While the fitness landscape is always evolving, there’s no doubt the coronavirus crisis accelerated the adoption of the hybrid model and changed the face of the fitness industry forever. And despite ongoing concerns regarding the coronavirus and how it will continue to impact businesses and society at large, the collective interest in health and fitness remains at an all-time high.
With Q4’21 looming just around the corner, now is the perfect time to review your current marketing plan to gauge the success of this year’s marketing campaigns in order to gain a better understanding of strengths and weaknesses, and to identify areas of improvement that you’d like to focus on next year.
And although the negative financial impact of the pandemic has led many fitness businesses to reconsider their marketing budgets, it’s imperative that you continue marketing your fitness center in order to differentiate yourself from competitors, reach and attract new potential customers, and keep current gym members engaged.
5 Fitness Marketing Ideas for Your Gym
It can be challenging to figure out where to allocate your marketing budget and resources, especially during uncertain times like these. Below, we’ve provided five fitness marketing ideas to help you optimise your digital presence and effectively reach your target audience.
1. Utilise targeted advertising
As of 2021, the number of people using social media is over 3.96 billion worldwide. With the average consumer now spending an unprecedented amount of time online, utilising targeted advertising is one of the most effective ways to reach your target audience. And, fortunately, there are a number of tools at your disposal to make it easier than ever. In addition to being the world’s most widely used social media platform with an active user count close to 2.8 billion, Facebook also offers a comprehensive targeting solution to ensure you’re getting your content in front of the right users.
2. Invest in digital content marketing
Outbound marketing is the old way of doing business. With more people turning to their digital devices to interact with fitness brands and to search for exercise videos, at-home workout routines, fitness tips and the like, many fitness businesses are shifting their marketing efforts to focus on digital content creation. Considering content marketing can generate over three times as many leads as outbound marketing—and costs approximately 62% less—it’s pretty clear why investing in content marketing makes sense for fitness businesses.
3. Promote your digital offerings
Digital fitness is in, and it doesn’t look like that will be changing anytime soon. Even as social distancing and other mandates are being lifted, many people have come to prefer the flexibility that at-home workouts provide. To remain competitive in today’s digital landscape, you’ll need to invest in digital content creation (as we touched on in #2) and invest the time required to develop strategic marketing campaigns that highlight your digital offerings.
4. Update your social media marketing strategy
Social media platforms are always evolving to meet the needs of their users, so it’s important to review your social media marketing plan throughout the year to make sure it’s updated to reflect the current environment and trends. Staying up to date on new social marketing tools and features will help you create more effective, tailored marketing campaigns to engage your target audience.
5. Create a seamless experience
The user experience plays a vital role in the online customer journey, and it directly impacts consumer purchase decisions. Today’s consumers are time-sensitive and expect to be able to locate what they need quickly, easily and without interruption. Any delay, glitch or interruption in your online services can cause potential customers to lose interest quickly, or even develop a negative association with your brand.
Conclusion
Let’s face it—the pandemic has changed the fitness industry as we once knew it. And while you may be tempted to cut back on marketing your fitness center during uncertain times, investing in online marketing is an investment in your future success. In today’s increasingly digital world, fitness businesses need to meet potential customers where they are—online.
To learn how EZFacility’s suite of marketing tools can help you attract new potential customers and nurture leads throughout the buying process to grow your fitness center, click here to schedule a free demo today!