How to Build a Gym Marketing Strategy That Attracts the Right Clients

If you’re like many fitness business owners, you might be overlooking one of the most important pieces of the gym growth puzzle—a clear marketing strategy.

In fact, it’s not uncommon for gym owners to sporadically run ads, post on social media or try out the latest gym marketing hack. Which can lead to countless hours spent chasing leads but actually seeing less consistent results.

It’s not effort or budget you’re lacking. You might just be missing the intentionality. In other words, creating a marketing strategy turns random into purpose. So instead of a Facebook ad here, bring-a-friend week there, and other random tactics, a clear strategy can simplify your actions. It also helps you attract the right clients and set the tone for long-term brand loyalty and increased retention.

Let’s dive into how you can build a marketing strategy for your fitness business for growth, revenue and happy clients that stick around for years.

Why Most Marketing Strategies Fail for Fitness Businesses

Think about all the marketing tactics you’re currently doing at your fitness business—posting on social media, sending emails, running paid ads and everything in between. You might even have a billboard or cross-promotion with another local business.

While these are all decent tactics on their own, they can fall short if you don’t have an overall marketing strategy that brings them all together. In other words, each tactic can produce some results. But an intentional strategy is what really moves the needle.

Oftentimes, gym owners copy what they see other businesses doing. And because they might have different models, markets, or target clients, what works for one doesn’t always work for the other. So without being intentional about their own marketing strategy, they can miss the mark.

One other common issue is a messaging mismatch. This happens when a gym’s content isn’t reflective of what actually happens inside the business. For example, let’s say you have a strong gym culture and your gym is filled with friendly people, but your website copy is dull or intimidating. This can create a disconnect, which can lead to less bookings or more no-shows.

What an Effective Marketing Strategy Looks Like

Creating an effective marketing strategy helps you to be intentional with each tactic, instead of constantly thinking, ‘Maybe we should try this new thing.’

Your marketing strategy should answer three simple questions:

1. Who is our ideal client?
2. What problem(s) do they have that we can help to solve?
3. How do we guide them to take action?

Answering these three questions will help you craft your messaging. You know exactly who you’re speaking to, and what message(s) they need to hear in order to take action. That’s how you can determine the proper marketing channels to deliver the messaging, and how each tactic can reinforce the others.

Start With the Right Client (Not More Leads)

The great news is that you can make marketing easier and actually improve your gym’s sales process by getting the right leads, versus just more leads. The right leads will feel like your messaging is speaking directly to them, and that they can trust you to help them. This makes closing a sale infinitely more achievable.

Demographics vs. Motivation

Although someone’s age, gender and income do matter when it comes to buying decisions, motivation is truly the key. After all, people aren’t looking to join your fitness business because of how much square footage you have, or the fact that you have state-of-the-art equipment.

Ultimately, they make the decision because they believe you can help them:

• Lose weight or gain strength
• Regain lost confidence
• Decrease pain or stress
• Sleep better or have more energy
• Connect with others who will hold them accountable or support them on their journey

A powerful marketing strategy points to motivators like this. So even if you’re the only one in the area that offers 138 classes per week or your team has an unusually-high number of certifications, the focus should be on how you can help each prospective client achieve their goals. When you address the emotional reasons they’re searching for help, you win the marketing game.

As an example, regaining lost confidence is a compelling emotion. Someone doesn’t want to lose 20 pounds just to say they lost 20 pounds. So if you’re marketing a program for new moms, speak to their desire to feel confident and have energy again, versus simply losing weight or toning.

Why “Everyone” is the Wrong Answer

By determining who your target client is, you’re also indicating who your target client is not. And that helps you avoid marketing to everyone. Because, as seasoned fitness business owners will tell you, marketing that tries to appeal to everyone ends up resonating with no one.

Defining your ideal client actually protects the health of your business in the long run. Because retention is just as important as acquisition. So filling your gym with the right people helps you not only retain them, but build long-term brand loyalty.

Broad messaging in your marketing strategy will likely help you find some clients. And although more leads might appear to be valuable immediately, long-term fitness business growth comes from casting a more specific net.

​Focus on Outcome-Based Messaging

There’s a secret in the travel industry where salespeople help clients picture themselves in the midst of an incredible vacation. They make sure not to talk about the 12-hour plane ride or the smelly cab on the way to the resort. It’s all about what happens at the destination.

The same concept applies to your fitness business and the messages in your marketing strategy. Remember, people don’t buy workouts. They buy outcomes.

