5 part communication plan - flex fitness

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Flex Fitness5-Part Communication Plan

Lauren Kaczmarek

880 Roosevelt Rd.Glen Ellyn, IL 60137Phone: (630) 545-2920

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Table of Contents

Business Description………………………………………………………………………………...……………3-5

Launch Communication Plan………………………………………………………………………………..6-16

Conflict Communication Plan……………………………………………………………………..………17-23

Employee Communication Plan…………………………………………………………….……………24-32

Community Relations Plan…………………………………………………………………………………33-38

Consumer Communication Plan……………………………………………………………………….39-45

Appendix Items

Appendix A: Opening Day Survey……………………………………………………………………….47-49

Appendix B: Opening Day Press Release………………………………………………………….………50

Appendix C: Open Positions Press Release……………………………………………..……………….51

Appendix D: Employee T-Shirts – Uniform………………………………………………………………52

Appendix E: Employee Hats – Uniform…………………………………………………………………….53

Appendix F: “Celebration of Fitness” Day Flyer………………………………………………………..54

Appendix G: Employee Checklist - Front Desk Staff Checklist………………………….………55

Appendix H: Manager Checklist………………………………………………………………………….……56

Appendix I: Kickoff to Summer Press Release…………………………………………….……………57

Appendix J: Monthly Customer Survey………………………………………………………….……58-59

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Flex FitnessBusiness Description

Lauren Kaczmarek


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Business Description

Fitness Center Description

Flex Fitness is a 24-hour gym with a built in Herbalife protein shake bar. Flex Fitness will be located in Glen Ellyn, IL, a suburb of Chicago. Flex Fitness will consist of state of the art exercise equipment including treadmills, elliptical machines, lifting machines, and other exercise equipment. The exercise center will also have a full-court basketball court, a lap pool and hot tub/spa, and a studio for Zumba, Yoga, Pilates, and other group classes. There will also be both men’s and women’s locker rooms - with each providing lockers, bathrooms, showers, a sauna, and a steam room. One feature of Flex Fitness that will help differentiate itself from other gyms in the area is its built in Herbalife Protein Shake Bar which will be called “The Shake Shack”. 30 varieties of shakes will be available, as well as Herbalife protein bars. Flex Fitness will be a place where locals can get in a good workout, while enjoying themselves at the same time. Flex Fitness’ main competitor will be XSport Fitness Health Clubs. Locally, Flex Fitness’ competitors will be HealthTrack Sports Wellness, Cardinal Fitness, and the YMCA. Flex Fitness is different from these wellness and fitness centers, however, because of the “Shake Shack” that they provide. The Shake Shack will allow members of the gym to purchase shakes and protein bars by putting it on their account - a feature that the other fitness centers do not offer.

Flex Fitness was founded by Lauren Kaczmarek. The Fitness Center plans to open on January 1st, 2017. The Fitness Center will offer a clean, spacious environment for locals of any age to work out. Flex Fitness hopes to appeal to local residents from Glen Ellyn and surrounding cities like Lombard, Wheaton, Downers Grove, and Elmhurst. Although the target customer is for all locals, the main demographic of the audience would include families, middle age working adults, and high school and college students.

Flex Fitness’ Products

Flex Fitness will offer gym time memberships that can be signed up for either annually, monthly, or a weekly guest option. Besides memberships, Flex Fitness will offer products to sell including athletic apparel from the following brands- Nike, Adidas, and Under Armor. Both men’s and women’s running clothing will be offered - including dry fit apparel such as running jackets, zip ups, t-shirts, tank tops, shorts, leggings, and sweatpants. Each apparel item will have the brand’s logo (Nike, Adidas, or Under Armor) on it, as well as Flex Fitness’ logo.

Another branch of Flex Fitness’ Products besides gym memberships and apparel will be the Herbalife “Shake Shack”. 30 different shake flavors will be offered - examples of popular

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flavors include Pistachio, Snickers, Cookies ‘N’ Cream, Salted Nut Roll, Pumpkin Spice, Caramel Latte, etc. Each shake will also come with a shot of Herbalife Aloe and Green Tea.

Flex Fitness’ Look

Flex Fitness strives to be a clean, spacious environment for the average gym member to get in a quick and efficient workout. The entrance of the gym will include a front desk with two friendly staff members greeting the member and checking them in, or answering questions for new guests, and signing up these new guests for memberships. To the left of the front desk will be the “Shake Shack”, and the right will be the small store selling apparel - or “Flex Fashion”. Past the front desk will be an open feel, with exercise equipment in the center, and the studio to the left and basketball court to the right. The locker rooms will be in the back of the gym, on either side of the pool in the middle of the back of the gym.

Flex Fitness’ Contact Information


Flex Fitness’ Hours

In order to compete with other fitness gyms such as XSport Fitness, Flex Fitness will be open 24-7, with the exception of a few holidays. The Holidays that Flex Fitness will be closed on include Independence Day, Thanksgiving, and Christmas.

Flex Fitness’ Mission Statement Flex Fitness seeks to provide a safe, clean, spacious, and fun environment for all members to have an enjoyable and efficient workout experience. With its many features such as state-of-the-art exercise equipment, a basketball court, a studio, and a pool, Flex Fitness encourages its members to personalize their workout and make it suitable for themselves. With its friendly and helpful staff members and personal trainers, Flex Fitness hopes that its members will leave each workout with a smile on their face.

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Flex FitnessLaunch Communication Plan

Lauren Kaczmarek


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Launch Communication Plan

PublicsInternal Publics● Flex Fitness Employees

○ Flex Fitness Employees will be the major internal public for the business. Flex Fitness strives itself on making its employee feel valued. One way to instill this value, is to have solid communication between management and lower level employees. Flex Fitness will do this by communicating via e-mail, bulletin boards in the employee office, monthly staff meetings to employees regarding any changes within the establishment, upcoming promotions,

External Publics● Residents of Glen Ellyn, IL

○ Residents of Glen Ellyn will be a target audience for the launch of Flex Fitness. Since the gym will be located in Glen Ellyn, it is important to attract locals from this city to use this gym since it is so close in location to them. These residents would either be just a walk or a short drive away. Also, the more residents of Glen Ellyn that become members of Flex Fitness will decrease the amount of local Glen Ellyn residents that use other local fitness centers in Glen Ellyn.

● Residents of surrounding cities (Lombard, Wheaton, Downers Grove, and Elmhurst, IL)○ Residents of surrounding cities of Glen Ellyn are just as important as the

residents of Glen Ellyn when it comes to making them aware of the launch of Flex Fitness. Although they may be a bit further away, they are still within a short driving distance of the fitness center. By making locals from these towns aware of the launch, Flex Fitness will hopefully get more of these residents to come to the grand opening and eventually become members.

● Middle Age Working Adults○ Middle Age Working Adults will be a main target for potential members of

Flex Fitness. Adults are likely to want to work out, as their bodies aren’t in the best shape from their younger years. The fact that Flex Fitness is open 24-7 is an important aspect to working adults, as they will still be able to find time to go to the gym even with their busy schedules.

● Families○ Families are an important target audience for Flex Fitness. If one family

member signs up for a Flex Fitness membership, likes their experience with the gym, then signs their whole family up for a family membership, that’s more customers for Flex Fitness. Flex Fitness encourages people of any age to

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workout and use their facility- family members of any age will be prime customers.

● Local High School and College Students○ Local High School and College Students make up a big part of Glen Ellyn, IL

and surrounding cities since the suburbs are a popular area for families to raise children. Students are likely to become members of a gym because this is the age where their bodies become fully developed, and maintaining shape becomes important to many individuals at this age.

● Vendors○ Vendors such as Flex Fitness’ apparel companies (Nike, Adidas, and Under

Armor), protein and supplement company Herbalife, and fitness equipment companies like Life Fitness, Rogue Fitness, Wilson, etc. will be an audience during Flex Fitness’ launch. These vendors are important to establish solid relationships with, as they supply the products and equipment for Flex Fitness. We want Flex Fitness members to be sold quality products and be using quality equipment. If we were to have poor relationships with these quality vendors, it may threaten them selling to us, and eventually the quality of the products and equipment that the customers would consume and use.

● Media○ The media will be a public during Flex Fitness’ launch. It’s important for the

media to be aware of the launch so they can hype up the launch, as well as cover stories after the launch has happened. Having Flex Fitness employees have good relationships with the media is vital in order for them to even give necessary information to the media to cover the launch.

Research

Primary Research:SWOT Analysis: Before launching Flex Fitness’ opening, it is vital to take into consideration the environment around the business. By looking at Flex Fitness’ strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats, we can further determine influences that may hurt the business, but also those that may make the business successful.

