How retention starts with reward

Gym-goers want more than towels. Ferne Langford, Strategic Partnerships Director at Zoom Media, calls on fitness operators to rethink rewards, using data and insight to create programmes that truly motivate and retain members

Member retention has been the goal for gyms and leisure centres since day one, but when I look around the sector, it feels like rewarding members (and I mean really rewarding them, not just giving them a free t-shirt or sweat towel) has been overlooked as a tool. Looking at other sectors, such as hospitality or retail, it’s hard to avoid the feeling that loyalty rewards in the leisure sector are both under-recognised and under-utilised as a route to improve member retention. Yes, they exist, but it’s clear they’re not a priority.

Looking at other sectors, such as hospitality or retail, it’s hard to avoid the feeling that loyalty rewards in the leisure sector are both under-recognised and under-utilised as a route to improve member retention

Our own research at Zoom Media demonstrates the value gym members put on a great rewards programme, with 1 in 5 saying their membership at a gym is influenced by incentives and rewards – retention is about the incremental gains, increasing the perceived value for at least 20% of your members is nothing to be sniffed at.

We recently released a white paper, titled ‘Fit for Loyalty’, investigating what a best-in-class loyalty platform might look like, and the reality is rewards don’t need to be operationally complicated to be successful, but they should be engaging and have an authentic monetary value.

Zoom’s own research has shown that members have a preference for higher value discounts they need to work towards over time versus smaller, more regular discounts – but also find free products on site, such as coffee, shakes or protein bars to be incredibly valuable. To me, this indicates that a mix of higher-ticket rewards over time, combined with smaller, more regular free products may well be the best route to create that sense of value.

Beyond just creating value, another of the major hurdles identified in ‘Fit for Loyalty’ is operators missing opportunities for personalisation – the leisure sector has a mountain of data thanks to its unique position and access to rich audience data. Operators should be able to get deep understanding of their clientele, and ensure they can reward individuals in an effective way, but the truth is it’s simply not being maximised currently.

I’d urge all operators to take a look at the rewards in other sectors and compare it to what’s on offer across the leisure sector – it’s time to get moving and level up the leisure industry’s rewards.