Articles Tagged with: alliance leisure

The Power of SEO in Marketing

The Power of SEO in Marketing: A Comprehensive Guide for Fitness Memberships

In today’s digital age, leisure operators are constantly seeking ways to enhance their online presence and reach their local communities. One of the most effective strategies to achieve this is through Search Engine Optimisation (SEO). But what exactly is SEO, and why is it so crucial in the realm of marketing? In this article, we’ll delve into the fundamentals of SEO, its significance in marketing, and how you can leverage it to boost your leisure facility. Whilst SEO can be helpful in promoting any aspect of your services, we’ve used fitness memberships to act as an example throughout this article.

What is SEO?

SEO, or Search Engine Optimisation, is the practice of optimising a website to improve its visibility and ranking on search engine results pages (SERPs). When users search for specific keywords or phrases related to your business, SEO ensures that your website appears higher in the search results, making it more likely for potential customers to find you. SEO involves a combination of on-page and off-page strategies, including keyword research, content creation, link building, and technical optimisation.

The Importance of SEO in Marketing Fitness Memberships

SEO plays a pivotal role in digital marketing for several reasons:

Increased Visibility and Traffic: Higher rankings on SERPs lead to increased visibility, which in turn drives more organic traffic to your website. For a fitness business, this means more potential members discovering your gym or leisure centre.
Credibility and Trust: Websites that rank higher on search engines are often perceived as more credible and trustworthy by users. SEO helps establish your leisure brand’s authority and reliability in the industry, making potential members more likely to choose your services.
Cost-Effectiveness: Compared to traditional advertising methods, SEO is cost-effective. While it requires an initial investment of time and resources, the long-term benefits far outweigh the costs. This is especially beneficial for fitness businesses with limited marketing budgets.
Better User Experience: SEO involves optimising your website’s structure, speed, and content, which enhances the overall user experience. A well-optimised site is easier to navigate and provides valuable information to visitors, such as class timetables, membership options, and fitness tips.
Competitive Advantage: In a competitive market, businesses that invest in SEO gain a significant edge over their competitors. By staying ahead in search rankings, you can capture a larger share of the market and attract more members to your centre.

Key Components of SEO for Fitness Memberships

To effectively implement SEO, it’s essential to understand its key components:

1. Keyword Research: Identifying the right keywords is the foundation of SEO. These are the terms and phrases that potential members use to search for fitness services. For example, keywords like “best gym in Manchester,” “cheap fitness memberships,” or “personal training near me” can help attract local traffic. Tools like Google Keyword Planner and SEMrush can help you find relevant keywords with high search volume and low competition.

2. On-Page SEO: This involves optimising individual web pages to rank higher and earn more relevant traffic. Key elements of on-page SEO include:

- Title Tags: Crafting compelling and keyword-rich titles for your web pages, such as “Join the Best Gym in Manchester Today!”

- Meta Descriptions: Writing concise and informative meta descriptions that encourage users to click on your link, like “Discover our state-of-the-art equipment and friendly staff. Sign up for a free day pass now!”

- Header Tags: Using header tags (H1, H2, H3) to structure your content and make it more readable. For instance, using headers like “Our Membership Options” or “Why Choose Us?”

- Content Optimisation: Creating high-quality, engaging, and keyword-optimised content that provides value to your audience. This could include blog posts on fitness tips, success stories from members, or detailed descriptions of your classes and services.

- URL Structure: Ensuring that your URLs are clean, descriptive, and include relevant keywords, such as “yourwebsite.com/membership-options.”

3. Off-Page SEO: This focuses on building your website’s authority and reputation through external factors. Key off-page SEO strategies include:

- Backlink Building: Acquiring high-quality backlinks from reputable websites. For a local leisure centre, this could mean getting featured in local news articles, fitness blogs, or local post code or online directories.

- Social Media Marketing: Leveraging social media platforms to promote your content and engage with your audience. Sharing success stories, fitness challenges, and special promotions can drive traffic to your website and improve your search rankings.

- Guest Blogging: Writing guest posts for other websites in your local area to gain exposure and build backlinks. For example, contributing an article on “The Benefits of Group Fitness Classes” to a popular local fitness blog or local media outlet.

4. Technical SEO: This involves optimising the technical aspects of your website to improve its performance and crawlability. Key technical SEO elements include:

- Site Speed: Ensuring that your website loads quickly to provide a better user experience and reduce bounce rates. Potential members are more likely to stay on your site if it loads fast.

