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How Gyms Make Money (2015)

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Re: How Gyms Make Money (2015)

#171

Post by al_borland »

Gigachad wrote: post #76
tanseydavid wrote: post #60

Earlier quoted context omitted.

From the article: "There are many commercial gyms that won’t let you in on a ‘pay-as- you-go’ basis at all, even if you beg."

Pay as you go in general is not popular. It creates an incentive to not use the product or service and makes people feel bad about using it. Meanwhile upfront payments make you feel good about using the service. You already paid for it, using it is getting your monies worth. And if you can’t build a habit around using their service, you won’t stay a customer for long. The ideal customer is someone who pays but doesn’…

I think the Planet Fitness model is to appeal to non-gym-goers, and to also be cheap enough where people carry the membership year to year, because it’s not a big enough charge to hurt, while making the customer feel like they have some good intentions by having the membership.

Re: How Gyms Make Money (2015)

#172

Post by criddell »

bennyelv wrote: post #148
bobsmooth wrote: post #129

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Do you lack the space for a home gym or are you an advanced lifter that would benefit from the specialized machines?

Generally the more advanced you are as a lifter the less specialised machines are going to benefit you. Machines are there for people who don’t know what lifts to do and how to do them with proper technique. If you glimpse inside the gym of a professional athlete you’ll generally find a comprehensive set of dumbbells, some Olympic bars + plates and a bench and not much else!

> Machines are there for people who don’t know what lifts to do and how to do them

That’s an overly broad generalization. If you look up pictures of Arnold Schwarzenegger’s home gym, it’s mostly machines.

Re: How Gyms Make Money (2015)

#173

Post by Leherenn »

Dr_Birdbrain wrote: post #80
unsignedint wrote: post #67

I've had two past experiences with joining gyms. The first time, I canceled before even visiting, thanks to a state law allowing no-questions-asked cancellations within a certain period. The second time, I didn't proceed with signing up due to high-pressure sales tactics and an uncomfortable environment that included shaming and mocking. These experiences left a bitter taste. However, since changing jobs, I've been w…

Yeah the signup can be rough. I remember they insist on offering you a “free session” with a trainer—it’s a trap, one must adamantly decline it, insist on just wanting a basic subscription. They’ll want to ask you lots of questions to “try to understand your goals”, one must insist on just a basic subscription. It’s quite obnoxious :P but, that’s the only time one interacts with sales staff or even trainers. After th…

What's the trap exactly? Some upsell I presume?

The gym I go to (part of a national chain where I live) also do it, but it sounds well meant. There's only one subscription anyway (a yearly one) and no extra (unless you want to buy a towel or something).

Re: How Gyms Make Money (2015)

#174

Post by v-erne »

NikolaNovak wrote: post #45
nelblu wrote: post #25

I've been a gym rat for almost 20 years now, and I'm probably the worst customer for gyms. I only workout at 24*7 gyms and being an early bird I get there at 430 and I have pretty much the whole gym for myself. I am there 6 days a week and I always shower at the gym. Further, I use the corporate discounts available to join the memberships. With all that, it comes down to approx. $50 a month for membership and I used…

>>Finally I must add, all the friends (more like acquaintances) you make at the gym are absolutely crucial to motivate oneself Yes, but it's personality specific; the absolute worst part of the gym, to me, is "other people". The sweaty, macho, over-enthusiastic bros with specific kind of humour (you can tell me that's not all or even most of them; doesn't matter, my subconsciousness doesn't believe you! :). The stink…

And this is why only go to boutique gym where you get personal trainer and whole room full of equipment only for yourself.

I did not know that this kind of arrangement is possible (I used to go only to normal gyms which were overcrowded most of the times). My wife found it near us and we decided to check it, made a reservation, and now, after a year I cannot imagine going back.

Unfortunately it does come with hefty price tag - about 4-5 times bigger than normal gym subscription.

Re: How Gyms Make Money (2015)

#175

Post by criddell »

valec wrote: post #154
nomilk wrote: post #69

A friend asked me what gym I’m going to now days, I was delighted to inform him it’s a globally available 24/7 gym and I never have to wait for equipment. It’s 2 square meters in “the park”. 120 bodyweight squats, lunges, and calf raises, 150 push ups and 200 sit ups, 3km run, and 10 minutes stretching. Challenging, requires zero thought or planning (other than wearing a warm top on cold days) and costs $0/month.

