair price: provide a great service that offers the client value, but which also makes us feel valued, appreciated, and attributing a price to your own effort, skills and experience.

Within reason, price is not among the primary factors when clients are buying fitness. Don’t make the mistake of thinking that as long as you’re cheap, you’ll get full classes.

Value your skills, education and experience

If you’ve been teaching for a while, you have accumulated a set of skills. Those skills are a combination of the education earned as well as the experience you’ve gained from all the days in the trenches helping different bodies stay fit and well.

This should be considered when setting up your prices. Just because someone locally is charging less than you, don’t feel you need to price match. If you’re offering something better, charge more!

Likewise, if you are supplying quality equipment to do the class you should charge for that (and make sure your clients know they are getting the best kit). Similarly, if you are providing a service that is capacity-constrained, and therefore are restricted on numbers, that will probably also mean that you will need to increase the class price.

Don’t be embarrassed at increasing your pricing for your fitness classes. You’re not ripping-off customers: if you’re providing a quality product your client base will have no problem paying a proper price for it.

Keep a close eye on your overheads

Work out what you need to make from that class in order to make it worth you doing it (after all you have bills to pay too) and then calculate any per head or per hour cost that you may need to charge in order to make it profitable.

Include all your overheads too. Your travel, your admin time, your client support outside of the class, marketing, insurance, licenses etc.: it’s not just the hire of the venue and the time spent at the front of the class which your clients need to pay for.

One of the worst things you can do is to go in too low because you’re scared to ask for more. It breeds resentment and it’s also self-defeating. And that is the LAST emotion you want to have walking into a room full of people who are there waiting for you to bring the magic.

Your prices will go up, this is a fact of life. You can’t make yourself immune from inflation.

From experience, most price increases in group exercise happen when we need to, not because we would like to. It is unlikely that your price increase isn’t fair, one of the few drawbacks in this industry is that we tend to undersell ourselves when we should value ourselves more.

Increasing your prices is just a matter of good communication. Let them know face to face that it’s going to happen and then email them, giving them plenty of notice (as in weeks or even 1-2 months rather than days). But don’t make a big deal of it.

Make sure everyone knows in a thorough way, let them know when the prices will increase and to what, then move on. What you don’t want or need is spending months or weeks talking about your prices.

It’s a distraction and it’s boring and it’s not what your clients are paying for. You might lose the odd client. But it’s far better to lose the odd client at your new price than hang on to those clients charging an unsustainable amount.

Keep things simple

A common mistake that fitness instructors make is to create overly complicated pricing structures, often to try and be all things to all people. This is often self-defeating.

While lots of us are creatures of habit and show a bit of reluctance to change, you should not tie yourself to running your business in a way you don’t want to, just because you are worried about changing things up for certain clients.

Communicate clearly, explain why you need to change the way you run your business and your clients will understand and change. Spare yourself, bespoke pricing, making bookings for people, bank transfers etc. Advertise a fair, simple, and transparent price structure and ask clients to get onboard.

If you don’t give them a choice they will. If you are timid and do give them a choice, people will instinctively want to stick to what they know. That’s not because the way they do it is better, it’s just because it’s what they are used to and they don’t like change!

Lastly, now that you have worked out the right pricing for your fitness classes is time to think about your lead generation strategy and how to get more customers through the door.

For more information on Gymcatch group fitness business software and how it can help your yoga, pilates, dance or personal training business. Get in contact to book a demo or start a free month.

Mar 08
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International Women's Day

International Women’s Day fitness heroes

By Fitness marketing and social archives and news

We’ve gathered some of our favourite fitness and wellness heroes for you who live and inspire by doing it their way.

International Women’s Day is a great excuse for us to pay tribute to the women empowering other women through fitness and wellness. Our fitness and wellness heroes come from all over the world, they lead, influence and inspire in different ways, but the one thing they have in common is that special ability to motivate others.

This years’ International Women’s Day campaign #BreakTheBias celebrates a world free of bias, stereotypes, and discrimination.

We’ve gathered some of our favourite fitness and wellness heroes for you who live and inspire by doing it their way.  Also visit our fitness and wellness booking software page for more information.

  1. Kayla Itsines

Kayla is an Australian Personal trainer, co-founder of @SWEAT and creator of the Bikini Body Guide (#BBG). She has made a name for herself in the fitness industry with championing body positivity and the release of #BBG, a 12-week programme with its own hashtag.

Her SWEAT app alone has amassed over 30 million downloads according to Techcrunch with over a million people using it on a monthly basis.

Kayla joined the body positivity movement very early on helping women recognise that everyone is unique and that there is more than one path to health and happiness.  She has been helping millions make health and fitness a part of their life and currently has one of the largest fitness communities out there.