- Mobile-Friendliness: Optimising your site for mobile devices, as a significant portion of users access the internet via mobile phones and tablets. This is crucial for leisure centres, as many users search for gyms and fitness offers on the go.

- XML Sitemaps: Creating and submitting XML sitemaps to search engines to help them index your site more efficiently.

- Robots.txt: Using the robots.txt file to control which pages search engines can crawl and index.

Measuring SEO Success

To gauge the effectiveness of your SEO efforts, it’s crucial to track and analyse key performance indicators (KPIs). Some essential SEO KPIs include:

Organic Traffic: The number of visitors who find your website through organic search results. Tools like Google Analytics can help you monitor organic traffic trends and see how many potential members are visiting your site.
Keyword Rankings: Tracking the positions of your target keywords on SERPs. Tools like Ahrefs and Moz can provide insights into your keyword rankings and show you how well your fitness-related keywords are performing.
Backlink Profile: Monitoring the quantity and quality of backlinks pointing to your site. A strong backlink profile indicates a healthy and authoritative website, which can attract more potential members.
Conversion Rate: The percentage of visitors who take a desired action on your site, such as signing up for a membership or booking a free trial. Higher conversion rates indicate that your SEO efforts are driving valuable traffic and turning visitors into members.
Bounce Rate: The percentage of visitors who leave your site after viewing only one page. A high bounce rate may indicate that your content or user experience needs improvement. For a leisure centre, this could mean that visitors aren’t finding the information they need, such as class timetables, contact details or membership options.

Conclusion

SEO is an indispensable component of modern marketing strategies, especially for fitness businesses looking to sell memberships. By optimising your website for search engines, you can increase your online visibility, attract more organic traffic, and ultimately drive business growth. Whether you’re a small single-site or a chain of multiple facilities, understanding and implementing SEO best practices can give you a competitive edge in the digital landscape. Remember, SEO is an ongoing process that requires continuous monitoring and adaptation to stay ahead of the competition and meet the ever-changing demands of search engines and users alike.

We hope you found this article helpful! If you need any further assistance or have any specific points you’d like to include, feel free to get in touch.

Useful Links >>>

https://www.seoptimer.com/

https://www.semrush.com/features/

https://www.youtube.com/@neilpatel/videos

https://ahrefs.com/keywords-explorer

https://moz.com/explorer

https://ads.google.com/keywordplanner

Eva Deckers Joins TA6 as Strategic Account Manager

The TA6 team continues to grow with the introduction on Eva Deckers to the team as our newest Strategic Marketing Account Manager.

Eva brings extensive marketing experience with her, with time spent across a range of sectors including fitness and technology, as well as graphic design, photography and videography.

Get to know a little more about Eva in our Q&A welcome interview below.

Connect with Eva on LinkedIn

What’s your career highlight to date?

I got great satisfaction out of some of the events that I have been a part of, like the Gymshark Partnership event back in my Origin Fitness days, or bringing our own fitness concept REDLINE to life at FIBO and Elevate. Seeing people having a great time on your stand or at your event lifts me up.

You’ve got a free weekend; what are you getting up to?

Before my son started filling up my weekends with softplays and petting zoos, my partner and I used to go for highland walks or go camping by a nice loch if the weather allowed. I’m looking forward to doing that with Alex now as well.

Tell us something about yourself that most people wouldn’t know.

I struggle with this one, I’m a pretty open book! Maybe that I consider myself to have 4 siblings, as I have a younger full sister, and two wonderful older half-siblings, and their younger half-sister is always considered a part of my family as well even though I’m not blood related to her.

Have you ever met anyone famous?

Not so far, and I think I’d be far too worried to impose on them if I did! My hero for many years has been Stephen Fry, and I would be terrified to actually speak to him! He is one of the reasons I moved to the UK though, and why I developed a real love for the English language.

Where are you based and have you always lived there?

I’m based in West Lothian between Edinburgh and Livingston, but I’m originally from ‘the continent’. I grew up in the Netherlands, Belgium, France, and Germany, and moved to the UK when I was 17 to start Uni. Never left Scotland once I had landed!

Where’s the most extravagant place you’ve been to?

