This document provides best practices for building an online fitness center community and retaining members through websites and social media. It recommends including key functionality on the website like navigation menus and inquiry forms. For social media, it suggests objectives of engagement and lead generation by promoting accounts on multiple platforms. It also stresses the importance of reviews and reputation management through monitoring listings, responding to feedback, and cultivating positive reviews.

1. Building Your Online Fitness
Center Community: Best
Practices to Retain & Reach New
Members
October 16th, 2012
Elizabeth Studebaker, Club One Senior Marketing Manager

2. Building Your Online Fitness Center
Community
Key Website Functionality
Social Media Best Practices
Reviews & Reputation Management

3. Key Website Functionality
• Simple navigation menu
• Group Fitness, Aquatics, Class Schedules,
Facilities/Services, Membership, Sports, Bulletin
Board
• Easily-accessible web inquiry form
• Tie trial pass to drive leads

4. Web Basics – Inquiry Form

5. Key Website Functionality
Keep content concise – use hyperlinks
Use images to communicate
Above/below the fold content
Provide social media buttons

6. Key Website Functionality

7. Key Website Functionality – Provide
Navigation Options

9. Club One’s Social Media Objectives
Build Connections & Aid Retention – spark
conversation to engage communities and establish
relationships
Lead Generation – provide a platform for sharing
and connection; amplify our best customers

10. How Club One promotes Social Media
• In-Club Marketing
Pinterest Facebook
• Emails
Twitter
• Website Yelp
• Mobile App
Google+
• Video Zuberance
Online Group YouTube
Purchasing

11. In-club Monthly Posters
Add a Facebook QR Code
with strong call to action:
“Like” us on Facebook
August: 148 new fans

12. Facebook Content Strategy
• Balancing content
• Bi-Monthly Exclusive Promotion
• Cover photo
– To highlight what’s going on at your center
(not your logo)

13. Sample Weekly Facebook Content Strategy
Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday
Motivational Tuesday Promotion Post Nutrition Tip Fit Fact Weekly Post-Event
Monday Quote Trainer Tip Video Post Promotion Post Friday Weekend Follow-up
Ask a Question: Program or Weekend Recipe post –
What’s your Event Post Event Post “Congrats
weekly fitness Runners of
goal? Rock n Roll”

14. Remind People to Connect with You
Website footer: Utilize this static space on your
website to push your social profiles
Facebook “Facepile” plugin displays
user’s friends that have already liked
your page.
Let users know where they
Emails: In every email footer, we link to our
can find you.
different social networks.

15. Facebook Timeline
Tell your story - Foster connections with members and your community
Profile picture – Your logo
Cover photo – Rotating image

16. Facebook Timeline Snapshot
Cover Photo
Apps/Tabs
“About”
Profile Photo
Facepile

17. Facebook Timeline
Upload photos, information and dates to
tell the story of your site’s history.

18. Familiar Faces: OFJCC
Features Staff on Facebook

19. Facebook Cause Marketing Campaign:
Over 1,000 New Fans Generated
Give users a voice
Make it relevant to them
Help them feel good as a
result of their actions
Make it easily sharable
Highly confidential. All rights reserved.

20. Insights: Understand the performance of
your Facebook page
Analyze the performance of your Center page
Learn which content resonates with your audience
Optimize how you publish to your audience so that
people will tell their friends about you
Export data!

21. Facebook Page Insights

22. Learn how to
optimize your posts
Analyze the success of each post:
Interaction =
Reach
Virality
(22.67%)

23. Learn about your fans

24. More Data on Demographics
Collect demographics of people you REACH and
people TALKING about you
Create a strategy around these two groups

25. What are fans looking at?
• #1 Most Viewed: Facebook Wall
Tab Views: • #2 Most Viewed: 3-Day Guest Pass
App!

26. Overall Best Practices for
Social Media
•Create a social media calendar
•Limit jargon
•“u” instead of “you,” “2day” instead of “today,”
“thx” instead of “thanks”
•Keep posts positive!
•Respond to all posts, good & bad
•Ask questions
•Provide knowledge

27. Overall Best Practices for
Social Media
• Post photos and videos often
• Relate to current events
• Reward fans with access to exclusive information, offers,
contests and perks
And, most importantly…
• Maintain balance! Keep your fans engaged with fresh,
surprising content
Highly confidential. All rights reserved.

28. Reviews

29. Search, Listings & Reputation
Management
Social Search: friend
90% of web traffic The Top 3 spots on
recommendations
comes from organic Google get 58% of
and likes garner
listings clicks
higher placement
And it’s all FREE.

30. Reputation Management
Be aware of all review sites with your business (Google Places,
Yahoo Local, Bing Local, Yelp, Insider Pages, City Search)
Monitor reviews and respond to negative reviews; shows you are
engaged with users
Offer rewards for check-ins (guest passes, collateral, etc.)
Make sure announcement/offer section is up to date

31. How do You Manage Your
Review Sites?
• What is the process for responding to any
negativity (or praise)?
• Who monitors the photos uploaded by
users?

32. Reviewers are Important!
A good review…
Turned into a
BAD review.
Do you think
this patron
would return
if someone
addressed
their poor
experience?

33. Review Best Practices
Four things to keep in mind when crafting a message:
1. Internet messaging is a blunt tool and sometimes
good intentions come across badly
2. Your reviewers are your paying customers
3. Your reviewers are human beings
4. Your reviewers are vocal and opinionated

34. In Summary
 Determine Most Wanted Responses.
You may want visitors to activate a pass, sign up for a newsletter or
join online.
 Amplify.
Link to social pages, review sites and activate share widgets to
enable viral offer & content sharing [sharethis.com or addtoany.com]
 Answer the questions prospects & members are asking.
Don’t let an inquiry go unanswered.
 Optimize.
Ensure local listings on directories are current; keep content & offers
fresh and compelling.

35. Thank You!
Elizabeth Studebaker
Senior Marketing Manager at Club One
elizabeth.studebaker@clubone.com