  1. Brittne Babe

Former track athlete and now queen of home workouts, Brittne has helped thousands of women with her no excuses approach. In the past 10 years in industry, Brittne has partnered with STRONG by Zumba, Gymshark and Women’s Best to name a few. She launched an online 21 Day Challenge and the Brittcamp.

Brittne is an influencer who has gained her name due to her very impressive fitness skills. She showcases this well on her YouTube channel giving tons of inspiration for easy-to-do yet effective home workouts.

  1. Natacha Oceane

Youtuber and fitness influencer from London, Natacha has made a name for herself with the release of her science-based training guide, CUT, which has become very popular among her followers. She has now released 4 guides since.

Natacha makes plyometrics look super easy and shares her training routine including recipes, daily. The combination of her exercises has many benefits such as stimulating metabolism and increasing strength.

Last May Natacha donated all her May’s YouTube ad revenue to support causes fighting racism.

  1. Davina McCall

Former Big Brother UK presenter, Davina has been showing off her age-defying body across social channels with workout videos and recipe ideas. Her goal is to encourage everyone in the UK to be healthier and more active whilst having fun.

Over the past few years, Davina has become a UK fitness influencer and has gone to launch Own Your Goals. Most recently she announced a partnership with @Actionmedres for her charity ride Davina’s Big Sussex Bike Ride this July, raising money for sick babies and children.

  1. Cassey Ho

Creator of Pop Pilates, a fusion workout consisting of highly-focused movements, Cassey has helped over 5m people transform their bodies online. These days Pop Pilates has become a global sensation and has one of the largest fitness communities out there.

Her mission to get people stronger hasn’t changed since she launched her YouTube channel and she has been claimed to modernise Pilates, making it truly accessible to everyone following her.

  1. Cat Meffan

Ex-gymnast and dancer now turned yoga teacher, Cat first launched a fitness and travel blog named Imperfect Matter before launching My Soul Sanctuary. My Soul Sanctuary is a platform to inspire yoga practice and personal growth where she shares daily affirmations or mantras and yoga poses.

She has had collaborations with some big fitness brands including Nike, Sweaty Betty and Zico Coconut Water.

  1. Tara Mia Simich

Founder of The Jungle Body a global movement-to-music company offering a range of soul-igniting and beat-driven fitness programmes for everyone in 20 countries around the globe. Tara became addicted to group fitness whilst living in New York and attending fitness classes. On her return to Australia, she was determined to create a fun and sweat workout programme and Konga was born.  A total of eight programmes have since then been created The Jungle Body’s mission is to empower women to feel good about themselves.

  1. Rachael Brathen

Originally from Sweden, Rachael attended her first meditation retreat at age 18. From there she continued visiting yoga studios very week looking to get rid of some the begative memories from childhood.

She then went on to found in 2010 the Yoga Girl®. A movement looking to provide support for healing and expand self-love. The Yoga Girl culture is to allow each person to be who they truly are and it has now a vast community of dedicated practitioners from all over the world.

  1. Charlee Atkins

Charlee is a New York City-based fitness expert, certified by both ‘Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist’ and ‘Certified Functional Strength Coach’. Her time at SoulCycle led her to set up Le Sweat, and what initially started as a fitness blog quickly evolved into a community of fitness enthusiasts.

She inspires thousands of people to move daily through motivational posts and informational videos. In 2020 she launched Le Sweat app TV.

She has been featured in top magazines such as Women’s Health, Cosmopolitan and Men’s Health.

  1. Wendy Ida

Wendy pushes the standard to prove that age is just a number. At 65 years old she holds two Guinness World Records, one for the Oldest Active Instructor and the other for the most burpees in one minute, a whopping 37.

However, Wendy didn’t start her fitness journey until she reached 43 years of age in a quest to lose weight and overcome a past abusive relationship. Today she holds an incredible record with top awards at NPC Body Building and Figure Championships.

  1. Svava Sigbertsdottir

Icelandic-born Svava is an advocate that if you want things to happen, you must step up and make it happen. She released The Viking Method after trying many different fitness concepts and realising that a combination of them all would give her the lean tight body she was after.

For Svava however is not about looking a certain way but rather feeling confident, powerful, agile, strong and quick. A bold warrior at heart, Svava brings her Viking roots to her training and encourages people everywhere to show up for themselves.

  1. Brooke Siler Pilates

Author of The New York Times’ best-seller The Pilates Body and creator of Tensatoner™️. Fitness trainer to the stars include supermodels Kate Moss, Liv Tyler and Amber Valetta.