I once photographed a wedding in Dubai (my sister-in-law is a wedding photographer, and she needed help because there’s a gender divide in these weddings that meant her usual male partner couldn’t support). It was…absolutely insane. The amount of money poured into this – it’s what I imagined an Oscars party to look like, but it was one section of an overall wedding. The total wedding lasted almost a week I think, and they had rented out one of those fancy hotels by the waterfront. Culturally it was so impressive as well, as it’s not something I’ll likely have the privilege to witness again. Absolutely a core memory for me.

You’ve got £20 credit on Uber Eats; what are you ordering?

I’m always down for pizza, but recently there’s a new place that opened up that sells bao buns and poke bowls, and it feels a lot more guilt-free while still delicious, so maybe one of those!

If you’re active, what’s your favourite exercise regime?

I do hot power yoga 3 times a week, and we have a garage gym where I try to do some basic lifts and Olympic lifts to offset all the sitting (though I’ve switched to a standing desk now). I’m going to start running again soon as well, now the weather is turning nicer, but I’ll have to start from the bottom up with that one.

What’s your favourite holiday destination?

I don’t have a favourite – I have always loved impromptu travel, whether that’s a weekend break away or backpacking through a country. In terms of charm (and potential place to live) I’d choose the coast that runs along the south of France and north of Italy. I’ve had some beautiful holidays in Canada, Vietnam, and Mexico, and would really like to see Indonesia still. There’s so much beauty in Europe though that I feel you don’t really have to go far to have a good time.

Meet the rest of the TA6 team

TA6 Welcomes Jazz Holverson To The Team

TA6 are delighted to welcome Jazz Holverson to the team as our new Strategic Account Manager.

Jazz joins us from a dynamic background spanning over a decade in various management roles across the leisure, fitness, and marketing sectors, and brings a wealth of experience and skills with him.

Get to know a little more about Jazz in our Q&A welcome interview below.

Connect with Jazz on LinkedIn

What’s your career highlight to date?

Winning leisure centre of the year in 2012 was definitely a highlight, plus being a finalist at the ukactive Awards 2023.

You’ve got a free weekend; what are you getting up to?

Painting a canvas, going to the gym, eating good food and enjoying the fresh air!

Tell us something about yourself that most people wouldn’t know.

I’m a massive fan of Star Wars Lego and have over 40 sets in my collection!

Have you ever met anyone famous?

I met Princess Diana in 1981, I presented her with a bunch of flowers and asked to see her engagement ring and again in 1995 I met her a few times when I worked in a world-famous department store!

What’s your favourite sport/team?

I really love watching athletics, and I’m a big supporter of Team GB.

Where’s the most extravagant place you’ve been to?

I went to Nobu on Old Park Lane in London, it was the most expensive and the most delicious meal I have ever eaten.

You’ve got £20 credit on Uber Eats; what are you ordering?

Sushi and sashimi.

What’s your favourite holiday destination?

Negril in Jamaica, a fantastic resort close to the Blue Mountain.

Where are you based and have you always lived there?

Currently Devon, but I will be relocating to the East Midlands soon.

Meet the rest of the TA6 team

5 Top Marketing Tips for Winter-Proofing Your Fitness Business

According to ukactive, compared to 2021 levels, energy bills for the leisure sector will increase by up to 240% in 2023 and some public leisure centres are already facing increases of between 150% and 200%, largely due to the high energy consumption of swimming pools.

Unless financial support is provided, nearly all fitness and leisure facilities may need to increase their prices at some stage over the next 12 months, but how does this impact both the acquisition and retention of members who are all facing the same cost of living crisis?

Author: Emma Kapur

During a recession, consumers are often forced to make some modifications to their spending habits, and for some people a gym membership might be the first cut they look to make, especially if they aren’t making use of their membership or aren’t seeing the value in it. A drop in retention rates might also be combined with a drop in new membership sales, with fitness becoming less of a priority through the winter months and consumers looking to save money where they can.

However, with some careful operational planning, a robust community and some tweaks to your marketing messages, your fitness business can still continue to thrive. Putting operational challenges aside, in this article we are going to focus on some top tips for winter-proofing your fitness business through marketing tactics and member communication.

Maintain a Healthy Marketing Budget

Most fitness businesses will look to cut expenses over the winter months and, as a result, marketing budgets might be reduced. However, it is important to maintain brand awareness and keep consumer confidence by maintaining a presence both online and offline. If you cut back on marketing spend and rely on organic marketing channels, you run the risk of your business losing visibility and reducing your numbers of both leads and sales. One of the main reasons for business’s cutting back their marketing budget is that they can’t justify the investment and don’t measure ROI throughout the year. If you knew for certain that your marketing activity was driving enquiries and sales would you ever reduce it?

