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Nowadays, there is getting ready to be a huge rollup of clubs with many of the clubs either being bought out or closing their doors completely. Many times, the owners of the clubs want to shut the doors as fast as possible to avoid legal troubles, press involvement, theft, and employee bashlash. So, for you the consumer, how can you tell if your club is getting ready to hit the chopping block?
Three Ways To Spot Financial Trouble
A Sudden Decrease In Rates For New Members. Many owners turn to this tactic to try to encourage more people to join. The problem comes in when that's all they do. In most cases, this is the only thing that owners know to do when the club starts to have trouble. Sadly enough, this tactic can work in the short term to great success. However, soon enough the revenue will start to fall off again and even lower rates follow (again, because that is all that they know). To make it simple, if you start to see a firesale, you know there's a reason.
Constant Employee Turnover. This isn't as noticable to most but employee turnover generally means that the ownership group either has no idea how to hire the right people or that the group continually lies to their employees about pay or pay scale and they leave. Neither is a good thing. You can't have happy, paying members without happy, committed employees.
Sudden Removal of Key Programs. There is no such thing as addition by subtraction in the health club industry. Many times, the owners of a club will justify the removal by saying that no one is using the program (even though you know that it's not the case). This is usually one of the first things you'll notice.
Hopefully, you'll never see any of these in your club. However, if you do, find a new club quickly.
Do you need a guaranteed way to find the best health club for you? Make sure to pick up a copy of Brad Howard's "Health Club Secrets: How to Join Any Health Club Without Getting Ripped Off" before your search. Learn all of the dirty tricks and scams that health club owners use to make sure you never get in shape, yet keep paying them year after year. http://www.healthclubsecrets.com
With our fast-paced lifestyles and our less-than-ideal dietary habits, it's no wonder that health clubs and gyms are appearing everywhere. These centers are very important for many people, because it forces them to have the discipline to workout on a regular basis. But do remember that gyms exist to make money. And where money is involved, trust that there will be some people who will go to great lengths to take it away from you! Disgruntled gym and health club clients have plenty of stories to tell. Learn from them and save yourself from shady gym operators.
Gym Scams 101
Ridiculously Low Rates – It's becoming increasingly crowded out there. With so many gyms fighting each other over customers, membership fees are plummeting. However, you should remember that operating a gym is a very expensive endeavor. In order to provide customers with the best experience, the gym or health club must have plenty of operating capital. Low-end gyms, while having much cheaper rates, mean bad exercise equipment, crowded areas, less sanitary facilities and less customer focus. When choosing a gym or health club, it may be best to go to the more expensive places.
Beware of False Advertising – There are many gyms that advertise low-rates, zero-membership fees, or some other way that you can save when joining. However, most of these gyms get the money out of the customer, one way or the other. Be sure to read the contract for any hidden charges that they may impose. Others advertise huge discounts, only to cripple or limit much or their services until the member pays in full. Others, on the other hand, flat-out lie about their services and member benefits. Be sure to ask a lot of questions and inspect the service agreement fully.
Dubious Accreditations - There are so many certificate-giving bodies out there from state and community organizations that few are worth more than the paper it's written on. Be sure to double-check on what accreditations the gym claims to have and see if they come from a truly prestigious or note-worthy organization. The same goes for the so-called certified-instructors many gyms have. Be wary and be sure to research these claims.
Poor Equipment and Facilities – This is what you pay for the most, the ability to use large, specialized equipment. Always inspect the entire gym and its facilities before you commit to signing up. The place should also be spacious – it should not be crowded. Many gyms sign up more customers than they can actually handle. The result is that many customers have to wait in line to use the gym equipment they want. This also means that their equipment is constantly being used and prone to more damage.
Sleazy Contracts – Always read what's printed on the service contract. Three year memberships, high deposit fees, extra charges – these can be all hidden inside the contract and its existence conveniently not mentioned by the sales team. Always turn on the alarm when you encounter provisions requiring you to shell out more money or penalize you for cutting your membership short.
Brad Howard is the most prolific health and fitness marketer of this generation. His new book, "Health Club Secrets" is currently being featured in many news stories for it's groundbreaking information on gyms and gym scams. To claim your copy of this free resource, go to http://www.HealthClubSecrets.com
Come join him in the discussion on www.physique101.com
Out of the many health clubs out there for you to join,
the one that is most familiar to you will normally be the
one you gravitate to. After all, if it's well known, it has
to be good right?
Can you name another brand name club that has more
familiarity that Gold's Gym?
Sure, you've got 24 Hour Fitness, Life Time Fitness,
Bally Total Fitness, as well as women's only clubs like
Curves and Living Well Lady. But seriously, is there
another name that rings "fitness" like Gold's Gym?
