Where Is Bally Total Fitness Headed ? CBI Offers Clues

I read with great interest Patricia Amend's cover article on Michael Sheehan and Bally Total Fitness included in the November 2010 edition of Club Business International. The title, "A 21st Century Brand" is interesting. Certain operational moves made at Bally Total Fitness speak volumes about an organization that, I have a hunch, has an understanding of where the fitness industry is headed. Although as Michael Sheehan himself points out, "We'd prefer to be judged on the basis of our progress...".

As you know I've been writing and speaking about what the future of the fitness industry holds and therefore I don't think it a coincidence that the new management team at Bally Total Fitness is made up of 1) a former CMO from United Airlines, 2) a former CFO of the web travel giant Orbitz and 3) the former head of HR from The Home Depot. Not one of their new "C" level executives has deep roots in fitness, with the exception of Michael Sheehan himself. I think there is a reason for that. Growing a national fitness brand and designing and executing new consumer centric models that leverage technology are but one, but a significant component, of what I think the future is about. These skills are uncommon in the extant fitness industry so one should be paying close attention to Bally given their personnel moves. We've seen bringing in industry outsiders fail before with other national brands, but time will tell.

What do you think about Bally Total Fitness ? With their under performing clubs shuttered, debt eliminated and a vibrant new management team, will they rise from the ashes of 2 bankruptcy filings ? Contact me, Bryan O'Rourke, or share your views here and tell me what you think about the CBI article. Kudos to Patricia for her great article.

Social Media & Influence - What Is It ?

You've got to love Brian Solis. I've read his books (love Engage) and really enjoy his great posts and thought sharing (its not just that we share first names although with different spellings). His latest article addresses Influence - and reviews interesting research that makes some important points. Here is one thing I'd like to share with those in my world who might not get it yet :

SOCIAL MEDIA WORKS ! TAKE A MOMENT TO UNDERSTAND WHAT IT REALLY IS !

Brian partnered with Vocus to run a formal study on influence. As a result, 700 business leaders, entrepreneurs, and marketing professionals contributed to the report, which is available now as a free download. Here's is what Brian says in closing:

"In the end, it’s our job to become “the influencer.” We owe it to our communities of customers, prospects and the people who affect their decisions to lead by example. Then and only then, can we master the ability to influence the influencer."

The fitness industry, as well as other industries I work with, need to understand and deploy this potential of influence via social media. In fitness if we are to truly impact the well being of people we should consider this important information. Look at the graphic below and read the report to discover more. One thing is already clear, influence is not popularity and popularity is not influence. Interestingly, according to research, size does not matter either.

IHRSA Chairperson Calls Upon Health Club Leadership

On my flight to San Francisco today I cracked open the September 2010 Club Business International, where I ran across Art Curtis' article "A Culture of Healthy Behaviors" on page 85. Art is the Chairperson of IHRSA, which represents the global health club industry. Here is an excerpt:

Like many of you, I was excited by the possibility that our national leaders might be able to work together to produce genuine healthcare reform. And, like most of you, I was extremelt disappointed when the resulting legislation dealt more with reforming health insurance than improving the nation's well-being.

Of course Art's right and I've written extensively on the topic he raises (see for example Private Insurance, Health Care & Corruption, and Why Wellness Takes a Back Seat in the Reform Debate). The bottom line behind why policy is NOT embracing the obvious wellness solution is that there isn't a wellness "dog" in the policy fight.

To combat the challenge, Art calls for the leaders of the fitness industry to launch a comprehensive campaign that will improve our nation's health through positive personal behaviors and working closely with important stakeholders like government agencies, educators, the medical community and others. Its a good idea and to those that might read Art's writing I'd ask what I think is the most important question - how do you really think this can best be done ?

Looking forward to your comments and thanks Art for keeping your eye on the ball.

Technology and Fitness Facilities - Attend My October 14th Webinar

You might have read some of my postings on technology and fitness (check out my 2010 IHRSA presentation on Technology and the Future of the Fitness Industry along with other writings and the radio interview with  Michael Scudder). Happily I visited the IHRSA web site and came across Jean Suffin's article The Infinite Digital Domain. Here's a quote:

Once the prospect has been transformed into a dues-paying member, they can continue to make good use of the Website, conducting all sorts of transactions, including: signing up for classes and personal training sessions; checking their account; purchasing products; making dues payments, etc. In the process, they also avoid the pitfalls of phone tag, and, a benefit for clubs, don’t eat up valuable staff time.

Jean is right and the article shares a lot of great examples of organizaitons jumping in on the opportunity of delivering and interacting anytime and anywhere for their members. The implications to the industry, however, are vast and go beyond what the article covers, having a significant impact in the near term and long term. Think of the financial services industry and its transformation from the late 70's till today. How many of you still go to a bank on a regular basis  anyway?

Please consider attending my October 14, 2010 IHRSA webinar from 2:00 - 3:30 EST on Becoming More Competitive -- How the Industry is Changing and What to Do About It. Technology advancements and key business trends will be shared and hopefully help leaders make more informed assessments for their strategies.

Technology and Fitness - Things are Changing and Fast

How many people utilize online trackers for health and fitness ? That was one of several questions posed to me by "Steve", an IHRSA member, as part of IHRSA's "Ask an industry leader program". Here is his question in its entirety:

“How many people use online trackers/health social networks for health? Are there any sites you know of? Any research in this area? Do other health clubs recommend this to customers?”

For those of you who follow me you've read my prior posts on wireless devices and wellness in addition to technology's impact on the future of the fitness industry, which touches on this and other topics. Well developed research is not readily available to the general public but there are some interesting metrics to consider when asking the question. During 2009 the Nike+ Human Race, participants ran a combined total of 802,863 miles and during the inaugural 2008 Nike+ Human Race  more than 750,000 runners participated in the event, which took place in more than 24 cities worldwide. Over 2 million users rely on the Nike Plus web site (read Wired's article "The Nike Experiment. How the Shoe Giant Unleashed the Power of Personal Metrics"). That should give you an idea. Recently Adidas joined the rank with an even more powerful solution Micoach. There are many others.

The trend in fitness and wellness towards online tracking with personal and mobile devices being integrated continues. Mobility in general is exploding with over 4 billion devices growin to nearly 15 Bilion devices attached to the Internet in the next four years with (mobile smart phones in the US will reach 150 million users in 2011) . In fitness and wellness the category has become better defined recently. On one hand there are the simple calorie-counters, like Philips DirectLife and fitbit. More complicated devices, like Polar's FT80 and others strap onto your wrist like a small computer. Other advanced systems like Progio have special devices that work with heart rate technologies to enable tracking and deliver educational and workout content. In the middle are devices for casual marathoners: the Nike+ iPod system, and now Adidas' latest mid-range system.

Social media is connected to many of these solutions, with Nike Plus for example enabling people to connect, compete and share their performance through an online platform.

Outside of the integrated solutions like Nike Plus or Adidas' new system, fitday.com, dailyburn.com and other online soutions provide workout, calorie counting and other tools and solutions to help people get fit. Many of these solutions are offered under a "freemium" model with premium upgrades available.

Interestingly many health clubs do not integrate these online offerings, although this is changing and some like  Vitabot which provides nutritional tools online work with health clubs to deliver nutritional online solutions to their members. Good life fitness, a successful fitness chain based in Canada offers at home fitness solutions to deliver workout content online and provide some basic tracking and motivation. Major chains like 24 hour fitness and lifetime among others are in the midst of testing and or introducing integrate online offerings as well. Expect these trends to continue and watch this video  (below) on the advancement of tracking in medicine.