Be Transparent and Flexible

You need to instil confidence in your prospects who are now more conscious than ever with how and where they spend their money. It might be tempting to focus on marketing your highest priced membership options for maximum income, but it is important to also showcase your cheaper and more flexible pricing plans which might also include off-peak,zero-contract and pay-as-you-go options. Although these bring in less income, they might help increase your membership numbers as they appeal to members on a lower budget or who are less likely to commit to long term contracts. Plus, if you can convert a cancelling member onto a lower priced membership plan, you can at least retain them for now.

Show Your Value

If your gym is seen by your prospects and members as just a facility, or an unnecessary spend, then you are much less likely to gain and retain members. You need to show value through all of your marketing by showcasing your USPs and ultimately by demonstrating the problem that you are solving. If members aren’t seeing value in their membership then they will likely look elsewhere for a cheaper alternative that offers the same solution, so you need to create a reason for them to join, or stay at, your facility. Often this is through building and showcasing your incredible community, social events, member success stories and added membership benefits to differentiate your gym from your competitors who are likely to be offering a very similar service, e.g. the same quality of equipment, classes and price points. By being authentic, consistent, and transparent in your messaging, you can show your value.

User-generated content (UGC) and testimonials also help to attract new clients by acting as social proof – let prospects hear it from your members themselves rather than just from yourselves as a business. The end result from user-generated content is usually more traffic, higher conversion rates and more engaging organic content.

Focus on Health-related Content Marketing

Members need to see the gym as a necessity rather than a luxury and understand the importance of prioritising their health. Through content marketing, social media and other communication methods you can continue to reinforce this message and encourage members to see exercising as a vital part of their day to day lives, to improve their health and wellbeing both physically and mentally. Try to encourage your members to make spending cuts elsewhere, for example cutting down on the number of coffees bought on the weekly commute, reducing the number of subscriptions such as Netflix, or the number of takeaways per month.

This type of marketing activity will also reach large groups of your local community who are thinking about exercise but haven’t started the process of actively looking yet (precontemplators). Positioning yourself as the go-to brand for fitness and health will reap the rewards when they make the decision to join a local facility.

Don’t Forget to Thank Your Members!

Address the elephant in the room and let your members know that you are aware of the rising costs of living and thank them for their loyalty. Offer loyalty rewards that don’t break the bank and maintain regular communication to your existing members through various channels such as email, SMS, social media and even printed newsletters. If your existing members feel informed and valued then they are much less likely to leave. COVID has presented the opportunity to start afresh with your membership base and you will likely have less sleeping members than back in 2019. Most membership cancellations come from this sleeping pool of members so keep it to a minimum by engaging consistently with your customers.

For more information on how TA6 could help and provide advice on your membership growth plans just visit www.allianceta6.co.uk and check out our list of services, or get in touch below.

CONTACT THE TEAM HERE

TA6 Appoints New Strategic Lead – James Cole

James Cole, formerly Commercial Director at leisure management company, 1Life, has joined TA6 – the marketing and training division of Alliance Leisure, as Head of Partnerships. Cole will report directly to Paul Woodford, Director of Marketing and Partnerships and will be responsible for working with the team to develop and deliver successful community engagement campaigns on behalf of the growing TA6 portfolio of leisure operator clients.

Having joined 1Life in 2005, Cole has spent the last 16 years delivering commercial success across multiple sites and product lines. Since the start of 2021, Cole has held the national role of Commercial Director, responsible for financial performance across 20 local authority owned leisure facilities, resulting in a collective annual turnover of more than £20 million.

I am super excited to welcome James onto the senior team at TA6. He will join myself, John Leaver and Neil Harrison in leadership roles and will work with a dedicated account manager, along with our inhouse digital and creative teams, to design and deliver impactful campaigns that drive customer engagement and deliver a great return on marketing spend. James has an incredible level of experience and skillset that will benefit all our clients both now and in the future.

Paul Woodford

Director of Marketing & Partnerships

James officially joined the TA6 team on May 26. His immediate priority is to get up to speed with current project commitments whilst also preparing to lead new contracts with Trafford Leisure and Doncaster Culture and Leisure Trust.