Brooke is at the forefront of the Pilates community having trained with protégée Romana Kryzanowska at Drago’s Gym in New York.

  1. Nadia Alkoc

Zumba®️Jammer and personal trainer, Nadia brings great energy to her social media accounts with her vibrant style flying the flag for all Zumba enthusiasts in Scotland and beyond.

  1. Claire Burlison

Founder of one of the biggest fitness concepts in the UK, Clubbercise a dance class with neon lights and uplifting club anthems.  Claire set up her business in 2013 and what started with 2 friends now has around 100,000 people train every week to the biggest and best dance tunes.

Claire is an inspiration to all those women out there who start a business from scratch and have the vision and determination to make it a success.

  1. Rachel Holmes

Group fitness educator and presenter, choreographer, coach and mentor. With over 30 years in the fitness industry, Rachel helps fitness professionals build a successful business and teach amazing fitness classes. Rachel has released over 50 instructional DVDs and many fitness programs for the fitness industry.

Rachel’s extensive knowledge in both the applicable fitness world and the operational aspect of growing a business means that she can be a valuable resource for anyone looking for the next steps.

For more information on our dance class management software and how it can help your yoga, pilates, dance or personal training business. Get in contact to book a demo or start a free month.

 

dance class management software

Feb 21
Love0
On-Demand fitness library

How to create an on-demand fitness library

By Fitness business management archives and news

Have you been considering creating an online fitness library? You probably have lots of questions about where to start, what software to use, how to price your videos, and how to sell them.

We asked Anna Martin, Personal Trainer and owner at AMF World to give us the inside knowledge on how to create inspiring video content to grow your business.
 

1.Stay tuned to your audience

The first port of call is to listen to your audience. Find out what people actually want and why they want to get it from you. Ask your target audience about class styles, how they want to access it alongside ideal workout duration times workouts to be, how they want the workouts to be delivered and what other information they would want alongside those workouts to make it super effective. Remember your clients want to be told what to do and on what day so point them to the right place in your library As a business owner, the more information and feedback you can receive from your client, the easier it becomes to guide them to the right content in your library.

2.Consider your business goals and how On-Demand fits in

Is this something you want to use in conjunction with live or streamed classes? Is this a completely stand-alone product reaching a different market? Are you making it for a specific business client? What your goals are for this product will dictate how you decide to put it together. If you want it to work in conjunction with something you are already doing, then you need to work out how this integrates and interacts with what you are doing.

For example, are these On-Demand workouts going to be completely different to what you have on your timetable? Or are they designed to be there for those that couldn’t make it to the live classes?  Once you have worked out what the purpose of your On-Demand section is, it will be much easier to form a vision of how you want it to look.

3.Finding the right video solution

Not every fitness professional has a natural aptitude or inclination to digitise their services, the majority would much rather be focusing on running classes and sessions over getting to grips with a new piece of business software. If even the mere thought of introducing tech to your business leaves you in a cold sweat, the chances are you need a simple solution or someone to do it for you. An easy-to-use and affordable platform such as Gymcatch enables fitness professionals to package and sell their products online.

This could be a collection of videos stored on something like YouTube, Facebook Groups or Vimeo platform, then offering the service through your website might be preferable. Check out Wix and V-Healthy for video solutions but there are many more ways of doing it.

4. Monetising from your fitness video content

Are you planning to charge a monthly or weekly subscription? Or are you going to charge per video or per series of videos? This will be impacted by the areas we have talked about in the points above. How will you collect payment? Do you have personal training booking software that can handle recurring payments, or would it be easier to charge one collection at a time? Charging per project or per video may take the pressure off in terms of content creation but a subscription may give you a more reliable sideline.

Check out the point below before you make a decision. Obviously, we are not all providing our fitness expertise and content for people out of the goodness of our hearts so working out how you are going to charge for your services is important. Many fitness professionals charge weekly or monthly subscriptions whilst many others charge per video or per bundle of videos. Whilst charging per project can take the pressure away from the content creation side, a subscription service ensures a more reliable revenue stream.

4.Distributing your video content

If you provide a subscription, what’s your release schedule going to be like? If you say you’re going to release videos every month or week then you have to release those videos if people are already paying for them upfront. From experience, I would always start on the lower side so you’re underselling what you will do and exceeding clients’ expectations. If you promise to release five new videos a week and then you only manage three a month, people will be disappointed. If you edit your own videos rather than just recording them live and leaving them up, factor in the time it’s going to take to get those done.

