On October 30th, Shelly Stranaghan and Jaclyn Neumann from LIV North’s Fitness Management Division presented at the Alberta Parks and Recreation Association Conference.
The topic of the presentation – how to rebuild and re-engage users of aquatic and fitness facilities post pandemic.
Below is a short summary of the presentation as prepared by Jaclyn. If you would like to learn more or have questions about the presentation, be sure to contact Jaclyn or Shelly at jneumann@livnorth.com or sstranaghan@livnorth.com.
A few takeaway points for the presentation include:
3 Pillars : Power of Member Engagement
Connect – the power of the first impression
- Every interaction needs to be a first impression.
- To build friendships, to enjoy exercise, to have fun.
- Apply first impressions to everything you do (space, experience)
Inspire – the power of the personal involvement
- Create an emotional connection.
Support – the power of positive results
- Creating the habit of exercise, showing-up, defining what success looks like, helping them to achieve goals – and supporting them on their journey.
- Build a “like/know/trust” relationship at every interaction for the member from the front desk, to the floor.
Another key takeaway is to Create a Culture of Conversation.
Effective member engagement, plain and simple, is when your members are having meaningful, face-to-face interactions with your staff AND with each other. There is a range of factors that promote a Culture of Conversation, as shown in the presentation. The probability of a member visiting the next month after 1 interaction with staff is 20% more likely, after 2-3 interactions is 60% more likely and after 4+ interactions a member is 80% more likely to return.
Member engagement is a complicated issue for organizations. It takes focus and work to maintain a membership. By understanding the pieces that make up the member’s thought process, we can take the RIGHT steps to solve the retention puzzle.