Latest Thinking

Trends in the Personalized Experience

As consumers spend an increasing amount of time on their smartphones, private clubs must begin the personalization process through smartphone apps. A club’s app must contain offerings that personalize visits and provides access to offerings not found elsewhere.

From music playlists to shoes and food delivery services to TV shows streamed, consumers can personalize every purchase they make these days. With the business paradigm quickly shifting away from a one-size-fits-all approach, private clubs must adopt the trend. For private clubs, maximizing the benefits of this trend lies in not only personalizing current member experiences, but in creating enticing personalization opportunities for future members.

As consumers spend an increasing amount of time on their smartphones, private clubs must begin the personalization process through smartphone apps. A club’s app must contain offerings that personalize visits and provides access to offerings not found elsewhere.

App offerings for future and new club members must center on making membership appealing and inviting. To do this, clubs must use personalization tools to take the intimidation out of membership. For instance, spin club, Flywheel, rebuilt its site to personalize new riders’ experiences by including specialized tips before their first ride.

Clubs must consider what confusion or intimidation new members face when entering the club. What to wear? Instead of words describing the dress code, how about an image of a typical member? Might meeting people be a new member’s biggest worry? Then, clubs should build member directories into their apps that are easily searchable and pair club members who have similar backgrounds and interests. Is finding one’s way through the club a concern? If so, clubs can easily install searchable, real-time maps into their apps.

To successfully personalize the consumer experience, brands must also meet the needs of their existing market base. One sports brand that has successfully managed to incorporate personalization features appealing to new and existing members is Equinox. Equinox’s newly launched app includes functions allowing users to track their fitness goals by inputting data from both inside and outside of the gym. Beyond that, members can search for classes based on their moods and goals and book spin cycles after viewing club layouts.

The Equinox model serves as a good example of how clubs can incorporate personalization enticing to current members. Clubs must work through everything a member wants or needs in their experience and then consider how they can personalize creating that experience for them.

For instance, clubs should learn new member preferences and communicate it throughout their staff.  By collecting details on family member names, their schools, sport activities, meal choices and drink preferences, the club can offer a personalized experience that is welcoming to the new member. The club can then push out personalized offers to the member and even go so far as meeting them at the club’s entrance with their favorite drink in hand!

Business has changed. Businesses can no longer afford to treat every customer the same. With the world’s growing reliance on the smartphone, app-based technology creates unique opportunities for brands and clubs to develop personal experiences. With 25-percent of apps used only once by downloaders, if your club wants to captivate members, it must give them a reason to keep coming back. And for today’s members, personalized experiences are the reason they keep returning.

Thanks to personalization, there is no limit to what your club can do to attract the interest and loyalty of new and current members through your club’s app.