They Come For Vanity, They Stay For Health

by Paul Brown (Managing Director of Face to Face Fitness)

It’s a given that keeping customers is a major factor in the success of any business, so it comes as no surprise that health club operators are discovering it is far more profitable to keep their current members than it is to have the marketing and sales wheel churning new recruits in one door and out the other.

The dilemma is that giving good service and providing quality facilities at a fair price to health club members, is often not enough to keep them. Still over 42% drop out of regular exercise in their first month and the inevitable cancellation of their membership follows at the first opportunity.

To help explain the attrition phenomenon, many reports have been compiled over recent years detailing studies, surveys and interviews of current and ex-health club members. IHRSA in the United States and the United Kingdom’s F.I.A. have each published reports on ‘Why members quit’ and ‘Why members join’. Be sure to look into the data carefully at your club and you’ll discover that what members tell you when seeking to cancel their membership or the responses they give on exit surveys rarely match the true reasons they allow their membership to lapse.

What people say and what they mean are often very different and the logical reasons given for leaving a club may well be a smoke-screen for emotional triggers that our customers are either unwilling to share or perhaps even not consciously aware of themselves.

For example, moving out of the area is a high response in many dropout surveys, with many clubs stating that over 30% of members are ”leaving the area” as a primary reason for cancellations. That’s interesting to note as according to the Realtors Institute, in most areas, the average for moving house is just over 7% of the population per annum. That suggests health club members move house five times more often than the rest of the nation, a fact that is highly unlikely. Note that these members are often contacted on their original phone numbers, meaning they can’t be too far from the club.

Certainly for the experienced or “savvy” club user in a competitive market; price comparison, perceived value, opening hours, convenience of access and quality of facilities are all strong factors in choosing a health club, but rarely do these factors change greatly during their membership term and so other triggers for leaving must be considered.

For these savvy’s, the length of their membership term is often a test of your relationship with them. Has your club made a friend and loyal devotee or just a fickle user with a limited attention span? Boredom, a new alternative or perhaps a specific unfortunate incident will more often be the cause of their sudden disappearance without warning.

However, the majority of new members are not savvy. They aren’t regular exercise enthusiasts and at the rate we are going may never be. Initially they are highly motivated. Often driven by a recent turn of events in their life that highlights an overwhelming desire to embark on self-improvement. They want to look and feel better and they want it now!

They are driven, at least in part, by vanity, but this should not be seen as a negative motivator. Society decides what is desirable and if the urge to look better and perform better is what brings them to our doors, then so be it.
It is therefore our responsibility to take each opportunity to educate our members to become true ‘believers’ in health and fitness.

It’s all a bit evangelistic but if we are passionate enough about promoting a healthier lifestyle, we must take the brief window of opportunity to give our members what they want in order for us to teach them what they need. It also makes us money so whatever motivates you, helping members is a win - win.

Clubs who get it right enjoy the following benefits;