With that being said, should your local Gold's Gym be
the recipient of your business?
Maybe. And here's why.
Most people don't know or understand the fact that many
of the clubs under the Gold's Gym "umbrella" are franchised
operations. What this means is that each of these clubs is
owned by an individual other than Gold's Gym. These people
license the name and systems that Gold's has created in
order to take advantage of name recognicion and business
stability.
But this is a good thing, right?
In most instances, it is. However, there are over 500 Gold's
Gym franchises in the world. Do you really think that the
Gold's Franchising Center can actually police everyone to
make sure that the Gold's name is being represented properly?
Some owners form the exception and not the rule in the manner
in which they run their clubs. Unethical behavior like slow or no
customer service, unclean facilities, poor membership management,
hard selling tactics, and other awful business practices plague these
organizations and create distrust in the local community.
Of course, most Gold's Gym franchise holders operate in a well
developed manner and will not have anything to do with the practices
listed above.
What does this mean to you as the consumer?
Obviously, it means you need to do your homework. Do not assume
that just because the name states "Gold's Gym" on the outside that
it actually represents the true embodiment of what Gold's is supposed
to be.
Make sure to do your local Better Business Bureau search and ask
around the see if you can dig up any dirt from friends and coworkers.
Should your research prove fruitfull and your local Gold's passes the
initial research, grab a week pass to test the place out. Beware of
any hard sell tactics as these are a dead give away of the customer
service level.
All in all, just because the name sound familiar, don't let that sway your
judgment until you've done the proper research. After all, you know
what they say about assumptions.
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Brad Howard is the most prolific health and fitness marketer of this generation.
His new book, "Health Club Secrets" is currently being featured in many news stories
for it's groundbreaking information on health club scams. To get it for free, go to
http://www.HealthClubSecrets.com
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Webmasters: You may use this article free of charge as long as the resource box
is included and the article body is unchanged. The use of affiliate links for the URL
is allowed as long as the site name is viewable.
Copyright © 2006 Brad Howard
For many people, the day they join a health club is supposed to be a major positive turning point in their life. After all, the decision to get in shape is never an easy one.
However, many clubs are really taking advantage of the fact that most people don’t really read the agreements that they sign.
These health clubs are putting in “stealth” fees that, while legal, leave many people wondering about the ethics of the clubs that use them.
So, what’s the killer fee that most people are completely unaware of?
It’s called the “facility improvement fee” or “facility improvement addendum” and it’s lighting up many members around the country.
Here is how it works. When you join a club that has one of these fees, you typically have to initial a spot that states that the club is going to draft a fee of $25 every (pick a month and date) of every year you are a member for facility improvements. In some instances, you don’t even have to initial beside it, it’s just there.
Now, that doesn’t seem like such a big deal. After all, the club does need to have new equipment, new paint, and money to get things fixed up.
In actuality, the many clubs never use this money for the improvement of their club at all. In fact, it’s just another profit center for them and it goes right in the owner’s pocket. Legally, they can do this due to the way the contract is written. Typically, it’ll say something like:
“…to be used for maintenance, upkeep, and any other club expense deemed necessary by management.”
To be honest, I’ve walked in a few clubs that don’t look like they’ve been cleaned in ages but they sure do charge the facility improvement fee.
Here are the biggest scams with “facility improvement fees”
• Charge the fee and never fix anything
• Only charge the fee to people with monthly memberships
• Charge the fee for “future” club expansion
• Charge late and bounce fees when the unplanned for draft attempts to go through
If your club charges a “facility improvement fee,” find out what they plan to improve this year. Ask to get an itemized list for all of the members. Should your fee be a legitimate fee, management won’t have any problems with providing this.
Make sure that your club is accountable to you with the money you pay. Granted, the owners have every right to do whatever they want with any dues based income. However, a fee that has a specific name should be used to that purpose.
If you are looking for clubs and you come across a “facility improvement fee,” make sure it looks like the health club LOOKS like it’s been improved or at least kept up. Think about it, if health clubs have an average member base of 2000 members times $25, that $50,000 should go a long way.
And remember, this is $50,000 EACH YEAR in improvements.
In conclusion, make sure to read all of your agreements and question any fees that seem a little questionable. A “facility improvement fee” can be a good thing if the fee is actually used for what it’s designed for. However, don’t let unscrupulous owners use it as another way to line their pockets.
------------------------
Brad Howard is the most prolific health and fitness marketer of this generation. His new book, "Health Club Secrets" is currently being featured in many news stories for it's groundbreaking information on health club scams. To get it for free, go to
http://www.HealthClubSecrets.com
---------------------------
Webmasters: You may use this article on your website or in your newsletter for free as long as the article remains unchanged and the resource box is included. You may, substitute your affiliate link into the resource box if you'd like