James says: “I have always had a huge amount of respect for both Alliance and TA6. I was looking for a new challenge and through the role with TA6 I believe I have found it. Over the last 16 years I have learnt that teamwork and partnerships are absolutely essential to success. I am looking forward to using my skills in both areas, coupled with my commercial experience to make a valued contribution to the continued growth of TA6.”

James’ introduction coincides with an expansion of John Leaver’s Head of Marketing remit which will see additional support for the development side of the business as well as a continued active involvement with TA6. John comments: “Alliance has seen tremendous growth over recent years and greater opportunities to support the public sector develop their leisure facilities. I’m looking forward to promoting the great work we do and showcasing how Alliance and TA6 can work with more operators to make a real difference to the leisure sector.”

So now it’s time to meet the real James as we put the important questions to him…

You’ve just won the lottery, what’s your first purchase?

Always wanted to do my own ‘Grand Design’ house build, so probably a nice big plot of land with some great views.

Favourite holiday destination – before kids and then with kids?

Mexico before kids, center parcs with kids.

Share a proud moment you’ve had within the industry?

As General Manager, winning ukactive award for Centre of the Year and achieving Quest ‘Excellent’ in the same year.

You’re cooking tonight, what’s on the menu?

Chicken Jalfrezi with a nice naan.

Do you follow a football team? Summarise their season in 2 words.

Aston Villa… Phillipe Coutinho

When you were a child what did you want to be when you grew up?

Taller… still hoping!

Top song on your favourite playlist?

Right now, its Kenny Loggins ‘Danger Zone’ – Excited for the new Top Gun and it’s a great track when you are doing HIITS on a treadmill.

Move night in, what film are you putting on?

The Godfather part 2 if I’m on my own… if I’m with the wife… something like ‘The Notebook’

If you’ve got a bucket list, what’s the next thing you’re planning on ticking off?

I would like to experience some live European football and I can’t wait around for Villa any longer. Perhaps I will go to the Bernabeu or Camp Nou and watch one of the Spanish giants.

FOLLOW JAMES ON LINKEDIN

MEET THE REST OF THE TEAM

Our 5 Biggest Takeaways from active-net 2022

March 23^rd – 24^th 2022 saw the welcome return of active-net, a 2-day leisure industry networking event.

It was a great chance to get key leaders, suppliers and operators together to discuss the future of leisure, the challenges of the last two years and what this means for us all moving forwards.

The energy throughout the event felt collaborate and extremely positive but here are our 5 Biggest Take-aways from active-net UK 2022.

Reaching Beyond the 15%

There was a clear message of the need to shift our messaging from a focus on gyms and fitness to wellbeing and increasing levels of activity among our communities. Not only is this the right thing to do in the current climate to reduce the impact of ill health and inactivity on the NHS and public services, but the commercial opportunity to widen our market beyond the same 15% we are all competing over is something we need to react to.

The TA6 philosophy to “Meet people where they are” is driven by this. Understanding where people are on their journey, their previous experience and confidence with activity as well as understanding how, where and when they want to be active and how, where and when they want to receive support is how we should be directing our approach. We need to look at a more inclusive and holistic approach to our messaging, customer experience, processes and programming.

Workplace Wellness

There has been a lot of discussion on the impact of the last 2 years on our customers but less on the impact on our teams. Lindsey Simpson and Katie Lewis from Workplace Mental Wealth presented the findings from the 2022 Workforce State of Mind Report which revealed some stark findings. 73% of responders stated they had experienced mental health concerns at some point while only 11% stated someone regularly checks on their mental health at work, down from 19% last year showing the return to business has had significant impact on how we care for our teams. You can download your copy for free here https://www.workplacementalwealth.com/research

Nudge Marketing

With the above points in mind, it is clear that our campaigns should no longer be sporadic membership offers but instead we should adopt a longer term approach. At TA6 we strongly believe that truly effective campaigns should begin with awareness, messages that highlight the benefits of activity and impacts of non-activity. This may not lead to immediate sales but will target the pre-contemplators and start to nudge them towards contemplating options. At this point content led-marketing is key, assist them towards getting started, what to do and offer ways to take the first step, even if not yet through a membership. Once the initial steps are taken the move to membership becomes a more likely option with awareness of your brand and credibility. We then need the right pathways to guide them into.

At TA6 we work closely with our clients to ensure the right campaigns, reach the right people with the best content and via the most effective platforms, monitoring this to refine and adapt along the way. A brand-led long term campaign plan should always be part of your marketing strategy.

