Employee wellness programs are more important than ever as the lines between work and home life continue to become increasingly entangled in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. With more people working from home, and with many also managing their kids’ virtual learning simultaneously, it’s no surprise that workers are experiencing burnout, loss of productivity and struggling to maintain their physical and mental health.

With new stressors piling on workers every day, employers need to take a more proactive role in improving employee health by creating wellness programs that take individual needs into consideration to offer the greatest benefit. What may help one employee, may offer little to no benefit for another, which is why it’s important to offer a diverse array of initiatives.

In this blog, we’ll talk about what an employee wellness program is, and three reasons why you should consider implementing one.

What is an employee wellness program?

An employee wellness program is a collective of initiatives put into place to improve overall health, as well as to provide resources, knowledge and support for employees to manage health-related issues. When thinking about wellness, it’s important to understand that a person’s overall wellbeing extends beyond just physical health and includes other dimensions as well—for example, social, financial, environmental, and mental health.

One-size-fits-all programs tend to fail to meet most employees’ actual needs, thereby offering little real value. The most successful types of wellness programs address different dimensions of wellness through various programs, providing multiple pathways for employees to improve health across all boards.

Why should you offer an employee wellness program?

Investing in your employees is investing in your business, and when your workers are at their finest, your company will reap the benefits. As an employer, it’s important to provide career development opportunities, as well as holistic support, to help your employees be the best they can be.

Key benefits of an employee wellness program:

The ultimate goal of an employee wellness program is to improve your workers’ overall health and wellbeing, but there are benefits for business owners as well.

Here are three top reasons to have an employee wellness program:

1. Improve employee health
   With the right education and resources, people are able to change their behaviors for the better. Employee wellness programs are a great way to promote healthy lifestyle habits by providing the knowledge and support needed for your workers to make positive, long term changes. Healthy habits lead to lower health risks and fewer chronic illnesses—and, in turn, having fewer employees with chronic illnesses can lead to reduced healthcare costs for employers.
2. Increase employee engagement & reduce absenteeism
   When workers feel better, they perform better—and they call out of work less often. Offering an employee wellness program shows your workers you’re invested in their long term health and success, which, in turn, makes them more likely to stay with your company. By reducing turnover, employers can save a lot of time and money on hiring, recruiting and training costs.
3. Workers want wellness
   In the post-pandemic landscape, employees are more stressed than ever. In fact, one recent study found that nearly 70% of workers claimed this was the most stressful time of their entire professional career. With an increased focus on health, more employees are seeking out employers who demonstrate a vested interest in their health and wellness. In addition to keeping your current workers happy and healthy, a comprehensive employee wellness program can be used as a recruiting tool to attract top talent.

Conclusion

Successful employee wellness programs are a win-win for everyone—employers can lower healthcare costs by improving employee health, reduce absenteeism and boost employee engagement, all of which contribute to a happier, healthier workforce. 

Everyone knows that exercising regularly is good for your health—it improves your mood, promotes quality sleep, boosts your energy, and helps combat a number of different health conditions and diseases. But when it comes to exercise, more isn’t always better. While it may seem counterintuitive, one of the best ways to get the most from any fitness regimen is to ensure you’re getting enough hours of sleep every night.

Here are five reasons why adequate sleep is critical to exercise recovery:

1. Provides your body time to heal

Exercising creates microscopic tears in your muscle tissue, and your body needs time to recover and repair it. While you sleep, cells called fibroblasts fix the damage and help the tissue heal and grow stronger. The more hours of sleep you get, the more time your muscle tissues have to regenerate.

Additionally, your muscles store carbohydrates in the form of glycogen, which get broken down during workouts to fuel your exercise. Your muscles need glycogen to perform everyday functions, and getting adequate sleep gives your body the time it needs to replenish your energy stores before your next workout.

2. Reduces risk of injury

Getting enough hours of sleep every night is essential to staying safe during workouts. A lack of sleep can lead to mental cloudiness, delayed reaction time, and increased risk of injury. When you’re overworked or overtired, you’re more likely to misuse equipment, drop a weight, take a misstep, or fall out of form.

