The result you want to achieve by entertaining your members is to keep them coming back to your facility. If they have a TV program they watch at your club every day, if the music you play keeps them “charged” while they weight train, or if tracking their workouts motivates them to continue exercising, then you have benefited from entertaining your members.
Certain entertainment systems can also help you attract new members. Some prospective members may not join your facility if you do not have enough TVs, or if they don’t like the music being played. This may sound picky, but these amenities may be the deciding factor between your club and another.
What is right for your club
While your members may not let you know about other problems at your club, you can bet you will hear about your music, television or other entertainment systems. This is a true testament to how important distraction is to your members. If one machine is broken, they can move on to the next, but if your television is broken, or on the wrong channel, or if your music isn’t on, you can bet you will hear about it. Some of your members would choose not working out at all tositting on a bike for 45 minutes without being able to watch “must-see TV.”
As always, listen to your members. Find out what kind of music they like and what television programs they watch, and remember that these will change throughout the day.
Most people need a little push when it comes to exercising, and entertainment can be that push. If they know they can watch a movie while walking on the treadmill, check their email while riding a bike, listen to music while lifting weights, and then log and track their results when it is all over, your members may be more motivated to get off the couch and into your club.