Preston School, Somerset, is set to unveil a new, state of the art leisure centre later this year, as building work begins in February on the £800,000 project directed by strategic partner Alliance Leisure.

Four partners have come together to boost the leisure provision in South Somerset; Alliance Leisure, Preston School, a Business and Enterprise Academy, 1610 Leisure Trust and South Somerset District Council.  Preston School is a popular co-educational secondary school in Yeovil, with just under 1,000 pupils.

The new centre on the school site, due to open in September 2012, will have a health and fitness suite, new reception area and multi-purpose dance studio, plus a full refurbishment of the existing sports hall and new changing rooms.

The facilities will provide engaging opportunities for young people and the wider community to get active and play a part in fulfilling the legacy of the London Olympic and Paralympic Games, to increase sports participation locally inSomerset.

Julia Goddard, Business Development Manager of Alliance Leisure, explains: “We are proud to be part of this exciting project, which is a great example of how local authorities can maximise income opportunities through lateral vision, partnership working and intelligent use of existing space.

“Through creative design the leisure centre will boast modern facilities to engage and inspire its local community to lead active and healthy lifestyles.”

The new state of the art facilities are being welcomed by the Principal of Preston School, Tony Bloxham:

“As a community we are delighted with these exciting developments to our sports facilities. Sport, recreation and leisure are essential elements of life. These new facilities present us with a superb opportunity to develop a love of sport and healthy, active lifestyles in our students from an early age. I am very happy to be working with 1610 Leisure Trust, South Somerset District Council and Alliance Leisure in making this project a reality.”

The leisure centre will offer more health and fitness classes and sports development courses, as well as encouraging local community groups and sports clubs to make use of the new improved facilities. There are plans to extend the opening hours for evenings and weekends, the site will be managed by 1610 Leisure Trust.

Here are some quick tips to get you prepared for the start of the year…

Targets

Are your team aware of the targets for 2012? And specifically January and February?  How many leads and showrounds do you need to achieve your sales target?  Have your discussed your cancellation target with the fitness team and group fitness instructors?  All duty managers should talk to the staff on their shift about the targets and their role in achieving them.

Staff Communication

How have you briefed your team on what is happening in the New Year?  Do they know what activity is planned?  Have they been shown the targets?

Team Meeting – On-shift Talks – Emails – Memos – Handover Diary – SMS – Staff Noticeboard – Wageslips – Day Book – Promotional File Update

Staff Training

Are all staff trained to deal with incoming phone calls and conduct professional showrounds?  Every member of your team should have the basic skills required to tour new prospects round your building (meet & greet, build rapport, ask questions, show benefits, price present, ask to join).  Brief your reception team on the pecking order showing who is available and at what times.

Plan ahead – have you got your next 3 months training plan agreed?  Regular Foundation sales workshops will keep your team focused on the basics whilst more advanced modules will progress your team.

Data Capture

A quick reminder to staff to collate all customers’ email addresses and mobile phone numbers is critical.  The new year is your biggest influx of new customers and this opportunity shouldn’t be missed.  Why not highlight the specific data capture sections on your application form, or create “Go Green” flyers which specifically collate the required info.  And then don’t forget to plan some sales activity on your planner using this information.

Referrals

Another huge opportunity at this time of the year is referrals and how your drive this activity.  Do you offer new members the opportunity give their friends a free trial?  Is there an incentive for current members to refer their friends (a prize draw, free month, discount at local restaurant)?

Sales Planner / Lead Generation

The danger in January is expecting all your leads just to walk through the door.  Outreach activity in the new year should have better response rates as there are more people thinking of fitness and joining gyms.  Your sales planner should have the usual ‘done-deals’ planned in as well as specific activity occurring in January – swimming lesson enrolments, courses renewals, local events, PR success stories.

Centre displays

Why wait until April to have a spring clean?  Now is the time to ensure all your literature around the building is up-to-date.  Look at your noticeboards from a customer’s perspective.  Is the information eye-catching?  Is their information overload?  Are there call-to-actions? – “Ask at reception” “Text XXX to book your place”

Website Update

Have your updated your website with new prices, opening times, offers, news stories…?  Is your ‘Contact Us’ easy to find?

Have a great 2012!

Our very own Business Development Manager, Julia Goddard and Cllr Dennis Hutchinson, Executive Member for Leisure and Public Protection of Flintshire County Council, discuss the transformation to what is now North Wales’ flagship leisure centre, Deeside.

The £6m redevelopment project took a three phase approach, the first being the creation of six 5-a-side 3G turf football pitches catering for both junior and adult football enthusiasts. Unveiled in November 2010, the pitches have attracted over 50,000 visits; numbers continue to grow daily.