On the days you’re tempted to push yourself, try to remember that it’s always better to pace yourself and provide your body the time it needs for optimal recovery than to overwork yourself and risk long-term damage or injury.

3. Prevents muscle fatigue

Exercise depletes your muscles’ glycogen levels, and your body needs glycogen to function. Metabolic overload happens when muscles are exercised to the point of fatigue, and your body has exhausted the amount of glycogen available.

When you’re asleep, your body continues to digest carbohydrates and metabolizes them into glycogen, which is then stored in muscle cells to fuel muscle contractions. This is why getting adequate sleep is necessary to avoid exercise-induced fatigue and soreness—because it provides your body the time it needs to replace energy stores.

4. Improves performance

The National Sleep Foundation recommends that adults over the age of 18 should aim for seven to nine hours of sleep per night. And did you know that increasing sleep time by one hour per night is like the equivalent of getting an extra night’s worth of sleep per week? Making adjustments to your schedule to ensure you’re getting enough hours of sleep per night makes all the difference when it comes to performance.

Overtraining can cause repetitive strain and stress to your muscles, which can lead to decreased performance, reduced endurance, and slower reaction times. Lack of sleep will wear you down physically, mentally and emotionally—whereas adequate sleep will increase your energy and prepare your body for consistently successful workouts. 

5. Boosts the immune system

Numerous studies have reported on the many benefits of a good night’s sleep—and, similarly, how a lack of sleep can lead to a number of negative impacts to your overall health. For example, quality sleep can maximize athletic performance, improve concentration and productivity—whereas poor sleep has been linked to a higher risk of heart disease, stroke and depression.

A recently published study found yet another way quality sleep can assist the immune system—by improving T cell functioning. T cells play an important role in the body’s immune system, and researchers found that poor sleep may inhibit the ability of T cells to function as effectively.

Conclusion

Many of us tend to think more is better, especially when it comes to exercise—when, actually, the opposite is true. Taking breaks and getting adequate sleep is critical for achieving optimal performance, regardless of your level of fitness or sport. Skipping rest days or not getting enough hours of sleep can quickly lead to burnout, muscle fatigue or injury. As with many things in life, moderation is key.

In case you haven’t already heard the big news—we’re excited to share that we’re rolling out a major user interface (UI) redesign on May 1! Featuring a responsive, modern design across devices, our new UI offers an intuitive edge and solution to workflow challenges fitness businesses have been struggling to address since the pandemic upended the industry as we once knew it. And our latest investment doesn’t end with design—the upgrade also includes a new hosting partnership with Amazon Web Services (AWS).

By now, we’ve all seen the extent to which COVID-19 has disrupted the fitness industry—from the physical landscape where people work out, to the needs and expectations consumers have regarding how fitness businesses should package and deliver products and services. To address these new challenges, we chose to invest more heavily into technology in order to create an all-in-one, seamless solution that addresses our customers’ unique operational needs.

“Many of our users are on-the-go admins who rely on our software to provide time-saving solutions. The latest interface updates are fully responsive, require fewer clicks to accomplish tasks, and are packaged into a clean, intuitive dashboard. This helps ensure we continue to lead from the front and provide our clients with the tools they need to excel in a new landscape,” says Bryant Strozinsky, President of EZFacility.

The UI redesign carries over the same functionality users are familiar with, while also introducing simplified processes and expanded capabilities. Features in the latest update include, but are not limited to: memberships, packages, scheduling, email campaigns, check-in, documents, reports, and settings.

The transition to Amazon Web Services prioritises client data security and increases site speed, with AWS boasting a reliable 99% uptime rate. “With built-in, unlimited storage capacity our clients can spend more time building out their operations without worrying about typical associated costs. Moving forward with AWS puts our development team in an excellent position to incorporate cutting-edge tools and integrations like Machine Learning into our software in the future,” adds Michael Vidal, Director of Research and Development at EZFacility.

As of May 1st, EZFacility will train and onboard all new users to the latest interface. Current clients will have the opportunity to enroll in an Early Access Program through the summer which will allow them to toggle back and forth between the previous and updated dashboards. EZFacility will permanently transition all users to the new interface by May 2022.

For additional information about our new UI launch, or to schedule a personalized product tour, click here.