Strengths● High quality equipment● Multiple features (Basketball court, Lap pool, Studio, “Shake Shack”, “Flex Fashion”,

etc.)● Location (Roosevelt Road is a main road running through multiple towns)

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Weaknesses● More expensive than some gyms● Comparable prices to some gyms

Opportunities● Potential to reach many publics● Opportunity to expand if there is success

Threats● Many local gyms nearby● No established members

Surveys: Four months before Flex Fitness has its grand opening, we will send out a survey to local community members from Glen Ellyn, Wheaton, and Lombard. The survey will include demographic questions such as gender, age range, number of people in their household, household income range, etc. as well as questions directed to their workout regimen such as how often they workout, if they belong to a gym already, what machines they use when they workout, what facilities they use when they workout, etc. The survey will also give an option for the respondent to provide their e-mail address. If they choose to give their e-mail address, they will be given a coupon to use the gym for a week for free to see if they would like to sign up for a membership afterwards. Those that provide their e-mail address will also be e-mailed updates and other promotions intermittently. (Appendix A: Opening Day Survey)

Secondary Research:

● Chamber of Commerce: Looking at the local Chamber of Commerce will be a vital form of research before opening our business. The Chamber of Commerce will give insight as to what other local businesses are around the area and what they do that makes them successful. It also consists of officials who create local, state, and national policies that will be important for our business to follow in order to be up-to-date and consistent with the law.

● Better Business Bureau: The Better Business Bureau will be another important form of research to look into in order to make the launch of our business successful. The Better Business Bureau contains reviews on businesses in the area. This will be important to look into to gain insight on what business do in order to be successful and receive positive reviews so that we can emulate this in our business ourselves. It will also be important to look on the other end at negative reviews and what businesses did to receive this negativity so that we can avoid this in our business.

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Goals:1. To make Flex Fitness a profitable business within the first fiscal year.2. To make Flex Fitness the most popular gym in Glen Ellyn, IL.3. To hire and train quality employees that fit with Flex Fitness’ mission statement. Objectives:1. Profit at least $100,000 within the first fiscal year. 2. Transfer at least 80% of weekly guest memberships into either monthly or annual memberships.3. Create 90% awareness of the Flex Fitness brand to community members within a year of business.4. Hire and train 30 employees by July 1st, 2016 (2 Gym Managers, 2 Yoga Instructors, 2 Pilates Instructors, 2 Zumba Instructors, 10 Personal Trainers, 6 Front Desk/Sales Staff Members, 4 “Shake Specialists”, and 2 Maintenance Crew Members). Strategies & Tactics:

1. To Make Flex Fitness a profitable business within the first fiscal year● Profit at least $100,000 within the first fiscal year● Transfer at least 80% of weekly guest memberships into either monthly

or annual memberships

Strategy 1: Bring in new members.Tactics:● Advertise in local newspapers

○ Flex Fitness will advertise in local newspapers. Newspapers that Flex Fitness will advertise in include The Daily Herald (includes multiple Chicago Suburbs),The Glen Ellyn Patch, The Lombardian, The Wheaton Patch, The Downers Grove Reporter, and The Elmhurst Patch. By advertising in these News publications, Flex Fitness will be reaching locals from all of the target areas - Glen Ellyn and its surrounding towns. We will begin advertising in local newspapers starting in July 2016.

● Hold a Grand Opening Event○ Flex Fitness will open on January 1st, 2017. In order to get locals involved

with the opening, Flex Fitness will offer a free workout for their grand opening. Anyone will be able to use the gym from the hours of Noon - 4 P.M. Those that take advantage of this offer will also receive a free month’s membership coupon with the sign-up of an annual or monthly membership plan.

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● Press release announcing the opening day (Appendix B: Opening Day Press Release)

● Encourage members to bring in friends/family○ Each member that has a monthly and yearly membership plan will be offered

3 guest passes per month. With these guest passes, they may bring in a friend or family member with them when they visit the gym. This will hopefully attract the friend or family member to the gym, eventually leading them to purchasing a membership. Guest passes renew every month - they start on the first of the month and end on the last day of the month. Extra guest passes may not be purchased.

Strategy 2: Offer weekly guest memberships exclusive offers.Tactics:● Offer anyone that signs up for a weekly guest membership a free month’s

membership when they sign up for a monthly or annual membership○ In order to get guests to sign up for memberships, we will offer them a free

month as an incentive. This will help the gym long-term, as it will hopefully bring in more members from those that sign up for weekly guest memberships.

● E-mail those that have signed up for weekly guest memberships in the past coupons for a free shake at The “Shake Shack”.○ Flex Fitness will utilize its Shake Shack to its advantage, as it is a unique

feature that not all gyms offer. In order to purchase a shake at the Shake Shack, the guest or member must already be “check in” to the gym, so a random customer off the street would not be allowed to enter the gym just to purchase a shake. This will be a way to hopefully get people who have previously signed up for a weekly guest membership to sign up for either a monthly or annual membership so that they may utilize their coupon.

2. To make Flex Fitness the most popular gym in Glen Ellyn, IL● Create 90% awareness of the Flex Fitness brand to community

members within a year of business

Strategy 1: Use the Internet as a resource for community members to recognize Flex Fitness’ brandTactics:● Create a website for Flex Fitness

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○ A website will be a key resource for Flex Fitness as a way for interested customers to gather information about the gym, membership information, as well as contact information. The website will include pictures and descriptions of each of the facilities within the gym, a description of available memberships, an electronic membership sign-up, a “meet our team” section in which a short bio of each staff member will be included, and a contact information section. We hope that with a detailed and professional website, potential customers will recognize and support our brand.

○ www.flexfitness.com● Create and utilize social media outlets for Flex Fitness

○ Flex Fitness will implement social media outlets including Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram■ Facebook: The Facebook page will include our logo as its profile

picture, a panoramic picture of our gym as its cover photo, and more photos of the gym’s facilities and features. The page will also include basic information such as the club’s website, address, and more contact information. Special offers will be promoted via our Facebook page. ● www.facebook.com/flexfitness

■ Twitter: The Twitter page will use the same photos (the logo and the panoramic gym picture) as its profile and banner photos. We will tweet on a daily basis about special deals that may be going on, fun facts about fitness, or anything that is trending in recent news related to fitness and health.● @flex_fitness

■ Instagram: The Instagram page will have our logo as its profile picture. We will try to post a picture 2-3 times a week - whether it be a picture of our gym or a specific part of the gym, special offers, announcements, photos from our “Shake Shack” or “Flex Fashion” sections, etc. ● @flex_fitness

Strategy 2: Get involved in community events before the Grand OpeningTactics:● Have employees walk in Glen Ellyn’s 2016 Fourth of July Parade

○ A big event that happens every year in Glen Ellyn’s community is its Fourth of July Parade. Hundreds of Glen Ellyn residents line the sidewalks of Downtown Glen Ellyn to watch the parade, in which many Glen Ellyn businesses and community members participate in. Flex Fitness will join the

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parade as well. Flex Fitness owners and employees will walk in the parade with a banner with the gym’s logo on it. This will help Flex Fitness gain exposure through the community and gain recognition before their Grand Opening in 2017.

● Become a sponsor for Elmhurst’s 2016 Turkey Trot○ Elmhurst hosts one of the most popular 5K Thanksgiving Turkey Trots in the

area every year. 2016 will be the 32nd annual Dan Gibbons Turkey Trot. 2015’s Turkey Trot was very successful, with over 8,000 participants from local towns around the area. If Flex Fitness were to become a sponsor for Elmhurst’s Turkey Trot, they would be getting exposure and getting their name out to locals from nearby towns. The sponsor’s logo would also go on the back of the event’s T-Shirts, which every participant in the race receives. This would be a way to advertise for Flex Fitness whenever someone wears one of these T-Shirts.

3. To hire and train quality employees that fit with Flex Fitness’ Mission Statement.● Hire and train 30 employees by July 1st, 2016 (2 Gym Managers, 2 Yoga

Instructors, 2 Pilates Instructors, 2 Zumba Instructors, 10 Personal Trainers, 6 Front Desk/Sales Staff Managers, 4 “Shake Specialists”, and 2 Maintenance Crew Members).

Strategy 1: Find potential employeesTactics:● Deliver a Press Release in the Chicago Sun Times about open positions (Appendix

C: Open Positions Press Release)● Post about opening positions to social media

○ Flex Fitness will be sure to make an effort to post to our Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram pages about open positions. We will include separate applications for each of the positions that can be applied for - Gym Manager, Yoga Instructor, Pilates Instructor, Zumba Instructor, Personal Trainer, Front Desk/Sales Staff, “Shake Specialists”, and Maintenance Crew. Each post will direct the viewer to our online application, which can be found by clicking the “Career” section on our homepage or follow the link at www.flexfitness.com/Careers.

