In this article, we’ll go cover 5 unconventional yet effective ideas for marketing a modern gymnastics club.
We’ll cover:
Note: We go beyond the usual gymnastcs club promotional tactics, such as social media engagement, open gym events, local business collaborations or collecting online testimonials. We’ll focus on practical, actionable strategies, complete with real-world examples, that your competitors are probably not doing.
About the author: I’m Olivier, co-founder of Activity Messenger, an Gymnastics Management software. I also run a multi-franchise business dedicated to introducing sports to children aged 2-9 with over 100 employees. Over the last decade, I’ve spent over $200,000 on Facebook and Google ads, sent hundreds of email marketing campaigns, all aimed at increasing enrollment in classes and camps.
You may be surprised to see this tip at the top of the list. But I believe it represents a golden opportunity that many overlook.
Here’s the takeaway:
At Activity Messenger, we’ve seen countless businesses use email marketing to promote upcoming classes. Which is great.
However, a significant number of these efforts only target existing or past members, overlooking the potential to engage new prospects.
How to fix this? Add a newsletter subscription option on your website.
When we did this, we were surprised by the influx of prospective members who signed up to stay informed about upcoming classes.
Read more on how Activity Messenger can streamline your email marketing efforts.
As we began to grow our email database, we also made a strategic move to categorize contacts based on their enrollment status.
Here’s why:
Imagine receiving a promotional email for a class you’ve just signed up for. It’s frustrating enough to make you consider unsubscribing, right?
This was the scenario that caused many subscribers to unsubscribe.
As we implemented this, we saw three positive changes:
✅ A significant decrease in the number of people unsubscribing
✅ An increase in email open rates
✅ An increase in class registrations
Why did this strategy work?
Subscribers can see that our communications were tailored to their history, making the information sent highly relevant.
Those who enrolled early for a session receive fewer emails, making them less likely to unsubscribe.
Conversely, those who haven’t signed up yet receive more reminders, minimizing the chance that they’ll miss out or simply forget (think busy parents) to register.
Tips for growing your email list:
📌 Pro Tip: We quickly gained over 100 new subscribers in less than 10 days when we added an email sign-up option to our website. Many parents come to our site from advertising or search. Often, their child is too young or their schedules don’t match our current session times. These families are valuable leads, eager to register to sign up for next session. Enough to give you their email.
What happens when someone visits your website and registration have not started yet?
They go see elsewhere and many never come back.
Some will come back, but others will regsitrater at a competiors that opened up registration earlier
———–
All the you have to do is open registration earlier to turn web visitors in clients (and ambassadors).
But as an operator, I know it’s not that easy.
I can hear the excuses going through your head:
“I’m still finalizing the venue details.”
“I’m uncertain about staff availability.”
“It’s too soon for anyone to commit.”
“This strategy is not applicable to our business model.”
Ok… so say I accept your excuses.
You can still avoid losing clients with one simple tweak:
⏱ A reminder form.
One of the key strategies that has propelled us to a seven-figure annual revenue stream has been surprisingly simple.
We open registration well ahead of our competitors.
And we offer enticing early-bird specials to encourage early enrollment.
This tactic not only increases our cash flow and revenue it also simplifies staff scheduling.
It also creates an army of ambassadors who spread the word to friends and family encouraging them to register with them.
It’s now common for activities to be filled several months in advance.
Over time, parents have come to understand the high demand for our classes.
As a result, they are signing up earlier.
This early commitment gives us valuable insight, allowing us to fine-tune marketing, add classes, or even adapt class offerings to maximize revenue.
📌 Pro Tip: For several years now, we’ve consistently managed to secure 25-30% of the registrations for our classes well before many of our competitors even open registration. This early head start not only gives us a competitive advantage, but it also allows us to more effectively refine our marketing strategies and focus our advertising on promoting classes that need additional exposure.
📌 Pro Tip: In a 7-day window, Facebook ads typically cost me $7 to $10 per purchase. Which is amazing. But that’s just the tip of the iceberg in terms of value. A lot of people are going to sign up without even clicking on the ad, or after the 7 day window is over. And a surprising percentage sign up to receive our newsletter, which allows me to target future outreach.
Conducting a participant survey is an excellent way to gain insight into what your gymnasts enjoy, what they don’t, and areas where your program could improve.
With Activity Messenger, you can streamline this process by scheduling an automated email to go out 2-3 days before the last class of the session.
This article shares a few unconventional marketing ideas for a gymnastics club.
Activity Messenger is an online registration software for gymnastics that can help you:
Gymnastics Club Management Software
Gymnastics registration form
6 Best Gymnastics Software
Email Marketing for Gymnastics
Competition ticket sale
Online waivers
How to sell merchandise online
Application form gymnastics
Progress reports
Gymnasts Evaluation forms
Start of session notification
End of session reminder
Send bulk SMS
28 best gymnastics quotes
Read more about the 5 Best Modern Gymnastics Software on the market.