A common way to gauge the success of an Instagram page is to look at the number of followers it has, but attempting to measure success through such a limited lens can be misleading. While many businesses adopt the “more is better” approach—in the social media realm, oftentimes quality trumps quantity. An Instagram page with thousands of followers who aren’t engaged doesn’t offer much actual value, so it’s important to focus on building a community of loyal followers who are genuinely interested in your brand, what you’re offering, and what you have to say.  

Building a large following of real, engaged Instagram users isn’t easy, and it will take some time, but it’s a worthy investment—especially considering that Instagram now has over 1 billion users worldwide, and 80% of Instagram users say they use the platform for help when deciding to buy a product or service. Instagram’s strong impact on consumers’ buying journey has created tremendous new growth opportunities for fitness businesses—but it has created new challenges, too.

Because of the platform’s continuous growth and changing algorithms, it’s become more difficult for fitness brands to break through the noise to reach and connect with users—but that doesn’t mean it can’t be done! With a little bit of patience and the right social media marketing strategies in place, you’ll be able to boost your Instagram following, build brand awareness, and create meaningful connections with your audience.

In this blog, we’ll discuss five ways you can build a strong Instagram following for your fitness business.

1. Go after your audience

To utilise social media platforms effectively, you need to engage in meaningful dialogue with your followers—but first, you need to find them. One way to find Instagram users who are interested in fitness is to search popular fitness-related hashtags. From there, you can reach out via direct message, or like and comment on their posts. You can also follow hashtags to keep an eye on trending topics, and use that insight to create relevant posts and spark conversations. Centre your Instagram marketing efforts around building genuine connections with like-minded users, and try to avoid coming across as too salesy.

2. Focus on the “why”

Your Instagram page may be someone’s first interaction with your fitness business—and first impressions matter! The COVID-19 pandemic created a significant shift in the way consumers interact with brands. Now more than ever, social media users want to build bonds with fitness brands, and they’re more likely to base their buying decisions on a company’s purpose and mission. Instagram is a great way to promote a higher level of transparency, and features like Live Videos and Instagram Stories provide fitness brands with unique ways to offer behind-the-scenes looks and interesting insights.

In fact, a recent Deloitte study finds that purpose-driven companies are better positioned to survive this time of extraordinary change, and that “marketers can and should take an ‘outside-in’ consumer perspective to the C-suite and executive teams. Especially if your business is in an industry addressing one of the many essential needs that have gained importance in the pandemic. That can be your shot at demonstrating the value of purpose to all of your stakeholders.”

3. Tell a story

Because of its real-time factor, Instagram Stories is a great way for fitness brands to show their human side, and it can really help bring your business profile to life. In fact, 33% of the most viewed Instagram Stories come from businesses. Using the Instagram Stories feature, fitness brands can share short clips of personal training videos, fun snippets from the day, or even cheat meals. And if another Instagram user tags your fitness business in their Instagram story, use that as an opportunity to create a conversation by sending them a direct message, or reposting it to your fitness Instagram account.

4. Use the power of influence

As health has become a top priority over the past year, fitness influencers have seen a huge surge in popularity on social media platforms. This has created a golden opportunity for fitness brands to partner with fitness influencers to boost brand awareness and to increase their Instagram following. While many larger fitness brands look to partner with widely popular and well-known fitness influencers, smaller fitness businesses may want to consider working with local micro-influencers. After all, if you’re looking to build a genuinely engaged social media community, working with someone local gives you that much more of an advantage.

5. Encourage community content

Making your members a part of your Instagram marketing strategy is a great way to create a sense of community, and to make your business profile look and feel more authentic. Your members are oftentimes your greatest advocates, and they help boost brand awareness and drive membership for your fitness business without expecting much in return. Consider gifting select members with some free branded swag in exchange for taking photos and tagging your fitness Instagram account on their social media platforms. Everyone likes to feel valued and appreciated—and who doesn’t also love free stuff? 

Final Thoughts

With the global tendency continuing to shift toward more screen time, it’s a great time to revisit your Instagram marketing strategy to make sure you’re getting the most from your social media marketing efforts. With the right approach, you can effectively utilise your Instagram page to increase your number of followers, build meaningful connections with users, and to gain unfiltered consumer feedback that you can use to grow your fitness business.