○ Flex Fitness will begin opening job applications on Wednesday, May 4th, 2016 and close applications on Tuesday, May 31st, 2016.

● Offer a “Careers” section on Flex Fitness’ website

http://www.flexfitness.com/Careers

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○ Flex Fitness will offer an online application for the different type of jobs that they are seeking employees for. Applications will be available from May 4th - May 31st, 2016 and can be found on the Flex Fitness website, under the “Careers” section.■ www.flexfitness.com/Careers

Strategy 2: Hire quality employeesTactics:● Interview potential candidates for each of the 8 positions

○ Conduct individual, in-person interviews with multiple candidates for each position. Founder Lauren Kaczmarek will review resumes and cover letters sent in by candidates, then choose the most qualified candidates for interviews. The interviews will also be conducted by Lauren and will consist of many behavioral interview questions.

● Select the best candidate for each position○ The candidate with the best answers to their interview questions,

presentation of themselves, friendliness/personality, and fit with the Flex Fitness brand will be chosen for the position that they are interviewing for.

Strategy 3: Train employeesTactics:● Hold a one-week training session for all employees

○ All 30 employees will take part in a week long training session before opening day. The training will be extensive and will include both a group training with all employees as well as separate blocks of times set away for training for specific positions. During the group training, all employees will receive a Flex Fitness handbook that will outline what needs to be known about Flex Fitness. Things included will be Flex Fitness’ mission statement, goals for the business, employee policies, and how the business will be run. The training will take place during the week of July 11th - 15th 2016.

○ Appendix D: Employee T-Shirts - Uniforms ○ Appendix E: Employee Hats - Uniforms

Evaluation:


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Goal 1: To make Flex Fitness a profitable business within the first fiscal year.

In order to evaluate this goal, we will simply look at how much revenue Flex Fitness has made after one year of business. Since opening day will be on January 1st, 2017, we will evaluate profits on January 1st, 2018. If we are positive in profits, we will know that we have reached this goal.

Goal 2: To make Flex Fitness the most popular gym in Glen Ellyn, IL.

To evaluate this goal, we will look at how many memberships Flex Fitness has and compare that to membership numbers of other local gyms (Healthtrack Sports Wellness in Glen Ellyn, the YMCA in Glen Ellyn, Lifetime Fitness in Lombard, and XSport Fitness in Downers Grove). If we have the most memberships out of all of these gyms, we will know that we are the most popular gym in the area around Glen Ellyn, IL.

Goal 3: To hire and train quality employees that fit with Flex Fitness’ mission statement.

When evaluating this goal, we will look at our employee retention rate after a year of being in business. We want to make sure that our employees are staying with us and are not being fired for reasons involving being a bad fit with Flex Fitness and its brand.

Budget:

Survey Printing…………………………………………….....…………….......…….….$150Survey Postage……………………………………………...…..………….........…….....$250Advertisements in Local Media…………………………..…..……………..……...$500Press Releases (2)......................................................................................................$300Web-site designer……………………………………………………….........……….….$400Turkey Trot Sponsorship……………………………………………….......………....$500Employee T-Shirts (40 - Vistaprint)....................................................................$440Employee Hats (40 - Vistaprint)...........................................................................$520Total……………………………………………………………………..…......………..$3,060

Timeline:

May 2016● Create Flex Fitness Website● Create Flex Fitness Social Media Outlets (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram)

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● Send Out Open Positions Press Release ● Applications for Open Positions open through our website

June 2016● Interview and select Flex Fitness Employees

July 2016● Advertise in local newspapers● Walk in Glen Ellyn’s 4th of July Parade ● Employee week-long training session

August 2016● Advertise in local newspapers

September 2016● Advertise in local newspapers● Send out surveys to local community members from Glen Ellyn, Wheaton, and

Lombard

October 2016● Advertise in local newspapers

November 2016● Advertise in local newspapers● Send out opening day press release● Sponsor Elmhurst’s Turkey Trot

December 2016● Advertise in local newspapers

January 2017● Advertise in local newspapers● Hold Grand Opening Event

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Flex FitnessConflict Communication Plan

Lauren Kaczmarek


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Conflict Communication Plan

Conflict:A few months into Flex Fitness’ opening, a new member, Marsha Brown, had joined and returned to the gym the next day for her first time working out at the facility. Marsha left from her workout and was very disappointed with the gym for a few reasons, so she decided to send a Tweet to Flex Fitness’ Twitter account. Marsha’s Tweet was as followed: “@FlexFitness Just left ur facility. Very disappointed- took 3 minutes for someone 2 come 2 the front desk 2 check me in. Where’s ur service?” Publics:Internal Publics● Employees

○ The Flex Fitness employees are at fault for this conflict – especially the Front Desk Staff. The Front Desk should be the staff that are in charge of making sure that the customer is warmly welcomed into the facility every time they come in. The staff member that was on duty at the time should have been at the desk at all times, and be attentive to club members coming in.

● Managers○ It is the job of the fitness center’s manager to be in charge of their employees

and make sure that they are representing the Flex Fitness image well, at all times. The manager working at the time of the conflict should have been aware that there were no front desk staff workers physically at the desk at the point in time that the customer walked in.

External Publics● Marsha Brown

○ Marsha Brown is the main external public. She was the one that tweeted about Flex Fitness’ poor customer service. The tweet sent out by Marsha shows Flex Fitness in a negative way, and may be seen by her followers, giving them a negative opinion about Flex Fitness before they even

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experience the fitness center. This problem could potentially be fixed by apologizing to Marsha publically and offering her a special discount or offer.

● Customers○ Customers that follow Marsha or Flex Fitness may see the Tweet that Marsha

sent out. This will then give them the idea that Flex Fitness has poor customer service, however it was most likely just a one-time thing and does not accurately reflect Flex Fitness and their position.

● Media○ We want to keep solid relationships with different local media outlets. If the

media were to be informed about angry customers like Marsha or the exact Tweet from Marsha, we want our good relationship with the media to restrict them from covering this instance.

Research Primary Research● Communication with Marsha Brown

○ We want to gather a bit more information from Marsha regarding the incident from her Tweet. Flex Fitness will direct message her via Twitter and ask her to provide a few more details about her experience and ask her on ways in which we could have improved our customer service so that she would have been more satisfied with her experience. We want our customers to know that it our main concern that they are happy with their experience at Flex Fitness.

● Communication with Flex Fitness employees and manager○ The employees and manager that were working during the time of the

incident will be notified of Marsha’s Tweet. Lauren, Flex Fitness’ owner, will talk to the manager and question them about what they were doing, as well as the employees working the front desk at the time of the incident. Lauren will also talk to the front desk staff that were on duty at the time to see where there were when they should have been checking in members.

● Review other customers’ opinions:○ We will look through past tweets that mentioned Flex Fitness, and look for

anything positive or negative that was tweeted. Based on these tweets, we will focus on continuing what we’ve done well, while we look to improve and focus on what customers have complained about.

Secondary Research● Look at Twitter profiles from different fitness centers in the area

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○ Flex Fitness will look at Twitter profiles of other gyms in the area like Healthtrack Sports Wellness in Glen Ellyn and XSport Fitness in Downers Grove. We will look to see if they have had problems with members complaining via Twitter and how they responded to these complaints. This will help us to see if their responses were well received and give us an idea of how to respond to Marsha Brown’s Tweet.

Goals:1. To re-establish a positive image of Flex Fitness2. Maintain our business

Objectives:1. Create a 90% positive brand image of Flex Fitness over the next 3 months2. Maintain the same level of revenue over the next 3 months 3. Keep the same amount of members over the next 3 months

Strategies and Tactics:

1. To re-establish a positive image of Flex Fitness● Create a 90% positive brand image of Flex Fitness over the next 3

months

Strategy 1: Reach out to Marsha Brown and encourage her to continue her membership with Flex FitnessTactics: ● Owner will send a reply Tweet to Marsha Brown’s original tweet

○ Flex Fitness owner Lauren Kaczmarek will respond to Marsha Brown’s tweet through the Flex Fitness Twitter handle. The response will apologize on the employee’s behalf, as well as notify her that management is taking a proactive response in order to prevent future instances of this happening.

● Owner will direct message Marsha Brown a coupon for a free shake at the shake shack ○ Twitter offers a “direct message” feature that allows private messaging.