The most important thing is that this is a viable source of income or client retention, avoid letting it become a viable source of stress by overestimating what you’re able to achieve – especially if you are a one-man-band. When distributing your content my main piece of advice is to start small, it is more important that your content lands as promised to your paying subscribers rather than omitting or delaying content. If you promise five videos per month and can only provide three then your client base will start asking questions of you. Overpromising on content and time, especially for one-man operations like many in the fitness industry is more likely to generate stress than it is to generate a viable income stream.

Feb 02
Love0

Thinking of scaling up your fitness business online?

By Fitness industry archives and news

Launching an online fitness business is a super effective way to scale up your operation quickly and reach out to more clients. However, this can be a daunting prospect for most as they can feel a little overwhelmed trying to catch up with this ever more popular online revenue stream.

Many fitness professionals are still attached to costly group-ex format licence fees that do not allow them to invest in their own online booking software. Others may lack the know-how or confidence to run online fitness classes as an effective business proposition. And many don’t have the flexibility to choose how or where they teach as their current programme’s limitations.

Technology today means you can download an app to help you structure your classes and deliver a killer workout from anywhere in the world, whether that is live, virtually or on-demand.

“Creating premium digital content takes time and can be very expensive. We are on mission at SH1FT to make digital first solutions for fitness instructors looking to launch or expand their business online. SH1FT instructors are fully supported to create their digital presence and teach where, when and how they want,” says Will Brereton, Founder of SH1FT.

 

How to use tech to improve your fitness services

With the environment now stabilizing, fitness instructors are breathing a welcomed sigh of relief as they have had to adapt to so many changes fast in the past few years. There is a number, however, perhaps the most engaged online or who have been running that online experience for longer, who are now looking at how they can use tech to access data to improve their services and take their business to the next level. 

In his latest podcast, Will says “your customers expect to be able to use your products your services in a variety of ways, both offline and digital. So we know that digital fitness is here to stay, and that it will form part of what your consumers are looking for.”

However, if you’re one of the many instructors that’s found maintaining momentum with your digital teaching difficult, you are in good company.

SH1FT is working with Gymcatch to provide group instructors with the tools they need to take bookings, payments and manage their business in the most cost-effective way.

What is SH1FT?

SH1FT is the brainchild of Will Brereton who wanted to build a global community of Group Fitness Instructors that strive to create ‘fitness for life’ so that their class goers can feel great at any age, with anybody. SH1FT is founded on three main values:

TRAIN SMARTER, NOT HARDER: Hard work doesn’t have to be hard on your body. We use smart, safe and simple progressions to ensure that all levels of fitness can be catered for in a single group.
FITNESS FOR LIFE, NOT JUST FOR SUMMER: We believe fitness is about feeling great in your own skin…for the long term!
FOR ANYBODY, WITH ANY BODY: We create workouts that are non-intimidating, simple and inclusive (not to mention fun!).

SH1FT has created a collection of Group Fitness formats that Instructors use to teach live, online, and blended classes. Each workout is taught using their own market-leading App which automates the boring stuff (saving huge amounts of time and money) and gives Instructors an easy and fast way to customise workouts that are unique to them. Instructors are empowered to deliver engaging, personalised fitness classes where, when, and how they want – with zero restrictions.

Jan 10
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Online marketing tactics for fitness businesses

By Fitness business management archives and news

Most fitness and wellness professionals will need an online marketing presence, but what online tactics should we be considering?

Understanding online marketing is key for fitness professionals looking to increase their reach and raise their profile. A few businesses can still operate successfully without any web presence but as eyeballs are increasingly on screens, that will become an increasing rarity.

Where Google is the most visited property online, social media is where people spend most of their time. In fact, over 4 billion people own a social media account today and spend on average 1hr 15mins online every day.

YouTube, TikTok, Facebook and Instagram allow users to create and share content online are moving fast to bring bigger advertising opportunities for brands and more power to creators and local influencers.

In this article, we look at the different fitness and wellness marketing tactics you can apply to boost your online presence, get noticed and attract more customers.

Data insights

The main benefit of digital marketing is that you get access to a ton of data. You can easily view your channel’s performance and audience behaviour in real-time, and accurately assess whether a blog, post or ad has done well or not. Taking a step back and analysing your data before designing your next marketing plan is a very sensible way to refine your strategy.

Video marketing

TikTok has surpassed the 1 billion user mark making it the 7th most popular social network as of 2021. Facebook remains top of the charts, with YouTube following closely. Over 500 million people watch Facebook videos every day and a whopping 84% of people say they have been convinced to buy a product or service by watching a video.

Social commerce is a thing

Today’s customers expect the capability to purchase a product or a service directly from social media due to convenience. eMarketer expects US social commerce sales to rise to $80billion and the opportunity this presents is huge, not only in the US market but globally too. Instagram, Facebook and TikTok are leading the way with their browse, discover and in-app checkout features.