If you’re interested in learning about how an all-in-one management software can help streamline your efforts, click here for more information.

With more people spending time at home and scouring the internet looking for ways to improve their health and fitness routines, audiences are more dependent on digital content than they’ve ever been in the past. In fact, one recent global study found that engagement on social media has increased 61% over regular usage rates since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic.

For health and fitness businesses, this means that social media marketing is no longer an optional component of the marketing mix—it has, essentially, taken center stage—creating both opportunities and challenges for fitness brands. In a world now dominated by digital marketing, consumers’ feeds are being flooded by businesses vying to capture their attention. It’s no longer enough to just create content—health and fitness businesses that want to break through the noise need to understand how to create and distribute compelling content that captures viewers’ attention.

Here are five ways fitness brands can amp up their social media marketing strategies in 2021:

1. Go live

Eighty percent of social media users say they’d rather watch video than read a blog, and internet users collectively watched more than 1.1 billion hours of live video in 2019. It should come as no surprise that with numbers like that, more fitness brands are going live to deliver content to consumers across the most popular social networks. The demand for social broadcasting is anticipated to continue to rise, creating a huge opportunity for fitness brands looking for ways to improve their social media marketing efforts.

2. Be inclusive

Inclusivity isn’t just “in”—it’s the new standard expected of fitness brands. Today’s consumers want to align themselves with health and fitness companies that promote equality, accessibility and welcomeness to all. In fact, 70% of Millennials are more likely to choose one brand over another if that brand demonstrates inclusion and diversity in terms of its promotions and offers. Fitness brands that choose to ignore this and continue to tout their exclusivity, or limit their messaging to an elite demographic, will not receive the same support or following as in years past.

3. Consider influencer marketing

If you’re familiar with the saying “imitation is the sincerest form of flattery” then you already understand why influencer marketing can have such a profound impact on business. Consumers want to be like the people they admire—they want to walk like them and talk like them, so to speak. So, what better way to boost engagement on your company’s social media networks than with an endorsement from a popular influencer? It is worth noting, however, that more fitness brands are shifting to nano-influencers as many marketing budgets shrank as a result of COVID-19.

4. Utilize user-generated content

Almost half of marketing professionals (48%) believe that content created by customers helps humanize their marketing. User-generated content is an important part of social media marketing because it helps to establish trust between businesses and consumers by providing a genuine reflection of what other customers can anticipate when engaging with a particular business. User-generated content also provides fitness brands the ability to showcase success stories, creating emotional appeal that can have a huge impact on buying decisions. 

5. Invest in social advertising

With almost half of the global population using social media, it makes sense why so many fitness brands are investing in social media advertising. Social media advertising capabilities continue to improve, providing fitness brands the ability to reach their target audience with ease and accessibility like never before. In terms of performance and engagement, social media ads that contain video strongly outperform those that use static images, so it’s worth investing the time to create engaging video clips to get the most impact from your ad spend.

Conclusion

Because the social media marketing landscape is always changing, it’s important to keep your finger on the pulse and pay attention to emerging trends. Fitness brands that want to stay relevant and competitive need to be willing and able to adapt and adopt quickly to break through the noise and develop lasting, authentic relationships with consumers.

For more health and fitness-related insights, click here to read our other blogs. 

Pilates, named for its creator Joseph Pilates, is a method of low-impact exercise that focuses on improving flexibility, core strength, control and endurance throughout the entire body. It also emphasizes the importance of posture and alignment, which is what draws many to this form of exercise.

Athletes and dancers often practice Pilates to help balance other training, while others use it as a method of rehab to recover from injury. And while it was first introduced more than a century ago, Pilates has gained a renewed interest over the past year.

The Pilates resurgence

So, what’s behind the recent surge in popularity?

Well, for starters, the COVID-19 global pandemic redefined the fitness industry and created the need for people all over the world to find new ways to workout that could be done from home and required minimal equipment.

