3 Tips For Managing a 200+ Member Gym By Mike Waywell of Steel Habitat
Managing a 200+ member gym may seem like a daunting prospect, however with the following three things in place, it becomes a far simpler task.
Systems
You need to have a system or template in place for everything. For instance – onboarding, the client experience (first 90 days minimum), training programs, nutrition guidance, member emails, cancellations, monthly check-ins, they all need to be systemised.
This is the only way you can standardise service levels and make sure all 200 members are getting the experience. Without clear systems, you’re letting your team deal with things in whatever way they see fit, and freestyling essential parts of your business rarely ends well.
Yes, creating systems is time-consuming on the front-end but you’ll save hours later.
At Steel Habitat we’ve used Ontraport to build a system that takes care of everything from front-end lead generation all the way to 18 months into the member journey. Everything is systemised, our staff just needs to check the automatically generated task list every day and make sure everything is completed.
Here’s a simple way to know if your systems need work – ask yourself this question:
If I got sick and couldn’t work for 4 weeks am I confident that someone else could step in keep every aspect of the gym functioning just as if I were there in person?
If you would like to learn more about the kinds of systems Mike uses at Steel, check out this episode of the LTB Podcast.
Customer Service
To quote Dan Kennedy…
“Everyone should go through customer service training and be consistently and persistently reminded about your customer service expectations. Good results should be recognised. Problems should be discussed. Statistical measurements of retention should be shared.”
This is a massively overlooked part of business for most gyms. Time, effort and finances are happily invested in Facebook ads, marketing and new certifications yet allocating the same resources to dialling in and embedding high customer service standards are, in my experience, very rare.
It’s usually assumed that people know what good customer service is, but that’s simply not true. The good thing is, improving your customer service is a simple process:
- Define what exceptional customer service is in your gym
- Train your team to deliver this is in all areas
- Consistently reinforce your customer service expectations with your team
Traction
Growing to and beyond 200 members requires, above all, precise organisation, clearly defined goals, and regular tracking of progress.
In my opinion, there is no better way to achieve this than to follow Gino Wickman’s Traction process. If you want to get a firm grasp on the direction and growth of your business then start here. I implemented this and it literally changed the game for Steel Habitat.
Learn More About LTB
Would you like to learn more LTB? Head here to learn more about us and to sign up to our 2-week free trial. You’ll get full access to everything on the site and can cancel anytime. If you’re interested in learning more about systems and processes you can check out lesson 3 of our Business Foundations Practicalities course.