Programs for Better Management

"This is Ivan Madar and I'm here on behalf of Expert Village talking about the essentials of effective fitness that is in a spa, spa and club management. The area I would like to concentrate on now briefly is the area of managing programs. How do you establish a program? What is feasible? What is viable within your club? This is after, obviously, the club is already built. It is there. What makes the programs really appropriate, or what makes it good, obviously it's the staff that is the heart of the program. Good instructors, good therapists, good group of people who are willing to participate in the activities. That's very important, but you will decide on what's really going to happen in your club. The basic, basic issue you could look at is your demographics. Who do you serve? Do you serve younger population? Do you serve middle age? Do you serve people who are there, for what purpose are they coming to your facility and what really is your service? Because a lot of places offer services, they are a little bit out of their, just because they are popular doesn't mean they are going to appeal to you or your demographics. And therefore, it is very, very important to listen to the people and what they say. So you establish in your club avenues in which members or guests can convey their impressions of your programs. And if you're really listening, it doesn't take long to find out what they want. They will tell you what they want. They are paying money to go to your facility, and they know what you want. Obviously, it's very simple in some areas; if it's a tennis club they want to have enough tennis courts, and they want to have enough playing time, but they may also suggest other areas. Like they may want to have you make Sunday's doubles leagues, or if you come to a fitness area they may want to do Pilates or they may want to do larger group yoga classes, or spinning or something that you have either just considered or not considered offering. And if you don't listen. If you just go to a conference once a year and they tell you what is popular in Los Angeles, what is popular in New York, and what is popular in the mid-west and you try to go by that it's not going to work. Each, and especially each private, club is unique, and different activities, obviously, are of appropriate to the different facilities."