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From all of us here at the Gym Owner’s Forum, welcome to 2025! And just as pertinently. Welcome to January!
But we talked enough about how to prepare for January and the New Year rush in November and December. If you are late to the party, take a look back through our last few blogs!
Today we are looking forward to the rest of the year as we step into 2025. The fitness industry continues to evolve apace, and as ever Independent gym owners and management face both unique challenges and unique opportunities when it comes to competing.
We have focused a lot on January and February as a time for growth. But in order to thrive, it is important to focus on plans for the entire year. So we will be using the New Year as a landmark to re-examine what independent gym owners, management and staff can do to take their facilities to the next level, expand in their local area and build on the successes of 2024. We will be looking at ways independent gyms can use their innovative but personal style of doing business to get ahead and stay ahead in 2025.
1. Improving and Enhancing Member Experience with a Personal Approach
The one size fits all was once ascendant in the fitness industry. The early 2010s were beset by large banners touting only one type of membership. But increasingly this approach is seen as unprofessional, quaint and needlessly restrictive. As Generation Digital continues to constitute a larger and larger part of the gym-going demographics, they are after personalised membership and personalised experiences tailored to their fitness goals and preferences.
More and more, independent gym owners are using member management software to help members track progress, offer multiple, versatile tiers of membership and adapt to the needs and feedback of their membership base. The ability to adjust class prices, membership offers and discount codes on the fly means that members feel like they are getting a proactive and involved experience.
Adopting the versatile approach we talked about last month when it came to talking about the January rush throughout the year can help maximise growth and membership uptake far more than static impersonal and unchanging membership tiers.
Social media remains one of the most cost effective and efficient tools for independent gyms to reach new members. The New Year represents a good opportunity to review how an independent gym has been using platforms like Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube. Review the performance of posts, campaigns and strategies to understand what has worked and what has not.
Is social media to showcase a gym’s unique selling points within the area?
Use social media to give non-members a unique and personalised glance into the gym. Too often we hear members say that they would have signed up or gone into an independent gym earlier if ‘they knew it looked this nice inside’. Social media is a great way to get them looking inside from the comfort of their home.
And we urge independent gym owners not to underestimate the power of local SEO. By optimising your website for local searches by including keywords like “independent gym near me” or “[Your City] fitness center.” We talked at length about encouraging satisfied members to leave Google reviews last year, but it warrants repeating. Focusing on reviews and local SEO which can significantly boost your online presence and by extension, membership grow.
3. Build a Strong Community
Independent gyms enjoy many unique advantages over their chain/corporate cousins. One is the ability to create the sense of an organic and genuine community. Fostering this sense of belonging through 2025 can be a powerful asset for any independent gym. Whether it is by hosting community events like fitness challenges or charity fundraising, these events not only create buzz but also strengthen member loyalty and satisfaction. They are both a retention tool and a recruitment mechanism.
In addition, make sure to increase the number of opportunities for members to interact with one another. Not only within the physical fitness facility itself, but also via private social media groups and even member-only apps. Increasing the number of contact points will increase the likelihood of community bonds forming organically.
4. Understand the Area and expand your Class Offerings
Here at the Gym Owner’s Forum, we are always encouraging market research in the local area. Understanding what niches and services have and have not been fulfilled has been the make or break difference for many independent gym owners we have spoken to.
Whether it is catering to a wide range of fitness preferences or catering to several specific preferences not accommodated for in the local area, either can set an independent gym apart from larger competitors. Here are a few examples of classes that have been added by other gym owners we have spoken to that have helped increase growth:
- Functional fitness
- Martial arts
- Yoga and mindfulness sessions
- High-intensity interval training (HIIT)
5. Invest in the Facility
A clean and well-maintained facility should be implicit at this point, but depending on the financial situation of a given gym, 2025 may be a good year to earmark as an investment year.
Sometimes independent gyms can lapse into a sort of ‘cruise control’, everything is working so why change anything? There is a time and a place for this mentality, but it can quickly become apathy if left unchecked.
