“Soooo, how are things at the gym?”
That’s how I used to take the temperature of the fitness industry.
I used to ask questions like this of other gym owners at fitness competitions—the only place where a lot of us could usually be found.
While our clients competed, we often chatted in between cheering, but the discussions were vague.
“Things are pretty good.”
“We’re doing OK.”
“It’s a grind, but I love it.”
That’s the kind of data we generally exchanged. Sure, we also shared solutions to some common problems, but we never made huge progress.
Defining Our Industry
Back in 2010, information spread through the gym industry much like bootlegged heavy metal cassette tapes spread through the music community in the early ‘80s: Very slowly.
To take the music analogy a step further, we’re now we’re living in the iMusic era: Everything spreads faster than anyone could have imagined.
Despite the possibilities technology offers, the fitness business is woefully behind. Industry numbers aren’t readily available, and when they are, we usually see “dinosaur data” from huge chains. Stuff like this from Creditdonkey.com: “only about half of the members go on a regular basis.”
That means absolutely nothing to a microgym owner who’s selling coaching, not access.
Two-Brain Founder Chris Cooper—also an old-school gym owner—realized this and decided to do something about it. So last year we dedicated a huge amount of resources to producing our first “State of the Industry” report. (Get it here.)
We learned a lot from collecting and analyzing data no one else had, and it allowed Two-Brain to help more gym owners faster.
For example, we learned that in gyms that are profitable, 74 percent of owners only work between 0 and 20 hours. And we found out that nutrition coaching only makes up 6 percent of revenue in CrossFit gyms. And we know that in 2020 it cost a CrossFit affiliate an average of $35 to acquire a new lead.
These numbers—and many others—allow us to do some important things:
- Give gym owners perspective on their own numbers.
- Help entrepreneurs identify opportunities and avoid mistakes.
- Help gym owners improve their metrics.
The data we acquire from gym owners and software providers also informs content creation for the rest of the year. We create huge piles of free resources (Free Tools, this blog, YouTube, Two-Brain Radio) and we upgrade our resources for mentorship clients.
As thanks for the assist, we send the final report to everyone who helped us create it before anyone else.
Fill out Our 2021 Survey!
We’re collecting new data right now, and our 2021 “State of the Industry” report will be out before the end of the year.
We’re already seeing interesting trends in the data—like how much COVID-related debt microgyms are carrying. (Thanks to everyone who’s already filled out the survey.)
This is an important project, and we need your voice. We want to present the clearest picture of the industry and then help more gym owners succeed. We can only do that with your help.
Please take few minutes to fill out our survey: 2021 State of the Industry survey.
If you do, you’ll help us move the fitness business forward, and we’ll send you our analysis of the data before anyone else gets to see it. You’ll be a part of something special and get a huge head start on improving your business in 2022.
