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By Brian Alexander, Two-Brain Mentor Retention strategies centered around automation and innovation. When it comes to “retention”, there is no silver bullet. Every gym is different, every market is different and sometimes it seems like we as affiliate owners are just unlucky because people cancel, move, quit etc. It happens to all of us. Control what you can control and don’t worry too much about the rest. When I say, “Control what you can control” I am talking about systems, and more specifically retention systems. A brief history of Illumine: We opened our 1,700 sq.-ft. gym in May of 2013 with zero members, just like the rest of you. From the beginning we implemented a group on-ramp program that caught like wildfire and we began to grow rapidly.  I had a full time career in B2B IT Solutions (Sales) and decided to turn my passion into a business. Like many of you, we opened our doors and just let things happen. Essentially we “Winged it,” and it worked. But then this thing kept growing, and within 7 months of opening I moved to a 17,000 sq.-ft. location.  We grew so fast that we didn’t have time to create systems, implement systems, etc. We were just rolling with the punches.It wasn’t until December of 2014 that I tried implementing “Goal Setting” for my members as part of my retention strategy.  I used the standard “Google Docs Spreadsheet,” ran a report in Wodify, created enormous hype around our new “Goal Setting” process and sent forms out for our athletes to fill out. Some bought in right away and filled the forms out, most didn’t take the time to and others never knew an email was sent.  Right from the start the system was flawed.  For those who took advantage of the new “Goal Setting” process, they happily filled out the forms and I entered it into the spreadsheet, wrote it on a “Goals Board” ...

Why do people stick around your gym for the long-term? Is it excitement? Novelty? Education? A combination? Any of these might be the primary reason. But people QUIT when they stop learning (that’s most important,) stop finding your service novel (second) or stop finding the gym fun (important, but not most important.) I study human behavior and motivation more than I study weightlifting now. After almost 20 years in the fitness industry, I know the long game is more important than anything else. I’m finally starting to understand why people quit gyms and why coaches stop coaching. Education is the linchpin. There’s a ton of research on employee retention and education–more on that on the TwoBrainBusiness site. But coaches should know one thing about keeping their clients engaged: When they stop learning, they’re done. One of the ways we ensure constant teaching is through the 90-Second Rule: ensure every client in every class receives at least 90 seconds of one-on-one instruction.  90 seconds doesn’t sound like much. But it’s enough time to watch a client do a squat, suggest one point of correction, watch them perform, and move on. After all clients have been covered, the coach returns to the client who needs the most support: the person at the limits of their competency, or the girl going for a PR. My friend Sean Manseau uses a technique he calls “sharking,” where he’s in constant circulation and looking for movement faults. I like his strategy, but prefer to be proactive and provide coaching to everyone regardless of need. I do the same for coaches: teach in advance instead of reactively (that’s where the UpCoach program comes from.) Because when coaches stop learning, they’re done. If you want to challenge your coaches a bit, sign up for the free UpCoach 90-Day Challenge here. The 90-Second Rule creates a minimum standard of constant learning. If clients want more, they can simply move ...