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GF Manager’s first GF Management role GF in decline 2 years ago Decided to change to pre-choreographed GF Now has 6 Les Mills programmes Niche student market in university town 70% of 2,300 members are students Only NZD 1,000 per annum for promotion Grew Instructor team from 6 - 15 Rigorous Instructor training key to success Regular in-house video assessment for Instructors Instructors go to every quarterly workshop Facility pays for workshop attendance Competitors pay Instructors more Yet facility has 80% Instructor retention Due to GF devotees being addicted to the experience And Instructors addicted to the high energy attendees

Ron Werner was new to GF Management in May 2004.  With no background in GF, he wanted “an easier way to lift numbers”.  He decided on pre-choreographed GF primarily because it offered world-class training, which saved him the hassle of keeping Instructors at the top of their game.  As Assistant Manager of Massey Recreational Centre (“Massey Rec”) in New Zealand, his time was limited to reverse the decline in GF and create growth.  2 years and 6 Les Mills programmes later, Ron and his team are winning and GF is ascendant!

Rebuilding the timetable

Taking a gutsy decision, Ron decided to rebuild the timetable radically.  So in October 2004 he offered only 4 programmes:  a freestyle step class, BODYSTEP® and BODYPUMP® and a freestyle martial arts class.  After 6 months the members had voted with their feet and only BODYSTEP® and BODYPUMP® remained on the timetable.  Programmes were added at a rate of 2 per annum and by July 2006 the launch of Massey Rec’s 6th programme - BODYJAM®, saw it hosting 106 people to celebrate the programme’s arrival.

Instructor training underpins extraordinary experiences

Within 2 years Ron and his Instructor team of 15 had doubled average attendance in GF with an advertising budget of only NZD 1,000 per annum.  Ron believes Massey Rec’s winning formula is the result of creating an environment of excellence for the Instructor team combined with cost effective promotion to a niche market. 

Two key factors to Massey Rec’s success are their commitment to Instructors going to quarterly workshops and the appointment of Anita Mooney as Head Trainer.    Every one of the facility’s 15 Instructors is going to the next workshop, which is paid for by Massey Rec.  As a community organization with significant funding pressure, Ron’s decision to invest in his Instructors maintaining their ‘edge’ is notable.  This external training is enhanced by in-house video assessment, which now takes place regularly every 4-6 weeks when Ron and Anita drop into classes.  Anita also ensures that Instrutors are constantly working on technique, choreography and coaching to make sure that class experiences continually improve.  In 2007, Ron and Anita are planning to begin Instructor Awards to recognize monthly achievements within his team and support continual improvement in class experiences and numbers.  As he says, “the experience in class is everything.”

Challenges to growth

Yet Massey Rec has some significant competitive, operational and financial challenges, which influence Instructor retention and attendance growth.  The facility is operating in a tough market and pays its Instructors less than its local competitors. 3 competitors are based only an 8-minute drive away, in the centre of town and they also have Les Mills programmes.   They pay Instructors an average of NZD 30 per class compared to Massey Rec’s NZD 20 per class.  

And while the competitors charge higher membership fees, Massey Rec’s price advantage is offset by the lack of dedicated GF space to support a full timetable.  Though the facility does have an RPM® studio with 14 bikes for its 10 cycling classes per week, the other 19 weekly classes take place in a sports hall, with the last class at 5.30pm because team sports begin at 6.30pm.

Add to that, Massey Rec charges members for every RPM® ride they take with a fee of up to NZD 5.  Yet despite paying its Instructors less than other gyms, charging for RPM®, having no dedicated GF space and a restricted timetable, Ron has grown his Instructor team from 6 – 15 people in 2 years, has an 80% Instructor retention rate and doubled average attendances in 2 years to over 3,000 visits in GF each month.  And even though some members still sometimes complain about the RPM® fees, the current numbers speak for themselves, with RPM® enjoying over 90% capacity usage across the RPM® timetable each week.

Making the most of a niche market

So with all these challenges, what keeps Instructors staying and GF devotees locked into Massey Rec?  Ron believes the final ingredient is the impact of the niche market Massey Rec services.  70% of the facility’s 2,300 members are full time students.  A further 15% of members are Massey University staff with the remaining 15% of members being local residents who pay NZD 350 per annum to have access to the facility. This means that class capacities of up to 75 people are dominated by young, high-energy students from the local university.  The experience is wholly addictive and exhilarating for both attendees and the Instructors.  So GF continues to grow and the Instructors retention stays impressively high. 

Since Ron took over the GF department, most of the NZD 1,000 promotional budget has been spent on creating awareness among the student population.  Massey Rec holds an ‘open day’ at the beginning of each term with a BBQ, information booths and mini GF demonstrations by the Instructors.  This normally secures 10% of its memberships from the one event.   The facility also heads into town for a “market day” alongside other local businesses, so that students can see what services the local area has to offer.  Additionally, the team place posters in the first year students’ halls of residence and distributes newsletters regularly about ‘what’s on’.  Yet Ron believes that the most powerful marketing tools have been word of mouth and encouraging Instructors to take responsibility for promoting their classes using free passes.  By fostering referrals to drive growth, Massey Rec can stay within its budget.

Growth targets for 2007

Advertising outside the campus is minimal to date with an advert in the yellow pages and some flyers sent out to parents of a local school and nearby residents. In 2007, Ron has an ambitious goal of growing non-campus members by over 50% from 350 to 550 members.  Part of this growth target is expected to be achieved by building on Massey Rec’s regular quarterly relaunches, which are free to everyone.  Massey Rec relaunches only use word of mouth for ‘external’ promotion in addition to posters and POS material in the gym itself.  These quarterly parties will be more actively promoted to give non-members free access to the GF experience and drive new member acquisition.  Good luck guys – we know you’ll do it!

Massey Recreation Centre is based in Palmerston North, New Zealand and has 6 Les Mills programmes

Phillip says….

To build growth and a great team despite significant constraints is truly inspiring.   Ron and his team show us what is feasible if you believe in your goal and put in place realistic steps to achieve it.   Many facilities and clubs around the world have restricted resources and yet all have potential to grow their business taking advantage of their particular market conditions, just as Ron and his team have done.

With his creation of a winning Instructor powerhouse, Ron shows us what it takes to be an expert at Key Element 3 of the Group Fitness Management System, “Recruit World Class Instructors and Keep Them.”  Ron’s ability to take tough decisions, such as changing to pre-choreographed GF, demonstrates his ability to lead and follow through, which are key skills highlighted in Key Element 8 “Hire or Be a Great GF Manager.”  It seems that obstacles just make the determined even stronger.