Owner Lauren Kaczmarek will direct message Marsha Brown via the Flex Fitness Twitter handle. In the direct message, Lauren will apologize for the instance once again, and offer Marsha a voucher for a free shake at the shake shack. By personalizing a direct message to Marsha, Flex Fitness will instill its value of exceptional customer service and the offer of a free shake will keep Marsha coming back to the Fitness center.

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Strategy 2: Keep a positive brand image with current and potential membersTactics:● Hold a “Celebration of Fitness” day

○ Every year, Flex Fitness will hold a day dedicated to a celebration of fitness. In 2017, it will take place on Saturday, October 7th from 9:00 A.M. - 9:00 P.M. During this day, members will be given a coupon for a free half hour personal training session that they can schedule with any of our 10 personal trainers. The day will also provide members with free mini shakes from the shake shack, as well as healthy snacks (power bars, assorted nuts, rice cakes, etc.) provided by Herbalife. There will also be a raffle for a $50 gift card to Flex Fashion - the gym’s apparel shop. In order to enter the raffle, you must be a member of the gym. Limit will be one raffle ticket per member and the member must be there on the member appreciation day in order to enter.

○ Appendix F: “Celebration of Fitness” day flyer

2. Maintain our business● Maintain the same level of revenue over the next 3 months● Keep the same amount of members over the next 3 months

Strategy 1: Increase marketing effortsTactics:● Increase social media during campaigns, events, promotions, etc.

○ When something big is happening with Flex Fitness (campaigns, events, promotions, etc.) we want our members and potential members to be aware of this. By posting more to Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, we hope that members and potential members will see this and continue to use Flex Fitness, as well as continue to sign up for memberships.

Strategy 2: More frequent check-ins from owner and managersTactics: ● Increase owner responsibilities

○ Owner Lauren Kaczmarek will be responsible to visit the fitness center and check in with managers and employees more frequently when there have been many complaints or other crises. She will be in charge of having one-on-one conversations in order to facilitate an idea of how things are being managed and how problems are being fixed.

● Increase manager responsibilities

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○ Managers are responsible for checking over employee’s work. Since the incident with Marsha, managers should be checking in with employees at least once a shift for each employee. They should check to make sure that the employee has not been experiencing any problems or have any questions.

Evaluation:

Goal 1: To re-establish a positive image of Flex Fitness

In order to evaluate this goal, we will look to see how Marsha Brown responds to our efforts to reach out to her. Will she respond to our tweet thanking us for our efforts? Will she respond negatively to our reply? Will she respond at all? Looking at what Marsha does in response will give us an idea of if we were able to re-establish a positive image of our brand in her perception.

We will also evaluate this goal based on the reactions to our Member Appreciation Day. If there seems to be a positive response - seen from social media posts, direct observations from the appreciation day, etc. - we will know that we were able to re-establish this positive image of our brand.

Goal 2: Maintain our business

In order to evaluate this goal, we will track our social media to see if we’ve been getting more reach from the before we decided to increase our posting. We will do this by comparing likes/favorites, comments/replies, shares, retweets, regrams, etc. from before the incident with Marsha Brown to afterwards.

We will also evaluate this goal based on owner and manager performance. We will keep a track of how often the owner Lauren Kaczmarek comes in and converses with managers, making sure that everything is going o.k. with them and that they’re not having any issues with employees. We will also evaluate this by employee’s feelings towards their managers, and if they feel as if they’ve been given enough guidance and help from their managers. Both of these forms of evaluation will be done in a owner-to-manager survey for managers to take and a manager-to-employee for employees to take (both will be done monthly).

Budget:

Herbalife Snacks for Celebration of Fitness Day…………….………………....…….….$500Celebration of Fitness Day flyers (500 - Vistaprint)…….……………………………..$145

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Total……………………………………………………………………….…………..….................$645

Timeline:

July 2017● Tweet from Marsha Brown is sent out● Flex Fitness replies to tweet● Flex Fitness direct messages Marsha Brown ● Increase Social Media Posting● Increase Owner and Manager responsibilities

August 2017● Increase Social Media Posting ● Have managers complete owner-to-manager survey● Have employees complete manager-to-employee survey

September 2017● Increase Social Media Posting● Have managers complete owner-to-manager survey● Have employees complete manager-to-employee survey

October 2017● Member Appreciation Day ● Increase Social Media Posting ● Have managers complete owner-to-manager survey● Have employees complete manager-to-employee survey

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Flex FitnessEmployee Communication Plan

Lauren Kaczmarek


[FLEX FITNESS]25

Employee Communication Plan

Flex Fitness’ Employee Qualifications:

Flex Fitness is seeking employees that are energetic, friendly, and fit the brand of living a healthy and balanced lifestyle. Our employees should be able to make our member’s experience at the fitness center a positive one and motivate members to live a healthy lifestyle, as well.

Our employees should also want the best for Flex Fitness, dedicating themselves to the work and the brand. Flex Fitness employees should be engaged and give back to the community, as well, as it would show the company in a positive light.

Employee Breakdown:● 2 Gym Managers

○ The Gym Managers are responsible for overseeing employees as well as the daily operations of the club. They will handle any issues or complaints from customers, as well as any issues or complaints from staff members. They will make sure that the Fitness center is an enjoyable place for employees to work.

● 2 Yoga Instructors○ The Yoga Instructors are responsible for teaching a one-hour yoga class,

which is offered 6 times a week - Monday and Wednesday at 7:00 - 8:00 P.M., Tuesday and Thursday at 10:00 - 11:00 A.M., Saturday at 12:00 - 1:00 P.M.,

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and Sunday at 5:00 - 6:00 P.M. The classes will take place in the studio, and each yoga instructor will lead 3 of the 6 classes per week.

● 2 Pilates Instructors ○ The Pilates Instructors are responsible for teaching an hour-and-a-half

pilates class, offered 4 times a week - Monday at 5:30 - 7:00 P.M., Wednesday at 9:00 - 10:30 A.M., Thursday at 6:00 - 7:30 P.M., and Sunday at 3:30 - 5:00 P.M. The classes will take place in the studio, and each pilates instructor will lead 2 of the 4 classes per week.

● 2 Zumba Instructors○ The Zumba Instructors are responsible for teaching a one-hour zumba class,

which will be offered 6 times a week - Monday and Wednesday from 8:00 - 9:00 P.M., Tuesday and Thursday at 11:00 A.M. - 12:00 P.M., Saturday at 1:00 - 2:00 P.M., and Sunday at 6:00-7:00 P.M. The classes will take place in the studio, and each zumba instructor will lead 3 of the 6 classes per week.

● 10 Personal Trainers○ The Personal Trainers are responsible for providing personal training

services to members that are interested. We will hire 5 male and 5 female personal trainers, so that Flex Fitness will not look as if we are gender biased. The Personal Trainers will make their own schedules based on client interest.

● 6 Front Desk Staff/Sales Managers○ The Front Desk Staff/Sales Managers are the first people to interact with

members when they enter our facility. They should be friendly and avid supporters of our mission statement. They will most likely be the people that members ask questions too or make a complaint to, so they should be well informed on our brand and be ready to handle difficult customers.

● 4 “Shake Specialists”○ The Shake Specialists are responsible for working “The Shake Shack” and

making Herbalife Protein Shakes for customers. They should know how to make each of the 30 different flavors of shakes. They are also responsible for the cleaning and operations of the Shake Shack. Flex Fitness expects the Shake Specialists to deliver exceptional customer service, as well.

● 2 Maintenance Crew Members○ The Maintenance Crew Members are responsible for coming in when there

are any problems with the equipment that need fixing. They will also be in charge of maintenance of the gym’s facilities and the building as a whole.

Publics:● Flex Fitness Employees

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○ Flex Fitness employees will be a public in our employee communication plan for obvious reasons. We will keep them in the know about when we are hiring and procedures for hiring so that they’re aware that they may have new co-workers soon.

● Local workers age 18-35○ Flex Fitness will look to hire workers aged 18-35 years old for positions such

as managers, yoga/zumba/and pilates instructors, and maintenance crew members. The reason we picked this age range is that it’s somewhat of a younger age demographic, and we want our employees to look young, healthy, and in shape in order to fit with our brand image.

● Local High School students○ Glen Ellyn is an area where many families live. These families are likely to

have high school students- especially since there are two high schools in Glen Ellyn. High School students will be a target audience since they’re likely to want to have one of their first jobs and make spending money. Flex Fitness will look to hire high school students as front desk staff and/or shake specialists.

Research:Primary Research● Find quality employees that fit with our mission statement to hire

○ Flex Fitness prides itself on having employees that are happy and healthy - fitting with our mission statement. This will make Flex Fitness different from their competitors and allow customers to relate to them. We will ask questions in our interviews that will give us insight to our personality and if they will fit our brand image or not.