The second phase was the development of the health and fitness facility and toning suite which opened earlier in the summer. The 80 station gym has attracted 1,100 live members in its first three months of operation. Prior to the redevelopment there were just 350 members. The new health and fitness development offers a range of equipment to attract all ages and fitness levels with an interactive zone for children and families, a large free weights section aswell as the more conventional fitness equipment.

The toning suite has equipment designed to exercise specific parts of the body without arduous exercise, ideally suited to all ages, including the over 50′s or those who have not exercised for a long period of time.
The final phase is the first Welsh public day spa which will accommodate four treatment rooms and a large heat experience. This will include a herb sauna, a crystal steam room, a salt grotto, an aroma room, foot spas, an igloo, feature showers, a spa pool, heated loungers and a relaxation area.

Furthermore, this month sees the opening of the indoor public Extreme centre. Set to be one of the largest indoor skate parks in the UK, catering for BMX, skateboards, scooters and inline skaters local residents will be wowed by the range of thrilling ramps and jumps. A nursery section has also been built for those keen to learn. The centre will also offer an 80 square metres climbing surface reaching a maximum height of four metres for bouldering, a seven metre high climbing tower and five metre high rope course.

The opening of the new facilities has brought new employment and training opportunities to Deeside, with the recent appointments of a new Spa Manager, therapists and Extreme staff and instructors. A further £2.5m investment has just commenced at Flint Pavilion to create a ten pin bowling and indoor bowls facility with additional investment into its soft play, café and fitness provision.

Cllr Dennis Hutchinson adds: “There is little debate around the increasing difficulty to secure financial aid for local leisure provision, but through working in partnership with Alliance Leisure, we have demonstrated that significant facility and service improvements can still be made.

“Our ultimate aim is to encourage more people to take part in regular sport and physical activity to ensure wide ranging health and social benefits throughout Flintshire. Our new facilities are welcoming, inspiring and, we hope, a pleasure to visit and I can tell you now that our local community is in for a real treat over the coming months.”

Visit our Facebook page to see the latest developments at Deeside www.facebook.com/allianceleisure

In light of the demands on local authority leisure to reduce subsidy and increase revenue, Cardiff City Council’s two year partnership with Alliance Leisure to optimise the performance of 11 health, fitness and sporting sites has become a leading example of good practice in the industry.

This month we hear from our Head of Client Support Division, Paul Woodford, about the importance of partnership working.

Q: How important are Centre personnel to a customer’s overall experience?

A: Our research shows that experienced, customer focussed and dedicated staff are vital to the success and growth of a leisure facility. Quality staff training is an area that really requires investment to maximise the opportunities in the current economic climate.

Cardiff City Council are working hard to maximise income opportunities through their strongest asset, their staff. They recognise that customers’ experiences are shaped heavily by their staff; from an initial welcome at reception to a motivating fun workout and positive social experience.

Q: Do you tailor staff training programmes to ensure the best solutions?

A: We design a bespoke training programme that fits the needs and demands of each centre and local authority, to engage more effectively with customers and increase their overall experience and satisfaction levels.

The continual training and development of the on-site staff and systems is key to long term growth and creating a step change in the customer experience and overall value for money. Cardiff City Council is investing in the support of our bespoke senior management training through to front-line sales and customer care workshops; which have made a considerable impact upon their leisure provision.

Q: How do you set financial targets and what incentives do they bring?

A: In the current economic climate, partnership working is crucial and it brings shared goals and a clear vision of what can be achieved in the short and longer term together. We believe our partnership with Cardiff City Council is very much built on trust. We are confident that together we can grow their fitness income to offset the financial pressures currently being imposed.

Q: Communication is a key driver of member retention. How are you supporting Authorities to engage with their audience?

A: Our experience at Alliance Leisure has shown that new marketing technology including Bluetooth, SMS, social media and email are very effective in engaging with a wider audience. Cardiff City Council is already seeing the benefits new technology can bring and fundamentally changing the way they communicate with their customers.

In summary, our partnership with Cardiff City Council has demonstrated how much we can change the working culture and empower staff to drive the business forward long term. The income levels now being achieved have never been seen before and the fundamental shift has been motivating staff and really raising the bar in terms of overall customer experience.

Alliance Leisure has been appointed as the preferred development partner for Rhondda Cynon Taf County Borough Council, South Wales to invest £2.5m into Llantrisant Leisure Centre in 2012.
Llantrisant Leisure Centre is a local authority owned and managed multi-purpose leisure facility located in the South of the County Borough, approximately 8 miles from Cardiff. The facilities include a 25m main pool and 12m learner pool, six badminton court sports hall, four squash courts, a 45 station health and fitness studio, a multi-purpose hall and a health suite.

