Choosing the best club management software for your club can be an overwhelming task. With so many providers to choose from, all with varying capabilities, it’s tough to know where to start. In this blog, we have outlined 4 key considerations when searching for the best gym management software, making the decision process a little easier. Let’s get into it:
1 It’s the 21st century… You need to get mobile!
Does the Club Management Software include mobile apps in the way of a member app and club management app? Here’s what to look for:
Member Mobile App
A member app can significantly enhance the member experience, from the ability to book classes from anywhere and gain access to your club quickly and securely, to optimising member engagement with in-app performance tracking.
By having a member app on their phone, your members have much more control over their fitness journey, even outside of the club. A member app allows your members to check their progress wherever they are at whatever time of day, set goals, plan their workouts around their schedule and keep up to date with other members along with the latest news and events at the club. By providing your members with this level of control over their fitness journey, they feel more empowered, more motivated and ultimately more engaged with your facility.
Club Management Mobile App
In an industry where personal interaction is the number one success factor, it’s crucial that health and fitness club staff are available and visible to members, they need to be on the gym floor where they can interact and build a rapport, not stuck behind a desk in an office, working through club and member management tasks on a PC. Flexibility is crucial if you want to meet the needs of your members, so choosing Club Management Software that provides an ‘on the go’ mobile club management app is key.
Look for features like mobile member management, booking and class scheduling, staff management including rota, diary and task list and on the go reporting via a mobile dashboard.
2 Will the software save you time?
Let’s face it, time is money and in the fitness industry, there has never been a more appropriate statement. Saving valuable time, time that you can spend on better meeting the needs of your members by reducing administration and automating manual processes is the primary requirement of a gym management system. When looking at time-saving, choose a solution with the following capabilities:
Automation
A good club management system will automate many manual processes, saving you precious time. For example, automated CRM (Customer Relationship Management) will save you hours every week as communications are sent automatically to your members based on certain triggers. So, if a member misses a payment, they will receive an email or a text to let them know. If your member is up for renewal, they will receive an email inviting them to renew. Automated CRM also keeps your members engaged with your club through well timed communications including Happy Birthday emails and Welcome emails.
Integrated Billing
A club management system with integrated direct debit collection is an excellent option, as all your billing becomes automated, freeing up a heap of time and reducing your overall costs whilst optimising your cash flow. Integrated billing also provides real time reporting on your key performance KPIs and revenue generation, allowing you to focus your efforts in the right areas.
It’s also much easier to keep up to date with the status of every member’s account. This means you are kept fully aware of every member that has fallen into arrears so that you can address the issue directly with the member. In addition, you have complete control over your memberships so that you can quickly change the status of any member i.e put them on freeze if necessary.
Membership Management
Choosing a solution with membership management means you can ditch the paperwork for good and easily manage your members information in one centralised database.
With an integrated club management system, each member record contains a comprehensive picture of every connection your member has with your club. From the day they became a prospect and informed you of their goals, through to the current moment, you can see every session attended, every communication sent, every topic of discussion, every club check-in, referrals made and all aspects of financial information too.
3 Does the software help you with member engagement?
Keeping your current members engaged and motivated is tough and time consuming, but when you choose a good club management system with integrated member engagement tools, it can have a big impact on your members overall length of stay, your bottom line and your time. Let’s look at a few of the best member engagement tools that you should look for when choosing a system:
Member App
Choosing a solution with an integrated member app is a great idea. Not only does it allow your members to book classes and check in to your club quickly and easily as discussed above, but it also opens up a whole new channel of communication between you and your members, allowing you to quickly and easily engage your members through promotions, announcements and key information, via push notifications. When it comes to building meaningful relationships, this is a lot more effective than email.
Loyalty Programme
Member loyalty programmes are an effective and proven way of enhancing your members experience, increasing member engagement and keeping your members coming back visit after visit, with minimal time and effort. When looking at club management software, choose one that includes an integrated loyalty programme. An integrated member loyalty programme allows you to incentivise key in-club activity such as club visits, class attendance and referrals. If the programme is integrated with the member app, even better.
4 Will the software make your life easier?
Running a fitness club can be stressful, so you need to choose club management software that alleviates some of the pressures and makes your life and your teams lives easier. Having a good fully integrated solution that covers all aspects of your business will do just that. Whether you need to be able to collect member payments and carry out reporting, or you want a full member rewards system that incentivises activity including class attendance and club visits, having the ability to manage this through one ecosystem has proven to be a winning choice for successful club owners all over the world. Here’s why:
One Supplier
You only deal with one supplier, which brings a host of benefits including cost savings, less downtime and critical issues resulting from multiple systems.
One system to learn
Your team only needs to learn one system, which means new starters won’t feel overwhelmed by having to learn multiple systems. It also means they can get up and running much faster and onto the gym floor supporting your members, where they need to be.
Scalability
An integrated solution provides complete scalability. The solution will grow with you so, as your membership numbers increase, with a totally integrated system you don’t have to worry how your infrastructure will support your growth. For example, you could simply implement mobile check in and in app class bookings to take the weight off your reception staff or introduce a member app to help increase member engagement across your growing membership base. As these products are already integrated and work with your current set up, the headache is avoided.
One support team
One Support Team who has the product knowledge to help across all areas of your system, will save you a lot of time and energy when it comes to fixing issues or managing a change.
The ClubWise club management software is a fully integrated ‘all in one’ solution, providing all of the features discussed in this blog. To find out what ClubWise can do for your fitness business, request a free demonstration today. Simply click the button below to do this now, or you can speak to a member of the team on
01844 348300 or email [email protected]
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I like your software tips. I need to get a software package for the office. I’ll have to consider getting a software package that is easy to use.