As the nation continues to rally around concerns from the unprecedented events developed by COVID-19. The main question that surrounds the health and fitness industry is when it will be safe to reopen fully. There has already been a strategic effort across the nation and global to address this issue. To spotlight, about a week ago Adam Zeitsiff, the CEO of Gold’s Gym was featured on CNN to address how their brand is restructuring their company to remobilize their facility’s experience for their members so that it can be a daily environment once again. As well as reasons why gyms should be considered essential businesses.
As we all know, text messaging has a 98% read rate within three minutes on average so using it in your communication strategy at any level will increase the impact of your campaign. So how exactly should you if you are a gym trying to reopen? Here are some ways:
Virtual Tours Of Safely Updates
Words can only paint a picture so vivid, but sometimes you have to see it to believe it. If it is in your health club’s resource, try creating a virtual tour, providing visuals or video content that show the initiatives you are launching to support a safe reopening. If you use a direct channel like SMS messaging to bring awareness, you can be sure that the effort from your staff is known.
Updates On In-Facility Safety Initiatives
Send messaging campaigns that let your members know about facility measures you are making to ensure the social distancing rule, sanitation, and safety. Let them know that your team has created signs that promote the rules of the environment, gym equipment spacing policies, and staff PPE (personal protective equipment) requirements.
Facility Capacity Updates
One measure we are seeing a lot of gyms develop support around is capacity limits. Since there are policies about social distancing one way to ensure it is being practiced is by limiting the number of members in the gym at a time. That way, gym equipment rules can be adhered to and managed more easily. As well as equipment sanitation. Facilities can alert their members about these policy updates through SMS messaging campaigns.
Workout Time Availability For Specific Members
Another measure we are seeing a lot of gyms develop is workout time slots for specific membership groups, segments, or types. This is a great way to augment the flow of traffic within your gym based on member visitation behavior. Let’s say you have members that come into the gym in the mornings, afternoons, or evenings. You could send them a text to let them know that they can still get their workouts in at the times they usually do.
Engagement Consistency
The reality of engagement puts pressure on your campaign timing. You have a valuable message but may schedule it at the wrong time for your recipient, so they may miss it. Try reaching out to them in different ways and times during the day. Perhaps try reaching them in the morning on one day of the week and then in the afternoon on another day of the week. Drawing from other sources that help you analyze this behavior will benefit the impact of your engagement.
Take It Step-by-step
Let your audience know that you are following public safety instruction and news daily so you may not have all areas of your facility open just yet. Just controlled environments that your team can make sure are sanitized and kept in an organized fashion.
Textmunication has been a cloud communications market leader in health and fitness for over 10 years using one of the most traditional forms of engagement, SMS (short message service). We have a corporate social responsibility to make sure we support the health and fitness ecosystem.
Although by no means are we writing this to motivate the health and fitness council and leaders to rush the reopening process and go against public health official instruction. We are just providing education on how to reopen safely and under consideration for when the time comes. The health and fitness industry is not the only vertical that has to reimagine their operational structure and the concepts expressed here can also transfer to your business. Our team at Textmunication hopes this helps.