● Conduct monthly meetings with owner, managers, and employees ○ In order to make sure that employees are up to date with Flex Fitness news

and events, managers will schedule monthly meetings that all staff should attend (they will be compensated for these meetings). This will also be a way to re-motivate employees and get an insight of what they want to see change in order to be more efficient and productive in their work.

Secondary Research● Look at what type of employees our competitors are hiring

○ We want to see what type of employees our competitors are hiring in order to get an idea of how to differentiate ourselves from other gyms when it comes to our employees. We want our customer service to stand out from other fitness centers, and that starts with who we hire. We also want to look

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at what strategies these gyms use to keep their employees satisfied and continuing to work at their establishment.

Goals:1. Have a team of satisfied employees2. Have employees achieve quality ratings among members3. Create a communication strategy with employees

Objectives:1. Have an employee retention rate of 90%2. Have an employee satisfaction rate of 90%3. Have customers be 90% satisfied with employees 4. Implement an employee-to-employee communication system

Strategies and Tactics:1. Have a team of satisfied employees

● Have an employee retention rate of 90%● Have an employee satisfaction rate of 90%

Strategy 1: Create an event for employees that will make them feel appreciated Tactics:● Hold an employee appreciation day

○ Although Flex Fitness operates on a 24/7 basis (for the most part), we will close for an evening to take out the employees for an evening of fun. We will schedule this night for Wednesday, November 15th from 6:30 P.M. - 10:00 P.M. All employees will be invited to bowling and pizza and Lucky Strike Lanes in Lombard. Some fun awards will be given out at the event, as well. The gym will close down at 6:00 P.M. that night and open back up at 10:30 P.M.

Strategy 2: Communicate with employees on a regular basisTactics:● Weekly e-mail chain from managers

○ Managers will Email all employees on a monthly basis through Flex Fitness’ Email system. This e-mail thread will be a place where employees should address any concerns, problems that they’re facing, or ask any questions that they may have.

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● 4-month employee survey○ Every 4 months, employees will be asked to fill out a short survey regarding

their satisfaction with their job and how they feel their managers treat them. Questions on the survey include “On a five point scale, how satisfied are you with this job?”, “On a five point scale how satisfied are you with ______________ (manager’s name) as a manager?”, etc. This will give management a chance to see what they need to improve on and how happy their employees are with their current position.

2. Have employees achieve quality ratings among members● Have customers be 90% satisfied with employees

Strategy 1: Create a system for employees to remain accountable of their tasksTactics:● Create a task checklist for employees to use during their shifts

○ All employees, regardless of position, will be responsible for completing certain tasks during their shift at work. Although the different tasks may be different for front desk staff, shake specialists, zumba instructor, pilates instructor, aerobics instructor, and maintenance staff, each checklist will provide the different employee with a guide as to what they should be doing during their shifts. The checklist should be turned into the manager on duty before the employee leaves after their shift.

○ Appendix G: Employee Checklist (Front Desk Staff)

Strategy 2: Create a system for managers to remain accountable of their tasks Tactics:● Create a task checklist for managers to use during their shifts

○ Managers will also be given a checklist of what tasks to complete during their shifts, however, it will be different from the employee task checklist. The manager task checklist will consist of making sure that employees are doing their work and checking in on them frequently. They will also be responsible for checking stock of apparel and other items being sold in our “Flex Fashion” shop. They should be checking the equipment and facilities to make sure that everything is functioning properly.

○ Appendix H: Manager Checklist

Strategy 3: Create an incentive program for employees to keep working hard and doing the best that they canTactics:

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● Create an employee of the month program○ Flex Fitness will implement an employee of the month program beginning

the month after opening (February 2017). The employee of the month will be chosen based on votes from the owner, managers, and all employees. With this reward, the employee will have their picture hung up in the office, as well as receive an extra $100 added onto their next paycheck.

3. Create a communication strategy with employees ● Implement an employee-to-employee communication system

Strategy 1: Create an online communication system between employeesTactics:● Implement an e-mail system within Flex Fitness

○ Every owner, manager, and employee will be given a Flex Fitness e-mail address during their training session for work. This e-mail system will be used mainly for employee-to-employee communication. One use for this would be, for example, sending out an Email if someone needed a sub for one of their shifts if they get sick or go on vacation. This will be a valuable tool to make sure that employees are up to date with each other and can reach out to other employees if need be.

Strategy 2: Create a communication system between employees within the facility Tactics:● Implement an employee bulletin board in the fitness center’s office

○ In the office, a bulletin board will be hung up and be required for employees to check before they begin each shift and before they leave work. The bulletin board will be a place that employees can leave notes to other employees that do their same job notifying them of anything that should be known. For example, a front desk staff employee may leave a note for the next front desk staff member coming in letting them know that the computer at the front is running slowly. Small notes like this will keep employees up to date and feel like they have a way with communicating with other co-workers, even if they’re not physically there working at the time.

Evaluation:

Goal 1: Have a team of satisfied employees

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In order to evaluate this goal, we will be mainly looking at the surveys to see how they responded to the questions. If it seems that the majority of the employees have positive responses in the survey, we will know that employees are satisfied. If the opposite were to occur, however, we will be able to look into what employees were dissatisfied with and take action into improving this.

We will also evaluate this goal by looking at the success of the employee appreciation day at the bowling alley. If there was a large attendance of employees at the bowling night and they seemed to enjoy it, we will know that the employees are satisfied because they actually want to spend time with coworkers outside of work.

Goal 2: Have employees achieve quality ratings among members

To evaluate this goal, we will focus on members compliments versus. complaints. We will monitor our social media - especially Twitter since people tend to show their support or complaints via this social media outlet.

We will also look at the work employees are doing. Do they stay engaged and on task while on duty? Are they making sure that all of the member’s needs are met? We will evaluate this through observations of employees on duty.

Goal 3: Create a communication strategy with employees

We will evaluate this goal by simply asking all employees how they think communication between employees is working. Managers will casually ask employees this question while they are both on duty- with the hopes of gaining insight to how employees feel about the strategies being used.

Budget:

Bowling at employee appreciation day……………………………….....…………,,.……....$450Pizza at employee appreciation day……………………………………………........,,.........…$200$100 to employee of the month ($100 x 12 months).................................................$1,200Bulletin board…………………………………………………………………...……..............,,....…..…$50Total Yearly Budget…………………………………………………………........….………$1,900

Timeline:

January 2017

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● Weekly Emails from managers to employees● Implement Manager Checklist● Implement Employee Checklist for each position ● Implement Email system● Implement office bulletin board

February 2017● Weekly Emails from managers to employees ● Begin Employee of the Month

March 2017● Weekly Emails from managers to employees ● Employee of the Month

April 2017● Weekly Emails from managers to employees ● 4 month employee survey ● Employee of the Month

May 2017● Weekly Emails from managers to employees ● Employee of the Month

June 2017● Weekly Emails from managers to employees ● Employee of the Month

July 2017● Weekly Emails from managers to employees ● Employee of the Month

August 2017● Weekly Emails from managers to employees ● 4 month employee survey● Employee of the Month

September 2017

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● Weekly Emails from managers to employees ● Employee of the Month

October 2017● Weekly Emails from managers to employees ● Employee of the Month

November 2017● Hold the Employee Appreciation Day event ● Weekly Emails from managers to employees● Employee of the Month

December 2017● Weekly Emails from managers to employees ● 4 month employee survey ● Employee of the Month

Flex FitnessCommunity Relations Plan

Lauren Kaczmarek


34 [FLEX FITNESS]

Community Relations Plan Publics:Internal Publics:● Flex Fitness Employees

○ Flex Fitness Employees should be aware with what Flex Fitness is involved in. If their customers ask about a specific event or partnership that Flex Fitness is partaking in, then the employee should be informed enough to give the customer more insight to what it is they are asking about.

● Flex Fitness Members○ Flex Fitness Members should also be aware of the partnerships that Flex

Fitness is involved in. We want our members to take pride in being a part of the Flex Fitness family, and by being aware of the organizations that Flex Fitness partners with, they should be able to achieve this.

External Publics:● Media

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○ The Media will be one of the main external publics. We want the media to be aware of not only the partnerships that Flex Fitness is involved in, but also what Flex Fitness is doing in the community within these partnerships. By doing this, Flex Fitness will not only get publicity in the media, but will gain community attention and support through their partnerships with local organizations and non-profits.

● Community Organizations○ Flex Fitness will have relations with multiple organizations throughout the

community. We want other organizations to recognize Flex Fitness as an establishment that works collaboratively with other organizations and is always open to working with other franchises and non-for-profits within the community.

