Each year, roughly 58 million people go to the gym. But if you’re a gym owner, you may not feel like you’re getting your full market share. There are a lot of issues that you should consider when evaluating how to maximize your profits as a gym or health club owner.
One reason why many gyms are held back from earning to their full potential is that they don’t utilize online gym software like health club billing software. While it was once easy and typical for gym members to pay with their credit cards (often in-person), people now want different payment methods. This is particularly crucial for those who manage their gym memberships online, as many gym members would prefer. With that in mind, let’s explore EFT, as well as how unlimited monthly EFT can benefit your gym.
What Is EFT And How Does It Apply To Gyms?
Gym owners typically charge their members through either credit card billing or EFT. EFT stands for electronic funds transfer. Rather than charging a credit card, EFT payments will transfer the funds necessary to pay for a gym membership directly from the member’s bank. While credit card billing was once the standard, EFT has actually shown better results in recent years. It not only drawn in more members, but it retains them more efficiently than credit card billing does. This has led more gym owners to consider unlimited monthly EFT than there were in the past.
So why does EFT appeal to gym members more than credit card billing? One reason is that it’s widely seen as more convenient. Rather than going through the process of implementing their credit card information every month, which can sometimes come with associated fees, members are able to give their banking information to their gym and even enroll in auto drafts that will allow their gyms to automatically bill them each month. They don’t need to remember to pay, so they can move on while more efficiently keying their gym memberships into their monthly budgets.
Additionally, there will be less of a risk for negative interactions between gym members and gym employees. Employees won’t need to call members asking for them to pay. Instead, they can focus on offering great benefits to clients. The monthly hassle that comes with paying with your credit card also gives members more of an opportunity to consider canceling. They may very well cancel simply because they’re frustrated with the payment system. Being able to use unlimited monthly EFT allows gyms to automatically bill members who may have otherwise canceled, but forgot to do so. A member may then give the gym another chance and find themselves liking it a lot more than they remembered.
How Can I Transition My Members To EFT?
Of course, it’s one thing to recognize that EFT is the best billing system for gyms. It’s another thing to convince your members to sign on to this option. Some gyms take advantage of unlimited monthly EFT and force their members to make the transition. However, this ill-advised, as many members may take offense to this and simply cancel their memberships. It’s a better idea to simply educate them about the benefits of EFT and persuade them to make the transition.
You’ll need to ask your bank about what you’ll need to establish EFT for your members. Afterward, establish a simplified system through which they can sign up securely and without concern. Gym membership software will make it easier for you to manage EFT and can ensure that security is as heightened as possible.
At the same time, you should consider how best to ensure that members have flexibility. If they don’t wish to utilize certain classes or need to skip a class unexpectedly, how will you alter their owed payments? Make sure that your members have some degree of flexibility while also holding them to a certain standard.
Transitioning from one payment system to another can be challenging. However, it’s crucial that gyms have this flexibility in order to maximize their profits and retain memberships. Both members and gyms themselves benefit from EFT, so why not make the jump?