The Power of Data and technology

This isn’t new and the impact of multiple lockdowns forced our industry to quickly adapt to a more digital approach however, now the doors are open, are we truly tracking data effectively? Do you clearly know who is engaging with your content, what messages have impact, what are the appropriate mediums to connect with different personas, what activities are being accessed by whom, what difference this makes to their likelihood to continue and use this business intelligence to inform our strategies? At TA6 we believe in creating strategies and processes with clear objectives, outcomes and measures of success, whether that is your marketing campaigns or your customer experience pathways and delivery. We start with he question “If 10 people joined yesterday, do you know what happened to them?” If not, there is work to do!

Personal Development

Whether it is to support your workplace wellness, promote a confident return to normal operating, ensuring consistency or maintaining your workforce for longer, there has to be a focus on Personal Development within your business. One-off training simply isn’t always sufficient to have an impact and there should be a clear and on-going commitment to develop your teams.

The TA6 approach to personal development is 3 clear areas. Education to understand why skills, processes or systems are needed and how this will impact individuals, roles and the business. Training to ensure confidence in the specific skills required, and Coaching to ensure this is fully embedded and continually supported and improved.

If you would like to explore how TA6 can support your business in any of the areas discussed above please get in touch.

CONTACT THE TEAM HERE

TA6 Welcomes Emma Kapur

TA6 welcomes Emma Kapur

The team at TA6 are delighted to welcome Emma Kapur as Marketing Account Manager.

For the last four years, Emma has been applying her multi-channel marketing skills to the promotion of products and services delivered by Achieve Lifestyle – a charitable leisure trust managing leisure and spa facilities in Egham and Addlestone, Surrey.

Emma says: “I am really looking forward to starting my exciting new role with the TA6 team. My Marketing Manager role at Achieve Lifestyle enabled me to plan and execute a range of marketing campaigns for lead generation and member retention, using both digital and offline channels. I can’t wait to share my knowledge of marketing and my experience within the leisure industry with a portfolio of TA6 clients so that, together, we can drive participation and engagement in physical activity across the nation.”

Emma will be responsible for the day-to-day planning, management and delivery for a number of TA6 clients, reporting directly to John Leaver, Head of Marketing.

Speaking of her appointment, John says: “Emma is a valuable addition to the growing TA6 team. As well as her marketing experience, Emma is also a qualified personal trainer, exercise to music instructor and Level 2 childrens’ fitness instructor. It’s fantastic to have somebody so obviously passionate about the sector joining our team. I’m really excited about what we can all achieve together over the coming months.”

Meet the rest of the TA6 team here.

Woody chats to Hussle about marketing in a post-COVID world

Over the summer our Director of Marketing & Partnerships Paul Woodford was interviewed by Hussle for one of their ‘Side Hussle’ expert insights. Woody discussed all things marketing, particularly around the impact COVID has had on the future direction of travel for leisure operators.

The interview started with Woody being asked, what sales and marketing challenges did he see gym operators facing during the next 12-months as the UK recovers post-pandemic?

Changing, developing, growing and moving your sales and marketing on will be crucial; operators who just go back to their pre-Covid acquisition strategies are going to struggle and even fail.

The fitness sales marketplace has changed dramatically; consumers have had more than a year to reflect on where they direct their spend, if indeed they direct it our way at all.

For too long our sector has focused on short term, price-led promotions to drive interest. It’s time to step up and develop brand-led, inspiring campaigns that focus on why your facility is the right fit for the target market you’re trying to attract.

Think of your brand as a person, with a clear personality and passion. Your brand values are like that person’s DNA – the commitments they live by. Your brand vision is what drives and defines that passion; use this vision to create the energy and clarity your team need to deliver.

For operators who wish to revisit their brand, where should they begin?

When we build/develop brands we focus on vision, mission, goals, values, commitments and messages. We use these triggers:

1. The Why – what’s your purpose? What impact do you want to have? Who are you aiming your offer at?

2. The What and the How – this is all about your venues and your products … what you offer, and your people and your pricing

3. Identity and Personality – what’s the essence of your brand? What are your core values? These needs to be relatable, believable and unique to you

4. Tone of voice – what emotions and passions are you looking to evoke in your customers with your messaging?

The key here is to ask: does your brand make a difference to customers’ wellbeing? Your facility is just one element of your product that contributes, but there is so much more you can offer. Customers need to feel they are part of something bigger than just a club.

