04/03/2017
Success in Your Business: Creating a Sense of Belonging & Purpose
I am a big advocate of encouraging others to get creative with their ideas. In fact, about a year ago, I opened Fitness Compound, which offers a variety of fitness classes, programs, and training options including Zumba, cardio, Pilates, spinning, baseball, climbing, and basketball. Since then, I’ve added Mixed Martial Arts for kids, Zumba Tone, and Krav Maga to the mix.
Even though I’m offering services beyond traditional martial arts, I’m still creating the very same sense of community, purpose, and goal-driven environment as all other fitness-related businesses.
It’s critically important for your members (and prospective members) to get a sense of belonging and have a purpose when being a part of your gym or school. People want to be a part of something and feel good about themselves. Therefore, all your enrollment and retention efforts should include ways to fulfill those primary needs.
For instance, don’t shy away from holding free events. Many think that when they hold an event, they should charge a fee. They think their objective should be to make a certain amount of money on ticket sales. This shouldn’t be your main objective at all.
Your main objective when holding most events should be to create a sense of community and commonality to build rapport with your prospects. Hold a fundraiser for a worthy cause or a special springtime or summertime event to fuel business activity and to bring families and friends together. You will, in turn, build a business that people will want to be a part of and a contact list of prospects.
To strengthen retention, keep your members focused on achieving a goal. For instance, we hold a special internal campaign during the summer called 12 weeks of Summer, 36 Workouts. Anyone can sign up for the campaign. If they reach the goal of checking in at the gym for 36 workouts during the summer (three workouts a week), they get a T-shirt that says “I stayed in shape all summer at <Place of Business>.” You wouldn’t believe how this motivates members to stick to their fitness goals and get to the gym.
Remember the integral wishes of each and every human being: the need to belong and the need to feel good. When you keep these two intrinsic human needs in mind, and better yet, fulfill them through your business services, you’re well on your way to optimal success.
How have you created a sense of belonging and member community within your business? Share below.
About the author: Chuck Heacock is the owner of the Fitness Compound, a training facility that provides unparalleled fitness activities including Martial Arts classes, special boot camps, personal training, baseball, basketball, spinning, Zumba, cardio and more. Chuck is also a sought-after fitness industry consultant.