Understanding Technology to Boost Your Member Engagement

The latest technology makes it possible to stay more connected to our families, friends and interests than ever before. The digital landscape impacts everyone — at a young age for some or mid-life for others. It’s essential to embrace it to navigate the digital world yourself, and also further understand your audience.

Interacting with media and our hand-held technology is an involved daily routine for most. Advances in connectivity can translate into the fitness experience through offering innovative equipment and solutions in your facility.

As a community rec professional, you are always seeking ways to increase member engagement. With technological resources, you can be connected to your members both inside and outside your facility to keep them coming back. But with all of this diverse technology, how do you maximize its effectiveness?

The first step in bridging the gap between your members and you is developing an understanding of the technology you’ve invested in already. Think about the way you use your smartphone as an analogy. Can you confidently say you know everything it can do? Understanding your facility’s tools will help you spread your message, letting community members know about special events, small group training, new equipment and programming.

And if you discover gaps in your knowledge of technology, your equipment provider can be a valuable source of information. Certain providers even offer websites full of tips and tricks to help you make the most of your investment.

With a solid understanding in place, you can use the technology at your fingertips to connect with members. Luckily, many of today’s fitness solutions include integrated connectivity that makes it easy to get started. Whether it be through a workout training app used in-facility or a fitness challenge expanding your reach outside the facility, members are looking to be impressed with your offerings.

Better still, incentivizing members with rewards and referral programs increases their likelihood of not only continuing to use your facility, but also telling their friends about it. This is just the beginning of what you can do with modern fitness technology. By exploring and experimenting with the technology already in your facility, you can discover endless ways to encourage member engagement.

Ashley Haberman is the U.S. marketing manager at Johnson Health Tech North America: the parent company of Matrix Fitness. He can be reached at ashley.haberman@johnsonfit.com or by visiting matrixconnectedsolutions.com.