Gym Website Design 101 for Fitness Business Owners

With the rise of smartphones, websites (mobile-friendly websites in particular) are more important than ever before. However, more than half of small businesses still do not have a business website. So, why should these businesses have a website?

• Having a web presence creates credibility. According to Brian Sutter at Wedge Advanced Software Product (Wasp), 97% of consumers search online for products and service.
• It also helps you get discovered and can set you apart from your competition. Don’t lose customers because they found something else in the area and didn’t know about you.
• There are several other reasons why a website is a must for every fitness business owner. Learn more about them here.

Now that you understand the importance of having a website, what are elements you need to have to get the most out of it? Let’s start with the basics. Your contact information should be easy to find and accessible. This includes:

• Phone number
• Email
• Hours of operation
• Location with a map
• Links to your Facebook page, Instagram, Twitter and any other social media accounts you may have.

Next, the real meat of your gym website. Your company information. Who are you? What do you do? You want prospects to know what you are all about with the information that you give them. Best practices include:

• About Us – a brief summary about what you do, your history and your staff (be sure to note any special training/certifications your staff members have).
• At least three high quality photos of the work you do.
• Programs – highlight the different types of training you offer.
• Logos and links to any professional organizations you belong to.
• Your logo, colors and any other branding elements you’ve worked to create for your business.
• Calls-to-action and forms to drive prospective members to your business.
• Customer testimonials – Did you know that 70% of consumers looking at services and goods online compare prices and read reviews? 88% of consumers are influenced by reviews they read online so be sure to feature some on your website.

One of the biggest reasons for having a gym website is to help your business get discovered by those performing searches on Google. Make sure your gym website has the following key SEO components:

• Unique title tags and meta descriptions on every page.
• An XML sitemap
• Professional URL – websites ending in .com are seen more creditable than those ending in .net or .biz. Additionally, you don’t want anything long or hard to remember.
• A blog to add fresh content to your site. Google loves blog content and your members will benefit from this content as well.

Finally, a few things that don’t fall into their own category but are still really important for every site to have include:

• Pages that load in two seconds or less.
• A design that displays well on mobile devices. Be sure to avoid clutter, keep things simple, easy to navigate and focused on getting visitors to click your call-to-action.
• Secure hosting platform (SSL) to make sure your visitor’s information is safe.

Did you know that Zen Planner now offers Integrated Websites? Learn more about our expertly crafted gym websites by scheduling a demo with one of our Software Professionals.