As a gym owner, managing the day-to-day operations of your business can be overwhelming. From tracking memberships and payments to managing class schedules and equipment maintenance, there’s a lot to keep track of.
The good news is that with all advancements in technology, gym management can be more automated than ever – making it easier to streamline processes, reduce costs, improve efficiency, and ultimately free up time for the more enjoyable stuff!
In this post, we’ll explore the benefits of gym automation and offer you a short quiz to help you determine how automated your gym management is.
The Benefits of Gym Automation
Automation can provide a range of benefits for gym owners and all staff members working to help maintain and grow a gym, including:
🚀 Improved Efficiency:
Automation can help streamline processes, reducing the time and effort required to manage day-to-day operations.
🚀 Enhanced Member Experience:
Automation can provide members with self-service options, such as online class registration and membership management, which can enhance their overall experience and satisfaction.
🚀 Increased Revenue:
Automation can help reduce administrative costs, freeing up resources to invest in marketing and other revenue-generating activities.
🚀 Better Data Management:
Automation can help improve data accuracy and make it easier to track important metrics, such as membership retention and revenue.
🚀 Improved Communication:
Automation can help improve your communication with members, allowing for personalised messaging, scheduled mass emails or SMS messages, and timely notifications.
Those are some of the key benefits of automating your gym management in brief. Now are you ready for a quick quiz?
Let’s take a closer look at how automated your own gym management is – answer five simple questions to see how ready for 2023 your gym really is.
1. How do members register for classes?
👎🏻 In person (or over the phone)
Uh-oh! Requiring your members to book classes in person can present several drawbacks:
- For your members, booking in person may be inconvenient and time-consuming, especially if they have to wait in line or speak to a staff member about the class schedule first. This can lead to classes receiving lower attendance rates.
- Operationally, booking in person can also be inefficient, as staff members will struggle to manage their time effectively with ad-hoc calls and tasks taking over their schedule. It can also be more difficult to keep track of class attendance, determine what classes are working best for the gym, or to manage waiting lists manually.
👍🏻 Online
Awesome! Online booking of gym classes provides numerous benefits to both gym users and gym operators.
- Online booking allows members to easily reserve a spot in their desired class, even during peak hours. It also provides users with more flexibility, as they can browse your class schedule and better manage their own, which can make it easier to maintain a consistent fitness routine.
- Gyms can benefit too by improving their operational efficiency, reducing administrative work and ensuring that classes are fully booked. It also offers the opportunity to collect data on class attendance and optimize class scheduling based on user demand.
2. How do leads sign up for a gym membership?
👎🏻 In person (or over the phone)
Oh dear, this was once the only way to join a gym, but there are drawbacks compared to online:
- For users, the process can be time-consuming and inconvenient, requiring them to visit the gym during business hours and fill out paperwork. This alone may deter some new sign-ups. Additionally, they may feel pressured to sign up for a long-term commitment and may not be fully informed about cancellation policies or hidden fees.
- For gym operators, the in-person sign-up process can be labour-intensive and can create long queues during peak hours. This can lead to frustration for both staff and customers. Additionally, the paper-based system can be prone to errors and may require additional time and effort to manage and maintain accurate records. Overall, a more streamlined and user-friendly sign-up process, such as online registration (desktop or mobile), may be more beneficial for both gym users and operators
👍🏻 Online
Excellent! You’re already enjoying these benefits:
- Online sign-ups offer convenience and flexibility as potential members can sign up from anywhere at any time, without the need to physically visit the gym. Data entry is less error-prone than paper alternatives, and online memberships also often come with exclusive offers and discounts that may not be available (or obvious) through traditional sign-ups.
- Online sign-ups allow for better data management and analysis for operators, as well as easier member communication and engagement. Administrative costs are reduced, and the registration process is streamlined, leading to increased efficiency and profitability for gym operators.
3. How do you manage equipment maintenance?
👎🏻 Manually track maintenance schedules
Ouch! Manually keeping track of gym equipment maintenance schedules can have several drawbacks for gym owners:
- Firstly, it can be time-consuming and prone to errors, particularly if the owner is responsible for tracking multiple pieces of equipment across multiple locations.
- Secondly, it may be difficult to ensure that all equipment is being maintained on schedule, which could result in breakdowns, malfunctions, and potential safety hazards.
- Thirdly, manual tracking may not provide comprehensive data on equipment usage, leading to difficulties in predicting maintenance needs and allocating resources accordingly.
- Finally, manual tracking may be more vulnerable to loss or damage, particularly if the records are stored in a physical format. As such, gym owners may benefit from adopting digital tools to streamline and automate their equipment maintenance processes.