Therefore, you’re not helping them focus on the sweat-drenched, air-sucking moments that will get them to their goals. Instead, your messaging should communicate exactly what will happen for them when they join your community.

Strong marketing language focuses on things like results, transformation, consistency, support. Outcome-driven messaging helps you attract the right clients who are looking for real life change—not a magic pill or a cheap option. For example, ask what will it feel like to be 30 pounds lighter or sleep soundly for a full night. Or, how will it feel to play with the grandkids without getting winded?

Craft One Clear Call-To-Action for Your Marketing Strategy

Want to increase conversions? Keep it simple. One of the biggest mistakes fitness businesses make is offering too many options. And nothing can put the kibosh on motivation like not knowing how to move forward.

Whether someone lands on your website or finds your fitness business on social media, it’s crucial that they understand how to take the next step. Because if they’re interested but not sure what to do, they’ll hesitate. And hesitation is a huge momentum-blocker.

Creating a clear CTA (call to action) shows them exactly what they do next. While you might think variety is helpful, offering the choice between a no-sweat intro or a free class—especially if they don’t understand the difference—can make them choose neither.

This applies to services as well. If your website shows that you offer group training, personal training, nutrition coaching, a six-week intro challenge, drop-in options, and punch cards, how do they know where to start?

Focus the messaging in your marketing strategy on one entry point, such as booking a no-sweat intro or taking a first free class. Speak to their pain points and create a simple first step toward solving them. This doesn’t mean you can’t offer multiple services or options, but use your messaging to avoid confusion at the start.

The Key Marketing Channels You Really Need

Some more great news—when it comes to the various channels to deliver your marketing messages, you don’t need to be everywhere. The better play is choosing a few channels and doing them well.

Local Visibility That Compounds

Unless you’ve got multiple locations spanning a large region, your marketing strategy should focus on local visibility. And for most fitness businesses, creating a strong Google presence is a great place to start.

Pro Tip: Looking for help? Check out this blog post on how to optimize your Google Business Profile, then download the guide as well!

When compounded with other options like developing local partnerships and producing helpful content, you can build trust and awareness in your market.

A Referral System That Actually Works

Ask most boutique fitness business owners where their best leads come from and they’ll likely tell you it’s client referrals. That’s because happy clients not only want to support your business, they want their friends and family to know about it as well.

Therefore, your referral program should make it as easy as possible for them to spread the word. Once again, create a clear, simple call to action. Let clients know that you want them to invite others, give them a hassle-free way to do it, and maybe consider adding incentives. With these steps in place, you’ve laid the groundwork for organic growth for your fitness business.

Conversion is the Real MVP of Your Marketing Strategy

Your marketing doesn’t end when someone gets to your website, or even when they book an appointment. Many fitness business owners overlook conversion as part of their overall marketing strategy.

We know motivation is high when someone first reaches out for information. But it’s important to keep that motivation going until they actually show up and sign up. That’s why clear communication, timely responses and appointment reminders should all be part of the process. Not only are you showing them you care, you’re also holding them accountable and increasing the odds of conversion.

Pro Tip: Use automated workflows to take this follow-up off your plate! Want to learn more? Book a demo with the Wodify team today.

How Your Marketing Strategy Sets the Tone for Retention

Your marketing isn’t just about reaching more people. It’s also about creating expectations for what clients will get or experience at your fitness business. And in the long run, retention is the result of whether or not those expectations are met.

In other words, if your marketing promises an experience that doesn’t match what actually happens in your gym, clients will leave. If your messaging appeals to people looking for a magic fitness pill, you’ll only disappoint people who actually have to put in the work to see results.

On the other hand, when your marketing strategy makes clients feel like they’re in the right place—or they’re getting what they signed up for—retention soars. And you can read more about it in part two of this blog series, coming soon!

Getting Started: A Simple Marketing Strategy Framework You Can Use Today

You don’t need to be a marketing expert or design a complex strategy to drive traffic or increase revenue for your fitness business. Simply use these five steps to get started:

1. Define your ideal client
2. Craft messaging that conveys how you solve that client’s problem(s)
3. Determine the best marketing channels for delivery
4. Improve conversion with clear next steps and follow-up
5. Ensure that your messaging aligns with the experience you provide

Over time, you’ll be able to see what’s working and where there are areas for improvement. By tracking key data like appointments booked, appointments showed and sign-ups, you can adjust and adapt. When all of the pieces work together, your marketing strategy stops being a guessing game and starts becoming a repeatable system.

Need help? At Wodify, we love helping gym owners grow their business! Book a demo with a member of our team today and let us help you get started.