Learning Center
We’ve consolidated our videos, guides, webinars and more into the AFS Business Learning Center. Browse the resources, and use the concierge service if you need help with any topic.
AFS and MATRIX are excited to bring you this very important webinar focused on maximizing your internal resource to drive success and growth. Every leader and business owner is looking for a competitive edge.
Jenny Piro has created one of the most successful fitness studios in the country. Fit with Jenny was established in 2006 in order to revolutionize the way we think, and feel about fitness. Built on the premise of FITNESS, NUTRITION and SUPPORT, her team helps you transform your life.
Jenny describes the keys to success and provides insight to her journey.
Whether it's putting together your business plan, understanding where the industry will be in 5 years, or seeking the insight from those who aren't your friends - Cris Dobrosieski shares his experiences with AFS members.
Monumental Results, located in San Diego, CA is run by President and "Head Coach," Cris Dobrosieski. Cris has grown his business from training athletic teams, past and present Olympians - to become an author, professional blogger and motivational speaker!
As aspiring or current studio owners, running your own business is hard work. You could be the best trainer, coach or instructor in the world, but creating a business from your own vision and making it a profitable venture is and always will be a challenge.
Function First, located in San Diego, California is run by hugely successful studio owner & CEO Anthony Carey. A fitness industry educator who regularly presents at conferences and consults for larger clubs and equipment manufacturers, Anthony provides valuable insight behind what his keys are to a success fitness business.
Brent Gallagher, Owner of Avenu Fitness & Lifestyle in Houston Texas discusses that one thing that every aspiring or current business owner needs to know.
Brent recently sat down with Josh Leve, AFS Founder & CEO to discuss a variety of topics on how he's been able to grow his business from zero clients and zero teammates in 1,200 sq. ft. to an all-star 14 person team generating over seven figures annually, serving 465+ clients in 4,500 sq. ft.
Josh Leve, AFS Founder & CEO and Ingrid Own discuss how to maximize the experience of your members and build community based on "open space" in your studio.
Technology and fitness are joined at the hip - the best gyms are known for having the best gear. After a while, however, there is only so much gear that a gym can buy! There is another way that you can use technology to differentiate yourself from competition in the fitness world, and it is actually much less expensive than investing in new machines every quarter.
Savvy gym and studio owners are now investing in mobile apps that are geared towards fitness - a high ROI activity that provides a great deal of value to patrons who do not have the money for a personal trainer or the organizational skills to keep up with their own stats.
How do people typically find your fitness studio? Through word-of-mouth? Driving by? What about your website?
If you don’t have a website (no, a Facebook page won’t cut it) or if your site isn’t bringing visitors into your studio, there’s work to be done. There are over 1.17 billion monthly searches on Google. Here are the seven things your site must have to ensure you’re showing up for these searches.
Whether you have a tiny usable training area or more space than you know what to do with, our team can help you design and lay out a functional training space. We work diligently to plan a space that is not just operational but optimally designed for your specific goals.
Here are the steps we’ll take when designing your training space.
I've been lucky enough at AFS to meet and speak with some of the best studio owners in the country (and some outside the U.S.). During these encounters I always come away learning more about our ever-changing, diverse, yet incredibly rewarding industry.
This couldn't be more true than my recent meeting with Brent Gallagher at the IDEA Show back in June. Brent's professionalism and drive have been evident in the success of his business venture Avenu Fitness & Lifestyle in Houston, Texas.
In their ground-breaking 2016 study, Marketing Best Practices Research Report, the Association of Fitness Studios (AFS) asked respondents which cycling certification(s) they held. As you can see from the chart below, Schwinn is #1 by a nice margin, Spinning is #2 and then there’s a big drop off to several others.
While this is great news for Schwinn and its certified instructors, it begs the question, “How can I leverage my Schwinn certification – and its #1-in-the-industry positioning - to enhance my career?” As a famous author once said, “Let me count the ways.”
Throughout my many years managing big-box health clubs and consulting with other fitness studios, the issue of how to effectively handle cancellations was always top of mind with my training teams.
How many times has this happen to you... You get up at 5am, throw on some clothes, and get to the studio or health club just in time for your 6am client. You might arrive a few minutes early and get the chance to check your email when, low and behold, at 5:40am there's an email from your 6am client stating they had to cancel. Great way to start of the day, huh?
When I was the Fitness Director of a small health and fitness facility, I dreaded the inevitable times we had to send out the “price increase” letters *insert head thumping on desk here*. It’s never pleasant to tell members you’re going to take more of their hard earned money.
Working in a neighborhood club allowed me many advantages a large scale fitness center simply could not; I was on a first name basis with most of the members, I knew what was going on their lives, heck, I even helped a member name her first child! I was IN with these people!
The healthcare crisis is a complicated issue with many layers. The big takeaways? Today, fewer than 50% of companies offer medical insurance for their employees.
Many insurance premiums have escalated to difficult-to-afford levels. And to top it all off, insurance coverage sometimes barely functions and acts more like a subsidy than a comprehensive plan. So what the heck does this have to do with you as a studio owner in fitness?
Do you ever feel like there’s a competitor around every corner? Budding entrepreneurs often hesitate to follow their business dreams because they believe their target market is already so saturated that there simply is no more room to absorb any new entrants.
However, savvy small business owners can make it in a crowded field, even one filled with a couple of big players. The key to your business' success doesn’t hinge on finding a completely empty field, but how you define your company and its place in the market.
As a trainer, you wear many different hats during a typical work week. In turn, you are pulled in many different directions among family, friends and clients.
If you are focusing on too many topics at once you cannot be in the moment, which can lead to a lack of client retention.
Wearable technology is one of the fastest growing spaces in the world. The appeal of wearable technology is part motivation, with goal setting, challenges and social recognition and part insight, with clients looking to obtain more information about their overall physical health. In this article, we will talk about meaningful insight.
As a fitness business operator or personal trainer incorporating wearable technology will not only further increase your members’ lifetime value, but educate them on what makes a workout effective (meaning your clients know what the numbers actually mean when they purchase wearable technology).
Fitness has never been bigger. In fact, it's the world's biggest sport with 61% of people who exercise regularly doing gym-type activities, according to the Global Consumer Fitness Survey 2013. But retention remains the industry's biggest problem.
And where previous acquisition of new members could fill the gap, new levels of competition and industry segmentation have made gaining and retaining members harder than ever.
If you’ve noticed the fitness trend toward indoor cycling, you’re not alone. According to fitness and sports experts and the organizations that track such data*, “Stationary Cycling” was the 10th-most popular activity in America in a 2015 survey of all activities in which Americans participated.
Of course, if you’re reading these words you already know the health and fitness benefits of indoor cycling, but it’s also nice to know that you’re among the millions who have selected this vigorous, fun, and uplifting fitness regiment.
We’re at the tail end of another summer. How did you do? Did revenue increase or at least stay stable? Cancellations up or down? If you’re like many of us in the fitness industry, June, July, and August can be brutal months.
The unfortunate part is that instead of planning and preparing for this slow down, many trainers and studio owners are too busy working “in” the business and suffer the consequences such as decreased revenue, less sessions serviced, and lack of profitability.
FBA is Right For Everybody
• Trainer, Manager or Owner • Beginner or Veteran • 500-10,000 sq.ft.