The Leisure Centre was opened in 1985 at a cost of £2.7 million and annually attracts 380,000 customer visits per year. Total usage has fluctuated in respect of swimming and declined in terms of fitness suite attendance during the period 2007 to 2010. Rhondda Cynon Taf County Borough Council are now keen to work with the private sector and see the partnership as a positive way to improve and enhance the facilities on offer to the community.

The redevelopment programme will incorporate a new state of the art health and fitness suite and studio, a new reception, plus refurbished circulation areas and changing rooms. The swimming pool changing rooms will also be refurbished to enhance the recent improvement and plant maintenance programme for the swimming pools.

In addition, the partnership will involve sales, marketing and training support to the Centre Management team, to capitalise on the commercial opportunities and enhance the use of the MoreCard, the Authority’s customer leisure card which offers reduced costs for leisure activities via a number of payment schemes.

The partnership will enable Rhondda Cynon Taf County Borough Council to significantly improve the sport and leisure offering for the County Borough. The overall objective being that the refurbished facility will increase the life span of the leisure centre by a minimum of thirty years and increase participation in physical activity within Llantrisant and the outlying communities that it serves.

Two new exciting developments are set to make an impact on the leisure industry this year and add a new dimension to local authority leisure provision. We provide you with an insight into the expanding number of Feel Good Factories and new High Ropes centres to be unveiled in the first half of the year.

Alliance Leisure has moved into a new sector of the leisure market over the past year as the strategic partner to Shapemaster, the creator of toning table equipment. Alliance Leisure has maximised the commercial opportunities to target new user groups via the Feel Good Factory Initiative.

The Feel Good Factory initiative offers a no-risk solution that encourages a whole new user group to attend leisure facilities, to access toning table equipment first introduced to the fitness world in 1989 by Shapemaster. The unique partnership enables operators to target specific groups in line with Government recommendations, as well as providing a no risk opportunity to create additional revenue.

The scheme works on an income share basis where the facility retains the initial income up to an agreed level, after which the income share mechanism kicks in. Pendle Leisure Centre was the first site in the UK to benefit from the initiative, with a range of dual function exercise equipment ideal for a wide range of potential members including people with disabilities, mobility and stability issues, as well as those recovering from an injury or simply wanting to lose weight.

At the start of 2012, Alliance Leisure is looking to finalise five new Feel Good Factory sites, adding to the existing four successful sites in operation.

Sarah Watts, Alliance Leisure’s Managing Director said: “The initiative is really breaking down the barriers to exercise and setting new standards in exercise technology. The numbers attracted to each centre, are up to 400 and still rising. We believe the initiative will grow considerably in 2012 and beyond to target a whole new user group and encourage them to get active.”

The second initiative for Alliance is an expansion of its portfolio offering; High Ropes. An exclusive arrangement with JM Adventure will bring the product into the local authority and leisure trust market. JM Adventure has unrivalled experience of manufacturing the product and supplying to the armed forces. Alliance Leisure brings the leisure industry experience to provide a perfect match and create sustainable and successful facilities.

The first three High Ropes centres will be rolled out in the first half of 2012.

A show round of your centre is the perfect opportunity to encourage a prospect to become a new member. First impressions are key to building rapport with potential customers and driving membership sales; here are our top tips for success…

Your initial greeting should make the prospective new member feel that they are the most important person in the world at that time.  In addition, an enquiry card should be used; it will help you uncover the reason for their enquiry plus allows you some conversation points. Remember – people buy from people they like and trust.

Start by explaining what their visit will entail including finding them the best membership package for their needs.  Based on their enquiry card, you’ll know what interests them the most, start in the area in which they will be most interested to create the ‘wow’ factor.

Ask questions that stimulate a YES response.  Questions like “It’s a lovely facility isn’t it?” this creates a pattern of positive responses, increasing the chances of them saying yes when you present prices.  Remember that telling is not selling.  If you tell them, it won’t influence their decision.  When they decide for themselves and communicate it back to you, your chance of selling to them increases massively.

At the end of the tour, ask one final commitment question, which will provide the perfect transition to the price presentation. Ask a question such as, “The facility has everything you need to meet your goals, doesn’t it?”  You want to make them feel as if they have already made a commitment to a membership. If they do have any questions, pause on the floor and deal with all questions before presenting prices. Finally, ask them to have a seat to decide which membership option is best for them.

Remember, there is no perfect show round process, but if you implement these strategies and are genuine in your approach, you will find that the sale will be made long before you present prices. Furthermore, the rapport built within seconds of meeting a new member will impact significantly on their leisure experience and loyalty to your centre.

To install a professional sales process in your sites contact us here

Happy New Year all, I hope you enjoyed the Christmas festivities!