🤔 Use spreadsheets or other simple scheduling software
Close, but not quite close enough! While using software to track gym equipment maintenance schedules can be a useful tool for gym owners, it can still be prone to problems:
- The software itself can keep track of the maintenance intervals for you and remind you to take action, but it’s only as good as the information you give it! Typos and omissions can lead too little or inappropriate servicing, possibly causing unnecessary expense and again resulting in breakdowns, malfunctions, and potential safety hazards.
- Without ‘smart’ equipment, you are missing out on usage metrics, leading to difficulties in predicting maintenance needs.
👍🏻 I have smart, connected equipment / I outsource equipment maintenance to a third-party provider
Nice, few equipment breakdowns here! Smart fitness equipment can talk to your software and help with preventative maintenance and breakdowns. Some solutions can even summon an engineer if a breakdown is likely/has occurred.
If you outsource your maintenance completely, an expert, professional outfit can routinely inspect, service or repair your equipment on your behalf, reducing downtime and hassle.
You get bonus points if you have set up reminders in your gym’s software to make sure you don’t miss any important deadlines!
4. How do your members get into the club?
👎🏻 Manned, during opening hours
In these days of automated, and even 24/7 access, you may be limiting the appeal of your brand if you rely on manual access methods that require a member of staff to be around. In addition:
- Manual admission may be prone to errors, particularly with a large membership base where the owner is responsible for verifying customer information or payment details
- It can be slow, particularly if there is a large volume of customers during peak hours. This can lead to long wait times and frustration for customers.
- A manual system may not provide real-time data on occupancy, making it difficult to manage staffing levels and resource allocation.
- Manual admission may also not provide accurate data on customer preferences or behaviour, making it difficult to make informed business decisions.
👍🏻 Unmanned or 24/7
Woohoo! Maybe you have an exterior door that can be accessed with an RFID tag, QR code or similar. Even if you offer limited access hours, members are sure to love your quick and convenient access solution. There are other benefits too:
- If you do offer 24/7 access, this can be particularly appealing for shift workers, busy parents, or those with irregular schedules.
- It reduces staffing costs for the gym, which can help keep membership fees more affordable.
- It may increase customer retention, as members are more likely to stick with a gym that accommodates different lifestyles and schedules.
- It may attract a wider customer base, particularly those who prefer a more private or independent workout experience.
- It provides better metrics on gym occupancy and member visit patterns.
5. Do you use automation to monitor and improve energy efficiency in your facility?
👎🏻 No need, I’ve switched to LED lighting and already done what I can
Hmm, could do better! Any improvements are great to see but have you considered:
- Even a simple-to-install smart meter can give you insights into your energy consumption, which is almost certainly higher than you expect! Using one can help you identify ‘thirsty’ equipment and investigate alternatives.
- Install more self-powering kit where you can: cross-trainers and other aerobic kit has long been able to power itself when being used, but more and more kit exists with self-powering technology such as kinetic, solar and more.
👍🏻 Yes, I’m constantly looking for ways to be more efficient
Get you! From smart meters to kit that powers itself, you never miss a trick when it comes to being more efficient! Cost-saving is just one of the obvious benefits of improving your energy efficiency, but also it can:
- Improve the gym’s environmental sustainability and reduce its carbon footprint, which can be a selling point for environmentally conscious customers.
- Help ensure regulatory compliance with local energy efficiency standards and regulations. Approvals like this can lead to energy or insurance reductions too.
- Help build a positive reputation for your gym and your gym’s branding in the local community as a responsible and environmentally conscious business.
What's your score?
If all or most of your answers were ‘in person’ or ‘manually’, then it’s clear that there are improvements to be made. Sounds like you, your team, or your members are working harder than they need to. You should investigate other ways to improve the level of automation at your gym.
If all or most of your answers were ‘online’ or automated in some way, then well done to you! You are already benefitting from the cost, efficiency or time-savings that automation can bring. You’re so 2023 and your members and staff must love it!
Gym automation can provide a range of benefits for gym owners and operators. By taking advantage of technology solutions, you can streamline processes, improve efficiency, and enhance the member experience.
Steve Beverley 👋
DIGITAL CONTENT CREATOR
An avid gamer and VR fan with over 25 years of game industry and graphic design experience, Steve loves all things technical or visual. With a versatile skillset and can-do attitude, he can be relied on to get stuck-in, and to do the job well. A background in software development and software training helps him to act as a bridge between the development team and the clients whether he’s working on a video, blog post or the latest product manual entry.
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