The marketplace is noisy and marketing spend is lower than ever. Rather than the ‘outside to in’ marketing approach most take, focus on an ‘inside to out’ campaign, using real member stories to inspire new customers, using your community as a lure.

The interview continued with Woody being asked about how whether he felt the sector was damaged from 2020, as well as giving some advice on how operators can focus on getting back to normal. Read the full interview here.

Alliance Leisure and TA6 Receive Silver Investors in People Accreditation

Alliance Leisure and TA6 Receive Silver Investors in People Award

Alliance Leisure and TA6 are thrilled to announce that, following an assessment process, we have been awarded Investors in People’s We invest in people, silver accreditation.

Silver is a fantastic achievement and something only 20% of the organisations we assess achieve.

It means that the right principles are in place but more than that, it means that our people and leaders are making active efforts to make sure that there’s real consistency, and everyone in the organisation feels the effects.

Alliance Leisure and TA6 received some truly outstanding scores and results, including a first ever instance of a full 100% of staff answering that they trust the leaders of their organisation. Other results include:

92.9% of people strongly agree that they embody and believe that their behaviour reflects our values, with the rest agreeing

12%

Our score was 12% higher than Investors in People’s average benchmark

10%

Our score was 10% higher than industry standard

92.9% of people strongly agree that Alliance Leisure and TA6 are great places to work, with the rest agreeing

We'd like to congratulate Alliance Leisure and TA6. Silver accreditation on We invest in people is a remarkable effort for any organisation, and places Alliance Leisure and TA6 in fine company with a host of organisations that understand the value of people.

Paul Devoy

CEO, Investors in People

We are immensely proud to be recognised by Investors in People for ensuring that Alliance and TA6 are enjoyable and rewarding places to work. We were particularly delighted to see that many Team members described the company as being like an extended family, with the Alliance core values embedded in the Team DNA.
We are committed to maintaining this and improving the experience and opportunities for our Team even further.

Sarah Watts

CEO, Alliance Leisure and TA6

When is a Marketing Agency Not a Marketing Agency?

At TA6 we often find it difficult to explain what we do. Not because we don’t know, but because we have such a range of services it is difficult to define us as one type of business. We find it easy to use the terms ‘Marketing Agency’ and ‘Training Provider’ but it always feels like we’re undervaluing the extent of our support.

TA6 was created 3 years ago and had previously been operating since 1999 as the support division of Alliance Leisure.

It is still very much a key part of Alliance Leisure and the name itself is born from the post code of our head office. But back in 2017 we felt it was right to define the support team with their own brand and identity. No longer would clients assume that Alliance did marketing ‘on the side’ or that training wasn’t a core part of our business.

Since 2017 the team has grown, our client list has grown and our reputation has exceeded our expectations, proving it was the right move at the right time. But we still face the question of what does TA6 do? And its simple really, we do 3 things:

⚡ Drive income and make leisure sustainable

⚡ Empower and develop the leisure sector workforce

⚡ Improve the health and wellbeing of the nation

Therefore to label ourselves as just a marketing agency or just a training provider serves to undervalue the impact we make with our clients.

You can download our marketing brochure here and take a look at the range of marketing services we provide, but what this won’t explain is the support we provide on reviewing pricing policies, analysing the culture of an organisation and supporting the senior management team to make a positive difference, being a critical friend who can challenge ways of working that may need a review, or mentoring a duty manager team to take commercial ownership of the business and drive income and success.

A marketing agency will often charge a retainer or offer a fixed service agreement for a set amount of services. TA6 does this, but we also feel we go beyond a simple contractual arrangement. If you talk to our clients you’ll hear how we become an integral part of their staff and management team – a true partner to the organisation and not simply a supplier.

⚡ Power Pack ⚡

Alongside the more traditional payment options our Power Pack solution provides a comprehensive package of support ranging from brand development, impact sales support, staff training, marketing campaigns, mystery shoppers, account management, customer surveys and more!

Each Power Pack is tailored to the needs of a client as some operators may have in-house provision of specific services covered. Payment to TA6 is only made when pre-agreed income targets have been surpassed, thus removing any upfront costs to an operator. The principle of a Power Pack is that TA6 will help grow income beyond current levels and therefore any payment to TA6 is from revenue that wouldn’t otherwise be there.

And finally, if an operator does want to work with us in a marketing agency capacity then they are working with a team of leisure managers, personal trainers, sports coaches, leisure consultants and group fitness instructors who specialise in an industry they all hold a passion for.