Why Chasing Member Count Is Holding Your Gym Back
“How many members do you have?”
It’s often the first question one gym owner asks another, assuming that having more members leads to higher profit.
- This causes many gym owners to get stuck on a tiring hamster wheel every month, where their sole focus is on reaching the elusive 100-, 150-, or 200-member milestone.
The problem is they’re losing nearly as many members as they’re gaining, and it feels like they’ll never quite reach it.
There’s good news: You can get off the hamster wheel. Not only will it save you marketing money, but there’s an easier way to be profitable than just focusing on member count, according to Chris Cooper, founder and business mentor of Two-Brain Business.
- On his recent episode of Run a Profitable Gym, Cooper specifically said that client head count isn’t what makes a gym profitable.
Instead of focusing on reaching a certain number of clients, gym owners should prioritize average revenue per member.
- “Most gyms miss this critical piece. It’s not how many members you have if they’re all underpaying,” he said, adding that most gyms are undercharging. “It’s how many members you have times what they’re paying that actually counts.”
If you’re worried that your clients won’t pay more, Cooper said the top 10 grossing gyms in his network have an average revenue per member of more than $500 a month. The top gym’s average revenue per member exceeds $800 a month.
5 Ways to Increase Average Revenue Per Member
1. Rate Increase: If you’re not charging at least $200 a month, you’re probably undervaluing your services. Raise your membership rates for all current and future members if you’re not profitable.
Pro tip: If you’re still grandfathering rates, don’t.
2. Ask the Right People for Referrals: While most CrossFit gyms primarily focus on group classes, many also have a few personal training or nutrition clients who recognize the value in paying more for one-on-one coaching.
- Cooper said these are the people you should ask for referrals because they are more likely to bring in others who are willing to pay higher prices.
3. Add High-Value Services: Onboard new clients through one-on-one personal training and offer nutrition coaching, custom program design, habit-based coaching, semi-private training, or other high-value services.
- “Think beyond, ‘We’re selling a group fitness program,’” Cooper said.
4. Hybrid Memberships: Another effective way to increase the average client value is by offering hybrid memberships that combine group classes with, for example, one personal training session each month or habit-based accountability coaching, along with other high-value services.
- And do it right from the beginning instead of offering free trials to new members, which Cooper says is a big mistake.
5. Change the Way You Bill: Instead of billing monthly, consider billing on a four-week or bi-weekly cycle. It may seem minor, but the small extra amount each month adds up quickly by increasing the average client value.
The Big Picture
Profitability isn’t about having more members; it’s about delivering more value to each person.
- And here’s the kicker: “The best part is that increased average revenue per member isn’t tied to huge marketing spends or massive expansions or getting more equipment,” Cooper said.
“It is tied to solving problems and showing value,” he added.
Featured image: @twobrainbusiness / Instagram
