United Planet Fitness Partners

Navigating Fitness Fads with Strategic Member Retention

In the ever-evolving fitness landscape, cluttered with quick-fix cleanses, the latest “revolutionary” workouts, and an array of high-tech wearables, it’s no wonder consumers find it hard to commit to a single gym membership. Amidst this whirlwind of trends, the real challenge lies not just in attracting members but in retaining them. The secret? A deeper, more nuanced understanding of customer relationships, which goes beyond mere numbers. Enter United PF Partners, a leading Planet Fitness ownership group that stands out with its innovative approach to ensuring a consistent, premium experience across its 120 gyms, serving over 940,000 members. This commitment to excellence signals a clear understanding that genuine member retention is the cornerstone of sustainable growth and member satisfaction.

Historically, United PF has always prioritized enhancing member experience. However, a pivotal moment came with the arrival of Adam Patrick, now the Vice President of Customer Engagement but then a consultant with a keen eye for transformation. Tasked with leading retention initiatives, Patrick encountered the group’s use of the Net Promoter System (NPS®), a sophisticated customer feedback methodology developed by Bain and Company. While NPS® is designed to capture a wealth of insights about customer loyalty, United PF was primarily using it to boil down complex data into a single score per club. Reflecting on his initial impressions, Patrick reveals, “When I came on board, they were thinking of eliminating it. There was a pilot in place, and it was simply being used to derive a metric.” This candid recollection from Patrick underscores a pivotal turning point in United PF’s approach to member feedback and retention strategy.

Discovering Listen360’s Potential

Before United PF made any decisions, Patrick took a closer look at the idea of a Listen360 Planet Fitness partnership. “I had a chance to finally dig into the data and realized the full potential to empower our team leaders across the country with member feedback during the customer journey,” he says. “It was something that could be impactful and transformational.” The pilot had been running with 9 clubs on Listen360, an NPS®-based customer engagement software, and when Patrick saw the intuitive interface and pre-built integration with ABC Financial, it seemed like a no brainer to scale across all United PF clubs.

“I had a chance to finally dig into the data and realized the full potential to empower our team leaders across the country with member feedback during the customer journey. It was something that could be impactful and transformational.”

United PF teamed up with Listen360 to scale the solution across all their clubs and automate a member feedback process that captures member sentiment in under 30 seconds. Because the survey was so simple, response rates were high and eye-opening data came flowing in immediately. “It’s what our CEO explains as one of the instruments in our retention symphony,” says Patrick. By automatically categorizing members into groups of those who promote the brand, those who are passive, and those who are dissatisfied, United PF can score member experience on a per-location basis. NPS® scores and feedback provide insights as to which locations are excelling, which may need improvement, and how customers perceive the group overall.

Simplified Surveys, Significant Insights

First and foremost, monitoring the data from member feedback allows United PF to serve members in the best way. Not only does it show them which practices are resonating with members, but it allows them to address any problems quickly and efficiently. “There’s a tremendous value not only from our members knowing that we’re listening, but that we respond to them in real-time,” Patrick says. One of the reasons the retention efforts have been so successful is that Patrick and United PF have seen the potential to use and expand the Listen360 platform in a creative, multifaceted way to increase operational performance.

One example is tying member metrics to club leader bonuses. He also pointed out that by surveying members at different key points in the customer lifecycle, like those who have been around for fewer than 90 days, gives club leaders an opportunity to reach out to members during the on-boarding process to ensure they deliver the brand promise to everyone. Analyzing trends at different stages in the customer journey helps club leaders understand their member behavior and see opportunities to make adjustments in the club that create a better customer experience. Creating a positive interaction and following up with this feedback demonstrates a dedication to customer service, and in turn increases referrals, online presence, and social awareness. All are crucial to United PF and the fitness world at large.

Navigating Fitness Fads with Strategic Member Retention

Cultivating positive feedback and reviews has many obvious external benefits, but it has internal advantages as well. “What makes our process unique is that we give our club leaders access to real-time member feedback, so each leader has something relevant, meaningful, and purposeful they can take action on immediately,” Patrick shares. Transparency and access to member feedback and recent reviews show employees the accomplishments and appreciation of their hard work. It also empowers managers to take control of a problematic situation should it arise. Member feedback about specific interactions and practices can shed light on how United PF can best interact with its members. The group has a brand-wide promise to make members feel comfortable and unintimidated in a welcoming gym environment with plenty of equipment, great staff, and ameneties like massage chair sets. With insight into how their members feel about their services, they can guarantee that brand promise across the expansive network.

While using NPS® through a comprehensive customer feedback platform is extremely helpful in boosting the member experience, it’s just one piece of the puzzle. The system only works if leaders believe in Listen360, are dedicated to a mindset of club excellence, and commit to doing what’s best for members. United PF has been able to implement cutting-edge technology, people, and processes to build an impressive NPS® score on par with top brands in the industry and across all markets. “We’re super happy with what we’re seeing so far,” Patrick says, “but we’ve only just begun to identify areas where we can improve through Listen360.” It’s exactly that positive attitude and focus on the member experience that makes United PF stand out in a world of clubs and fitness concepts.