In addition to that, “it seems social media has been the driving force behind the recent resurgence of the low-impact workout” as we have seen more and more celebrities—like the Kardashians, Hailey Bieber, Lara Worthington and Phoebe Tonkin—switching out their high-intensity workout sessions in favor of Pilates workouts, and posting about it all across social media. (body+soul)

It’s no surprise that with celebrity endorsements like that, we’re seeing a major growth in Pilates culture.

Rethinking the ways we workout

Now more than ever, we’re seeing people interested in learning ways to improve full body health and wellness, rather than just focusing on weight loss or muscle gain. And while many used to gauge the value of a workout by its level of intensity, we’re seeing more people start to gravitate toward forms of exercise that focus on improving the mind-body connection while still offering a full body workout.

Practicing Pilates at-home

One of the most attractive attributes of Pilates is its accessibility—it can be practiced at home with few items, or at Pilates studios full of fancy equipment. But don’t let the volume of Pilates equipment available for purchase—like Pilates mats, Pilates rings, balls and reformers—intimidate you. There are several types of Pilates classes and methods out there, so you may want to do a bit of trial and error to figure out the best fit for you before investing too much in equipment.

If you belong to a gym or studio but want to practice Pilates from home, check their website to see if they offer virtual Pilates classes. Or, if you want to get started on your own, the good news is, all you need is a Pilates mat and a clear space to exercise.

Before you start your Pilates journey, it’s a good idea to spend a bit of time learning about the five different types of Pilates workouts to figure out which is the best fit for you.

Types of Pilates workouts

Below is a brief overview of the five main types of Pilates exercises and the differences between them:

1. Classical Pilates: Based on the original form first introduced in the 1920s, classical Pilates is one of the most complex methods of Pilates and combines both apparatus and mat exercises. It exercises muscles throughout your full body to help strengthen them and your core. Because of its difficulty and the equipment required, this type of Pilates routine is best taught by trained Pilates instructors.
2. Mat Pilates: Mat Pilates is considered the beginners level Pilates exercise, and is therefore also the most widely practiced. As the name suggests—all you need for this type of Pilates exercise is a Pilates mat and floor space. It’s great for getting started and for home workouts.
3. Reformer Pilates: Named for the type of equipment it uses, Reformer Pilates is the second level of Mat Pilates and utilizes a flat, sliding platform with an adjustable resistance bar. While some of the exercises are similar to Mat Pilates, the mechanics differ as they’re meant to be done while sliding back and forth. This is considered an advanced form of Pilates and should be practiced under the supervision of trained Pilates instructors.
4. Contemporary Pilates: Contemporary Pilates is a combination of Classical Pilates, physiotherapy and some modern variations. What differentiates this from the other forms is that there is no specified set of exercises; instead, exercises are customized and the moves are modified according to individual needs.
5. Clinical Pilates: Similar to Contemporary Pilates, Clinical Pilates is tailored to the needs of the person. This form utilizes different props and exercise equipment, and is generally intended to help stabilize muscles and relieve lower back pain. It also requires a physiotherapy assessment to determine functional diagnoses and chart directional preferences.

Getting started

If you’ve decided you want to give Pilates a try, get your at-home space set up and ready to go. It’s recommended you find an area with plenty of room to move around, and ideally in a place with good lighting. You’ll also need to decide if you prefer to try a live or pre-recorded class. Live classes taught over Zoom are particularly helpful for beginners as they provide the Pilates instructors the ability to see you and help you adjust your form.

For more health and fitness-related insights, click here to read our other blogs.

Yoga is an ancient practice that has long been heralded for its many health benefits, from improving flexibility to reducing stress. But did you know that doing a short yoga routine before bed can dramatically improve your quality of sleep, as well as your quality of life?

In an age of rampant stress and chronic sleep deprivation, it’s important to know what you can do to fall asleep faster and to improve your quality of sleep.

Below are five reasons you should consider practicing yoga before bed:

1. Calm the mind & improve mental clarity

Oftentimes people have trouble getting a good night’s sleep because they’re unable to clear their minds of mental clutter and stressors. Practicing a yoga routine before bed that focuses on breath technique will help put your body and mind in a calmer state, known as the relaxation response.

The relaxation response is the opposite of the fight-or-flight response, and studies have shown it can be elicited through yoga practice, meditation and deep breathing techniques. When this happens, your body enters a lower state of arousal that helps to clear your mind of worries so you can fall asleep faster and stay asleep longer.

