Managing memberships

More than 70% of club revenue is typically generated from memberships.

Investing in the right customer relations management system will help health clubs keep close to consumers and ahead of competition says Louise Birchall.

Middle East leisure facilities operating outdated member-management systems are likely to find that their relationships with clients are on the rocks, according to industry experts.

Elan Hospitality CEO Tim Fulton advises that "an effective customer relationship management (CRM) system and judicial management of it will help enormously in retaining members as it adds a personal touch".

By ‘personal touch', Fulton means getting to know your members; advanced CRM systems such as Dubai-based Intellect Data Systems' Fortune Enterprise programme will do all the customer bonding for you.

Getting to know your client

Fortune Enterprise keeps a complete database of members, dependents and their usage of facilities and services.

At the touch of a button club staff can access the membership history of each customer, drilling down to information as detailed as their favourite colour, drink or their food preferences.

Such detailed information allows clubs to focus on retention through offering a personalised and member-orientated service.

"Good retention practices will lead to increased sales, but good sales practices will not necessarily lead to good retention," says Fulton.

"By knowing members and meeting their needs, it's possible to have the best of both worlds; attracting more members and keeping them."

With increased competition, attracting members and keeping them is even more crucial, especially as revenue from memberships typically generates up to 70% of a recreation facility's total income, according to Grand Hyatt Muscat general manager Christoph Franzen.

Beach Rotana Abu Dhabi director of recreation Donna Kenyon adds: "The membership sales are what drive business for the department. Hotel guests are interested in facilities and services, but they are not consistent.

"Members give the department stability; from taking up and renewing their membership to forming habits depending on their interests. That's why it's good to have a variety of services to meet varying interests - therefore maintaining a steady income from memberships once someone has paid their membership fees."

And once clubs have mastered member retention they can benefit from additional spin offs from retail sales, personal trainers and word-of-mouth marketing, adds Fulton.

Flexible payment plans

Ras Al Khaimah's Al Hamra Golf Club general manager Simon Mees says the company continually monitors and works on retaining its membership base assessing the current market and ensuring it stays competitive by offering memberships that meets various client demands.

In response to consumer requests, the golf club is looking to introduce a payment plan that would be available to current members renewing their subscription as well as potential new members, enabling them to spread their membership payments over the course of a year, according to Mees.

Similarly, Core Direction launched its Core Studio health and fitness centre in Dubai Marina on October 1 offering a monthly payment system to members in response to consumer demand.

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