● Run Today○ “Run Today” is a for-profit establishment located in Downtown Glen Ellyn.

Run Today is a retail store that specializes in running providing products such as running apparel, shoes, equipment, etc. Flex Fitness will partner with Run Today in different promotions and contests throughout Flex Fitness’ first year in business.

● Special Olympics Illinois○ “Special Olympics Illinois” is a non-for-profit organization located in Glen

Ellyn, Illinois. Its main goal is to support an active, healthy lifestyle in individuals with disabilities and puts together Special Olympics events throughout the community.

ResearchPrimary Research:● Survey to Customers

○ Flex Fitness will hand out a survey to customers asking which local organizations, for profits and non-for-profits, they would like Flex Fitness to partner with. It will also ask which local events customers would like Flex Fitness to sponsor and take part in. By giving these surveys to customers, we will be able to partner with other organizations that our employees care about and feel passionately towards.

● Survey to Employees○ Flex Fitness will also hand out the exact same survey that they hand out to

customers to employees, as well. By doing this, Flex Fitness will be able to gain more insight as to what organizations their employees would like to partner with, while at the same time making their employees feel valued and give them a voice to make company decisions.

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Secondary Research:● Local competitors

○ Flex Fitness will look into their local competitors and see what they’ve done within the community. Local gyms that Flex Fitness will look into include Healthtrack Sports Wellness in Glen Ellyn, the YMCA in Glen Ellyn, and XSport Fitness in Glen Ellyn. By looking at what these fitness centers have done in the community, we can see what went well and what didn’t for them and base our community plan based on this research.

Goals:

1. Form a stronger connection with the Glen Ellyn community2. Partner with other local organizations

Objectives:

1. Plan a campaign that brings the community together2. Partner with 1 local for-profit organization 3. Partner with 1 local non-profit organization

Strategies and Tactics:

1. Form a stronger connection with the Glen Ellyn community● Plan a campaign that brings the community together

Strategy 1: Flex Fitness’ “Kickoff to Summer” Campaign ● Tactic: Implementation of the Campaign

○ Flex Fitness will host a “Kickoff to Summer” Campaign where they will offer free Zumba, Pilates, and Aerobics classes to anyone – members and non-members for a week leading up to the summer months. The Campaign will take place from Saturday, May 20th until Friday, May 26th. This campaign will allow for local residents to gain recognition of Flex Fitness, as well as try out the classes for free. We hope that by offering this free week of classes, it will get non-members into our facility, and eventually lead to a membership.

○ In order to promote the campaign, Flex Fitness will release a Press Release on April 17, 2017 (Appendix I: Flex Fitness’ Kickoff to Summer), providing details about the campaign.

2. Partner with other local organizations● Partner with 1 local for-profit organization

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● Partner with 1 local non-profit organization Strategy 1: Partner with “Run Today” in Downtown Glen Ellyn● Tactic: Establish a bi-yearly raffle contest with Run Today

○ Twice a year, Flex Fitness will partner with Run Today and offer a contest raffling off Run Today products. Three raffles will be done each contest – one will be for a free pair of running shoes, one will be for a free apparel item, and the last will be for a free monthly membership at Flex Fitness. Raffles are limited to one to person and can be redeemed at either Run Today or Flex Fitness itself.

○ All raffle vouchers will include contact information to the person filling out the raffle. The voucher will ask the person’s Name, Address, Email, and Phone Number. This will allow Flex Fitness and Run Today contact the winner, as well as save contact information to all those that enter the raffle.

○ The raffle will take place twice a year and will continue into future years, should it be successful in 2017. The first drawing for the raffle will be on Saturday, May 6th, 2017. Contestants will have 2 weeks prior to the drawing to enter – starting on Saturday, April 22nd, 2017. The second drawing for the raffle will be on Saturday, December 23rd, 2017. Again, contestants will have 2 weeks prior to the drawing to enter – starting on Saturday, December 9th, 2017.

Strategy 2: Partner with “Special Olympics Illinois” in Glen Ellyn● Tactic: Hold an annual “Special Olympics” Day at Flex Fitness

○ Each year, Flex Fitness will hold a Special Olympics competition at the facility. The competition will invite those with disabilities to partake in the competition. The competition will consist of fun, active activities that involve using the facilities’ equipment. These activities would include a swim competition in the lap pool, a free-throw competition in the basketball court, a weight-lifting competition on the exercise machines, etc.

○ Lunch will be provided for the participants and their families/friends/supporters that attend the event. We will bring in catering from Jimmy John’s for the event.

○ The facility will be closed for members from Noon - 4:00 P.M. this day because of the event. The event will take place on Saturday, March 4th, 2017. It will take place on this day because March is Developmental Disabilities Awareness Month.

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○ In order to promote the campaign, Flex Fitness will send out a press release regarding the “Special Olympics” Day. The press release will be published on Thursday, February 23rd, 2017.

Evaluation:

Goal 1: Form a stronger connection with the Glen Ellyn community

In order to evaluate this goal, we will look at how successful our Flex Fitness’ “Kickoff to Summer” campaign was. We will evaluate this by looking at the numbers of both members and non-members that came in during this week for the free Zumba, Pilates, and Aerobics classes that were provided. We will also look at the number of memberships that came out of this campaign. Since we were offering free exercise classes to non-members, we are hoping to see a rise in memberships due to this offer.

Goal 2: Partner with other local organizations

In order to evaluate this goal, we will first look at our success with our partnership with “Run Today”. We will see how many members entered the raffle with Run Today. Further, we will compare sales of Run Today from before the raffle to sales after the raffle. We are hoping that with this partnership, we will be able to give Run Today more recognition and hopefully lead to more sales.

We will also evaluate this goal by looking at the success from our partnership with “Special Olympics Illinois”. We will evaluate by looking at how many attended the event and participated in the event. We hope that with large participation and a positive response from those that attended, we can look to do this event in the future in 2018 and other years.

Budget:

Press Releases (2)………………………………….…………………………………............………$300Supplies for raffle……………………………………………………………………………................$50Catered lunch for “Special Olympics” Day………………………………………………...…$500Total…………………………………………………………………………………...........…………..$850

Timeline:

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February 2017● Press Release for “Special Olympics” Day

March 2017● “Special Olympics” Day

April 2017● Press Release for “Kickoff to Summer” Event● First raffle begins (partnership with “Run Today” in Glen Ellyn)

May 2017● “Kickoff to Summer” Week● First raffle drawing (partnership with “Run Today” in Glen Ellyn)

December 2017● Second raffle begins (partnership with “Run Today” in Glen Ellyn)● Second raffle drawing (partnership with “Run Today” in Glen Ellyn)

Flex FitnessConsumer Communication Plan

Lauren Kaczmarek


40 [FLEX FITNESS]

Consumer Communication Plan

Publics:● Families

○ Families will be an important target customer for Flex Fitness. If one family member uses Flex Fitness and is satisfied with their experience, Flex Fitness should try to get the other family members into the gym and get a membership.

● Middle-Aged Working Adults○ Middle-Aged Working Adults will be another target customer for Flex

Fitness. Working adults are very likely to use a gym since they’re likely to not

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be in as good of shape as they were when they were younger. After a long day of work, going to the gym would be a great way for them to relieve some stress and feel good about themselves.

● Local College and High School Students○ Local College and High School Students will be an important customer base

for Flex Fitness to reach. High School and College Students are an important crowd to reach because this is the age where working out and going to a gym becomes appealing and a routine.

● Media○ The media is important to keep as a key contact. We want the media to be in

constant communication with the media so that we will have an easier time getting them to cover a story on Flex Fitness or any upcoming promotions or events.

Research:Primary Research:● Surveys

○ Flex Fitness will conduct monthly surveys to customers providing feedback on what they feel is going well with Flex Fitness, and what needs to be improved. All surveys will be entered in for a drawing for a free shake from “The Shake Shack”. Surveys must be completed by members only. (Appendix J: Monthly Customer Survey)

Secondary Research:● Chamber of Commerce

○ We will look at Glen Ellyn’s Chamber of Commerce to gain insight on local businesses within the area. We will see which ones are successful, and research what they do that makes them successful. We will also look up key individuals within the community, as well as review the community’s policies.

● U.S. Small Business Administration○ The U.S. Small Business Administration website provides statistics of

changing demographics within a community. This will be helpful for Flex Fitness when determining which target customer to go after. If there is a drastic change in demographics over time, we will suggest altering our target audiences in order to keep customers and keep new ones coming in.