2. Reduce stress, depression and anxiety

For those who have high levels of stress, depression or anxiety, it can be nearly impossible to fall asleep at night. Stress is often a large factor in both depression and anxiety, and people with depression tend to have elevated levels of the stress hormone cortisol. Practicing yoga before bed can help lower cortisol levels and release tension by stimulating the parasympathetic nervous system, which helps your body and mind feel more relaxed and contributes to a better night’s sleep.

In fact, a study by Massachusetts General Hospital found that the physiological state one can achieve through the three yoga elements of posture, breathing and meditation produced an immediate change in energy metabolism, immune function and insulin secretion. Insulin secretion can trigger the production of serotonin, the “feel-good” neurotransmitter that is sometimes artificially stimulated by anti-depressants.

3. Relax muscles & ease joint pain

After a long day of work, many people experience nighttime aches, joint pain and muscle tension. This is especially common among the elderly, people who work on their feet all day, as well as those who work desk jobs. Practicing yoga and stretching before bed will help release any muscle tension you built up throughout the day, which is essential to achieving a good night’s sleep. It will also help to relax your shoulders, neck, legs and more.

4. Renew your body

Two main ways yoga can help renew your boy is by helping to release toxins, and by increasing the circulation of oxygen. Toxins are often stored in organs and tissue, and yoga can help to release them from the body through various twists, folds, stretches, and sweating. Yoga also helps to release mental and emotional toxicity through meditation and deep breathing.

Pranayama, sometimes also referred to as breathwork,is a type of breath technique that improves the circulation of oxygen in your body to help reduce stress, improve mental clarity and improve physical health. Another added benefit to focusing on breath technique before bed is that it can help with other sleep-related problems like snoring and sleep apnea, both of which can be caused by incorrect breathing.

5. Improve quality of life

Sleep is essential to overall health, and better sleep leads to an improved quality of life. The amount of time and the quality of sleep we get directly impacts how we perform every day. Sleep is meant to occupy a good portion of our lives because that’s when our bodies can gather the energy required to complete daily functions and to process complex thoughts.

Without adequate sleep, both the body and mind suffer, rendering it impossible to perform to the best of our abilities. One of the easiest and most effective ways to improve your quality of sleep, and ultimately your quality of life, is to practice a yoga routine every night before bed.

For more health and fitness-related resources, click here to visit our main blog page.

Throughout 2020, we talked a lot about how the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted the global fitness industry and how exercise professionals needed to constantly adapt to changing circumstances, and to find new ways to deliver fitness solutions.

While many had hoped the New Year would usher in a return to normalcy, a new strain of the coronavirus, said to be more rapidly transmissible, has perpetuated the cycle of uncertainty about what the future of the health and fitness industry will look like.

Though no one can say for sure what the remainder of the year will look like, below we’ve outlined several ways personal trainers can provide additional value to consumers in 2021:

1. Shift focus to overall health & well-being

Before COVID, many exercise professionals pitched services aimed at helping consumers lose weight and gain muscle tone. This made sense, especially around the New Year when many peoples’ resolutions typically centered around weight loss. Post-pandemic, however, many consumers seem to be more interested in understanding what types of physical activity most effectively boost the immune system to promote full-body health and well-being.

2. Keep cleanliness & hygiene at the forefront

The uncertainty around how the coronavirus can be transmitted created widespread panic and fear that led to months-long business closures. Even after gyms and health clubs have been allowed to reopen—permitting they passed safety inspections and were able to prove their sanitization procedures were safe and effective—there still remains a heightened sense of concern among many consumers. Now more than ever, it’s important for exercise professionals to effectively communicate the cleanliness and hygiene standards they have in place to help ease patrons’ minds.

3. Provide consideration for at-risk populations

Last year we saw many businesses begin to offer special consideration to the at-risk and elderly populations by providing blocks of time when they could shop. This year, we expect to see more exercise professionals and health clubs follow suit by providing high-risk groups with more opportunities for physical activity in the form of individualized training programs, small group training programs, and at-home training programs.