The last twelve months have shown how much can be done to overcome the challenges in such difficult economic times, with continuing budget cuts for local authorities there seems to be a real sense of positivity moving forwards into 2012.

Indeed there isn’t a bigger inspiration to driving up participation than hosting a home Olympic Games and injecting much needed investment into our leisure facilities.

Our successful partnerships combining public, private and third sector expertise demonstrate the huge steps that can be made by working together to protect leisure provision and significantly increase profitability.

It is perhaps a ‘do’ or ‘die’ mentality and our best practice case study of Flintshire County Council shows the huge potential for future growth and how crucial investment can shift a rundown leisure facility from the fringe to the heart of the local community.

Our New Year newsletter features Paul Woodford, our Head of Client Support, talking about the importance of partnership working with the example of Cardiff City Council; our new plans as preferred development partner with Rhondda Cynon Taf County Borough Council, and top tips for maximising sales from show rounds. We also share with you the latest on ‘Feel Good Factories’ and ‘High Ropes’, two new ventures for Alliance Leisure.

Sarah Watts, Managing Director

Click here to read our Newsletter…

Despite fears still surrounding the economic climate below are a few examples where growth is still being seen in leisure. If you’d like to know how these sites have achieved these results please get in touch.

Dudley Metropolitan Borough Council
Dudley’s leisure centres live memberships have risen by 10.7% (Jan-Aug 2011). Similarly income has grown by 14.1% over that same period. The centres’ cancellation rates have also reduced from 7.2% to 4.5%.

Hyndburn Leisure
Hyndburn’s 3 leisure centres have achieved over 15% income growth from January to August 2011.

Barking and Dagenham Council
Becontree Heath Leisure Centre in Dagenham completed its launch with a staggering 2500 new membership sales in 5 months. Well done to the Alliance Impact team on that one!

Stratton Community Leisure Centre
39% increase in Fitness income from January 2011 to August 2011

Roefield Leisure
In August and September 2011 Roefield achieves largest net membership growth in two consecutive months since January 2008.

Flintshire
The new Deeside Leisure Centre gym and studio facilities open with over 500 memberships sold in just 3 weeks!

Well not necessarily the wrong basket, more like the misinformed one! With the use of social media growing at a rapid pace it is easy to fall into the trap of rushing your use of these marketing techniques.
If you have set up your social media pages and not planned out your content strategy then you have followed the same route as many other companies. However, it is not how much content you plan but how appropriate and engaging it is for your fan base.
Consider this, if your fans on Facebook are all existing users, is it appropriate to offer them a free gym pass? Maybe a few sessional users will jump on the offer but many will dismiss it because they are already existing users. A more appropriate message might be one that offers a free pass for friends and family to use your facilities. If your fan base is mainly gym users then constant messages about your class timetable will inevitably lead them to stop liking or following your pages.
Do not underestimate the power of the friends of fans though. Social media is a social space where recommendations are passed on every second and peer suggestions are valued very highly. Think about your messages and how they may be forwarded and shared with your fans’ social networks.
THE KEY MESSAGE HERE THEN IS TO UNDERSTAND AND CONSTANTLY MONITOR THE MAKE-UP OF YOUR FAN BASE SO YOU CAN SEND APPROPRIATE MESSAGES.
Finally, take a look at how many current followers or likes you have on your social media pages. In a recent Facebook analysis only 16% of fans are reached by branded content. If your fans are not logged on when you send messages then they might not see them, or they have decided to block your incoming messages (because the recent content has not been appropriate), or they may ignore your content as it does not stand-out amongst the hundreds of other messages being sent to them.
So considering that less than 2 in 10 of your fans will see your content how many people are you actually engaging with on your pages? Whilst appropriate content is key, you have to have a large audience to make your investment in this marketing effective and worthwhile.
SO THE FINAL KEY MESSAGE IS TO CONSIDER HOW YOU INCREASE YOUR FAN BASE AND I’LL LEAVE YOU WITH A LIST OF IDEAS OF WHERE AND HOW TO DO THIS… GOOD LUCK!
Welcome letter – new and enthusiastic customer are more likely to follow you when they have just become members. Remind them to follow you
Posters and facility literature – remind customers in your facilities to visit your pages and get involved. Incentivise them with competitions, quizzes, information, give-aways, etc.
Website – links on homepage to main social media sites and specific links within your site linking to appropriate content
Letterheads, stationary, appointment cards, gym programme cards, membership cards – keep your stationary up-to-date with icons of where you can be found on the web
Ezine links – make sure you remember to link from your ezines and e-newsletters to specific content on your social media pages
Email signatures – all employees of your organisation should have your social media links on their email signatures