Goals:1. Attract new Gym Members

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2. Retain current Gym Members3. Remain a profitable business

Objectives:1. Increase memberships by 5% each year2. Increase student memberships by 10% each year3. Grow profit 5% each year

Strategies and Tactics:1. Attract new Gym Members

● Increase memberships by 5% each year● Increase student memberships by 10% each year

Strategy 1: Target local High School Students● Tactic: Raffle off a free month’s membership at Glenbard South High School and

Glenbard West High School Football and Basketball Games○ Flex Fitness will pick 2 home Glenbard South High School Football games, 2

home Glenbard West High School Football games, 4 home Glenbard South High School Basketball games (2 men’s, and 2 women’s), and 4 home Glenbard West High School Basketball games to go to raffle off a free month’s membership to the gym. Raffle tickets will be $1 per ticket, and an unlimited amount may be purchased per person. We will send two of our front-desk staff employees to these games to sell raffle tickets. The raffle will be offered from an hour before the game starts until the beginning of halftime of each of the games, where the raffle will be drawn.

Strategy 2: Target local College Students● Tactic: Raffle off a free month’s membership at Wheaton College Football and

Basketball Games○ Flex Fitness will pick 2 home Wheaton College Football games and 4 home

Basketball games (2 men’s, and 2 women’s) to go to raffle off a free month’s membership to the gym. Raffle tickets will be $1 per ticket, and an unlimited amount may be purchased per person. We will send two of our front-desk staff employees to these games to sell raffle tickets. The raffle will be offered from an hour before the game starts until the beginning of halftime of each of the games, where the raffle will be drawn.

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● Tactic: Offer a “college week” once a year○ Once a year, usually in early June when college students are back at home for

the summer, Flex Fitness will offer a free week of gym memberships to college students. All that they need to do to prove that they’re in college is show a valid college I.D. and they will be eligible for the free week. We hope that this will get college students in our door, and hopefully lead to memberships after the free week is up.

2. Retain Current Gym Members ● Increase memberships by 5% each year

Strategy 1: Make all members feel valuable● Tactic: Hold a bi-annual Member Appreciation Day

○ Twice a year, once on the first Saturday of February and once on the second Saturday of November, Flex Fitness will hold a “Member Appreciation Day”. During these days, there will be healthy snacks provided by Herbalife such as power bars and mini shakes - free for all customers. Customers will also be given a 25% off coupon to use at “Flex Fashion” - the apparel store within Flex Fitness. The coupon will be valid for only a week, beginning on the day that the Membership Appreciation Day is held. We hope that this will make members feel valued and keep them continuing their membership with Flex Fitness. Also, we hope that the coupon for Flex Fashion will increase sales within the apparel section of our business.

3. Remain a Profitable Business● Grow profit 5% each year

Strategy 1: Offer coupons to members● Tactic: Offer coupons once a month to members for the “Flex Fashion” apparel shop

○ Flex Fitness will want to utilize all of its amenities in order to maximize profits. In order to promote more purchases at the Flex Fashion shop, Flex Fitness will Email all members a 20% off coupon once a month for the Flex Fitness apparel shop. The coupon will be valid for that month only, and will be offered on the first of the month for every month in the year.

Evaluation:

Goal 1: Attract new Gym Members

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In order to evaluate this goal, we will look at the number of memberships before the campaign and the amount of memberships after the campaign. If we see an increase in memberships, we know that we were successful in attracting new gym members. We will also look at student memberships specifically before and after the campaign to see if there was an increase in these numbers, as well.

Goal 2: Retain current Gym Members

We will evaluate this goal by looking at cancelled memberships from before and after the campaign. If we notice that there has been minimal cancellations, we will know that we were successful in retaining current members.

Goal 3: Remain a profitable business

In order to evaluate this goal, we will look at our profits from the previous year and then compare them to this year’s. We will hopefully see a 5% increase each year. If we do not, we will further evaluate our profits to see in what areas we could improve and come up with ways to do so.

Budget:

Raffle supplies………………………………………………………………………….………...........................….$50Herbalife snacks for Member Appreciation Day ($500 x 2 times a year).…………..…...$1,000Total…………………………………………………………………………………......................…..……...$1,050

Timeline:

January 2017● Email 20% off coupon for “Flex Fashion” to Flex Fitness members

February 2017● Bi-annual Membership Appreciation Day● Email 20% off coupon for “Flex Fashion” to Flex Fitness members

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March 2017● Email 20% off coupon for “Flex Fashion” to Flex Fitness members

April 2017● Email 20% off coupon for “Flex Fashion” to Flex Fitness members

May 2017● Email 20% off coupon for “Flex Fashion” to Flex Fitness members

June 2017● College Week ● Email 20% off coupon for “Flex Fashion” to Flex Fitness members

July 2017● Email 20% off coupon for “Flex Fashion” to Flex Fitness members

August 2017● Email 20% off coupon for “Flex Fashion” to Flex Fitness members

September 2017● Glenbard South Football Game Raffle● Glenbard West Football Game Raffle● Wheaton College Football Game Raffle● Email 20% off coupon for “Flex Fashion” to Flex Fitness members

October 2017● Glenbard South Football Game Raffle● Glenbard West Football Game Raffle ● Wheaton College Football Game Raffle● Email 20% off coupon for “Flex Fashion” to Flex Fitness members

November 2017● Glenbard South Basketball Game Raffle (Men’s and Women’s games)● Glenbard West Basketball Game Raffle (Men’s and Women’s games)● Wheaton College Basketball Game Raffle (Men’s and Women’s games) ● Bi-annual Membership Appreciation Day ● Email 20% off coupon for “Flex Fashion” to Flex Fitness members

December 2017

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● Glenbard South Basketball Game Raffle (Men’s and Women’s games)● Glenbard West Basketball Game Raffle (Men’s and Women’s games)● Wheaton College Basketball Game Raffle (Men’s and Women’s games) ● Email 20% off coupon for “Flex Fashion” to Flex Fitness members

Appendix Items

Appendix A: Opening Day Survey……………………………………………………………………….47-49

Appendix B: Opening Day Press Release………………………………………………………….………50

Appendix C: Open Positions Press Release……………………………………………..……………….51

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Appendix D: Employee T-Shirts – Uniform………………………………………………………………52

Appendix E: Employee Hats – Uniform…………………………………………………………………….53

Appendix F: “Celebration of Fitness” Day Flyer………………………………………………………..54

Appendix G: Employee Checklist - Front Desk Staff Checklist………………………….………55

Appendix H: Manager Checklist………………………………………………………………………….……56

Appendix I: Kickoff to Summer Press Release…………………………………………….……………57

Appendix J: Monthly Customer Survey………………………………………………………….……58-59

Appendix A: Opening Day Survey

Thank you for choosing to take Flex Fitness’ Opening Day Survey. Your responses will help us make Flex Fitness the best gym and fitness center that it can be. The survey should take just a few minutes to complete. If you choose to, you may leave your e-mail address at the end of the survey in order to receive a free week of gym access, as well as more information regarding Flex Fitness’ opening day.

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1. Where do you live?a. Glen Ellynb. Wheatonc. Lombardd. Other: ______________________

2. What is your gender?a. Maleb. Femalec. Other

3. How old are you?a. 17 or youngerb. 18 - 24c. 25- 35d. 36 - 45e. 46 - 55f. 55 or older

4. How many members live in your household?a. One (just myself)b. Twoc. Threed. Foure. Fivef. Six or more

5. Which best describes your annual household income? a. $0 - $29,999b. $30,000 - $59,999c. $60,000 - $99,999d. $100,000 - $129,999e. $130,00 - $159,999f. $160,000 - $199,999g. $200,000 or more

6. How often do you personally workout?a. Everyday

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b. 5-6 Days a weekc. 3-4 Days a weekd. 1-2 Days a weeke. A few times a monthf. Rarelyg. Never

7. Do you belong to a gym already? If so what gym?a. Yes; _______________________________b. No

8. What machines do you use most when you workout?a. Treadmills or Ellipticals b. Leg Strengthening Machinesc. Upper Body Strengthening Machinesd. Squat/Bench Press Statione. Abdominal Strengthening Machines f. I don’t use exercise machinesg. I don’t workouth. Other; ____________________________

9. Which facility are you most likely to use when you workout?a. Cardio Machinesb. Strengthening and Lifting Machinesc. Exercise Studio (Group Exercise classes such as Yoga, Pilates, Zumba, etc.)d. Basketball Courte. Lap Poolf. I don’t workout and would not use any of these facilitiesg. Other: ____________________________

Leave your Email here if you’d like to receive a FREE week membership to Flex Fitness, as well as more information about Flex Fitness and its opening:

__________________________________________________________________________

50 [FLEX FITNESS]

Thanks again for your participation in this survey!