Investing in quality equipment and creating spaces that cater to different workout styles can be a significant driver of growth and membership uptake. If a new strength training area is implemented and promoted properly, the uptick in members from previously uninterested or inaccessible prospective members can be noticeable.
But when we talk about investing, we don’t only mean big ticket items. Small changes can make all the difference. Energy efficient upgrades such as LED lighting and smart thermostats can save a significant amount of money, especially in a 24 hour business.
6. Focus on Retention, Not Just Acquisition
Anyone who has been following us here at the Gym Owner’s Forum knows that this is a recurring topic for us. Too often advice for independent gym owners focuses too much on attracting new members at the neglect of their old membership.
That is why we have gone through this growth list, we have tried to focus on how these measures can also endear a gym to the members it currently has.
After all, it is more cost effective to retain existing members than to acquire new ones. Regular (but not overbearing) surveys and check-ins with members can help an independent gym to understand the needs and issues currently affecting their membership.
The New Year represents a perfect reason to implement a survey or a check-up. Understanding what members expect from a gym in 2025 can only help boost retention. The members of an independent gym ARE the community. It is important that they aren’t neglected in the pursuit of new members.
Make sure they feel appreciated and weave retention benefits into growth initiatives. Introducing loyalty programs that reward members for referrals, attendance milestones, or long-term memberships is a tried and tested example of this we have seen succeed many times.
7. Create Partnerships and Collaborate with Local Businesses
The benefit of creating partnerships with local businesses should not be overlooked. In a local area or community, word of mouth spreads. Teaming up with local businesses such as health food stores, physiotherapists or sports shops can make a big impact on the number of people in the area hearing about a gym. Crossover promotional campaigns, co hosting events and discounts for each other’s customers can also help to drive growth. Exposure and integration are both vital for the growth of an independent gym. It is important that a gym’s name is coming up often and positively within the area.
8. New Year, New Technology
Much like when we talked about investing in physical infrastructure earlier, there can be the temptation for inertia when it comes to tech solutions in an independent gym environment.
We often hear “It works well enough” or “It does the job” as a way to cope with the niggles and inconveniences associated with a piece of software or hardware that isn’t performing.
The New Year can be a good motivation to change up these systems. Whether they are draining the time of staff and management or putting off new and existing members. If something isn’t quite working, it is time to consider replacing it.
Reviewing options for gym management software that simplifies operations like booking, payments, membership tiers and classes can make a significant difference. Too often we have heard gym management say that something ‘is as it is’ only to learn that another software provider offers a significantly better package.
It is worth reviewing the state of both software and hardware providers in 2025 to understand if potential growth, flexibility and efficiency options are being held back unnecessarily.
9. Staff Training and Development
And we thought we’d end this list on an important and pertinent note. Investing in staff is investing in a gym. Even if staff will come and go, in the time that they are there, they are the heart and soul of the gym. They are vital to providing and delivering an exceptional experience to the members of an independent gym.
Investing in regular training and staff morale can be the difference between an empowered and confident team and a demoralised one. Only one of those can deliver the service that will encourage growth and success in 2025, and it isn’t the latter!
Focusing on more specific skills such as customer service, fitness techniques or safety protocols can quickly justify their expenses as they are put into practice on the fitness facility floor. It is hard to overstate the difference that empowering your staff to build relationships with members can make. It can be the difference between success and failure when it comes to fostering a warm, welcoming and supportive atmosphere.
Conclusion
And so we reach the end of our first article in 2025. 2024 was another incredible year for us and 2025 doesn’t look like it will be any different. If you are an independent gym owner, manager or staff member that wants to get more involved in the fitness industry and the conversations that are happening every day, perhaps 2025 is the year!
Here at the Gym Owner’s Forum, we are dedicated to pooling the knowledge of the countless dedicated staff, management and owners within the fitness industry. We are eager to hear more from the passionate and talented individuals working within the industry. So if your independent gym or club has big plans for 2025, let us know!
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2. Better Utilise Social Media and Digital Marketing