Using Beacon Technology to Improve your Gym Member’s Experience 

What is beacon technology?

Beacons are wireless transmitters that use Bluetooth technology to transmit messages to smart devices based on location proximity. Beacon technology enables businesses to enhance the customer experience at physical locations by placing beacons throughout their space to notify customers about events, promotions, and discounts. Furthermore, beacons can provide customers with additional information about their business, facilitate navigation through their retail locations, or even automate specific processes. And beyond providing a more tailored customer experience, beacons can also help companies learn more about their customer’s behaviors through in-store tracking. Beacons also have a substantial educational application and are a great tool to use in museums and exhibits as they can provide more detailed information about the displays. You get the idea, beacons have a vast application across many industries, and fitness is no different. Gyms can significantly benefit from beacon technology because it can make a member’s gym-going experience more customized, seamless, and even educational. In this article, I’ll share some of the most exciting ways to implement beacon technology into your gym!

How Beacon Technology Can Enhance Member’s Experience: 

1) Automated check-in: By placing a beacon at the gym entrance, members can check-in more seamlessly without needing to stop at a front desk. This streamlined process makes for happier customers and is also great for you, as owner or manager, because you can track the duration of your member’s visits. 

2) Equipment availability: Beacons can help you track the availability of occupied and unoccupied equipment; this way, members know what’s available and don’t have to go searching for it. In addition, as the technology learns more about how you use the facility, it can help you plan your workout based on availability and your past routines. 

3) Personal Training: In addition to providing members with equipment availability, you can use beacons in your gym to inform members how to use the equipment. So, when a member approaches a piece of equipment, if they need the help, they can use the app to learn more about how to use it through a description or videos. This information provides a more personalized experience; it’s as if you have your very own trainer to help you through your workout. 

4) Facility Navigation: Navigation is a helpful tool that beacon technology can provide for larger facilities. Beacon navigation is a great way to make the members’ experience more seamless, especially if they are newer gym members. 

5) Curate Community: Beacon technology allows you to curate a stronger sense of community at your gym by providing members with notifications about community challenges and even events within the gym. Challenges could be running the most miles, holding the longest plank, or taking the most group classes. The idea is to engage the community in a little friendly competition and feel more connected to the gym and their fellow members. In addition, you could use beacons to notify members about upcoming events or events taking place right now. 

6) Member Heatmaps: Lastly, beacons are great tools to help you track your members and learn more about their behaviors at the gyms. You can collect information like what time they arrive, how long they stay, what time they leave, how many pieces of equipment they use, how long they use it, the most popular pieces of equipment, etc. This information can be analyzed and used to help you curate your space better for your members. 

Takeaway: Gyms are notorious for struggling with member retention, so finding new and innovative ways to engage members is vital for long-term success. Beacon technology provides numerous ways to get creative at your gym to enhance members’ experience and engage your community. 

Miss last week’s post? Read about how to implement a mobile marketing strategy for your gym.