Profile App for Ex-member engagement

A couple of years ago, we ran a series of posts looking at how clubs are using Technogym's Profile App (aka Aspiration Finder) to improve their members' experiences.  You can read the full Profile series here, but we want to offer another post on how Profile can be used to engage with ex-members...

Send out a link to your club's MyWellness Profile page to your ex-member database. This could be linked into a survey or other mailshot, or just an offer to use this great tool to find out what motivates them.

Ex-member Rewards & Incentives. Get them back in...

Following our previous post about contacting ex-members, we want to know how you reward your ex-members, or get them back into the club. "No re-join fee" won’t cut it here (unless you’re doing something very innovative).

We’re interested in how you coax a previous member to make another visit, or what you use to encourage them to complete a quick survey. You probably don’t want to give away an iPad, and giving one ‘lucky’ re-joiner a year’s free membership means they have to rejoin to be able to win… which might be a little pushy, or too ‘strings attached’. Here are some ideas to get you started.

How to re-engage your Ex-members

August is a great time to try to re-engage with your ex-members. We know that September is the second peak joining month (after January), so now’s the time to put your club in the front of people’s minds with a compelling ex-member campaign.

The ex-member database is a vastly under-utilized resource at many clubs. We find that most ex-members (over 50%) are not currently exercising, and they all know your club, so asking them to re-join will yield results, and ROI is clear compared to trying to recruit new members.

What works for you? The (Programme) Review

Results are a key factor in retaining members, which is why the review (or programme review) is a key interaction in keeping members active.

But the review is often feared, both by members and instructors, in the same way as the performance appraisal in the workplace. Instructors are worried that a member won’t have achieved the results they wanted, and the member (who is also worried they've let the instructor down), and/or that the instructor’s goal is going to increase the intensity of their workout.

Here are three things you can do to make the (programme/exercise) review work better for everyone, and make this critical member interaction happen more often and more effectively in your club:

MyWellness Challenge - August - Team Workout

This August, get your members working as a team to push themselves a little more while the gym is quieter, and help them achieve their individual goals by competing for their favourite instructor.

A Team, yesterday

Team workouts are great ways of getting your instructors talking to members to persuade them to join their team, and then make sure they're visiting regularly and logging their workouts. A simple prize like a day off for the winning instructor is a good motivator, you could also give some of the top performers spot prizes or select a winner at random from the top 10 in the winning team.

Returning Member Motivation - "Back to Fitness"

It’s a year since we posted our Zero to Hero programme, aimed at getting new (inexperienced) members up and running in the gym. A few clubs have been running different levels of Zero to Hero, from logging visits on cards (like a coffee loyalty card) to triggering communications from membership systems for class attendance.

New member motivation programmes are a simple way of increasing first month visits and getting members into the exercise habit. But similar challenges can also be offered to members who are returning after a prolonged absence.

July-ke a good challenge?

Keep your members coming back for more throughout the summer months with some motivating challenges. 

Avoid the traditional monthly rowing ladder, press-up or power circuit challenge which exclude most members. 

Instead, choose something inclusive that will appeal to all members instead. Here are some suggestions…

• Tour de France (or mini TdF):- Cycle 300km (or 60km for mini) from 4-26 July
• Instructor’s team workout:- Join an instructor’s team, and see who can collect the most workouts
• Calorie burner:- who can burn the most calories this month?

For more ideas of challenges, check out our monthly MyWellness Challenge suggestions, most of which can be adapted if you don't use the MyWellness apps...

MyWellness Challenge - July - Tour de France (and mini Tours)

Time for some more inclusive challenges in July, getting into the saddle with the cyclists in the Tour de France. Teams are very important in Le Tour, but this one's all about the individual...

We suggest running 2 or 3 consecutive challenges here, to make it more inclusive by challenging the keen as well as the less keen exerciser with a challenge they can compete, with a bit of a push!

The Tour de France is over 3000km. Challenge yourself to your own mini-Tour this month, and see if you can ride 300km/120km/60km in 3 weeks.

Type:  Distance Cycled
Won by:  Everyone who cycles 300km / 120km / 60km
Start Date:  4 July
Duration:  21 days
Prizes:  Without

High Five your regular members!

don't leave me hanging...

As well as contacting absent members, it’s a really good idea to send communications to your regular users. Congratulating them on achievements such as hitting an exercise goal or simply visiting more often than last month can be a great boost, and will keep them coming regularly, which will reduce absentees. Try some of these out for size:

Do you miss your members when they're on holiday?

Contacting absent members often becomes a full time job through the summer months, and depending on the contact methods you use, can be expensive and have limited success. (here are the best ways to contact absentees)

The majority of absentees really appreciate these messages (assuming you respect their communication preferences) with absentees returning to clubs saying thanks for the contact,