Roll out online memberships

Staying on top of all your customers’ different packages and schedules is tough. Setting up online membership packages will save you precious time and allow you to focus on client retention and virtual engagement. Online memberships is a great way to entice new customers to join and accommodate higher numbers which is far trickier using a traditional setup. See how you can create memberships with Gymcatch.

Micro communities

Large online communities with thousands of disengaged members are a thing of the past. Instead, social media users yearn for safety, privacy and real connections. With the right strategy in place, communities can build loyalty as they offer a great way to make your customers feel valued.

Once your have your marketing strategy in place you’ll want to make sure your fitness management software is ready to take on the bookings. That’s where Gymcatch can help you, get in contact with us today.

Dec 06
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New customer create and import feature

By Uncategorised

We have made bringing new customers onto your booking system even easier. With the latest enhancement to our Customers feature, you can now:

  • Create individual customer accounts in seconds from the Portal and iOS/Android apps
  • Import multiple customers from CSV files
  • Invite customers to claim accounts as part of the creation process or at any time
  • Add customers to sessions/gift packages whether or not the account is claimed

In addition, we’ve made it super quick and easy to add customers to multiple sessions in one go (rather than having to drill into multiple standalone sessions).

Find out how you can best use this feature!

Can I book for my customers?

How do I add and onboard/migrate my customers?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I3291xdWg1k
For more information on Gymcatch group fitness business software, and how it can help with your booking, admin and marketing. Get in contact to book a demo or start a free trial.
Nov 30
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Map fitness ranking

Pilates tops the list of the most in-demand exercise

By Fitness industry archives and news, Pilates

Top wellness and fitness trend

Pilates is the exercise discipline that showed the most resilience throughout the ups and downs of the Covid pandemic. Our research shows that the public stuck with, or turned to, Pilates when other exercise disciplines were experiencing tougher trading conditions.

Formed by Joseph and Clara Pilates in the 1920’s when they opened Body Conditioning Gym in New York City, Pilates has evolved through the years while sticking to its original philosophy and principles.

Today over 12 million people enjoy the benefits of Pilates, establishing itself as the top wellness and fitness trend in the UK throughout the pandemic, performing even more robustly than Yoga.

“We have seen a surge for low impact classes. People are increasingly focused on wellness and Pilates offers a great blend of flexibility and strength training,” says Ollie Bailey, CEO at Gymcatch.

The popularity of Pilates

When assessing the popularity of Pilates the main factor was consumer attitudes to the discipline. Pilates enthusiasts, more than in other areas of fitness and wellness, considered Pilates to be an essential part of their routines, rather than a hobby.

Moreover, in a period where people were particularly keen to avoid using health services, we saw consistent feedback that the low-impact, low injury risk reputation of the discipline saw consumers turn to Pilates rather than disciplines that they perceived as riskier.

Finally, Pilates has proved to be a more convenient form of exercise during the past year, as lower intensity and simpler forms of Pilates were perfectly suited to participation at home.

“Pilates has evolved, and demand has increased due to the pandemic with more people looking for mind-body health and overall wellbeing. Thirty minutes a day can be enough to get real results, so it fits into the workday well,” says Joanne Cobbe from JPilates.

Pilates in numbers

Lower impact exercise saw a 2556% increase in bookings between January and July 2021 on Gymcatch. Pilates alone has seen a 25% increase from 2020 to 2021, despite the incredibly challenging backdrop. In the UK Pilates is a truly national discipline with participation levels slightly higher in London and southern counties but distributed throughout the country with almost half of English counties searching for a Pilates exercise class.

Fitness map display

 

Virtual Pilates classes are here to stay

Many consumers have fully adjusted to online classes and are now seeking the perfect blend of face- to-face and virtual sessions. But this does not mean that face-to-face delivery is going anywhere. The majority of consumers have returned to in-person delivery and in most cases virtual sessions appear to be supplementing, rather than replacing the in person experience.

Following the end of the national lockdown in the UK in April 2021 we’ve seen a steady recovery of in person delivery. In May 25% of classes were still online only. During June and July 2021 85% of classes were delivered in-personGymcatch expects about 10% of pilates participation to permanently switch to virtual.

“People still want access to On-Demand content or have the option to attend a live-streamed class. By doing both, Pilates instructors can offer more value and more convenience for their clients while adding revenue, new streams and resilience to their businesses,” says Ollie Bailey, CEO at Gymcatch.

For more information on Gymcatch yoga studio software and how it can help with your yoga or pilates business, get in contact to book a demo or start a free trial.

 

 

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