Tennis pros and facilities need an online presence

The public is currently being trained to seek out news and updates online, and they’ll likely retain this habit after you reopen. If you’re not providing updates on activities, services, promotions and achievements through social media and your website, you risk losing business to other facilities that understand the value of a digital presence and use it effectively.

Your digital presence can and should be seen as a potential revenue driver as well as a means of engagement and member retention. You’re no longer competing only against other local health clubs—today’s fitness consumers have a wide range of digital options available, from nutrition and food-tracking apps to complete fitness programs delivered via subscription app.

Your club should take advantage of video and streaming services to offer live classes and education for members working out at home. You should also consider developing a library of educational YouTube videos on a range of fitness topics. The mental aspects of fitness can be just as important as the physical aspects, so training on mental techniques can be a low-impact way to help your members if they have limited equipment or available space for exercise.

Facilities that can remain open on a limited basis should take advantage of online scheduling services to ensure compliance with group-size restrictions.

Ask all members who want to use your facility to reserve time through a scheduling app and promote open slots through your social channels as needed to reach “capacity.” For the time being, any open club should operate on an appointment basis, which makes scheduling apps critical. Many member-management systems have a scheduling component, so you might already have everything you need.

-----

Tim Bainton is the Managing Partner of Blue Chip Sports Management.