These are nowhere near a replacement for weights or machines. I notice you didn't even mention doing pull-ups, the only body-weight exercise with enough resistance for you to actually build muscle from. Can you point me to a bodyweight exercise that can sub in for 450lb deadlifts for sets of 6? How about for 250lbs bench for sets of 6? While you can build good general health and endurance i n 2 square meters in "the…

450 lb deadlifts and 250 lb bench press seems like a lot though. Surely general metabolic health and long health span doesn’t require that kind of weight, does it? I’m thinking with a lot of weight on the bar, there’s probably some point where the chance of injury outweighs the potential long term benefits.

Re: How Gyms Make Money (2015)

#176

Post by Detrytus »

criddell wrote: post #175
valec wrote: post #154

Earlier quoted context omitted.

These are nowhere near a replacement for weights or machines. I notice you didn't even mention doing pull-ups, the only body-weight exercise with enough resistance for you to actually build muscle from. Can you point me to a bodyweight exercise that can sub in for 450lb deadlifts for sets of 6? How about for 250lbs bench for sets of 6? While you can build good general health and endurance i n 2 square meters in "the…

450 lb deadlifts and 250 lb bench press seems like a lot though. Surely general metabolic health and long health span doesn’t require that kind of weight, does it? I’m thinking with a lot of weight on the bar, there’s probably some point where the chance of injury outweighs the potential long term benefits.

Well, it certainly depends on a person. If someone is a big guy he might need that much weight to even break a sweat, exercising with 120 lbs bar would do nothing for them.

Re: How Gyms Make Money (2015)

#177

Post by mnky9800n »

nelblu wrote: post #25

I've been a gym rat for almost 20 years now, and I'm probably the worst customer for gyms. I only workout at 24*7 gyms and being an early bird I get there at 430 and I have pretty much the whole gym for myself. I am there 6 days a week and I always shower at the gym. Further, I use the corporate discounts available to join the memberships. With all that, it comes down to approx. $50 a month for membership and I used…

How do you make friends at the gym? I've been going for years and the only gym friends I have are those from outside the gym that learn that I go to the gym.

Re: How Gyms Make Money (2015)

#178

Post by pcthrowaway »

Popeyes wrote: post #49
swamp40 wrote: post #22

"The founder of Colman’s Mustard used to claim that his fortune was based on the bit of mustard that everyone left behind on their plate" Wow.

I haven't read the article but the move to squeezy ketchup bottles was because parents didn't like kids messing with the glass bottles, and kids were the ones who would dump a load of unused ketchup on their plates meaning parents would buy more.

Related: https://www.scanofthemonth.com/scans/food-packaging

Surprisingly a lot of engineering went into those squeezy tops

Re: How Gyms Make Money (2015)

#179

Post by astrod »

ImaCake wrote: post #29
quickthrower2 wrote: post #15

Any gym owners can chime in? My local gym seemed pretty normal this January so far (but I am in Australia where many people book their holidays during forced shutdown periods). Also the gym seems to have the same pricing whenever except sometimes there is “no joining fee” which is a weird thing to me but hey? My gym is independent. A famous world brand of gym I used to belong to seemed to make their money by making i…

Depending on which Aussie state you are in, there are consumer protections which allow you to exit these contracts with a simple email. At least this is was the case for me in WA.

NSW here, I quit mine a few months back by email after being a member for 5 years. The reason being they increased the monthly fee from $65 in 2020 to $100 in 2023.

Re: How Gyms Make Money (2015)

#180

Post by mariodiana »

al_borland wrote: post #171
Gigachad wrote: post #76

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Pay as you go in general is not popular. It creates an incentive to not use the product or service and makes people feel bad about using it. Meanwhile upfront payments make you feel good about using the service. You already paid for it, using it is getting your monies worth. And if you can’t build a habit around using their service, you won’t stay a customer for long. The ideal customer is someone who pays but doesn’…

I think the Planet Fitness model is to appeal to non-gym-goers, and to also be cheap enough where people carry the membership year to year, because it’s not a big enough charge to hurt, while making the customer feel like they have some good intentions by having the membership.

They pay a guilt tax.
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