4. Expand your reach

Social media continues to be the leading way consumers search for health and fitness-related information. Exercise professionals who are social media savvy and build a following on popular platforms like Facebook, YouTube, Instagram and TikTok will be more successful at attracting new business. If you’re not familiar or well-versed on how to navigate the most popular social platforms, now is the time to start learning.

5. Increase online offerings

COVID was the impetus behind the fitness industry’s shift to digital. But even now that gyms and health clubs have reopened, the desire for on-demand workout routines, remote fitness coaching and online personal training programs continues to grow. In addition to being more convenient for many people, virtual options provide a worry-free, safe and effective means for physical activity. 

While the coronavirus changed the fitness industry as we knew it, the good news is that the general public is now more aware of—and interested in—how physical activity contributes to overall health and well-being. The way fitness is delivered and consumed will continue to evolve throughout 2021, but exercise professionals who are able to adapt and embrace changing circumstances have the potential to recognize tremendous growth opportunities.

To learn how our personal training software can help manage all aspects of your business in one easy-to-use system, click here to sign up for a free trial and online demonstration.

While the coronavirus pandemic has been devastating to the fitness industry in many ways, one positive outcome is that now, arguably more than ever, people are focused on their health. More and more people are looking for ways to exercise in open-air or outdoor environments, which has made the tennis industry especially attractive. We also know that many people use the New Year as a motivator to kickstart their health and fitness journey, and memberships tend to boom during the early months of the year.

For these reasons (and more!), now is the perfect time for tennis organisations to revisit their marketing strategies and assess what has worked well, what hasn’t, and what can be done to address these three key areas: member growth/attraction, member retention, and profitability.

In this blog we’ll cover five marketing tips to help you grow your tennis club in 2021.

1. Lay the foundation

In order to successfully grow your tennis club, you need to develop a marketing plan with several different marketing strategies included. The first step is to lay the foundation by defining your audience, target market(s) and competitors. Understanding this information is crucial as it will guide your marketing strategies and help you decide what type of language to use, which tools to use in your marketing mix, and the best ways to communicate your message to both current members and potential members.

2. Establish your brand identity

A brand identity is the embodiment of everything your business is and does, and having a strong brand identity is a must if you want your club to stand out from other tennis businesses. Building a brand, much like building your business, is a process. It won’t happen overnight, but with ongoing effort and the right marketing strategies in place, you’ll be able to establish your identity and build long-term relationships with tennis members.

3. Build a dynamic website

Never underestimate the power of a website—it’s the home base that connects everything. Your website is where you can display your mission, showcase pictures of your tennis courts, provide information about your club and its services, link your social media accounts, and demonstrate expertise in your industry.

We live in a digital world, and you should assume the vast majority of potential members will visit your website before they decide whether or not to visit your club. It’s worthwhile to invest the time it takes to ensure your site is well-designed, easy to navigate, and mobile-friendly.

4. Create content that’s compelling

When marketing a tennis club, you need content that’s engaging and tailored to your audience and what they care about—things like educational articles, blogs, newsletters, infographics, webinars or videos. By becoming a credible resource on topics that matter to potential members, you’re more likely to be discovered by the right audience and to grow an engaged subscriber base.

Utilising social media channels is the fastest, cheapest and easiest way to reach your audience, drive traffic to your website, and to establish your brand identity. Social media also allows businesses to control the narrative by deciding what content to share and when. While there’s no magic formula to dictate how often your business should post on social media, consistency is key, so you want to make sure to keep the dialogue going and avoid any prolonged periods of silence.

5. Offer an incentive for referrals

Your tennis members can be your best brand advocates. In fact, word of mouth recommendations from friends or family members make them more likely to purchase that product or service, and trust a recommendation from someone they know more than a social media recommendation.

Providing an incentive for referring friends will not only benefit your business by attracting new potential members and revenue streams, it will create a more fun and meaningful experience for your current tennis members, too. It’s a win-win. You can structure a refer-a-friend campaign a number of different ways, like offering a discount on membership, a cash bonus for a certain number of referrals, or giving away free swag are just a few ideas.

Conclusion

With the New Year just around the corner, now is the perfect time to get your marketing strategies in place to help grow your tennis club in 2021. To learn how our comprehensive software solution can assist with your marketing efforts and ensure your tennis courts are used to their full potential, click here.

