Before measuring the value of affiliation or branding, you need to understand where it fits into your business.
Think of your business like a pyramid, just like CrossFit’s fitness hierarchy.
1. Operating Systems (Base Layer)
- Billing, scheduling, payroll, cleaning, session plans, staff training.
- If you disappear tomorrow, can someone run your gym just by reading your playbook?
2. Marketing Funnels
- Referrals
- Organic Social Media
- Content Marketing
- Paid Ads
- These funnels bring clients in now. You must be able to track their effectiveness.
3. Brand
- Your affiliation or license lives here.
- Your brand helps your other marketing work better, but it doesn’t replace marketing.
- Your brand makes you more predictable. Clients know what to expect.
4. Unmeasurables
- Culture, relationships, community support.
- These elements drive retention but can’t be measured.
Important Note: Your method must get people results. That’s the non-negotiable element that trumps everything.
So before you ask “is affiliation worth it?” you must ask:
- Are my operations solid?
- Are my marketing funnels built and working?
- Do I track leads?
- Does my brand (not the license) actually generate leads or build trust?
In the next post in this series, I’ll tell you how to measure whether affiliation is worth it for your gym.
