Joke of the Month

Four Square – The Retention Answer

Taken directly from Wikipedia, FourSquare is a location-based social networking website software for mobile devices. Users "check-in" at venues and are then awarded points and sometimes "badges". A "badge" is posted on your Four Square profile and shows what you have achieved or where you have been. For example, I am currently the Mayor of Fitness First Carlingford – which means of Four Square users, I have checked in the most!

Ahhhh . . . can you see how this may benefit retention? Additionally, the free application can be set for you to list recommendations and vouchers for download.

In mid-October, we will email you a Fact Sheet dedicated to Four Square for FREE! You will see it in action during FitnessBiz this year.

Register now for FitnessBiz 2010

PPCA Update for Aussie Clubs

The PPCA has informed Fitness Australia that the effective date for the introduction of the revised Tariff V licence for the use of music in group exercise classes will be 1 January 2011, as opposed to 1 November 2010 which was the original date set by them following the Copyright Tribunal decision.

PPCA has also introduced a revised phase-in schedule for the introduction of the licence that differs from that communicated by them earlier in the year.

The revised phase-in schedule is as follows (from the PPCA website):

CPI increases will apply from 1 July 2017.

An eligible licensee is a licensee under the new scheme who:

• Pays his/her account promptly and without default, in accordance with PPCA’s Standard Terms and Conditions.
• Does not engage in unauthorised or unlicensed use of sound recordings comprising part of the PPCA repertoire.

The above scheme will come into operation despite the fact that Fitness Australia has lodged an application in the Federal Court for a review of the Tribunal’s decision ("Appeal"). The Federal Court will either confirm the Tribunal’s decision or require the Tribunal to reconsider the case.

The existence of the Appeal does not affect the validity of the Tribunal’s 17 May decision or PPCA’s ability to apply the new scheme as set out above.

The additional fees which PPCA collects under the new scheme from 1 January 2011, and which are in excess of those payable under the current tariff (which will continue to operate until 31 December 2010), will be paid into a suspense account. They will remain in that account until the Federal Court has decided the Appeal.

PPCA will write to all licensees affected by the new scheme in relation to implementation. PPCA will also write to those licensees once the Appeal is concluded. PPCA will publish further information on this website as it becomes available.

Are you Fishing Where the Mums Are?

According to the "Back to School Survey" by rich media and video ad server Unicast, most spend between 3 and 10 hours a week reading mum’s blogs, and they squeeze the blogs into their busy schedules by checking for posts in the morning before their day officially begins, at night when their kids are asleep and during any other free moment they can grab.

And the number 1 reason is that they want to connect with other mums. Number 2 is how they could save money. In fact, their favorite blogs are the budget-oriented ones, which came ahead of being informative, humorous, relatable or even fast to read.

According to the survey, the budget-consciousness of the mums also extended to their consciousness of advertisements. All over the web, they were most likely to notice ads that included coupons or other ways to save money.

The survey respondents also cared about ads’ relevance to their busy and often child-focused lives. On the mum blogs, readers most wanted to see ads for items like groceries, children’s clothing and, depending on the age of the mom, baby gear.

Ads for products that were more about mom herself, such as women’s clothing and accessories or makeup, were less popular, suggesting that the context is more important than the audience: When moms are reading parenting-focused blogs they too are focused on parenting – which makes it a challenge for fitness to be positioned!

FitnessBiz Registrations Rock!

We are just 30 days into the registrations for FitnessBiz and it already looks like a record year. We have asked some who already registered why they are coming and here is what they said:

• "The half day format is ideal for me. I can be back in the club when it is busy at night."
• "I have been the last 3 years and love it! It is permanently on my calendar as I know I get so much take home information!"
• "The mix of marketing, sales and retention means the key aspects of the business are covered concisely and with new information."
• "I love Justin’s industry trends and updates. We can see where we are compared to the rest of the industry and maybe where we should be heading.”
• "Really pleased it is now in November. It will give me and my A-Team an end of year lift!"

This year FitnessBiz will visit every capital city in November and for just $110, it is a great value – 3 new PT sessions will cover it or 1 extra joining fee! Don’t miss this energising event.

