Originally published as part of the Athletech News State of the Industry Report: Member Success Blueprint: Acquisition, Retention, and Engagement Strategy

With new year’s resolutions often focusing on health and fitness, that period receives a natural kickstart year in and year out. But what of the following months?

The real challenge begins when motivation fades and individuals start to give up said resolutions earlier than they’d like to admit—and earlier than gym owners would hope, creating a frustrating cycle of churn.

The right tools can help combat this cycle, but knowing how to use the tools and implementing best practices could be the difference between members canceling before they hit that 30-day milestone and becoming lifelong advocates for your brand.

Text and email campaigns represent one of the most effective ways to bring members in—or push them away. Here's how to ensure the former and avoid the latter.

💪 Do Use Segmentation to Deliver the Right Message at the Right Time

Not all members and leads should receive the same promotions, messaging, or cadence. A new lead considering a membership needs different touch points than an existing member who hasn’t checked in for a while. Plus, if the text or email they receive is the first one in a while and it’s relevant to them, they’re more likely to respond or take action.

💪 Do Include a Call to Action

Literally tell your members what you want them to do. What’s the step you want them to take? Call, reply, fill out a form at this link? Let them know, it’s as simple as that.

💪 Do Add Urgency to Your CTA

Add time-based promotions to drive action. Send older leads an exclusive offer for a free personal training session if they join before the end of the month. Incentivize members whose contracts will expire in the next 60 days a free month if they renew early.

Customer Example After launching a “last chance” promo campaign targeting expired members to encourage renewals before prices went up the following month, a ClubOS customer saw a 37% increase in monthly renewals—rising from 1,841 to 2,528 in the same month year-over-year. This growth translated to a 30% decrease in lost revenue.

💪 Do Mix in Non-promotional Touch Points

Add variety to the purpose of your communications. Reach out on a member’s birthday (with ClubOS ONE you can automate personalized messaging!) and offer a free smoothie or special discount on merchandise. Do what you can to bring some joy!

Customer Example When one of our top customers began sending check-in texts, recurring newsletters and non-promotional messaging consistently, they saw a decrease in monthly churn. Their monthly churn rate dropped from 8.62% in 2023 to 3.28% by 2025, enabling them to retain an additional $11,000 in monthly revenue compared to 2023.

🚫 Don’t Use Emojis Frivolously

Using too many emojis can trigger spam filters causing carriers to block your messages, meaning only some of your list will receive them. Also, emojis are usually counted as multiple characters, which will count against your total allotment and is something to keep in mind for cost savings.

🚫 Don’t Text Too Often

Text tends to feel more invasive than email. While text messages relay better engagement rates compared to email, overdoing it will lead to a faster unsubscribe because it’s that much easier to opt out.

Customer Example When one of our top CRM customers sent just one text per prospect through the month, they achieved a 1.32% response rate—far surpassing the average of 0.23% from gyms sending 2.3 texts to prospects. Their conversion rate was also double the average of other customers.

Bonus Tips

Looking for more ways to keep your messaging impactful? These extra strategies offer a fresh perspective on what works—backed by real customer experiences.

🌟 Avoid Talking About Losing Weight

Rather than talking about dropping pounds, shift to mentioning self-care with your communications. Talking about overeating on the holidays doesn’t help anyone and leads to members feeling shame and guilt instead of motivation, empowerment, and drive.

🌟 Keep It Clear and Concise

Your members are busy—many are juggling workouts alongside packed schedules. They’re skimming emails (like most of us do!), so make it easy for them. Get to the point quickly: What are you offering? What do they need to do? Why should they care? Clear, direct communication increases engagement and ensures your message stands out.

🌟 Prioritize Automation

ClubOS reports that most clients experience an increase in their collections rate (typically 96%+) when they switch from another vendor. This is largely due to features such as automated billing, collections support services, streamlined reporting, and actionable insights from member activity analytics. It’s a boost that brands may need as gym attendance naturally slows down in late winter or early spring.

Download the full report at Athletech News  

Is it time for a new approach to gym management?

ClubOS provides the tools and insights gym operators need to keep members coming back long after January. Get started now to see an increase in member engagement, your collection rate, and revenue this year.