The COVID-19 pandemic has put enormous pressure on everyone’s physical health and well-being, with many people being isolated and confined to their homes for months. Yoga has long been known for its ability to alleviate stress and anxiety (among other proven health benefits), so it should come as no surprise that an increasing number of people have turned to yoga during a year plagued with challenges, doubt and uncertainty.

But despite more people wanting to practice yoga, many yoga studio owners have been struggling after months-long mandatory closures turned the fitness industry upside down. So, what can yoga studio owners do to stay afloat and attract new members during these times riddled with ongoing uncertainty? 

Now more than ever, running a successful yoga business hinges upon the ability to establish a strong brand identity in order to retain and engage current students, as well as attract new students to your yoga business. The shift to online workouts has created a lot of new competition in the fitness realm, but your brand identity is what will make people want to choose you and keep coming back.

In this blog we’ll cover six key areas yoga studio owners need to focus on in order to run a successful yoga business:

1. What is my mission?

The mission of your yoga business will drive everything you do—in fact, it’s why you do what you do. Spend ample time developing your mission statement as you want to make sure it reflects your goals as a yoga business owner and resonates with your target audience.

2. What is the personality of my yoga business?

The personality of your yoga business will shape how you communicate across all boards—from how you talk to your yoga instructors and students to the tone and language that’s used on your social media pages and in your marketing materials.

3. Who is my target audience?

Defining your target audience and understanding how to communicate with them effectively is critical to running a successful yoga studio. Your yoga business can’t cater to everyone, and that’s okay—no business can! In fact, you may even want to consider a niche market, like yoga for beginners, families, athletes, or seniors. Once you figure out who you want to attract, you’ll have a better understanding of how to reach them.  

For example, if you decide to focus on seniors as your niche market, you’ll want to make sure your yoga classes are offered at times that are appealing and convenient to them. Additionally, make sure the language you use to describe your yoga classes are attractive to that audience.

4. Who are my competitors?

It’s pretty safe to assume you won’t be the only place offering yoga classes in your area, so you’ll want to figure out who your main competitors are. Do some research to see what competitors are offering, and then try to figure out how to differentiate your yoga business.

Is there something your competitors aren’t offering that you can? Is there something you think you can do better? Once you figure out what it is, that will become your value proposition.

5. How can I stand out?

It’s difficult for any yoga business to stand out in a saturated market, which is why it’s so important to figure out who your target audience is, as well as your value proposition and competitive advantage.

What can you do that your competitors aren’t? Here are a few ideas you may want to consider to help your yoga business stand out:

• Offer a free trial: One of the best ways to get new members in your door is to offer a free, no commitment trial. If your competitors offer one free class, consider offering a free week of unlimited classes (or some other variation that’s feasible for your yoga business).
• Provide referral incentives: Your current clientele can be your best brand advocates. If they enjoy your yoga classes, chances are they’ll tell their friends…but why not give them an extra nudge by offering an incentive to do so? Many of your competitors may also have a referral structure in place, so think about what you can offer that’s different and may be considered more valuable.
• Host competitions and challenges: Motivation and positive reinforcement can go a long way when it comes to fitness, and who doesn’t love a little friendly competition? The way you structure these should be driven by your audience, but switching things up every so often by offering special events helps create a valuable experience.
• Keep offering virtual classes: Sometimes people just want to work out from the comfort of their own homes, especially given lingering concerns around the coronavirus. This year challenged many yoga studio owners to adapt to the times by offering virtual classes when studios were closed, and now many people have grown accustomed to the convenience. Even if you’re located somewhere where all the restrictions have been lifted and business is back to usual, consider offering virtual classes year-round.  

6. How can I maximise operational efficiency?

Most yoga studio owners wear multiple hats, and it can be easy to get overwhelmed. Let us help you achieve peace of mind with our powerful yoga studio management system. Create custom yoga studio membership plans and packages, manage contracts and renewals, automate reminders and collect payments all from one platform.

We also recently rolled out our Zoom Integration and Video Library to help you stay competitive during the changing times.

To learn more, click here to schedule a free, no commitment demo.