The Internet has made advertising for any industry easier than ever. And while this means an equal chance for anyone, it also means you’ll come across a lot of outdated, ineffective and impersonal marketing strategies that will cost a lot but bring no gains.
Think about trying to market your gym as trying to get rid of excess weight. If you put all your eggs in one basket, like stuffing your blog full of fitness SEO keywords but don’t actually work on promoting that content or try to provide relevant information in your articles, no amount of work will help you get the word out.
The same goes when trying to lose weight. If you focus all your efforts on cardio, but don’t change your diet and actually consume more calories than you can burn, all that running will be for nothing.
At least all that cardio has one benefit in that it’s good for your heart and it is going to make you feel better. In online marketing, running in place will get you nowhere and can burn up more money than you could imagine.
Therefore, it’s important to get ahead of your competition by implementing tested and effective marketing strategies for gyms that are ahead in the game.
Help People Reach You
The best way to determine the focus of any online marketing campaign is to first find out how your members heard about you. You can send out a poll through the email or ask them to fill a poll on site.
Your members are most likely to have heard of you through social media or by looking for a local gym in Google. If more people heard about you through social media, you’ll want to solidify your presence there but also work on ranking your page on Google or other search engines with the help of a seasoned marketing agency.
Get Your Trainers in the Game
Influencer marketing is a huge trend in the online marketing world because people are more likely to trust a person than a company or brand. That’s why you have to get your trainers a proper social media training.
Your trainers should use their Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn and other accounts to connect and interact with your members.
As your trainers are familiar with the subject you’re covering, try to get them as involved in your blogging efforts as possible. If they don’t feel comfortable writing, at least have them share as much information with your content marketing agency as possible.
Offer Value to Your Visitors
Advertising on search engines and reaching out to other sites for backlinks might help get you on page one, but if you really want your visitors, current, and future members to frequently visit your website, you have to give them something in return.
The easiest way to convert visitors into regulars is to help them with something of value. Develop a calorie calculator, body mass index calculator or offer free guides when they sign up for your newsletter.
When writing your blog, make sure to offer information visitors will find useful and cover topics such as “How Long Should a Workout Last”, “Which Exercises Should are Most Effective for Weight Loss,” etc.
Finally, add a chat option so your members can easily reach out to your staff or your trainers if they have any questions related to the classes you offer, if they need some advice or just want to learn more about your gym.