Appendix B. - Opening Day Press Release

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: 11/01/2016Flex Fitness

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Phone: (630) 545-2920E-mail: [email protected]: www.flexfitness.com

FLEX FITNESS ANNOUNCES OPENING DATENew Health Club to Open in Glen Ellyn, IL in the New Year

(Glen Ellyn, Illinois, November 01, 2016) - A new health and wellness center will be opening in Glen Ellyn on New Year’s Day, Sunday, January 1st, 2017 at 12:00 P.M. Noon. Flex Fitness will open its very first location in Glen Ellyn, at 880 Roosevelt Road. Flex Fitness was started by Lauren Kaczmarek, a health enthusiast that wants to share her passion of living a healthy lifestyle to the community. Flex Fitness operates 24/7 except on major holidays including Independence Day, Thanksgiving, and Christmas. The Fitness Center includes state of the art cardio and strength training equipment, as well as facilities including a studio, basketball court, lap pool, men’s and women’s locker rooms - each fully equipped with restrooms, showers, a sauna, and a steam room, and Flex Fitness’ very own “Shake Shack”, where members may purchase from a variety of 30 different Herbalife Protein Shakes.

One of Flex Fitness’ managers, Ali MacDonald, said, “We are so excited to open the gym in just a couple of months. Our staff has started the training process and through training, we’ve all become avid supporters of Flex Fitness and its mission to encourage individuals to live a happy and healthy lifestyle. I really couldn’t think of a better company to work for”.

Aaron Morris, one of Flex Fitness’ ten personal trainers also supports MacDonald’s statement and Flex Fitness’ mission of living a healthy life. Morris commented on the setup of the gym. “Flex Fitness has everything that someone would need in a workout facility. We have hundreds of state-of-the art Life Fitness cardio and strength training machines, but if that’s not for you, there are facilities like a lap pool, studio, and basketball court to suit your workout needs. The gym really has it all!”

To find out more about Flex Fitness and their Opening Day offers, visit their website at www.flexfitness.com. More information about the club in general, the memberships they offer, and an introduction of staff members may also be found on their website.

###

Appendix C. - Open Positions Press Release

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: 05/03/2016

http://www.flexfitness.com/


mailto:[email protected]

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Flex FitnessPhone: (630) 545-2920E-mail: [email protected] Website: www.flexfitness.com

FLEX FITNESS TO HIRE EMPLOYEESHealth Club Opening in 2017 in Glen Ellyn is Looking to Hire Employees Now

(Glen Ellyn, Illinois, May 03, 2016) - New Glen Ellyn Fitness Center, Flex Fitness, opening in 2017 is looking to hire thirty employees. Positions wanted range from Gym Managers, Yoga Instructors, Pilates Instructors, Zumba Instructors, Personal Trainers, Front Desk/Sales Staff Managers, “Shake Specialists”, and Maintenance Crew Members. Each of the different positions may be applied for via an online application, which can be accessed by visiting the following website: www.flexfitness.com/Careers. Flex Fitness will be accepting applications from tomorrow, May 4th, 2016 until the end of the month- May 31st, 2016.

Gym owner Lauren Kaczmarek says that “Flex Fitness is looking to hire employees that commit themselves to living a healthy lifestyle”. Kaczmarek wants employees to fit with the gym’s mission statement - “Flex Fitness seeks to provide a safe, clean, spacious, and fun environment for all members to have an enjoyable and efficient workout experience. With its many features such as state-of-the-art exercise equipment, a basketball court, a studio, and a pool, Flex Fitness encourages its members to personalize their workout and make it suitable for themselves. With its friendly and helpful staff members and personal trainers, Flex Fitness hopes that its members will leave each workout with a smile on their face”.

Again, visit www.flexfitness.com/Careers for access to the application and for more details. If you have any further questions, please contact owner Lauren Kaczmarek via Email at [email protected].

###Appendix D: Employee T-Shirts - Uniform






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Appendix E: Employee Hats - Uniform

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Appendix F: “Celebration of Fitness” Day Flyer

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Appendix G: Employee Checklist - Front Desk Staff Checklist

****Make sure to complete these tasks before your shift ends, and please hand in to the manager working before you leave****

❏ Check employee bulletin board in office for important announcements ❏ Check Flex Fitness Email for important announcements❏ Re-stock towel supply ❏ Count cash in register and make sure it matches sales❏ Wipe off front desk and tables near the front lobby❏ Re-stock any flyers on display (can get from the office)

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Appendix H: Manager Checklist

❏ Check in on employees working during shift❏ Delegate any odd-job tasks to employees that aren’t busy ❏ See if there are any customer surveys turned in, looked at them, and enter answers

into database❏ Check social media ❏ Post to social media sites if need be ❏ Handle any customer complaints ❏ Do multiple walk arounds to make sure that everything is running smoothly

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Appendix I: Kickoff to Summer Press Release

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: 04/17/2017Flex FitnessPhone: (630) 545-2920E-mail: [email protected] Website: www.flexfitness.com

FLEX FITNESS’ KICKOFF TO SUMMERFlex Fitness will offer a week of free exercise classes leading up to the summer months

(Glen Ellyn, Illinois, April, 17, 2017) Mark your calendars! Flex Fitness is hosting its first annual Kickoff to Summer week on Saturday, May 20th through Friday, May 26th. This week will consist of free Zumba, Pilates, and Aerobics classes. These classes will be free to members and non-members as well.

Lauren Kaczmarek, owner of Flex Fitness, states that “We are very excited to open up our classes for anyone to try. All of our Zumba, Pilates, and Aerobics instructors are highly certified and are excited to be teaching our classes for the kickoff to summer week. We hope that this can be a starting event for community members to start their summer off healthy and continue this trend throughout the rest of the season”.

Flex Fitness has been new to Glen Ellyn since its opening just a few months ago in January 2017. The establishment consists of a state of the art exercise equipment, a lap pool, a hot tub, a basketball court, a studio where the exercise classes are held, men’s and women’s lockers room- each equipped with a sauna and steam room, a protein shake stand called “The Shake Shack”, and an apparel shop called “Flex Fashion”.

To find out more information regarding Flex Fitness or its Kickoff to Summer week, please visit Flex Fitness’ website at www.flexfitness.com or the link to the informational Kickoff to Summer week at www.flexfitness.com/kickofftosummer.

http://www.flexfitness.com/kickofftosummer




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###

Appendix J: Monthly Customer Survey

Thank you for choosing to take Flex Fitness’ Monthly Customer Survey. Your responses will help us make Flex Fitness the best gym and fitness center that it can be. The survey should take just a few minutes to complete. If you choose to, you may leave your name and Email address at the end of the survey in order to enter a drawing for a free shake at the Shake Shack.

1. On a scale of 1-10 (10 Being Outstanding and 1 Being Horrible), please rate Flex Fitness on its customer service (Please circle a number):

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

2. What improvements, if any, would you suggest for Flex Fitness to improve its customer service?

____________________________________________________________________________

3. On a scale of 1-10 (10 Being Outstanding and 1 Being Horrible), please rate Flex Fitness on the variety of facilities that it provides (Please circle a number):

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

4. What improvements, if any, would you suggest for Flex Fitness to improve its facilities?

____________________________________________________________________________

5. On a scale of 1-10 (10 Being Outstanding and 1 Being Horrible), please rate Flex Fitness on its Personal Trainers (Please circle a number):

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

6. What improvements, if any, would you suggest for Flex Fitness to improve on its Personal Trainers?

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____________________________________________________________________________

7. On a scale of 1-10 (10 Being Outstanding and 1 Being Horrible), please rate Flex Fitness on its cleanliness (Please circle a number):

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

8. What improvements, if any, would you suggest for Flex Fitness to improve on its cleanliness?

9. On a scale of 1-10 (10 Being Outstanding and 1 Being Horrible), please rate Flex Fitness on its “Shake Shack” (Please circle a number):

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

10. What improvements, if any, would you suggest for Flex Fitness to improve its “Shake Shack”?

____________________________________________________________________________

11. On a scale of 1-10 (10 Being Outstanding and 1 Being Horrible), please rate Flex Fitness on its “Flex Fashion” apparel shop (Please circle a number):

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

12. What improvements, if any, would you suggest for Flex Fitness to improve its “Flex Fashion” apparel shop?

____________________________________________________________________________

Leave your name and Email here if you’d like to enter a raffle for a FREE shake at the Shake Shack:

Name:_____________________________________________________________________

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Email:_____________________________________________________________________

Thanks again for your participation in this survey!

5 part communication plan - flex fitness

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