3 Gym Trends From Covid That Will Stay After the Vaccine
As more people receive one of the COVID-19 vaccines, we’re going back to business as usual more and more. Yet, that’s not completely true, is it? The coronavirus changed our society and our world in some ways that won’t go back to how they were before.
So while your gym might return to full capacity (if it isn’t there already), the gym experience won’t be quite the same as it was “before.” How has COVID-19 forever changed the gym industry?
1. Live Streaming Is Here to Stay
Maybe you were hoping that the live-streamed exercise classes that popped up on the internet during pandemic lockdowns would wither away once people saw the value in coming back to the gym in person. But those live streams aren’t going anywhere.
Now, just as people expect the online world to mesh with the real one in many parts of life, they expect that from your gym as well. Part of why this trend will stick around: it was already happening before the coronavirus.
Back in 2019, an Insider article noted that exercise streaming and digital workouts were gaining popularity. The article shared that industry experts thought gyms would be incorporating technology more over the coming years and that they would need to do so to compete with streaming-from-home options. Being forced to stay at home only speeded things up and increased at-home opportunities.
To remain competitive in the market, your gym will now need to incorporate live streaming. If you already started during coronavirus lockdown, it’s smart to continue. You can give members more options so they can switch between going to your gym and working out from home while preventing them from finding a different online service.
Here are some things you can do:
- Include streaming within membership or as an add-on or upgrade
- Offers live streams of in-person classes
- Offer specialized types of exercise through live streaming
- Offer live-streamed coaching
- Monetize your live streaming to an online audience beyond your local one
- Use a technology platform that helps you share your streaming content online
2. Mobile Apps Are an Essential Part of Gym Visits
Mobile apps are another way technology is now incorporated into the gym experience. A mobile app can offer some key things that people are looking for along with their workouts, including:
- Online sign-ups
- Mobile check-ins
- Interaction with instructors
- A community with other gym-goers
- Data to show progress, which may connect to wearable technology and/or connected equipment
- Personalized workouts, coaching, and nutrition plans
Having a mobile app is beneficial for your gym or health club, just as it is for your members. It helps you remain connected to your members, hold their attention and encourage purchases. The app allows quick, easy purchases ranging from classes and training sessions to merchandise, and can be customized to promote impulse purchases. It can create its own revenue stream and also help you retain members and keep them active. It can also simplify the process of referring people.
Using gym management software can help you manage technology and the info you collect from it.
3. A Clean, Sanitized Facility Has Never Been More Important
Now, to minimize the spread of coronavirus, it’s essential for open businesses to commit to having a clean facility more than they ever have before. This is true for gyms even more than many other businesses because of factors like heavy breathing, removing masks and touching shared surfaces. The CDC offers helpful tips for cleaning and sanitizing your business.
How is your gym adapting to the current times? We’d love to hear your stories!
