Retain Gym Members This New Year With Optum

Are you ready for the influx of new gym members in the new year?

Brace yourself! Exercise is one of the most popular New Year’s resolutions. But as you know, there’s a flip side to that enthusiasm, too:

70% of resolution-inspired gym members will abandon their fitness goals and leave their new gyms by May.

How To Prevent New Gym Members From Leaving Too Soon

So, how can you stop this annual turnover from happening?

You can hold on to a few resolution setters using tried-and-true athlete retention strategies. But there’s an even better way to ensure steady gym membership in the new year — signing up to be part of the Optum Fitness Network.

Get New Gym Members To Stay Past February

This January, challenge yourself to try something new — seek out a new type of gym member rather than relying on the usual New Year’s rush. The ideal prospect you should be looking for someone who is:

1. Consistent and reliable
2. On a long-term fitness journey
3. Motivated to attend classes

Basically, they should be everything the average resolution setter is not.

(Unless that resolution setter is committed to a SMART goal, of course. You can help any new gym member with goal setting — no matter how inexperienced they are — if they’re serious about making a change and achieving tangible results.)

Get New Gym Members With the Optum Fitness Network

The Optum Fitness Network helps you find gym members who satisfy all 3 requirements.

Optum allows its members to access fitness classes for free, so long as they attend class at a gym that’s part of the Optum Fitness Network.

If you can add some Optum members to your gym community, they’ll add stability to your membership numbers. That way, when over-eager newbies leave, your business will continue to thrive.

Thanks to the Zen Planner and Optum partnership, all Zen Planner customers have the option to join the Optum Fitness Network absolutely free. Signing up allows all Optum members to easily find your gym in the search engine when they are looking for a place to use their fitness benefits.

1. Optum Members Are Consistent and Reliable

Resolution setters are notoriously flaky.

It makes sense. People are far less likely to achieve new goals when they’re arbitrarily set based on a timeline that’s enforced by vague social pressure, not even pressure from close friends and family.

There’s no rhyme or reason about what changes are supposed to happen and when. Talk about a tough plan to stick to!

Optum members are on a schedule because of how their fitness benefits work.

There are 3 plans that give members access to affordable workout classes under the Optum Fitness Network:

• Renew Active® (Medicare) — 4 gym check-ins per month
• One Pass™ (Medicare and Medicaid) — 4 gym check-ins per month
• One Pass™ (commercial) — 8 gym check-ins per month

As you can see, no matter whether they have Renew Active or One Pass, Optum members have a set number of classes they can use per month. This keeps them motivated to attend either 4 or 8 times monthly to get their money’s worth.

Even better — if an Optum member chooses to use all their check-ins at your gym, you receive $56 or $120 from them per month, depending on their plan.

2. Optum Members Are on a Long-Term Fitness Journey

Resolution setters tend to burn out soon.

There are many different reasons for this:

• Weak initial commitment to their resolution
• Inability to set concrete, achievable goals
• Lack of support from their social network
• Insufficient time
• Low energy

Keep in mind the large variety of people who have “joining a gym” as their resolution. That could encompass anyone, from a highly active, energetic 18-year-old to an 80-year-old looking to reduce pain and improve quality of life.

Both have their own reasons why they may quit their resolution early. The young adult may not need a gym to stay fit, and the senior may have challenges attending class regularly.

Optum members are using a long-term fitness benefit.

Think of the Optum Fitness Network like an extension of healthcare benefits — because that’s essentially what it is!

A doctor may recommend exercise to an Optum member as a tool in their fight against a specific ailment or to increase their overall wellbeing.

Many of the gym members who come to you through Optum will have those kinds of longer-term fitness and wellness goals in mind, as opposed to the general population, who may have set their New Year’s resolution on a whim or for aesthetic reasons.

3. Optum Members Are Motivated To Attend Class

Resolution setters have to rely on willpower and discipline for motivation.

• Did their workout buddy lose steam and miss a few sessions? Then they’re probably less motivated to go to the gym alone.
• Did they realize other resolutions are more pressing? Then the gym has already been deprioritized, and their chance of success is low.

Point being, there is no other external motivator pushing them toward their gym goals, other than maybe a friend or family member. Often that is not enough for sustainable change.

Optum members have the external motivation of using up their fitness benefits.

Those classes are use it or lose it. Meaning if they don’t go to a gym in the Optum Fitness Network, they’re not going to the gym at all, unless they want to pay extra.

Think of how many people scramble to book last-minute doctor and dentist appointments at the end of the year. Optum members face a similar deadline every month.

All the more incentive to get themselves into your gym!

Sign Up for the Optum Fitness Network

Do Optum members sound like a nice change of pace from the usual new members you get every January?

If you’re a Zen Planner customer, registering with the Optum Fitness Network is simple and free. Get started by filling out the form at the bottom of this webpage:

And if you’re not a Zen Planner customer yet, we’d be happy to have you.

Book a demo call with a Zen Planner team member to learn more, and be sure to mention you’re interested in registering with the Optum Fitness Network.