Branding Tips for Gyms
Why Authentic Branding Is a Competitive Advantage for Gyms
I had just stepped off stage after giving a talk at the NEHRSA conference near Boston.
NEHRSA was a regional arm of what was then named the International Health, Racquet, and Sportsclub Association.
Compared to my usual speaking gigs for independent gyms and strength coaching facilities, this was a bit more professional.
Less sweat pants and exposed tattoos.
More suits and corporate wear.
It was a bit different than my usual audience. But I’ve always been grateful to share the story of Mark Fisher Fitness and examples of how our quirky business functioned.
No F bombs were dropped. But they got the “Full Mark Fisher,” unicorns and all.
When you’re giving a talk, you can usually get a feel for how the room is reacting.
I’m used to a collective “WTF?!” directed towards me in the beginning of any talk to a new audience.
Then, like a melting ice cube, I take great delight in feeling them warm up and begrudgingly chuckle at my jokes.
Into this post-coital glow, my friend Chris Stevenson joined the line of well-wishers after my talk.
In his trademark affable style, he saluted me with an off-hand comment:
“MAN. I just love how you’re YOU up there. You just get up there and you’re so… so… so POLARIZING, it’s awesome!!”
To which I responded…
“… I am?”
Now to be clear, Chris meant it as a complement. And I (mostly) took it that way.
But I won’t lie. I don’t relish being provocative.
Honestly?
I wish everybody liked me.
But at this point in my life and career, I’ve come to understand the things that draw many people to me are the things that repel others.
And I’ve made my peace with this.
I’m of the mind that many gyms are held back by their “sameness.”
You don’t need to be radically different as a brick and mortar gym. You don’t have an unlimited market or an unlimited number of competitors.
But because of how generic many gyms are,
A little bit of “what makes you you” will go a long way to standing out.
Prospects don’t want to work with a business.
They want to work with a human.
And with the rise of more and more franchise models,
And the ubiquity of AI slop,
Bringing your humanity into your brand is a competitive advantage.
This can look like sharing your quirks, passions, and values in your marketing.
It can look like selecting elements of your brand’s iconography that stand out from the pack.
It can also look like resisting the desire to “overly professionalize” your wonderful, heartfelt, homemade small business until it’s beige and gray and looks like a “me too” gym.
You’re the only one of YOU that the rest of us are going to get.
So the more you can share the full YOU,
And offer it generously in the spirit of serving a specific community,
The better your business will be,
And the better off our society will be.
Better to be nine people’s favorite thing than 100 people’s 9th favorite thing,
Mark
PS: If you want to work with a team that will always celebrate “the most you that you can possibly be,”
We may be a fit to work together.
The Unicorn Society is a mentorship program for gym owners that shortcuts the path to more income, impact, and freedom.
Think of it like franchise-level business-in-a-box support, but customized for your business and voice.
And without spending hundreds of thousands of dollars upfront and paying royalties for life.
To learn more about the US, book a 10-minute intro call HERE.