Supporting an Old Friend & Juvenile Diabetes

My old mate Richard Peil formally of Southern Cross Health Club and now Anytime Fitness, is one of the riders at the 24 Hour Solo World Championships on 9-10 October. At the end of the 24 hours, their challenge will stop, but they will be riding to raise money for JDRF – Juvenile Diabetes Research Fund – for the kids whose challenge isn't over at the 24 hour mark.

They aim to raise $25,000 to donate to JDRF to assist with their mission to find a cure for Type 1 Diabetes and improve the lives of its sufferers through the development and delivery of therapies. To help them raise money go to: www.everydayhero.com.au/anytimefitness_torqnutrition

Uniforms – Are They Important?

A panel of experts at Fashion Fit for Business this year indicated that uniforms:

• Benefit culture.
• Increase brand satisfaction.
• Improve employee satisfaction.
• Improve performance.

A representative from Flight Centre said that when they updated their uniform with a more contemporary style they saw a change in pride and professionalism. The Council of Fashion & Textiles Industries of Australia believe the uniform should put purpose, performance and fit as the key attributes to the design. Style is simply icing.

Poorly designed uniforms won’t fit well, won’t wear well and most importantly will not make the wearer feel good about going to work.

What’s Justin Blogging This Month?

A fairly quiet time for blogs this month but I read about the Harry Potter ride’s seat being altered for the ‘larger’ kids! Check this out:

Too wide to ride: obese visitors force Harry Potter ride to upsize.

And there is now a gym for obese dogs called Zoom Room!

Sales Tips From Jeffrey Gitomer

Many sales people are using the slowing economy as an excuse for poor sales. They sale the economy is in a slump not them but from Gitomer this months comes these wise words as the reasons for a slump:

• Poor belief system. I don't believe that my company or product is the best. I don't think that I'm the best.
• Poor work habits. Getting to work late, or barely "on time." Not spending your time with people who can say "yes."
• Misperceptions that lead to sour grapes. I think my prices are too high, or my territory is bad.
• Outside pressure. Caused by money problems, family problems, or personal problems.
• Poor personal habits. Too much drink, too much food, or too much after hours play.
• Boss giving crap instead of support. Someone who says, "You better do it," instead of, "I know you can do it."
• Events that go against you. New salesperson passes you, someone else gets promoted and you know it should have been you.
• Customer cancels a big order. Weakening your personal belief or causing severe money problems - or both.
• Competition cuts price and steals the order. This is the new reality of business.
• Getting depressed. From any of the above.

His answer to the slump: "What causes a slump? You do. Therefore, you are the best (and only) person to fix it."

Facebook For Your Business Success!

Two weeks ago we had one of our most successful webinars ever! We had 75 people register, by the way you can only have 100, so we were close to capacity!

If you missed the webinar you can down load it for free now by clicking here. And you can download the slides on our SlideShare channel.

Lara Solomon from Social Rabbit shared some very cool and powerful ideas to make Facebook part of your marketing for both sales and retention. As a follow-up she is running a training program specifically for the fitness industry with a 25% saving! But it is limited to just 10 people.

What will you learn?

• What Facebook can offer your business and why you should be using it.
• The different types of Facebook marketing.
• Defining your target audience.
• How to determine the best outcome for your business.
• Setting up your page.
• Posting on your page.
• Content for your page.
• App’s for your page.
• Updating your page.
• Facebook ad's.
• Promoting your page.
• Ways to get fans for your page.
• How to analyse your page results.

Each week you will be provided with homework, the chance to implement between each session as well as the ability to ask questions each week.

Webinar Dates are as follows:

• October 7^th, 14^th, 21^st from 2.30 -4pm AEST
• Nov 4^th from 2.30 -4pm AEST
• November 5^th, 12^th, 19^th, 26^th from 10-11.30am AEST

Or for more information email Lara: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

Your Active Management Special Offer is save 25% when you book within the next 7 days with promo code amweb. Go to register by clicking here!

If you have any questions about your business or if you want more information about any of the topics discussed in this issue of Active Report, email  This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or call me direct at 02 8007 0347.

Until next month, be well and stay active!

Justin Tamsett

[Just click the business card to add Justin to your Outlook Contacts]