Sleeping in Their Bed

There is a treadmill in my fitness center that has problems with the incline function. It seems to be fine, at first. However, when I change the speed, the incline goes back down. Strange. What’s stranger is that this treadmill has been this way for weeks, and it’s never once been repaired.

I suspect the staff at my fitness center doesn’t follow the sage advice of Miss Manners, the syndicated columnist. She has a word of advice for people expecting house guests: sleep in their bed. Not with them, but sleep in the bed in your guest room to make sure the mattress is comfortable, the clock works, there are hangers in the closet, etc. Maybe you need to take this advice when it comes to your fitness center.

Fitness managers should actually use their fitness centers. Try out each cardio machine, use the weight machines and free weights, take group classes, try the menu items in your juice bar and use the locker room.

If you wait until your members tell you that something is dirty, broken or unsafe, you may have already lost them. It is frustrating for members to keep seeing the same problems over and over. And, if you think that your members will report every problem, think again. They may be in too much of a hurry to seek out a staff member, or they may just not want to look like a whiner.

You and your staff members should follow daily, weekly and monthly checklists that cover your entire facility. But, there are some things you may not notice unless you actually use your facility — like the treadmill at my fitness center.

There are countless other ways to offer great customer service to your members. Look for more ideas in Fitness Management’s Article Archive.

Good customer service means paying attention to every detail. You may actually be losing members to things you don't even think they notice.

Do you work out regularly at your fitness center? Do you have a story about something you found that was broken, unsafe, dirty, etc.? Share it!