Branding your gym: what to consider when evaluating the perception of your business

Branding your gym in a global market that is becoming more competitive and crowded means that fitness businesses need to work hard to find their niche. Years ago, our neighborhoods mostly used to have just one gym or fitness center. The job of gym marketing is to simply spread the word of gym's existence to the audience.

Nowadays, people have many different choices. Whether you’re a startup or an established fitness studio, you need marketing that communicates exactly what “your gym is” and “who you want to target”. This is where the role of branding your gym comes into play.

Branding is what makes your business different. If we look at it from a personal perspective, we can think that in some ways, every individual person is a brand. We have different faces, names, communication styles and visual identities. All of these aspects combine to form our personal brand.

Likewise, businesses that sell different items, or offer different services, have a different voice, logos, and reputation. The combination of all these elements creates an identity - who they are, and how people perceive them. These components are what turn businesses into brands, all with their own unique characteristics.

It is important to know that solid branding can help you create a unique brand identity and establish a powerful image of “who you are”, helping you to stand out from the crowd.

So what is brand building, and how does it function when branding your gym? What do you need to consider when evaluating the perception of your business?

Keep reading to find the answers.

Branding your gym - what are the basics?

Define your brand personality with colors, font, logo

A brand’s personality is, without a doubt, an important phenomenon that requires your attention. Remember that your brand will take some time to make its space in a user’s life. You need to build its personality, and for that, you need to focus on all aspects that users are exposed to including the logos and colors that can describe your gym the best.

Think:

• What are the special features of your gym? What makes it different?
• What is the main selling point that makes your gym unique?
• If your gym were a person what would it sound or look like?

Once you know the defining attributes of your gym, you can incorporate them into your branding.

Pick your brand’s color and fonts

Once you decide on the name of your gym, you need to focus on its visual representation. This means that selecting a font, typography and color scheme that fits the personality of your business is the next important step in branding your gym.

Pick the right colors

Colors do not just make your brand look vibrant, but convey the emotions and feelings associated with it. Colors help the brand to communicate its message and become a consistent identity for any associated products and services. You must choose colors that distinguish your gym from other gyms or competitors in the neighborhood. 

Colors evoke emotions if combined with the right Infographics. When choosing colors for your logo, consider how legible the text looks when placed over the color palette you have chosen, and which background works best with colored text.

Design your brand’s logo

Logo design is another important part of the branding process and is probably the first thing that comes to mind when someone thinks of a brand. Your gym’s brand logo must be identifiable, unique, and scalable to all sizes and places you want it to represent you. 

Before designing a brand logo, consider the places where it needs to exist, including your website’s page, Instagram, Facebook, and even in the favicons in the browser tab.

Choose fonts

Like colors, choosing the right fonts can help you convey your fitness center’s brand message. Always pick bold and clear fonts to avoid confusion for users. A good font supports the overall visual style of the brand logo.

Tone of voice

Sharing helpful content in a motivational tone with the audience can do wonders to create a positive image when branding your gym. It typically inspires people to focus on their fitness routine. 

Not only can you share content about the workout sessions of your gym but also, for example, share inspirational stories of popular athletes to your social media feeds, encouraging more followers. The tone you use to do this plays an important role in connecting with and engaging your audience.

The more aspirational and motivational the tone of voice you use, the more it will benefit your gym’s brand by creating a sense of commitment.

In-studio experience

Your brand isn’t only about a catchy business name, attractive logos, fonts, and colors. It is also about what in-studio experience it offers to the members. This can include the interior design aesthetic, captions printed on the walls, the quality of the music system, the types of gym equipment available and the fitness programs you offer. Everything has an impact on your brand.

While everything your gym offers is summarized by your brand, creating a unique positioning statement for your customers, it is the in-studio experience that sets your gym apart from others. Make sure your brand reflects an image that resonates with the in-studio experience you offer. It should focus on both visual and creative aspects to describe the type of experience your audience will have when they join your gym.

Staff communication habits 

Communication is undeniably an essential aspect of business success. It is especially true when you’re in the fitness industry. Know that the quality of the communication skills of your staff plays a great role in shaping the image of your brand in people’s minds. It not only creates happy members, but also boosts the retention rate. 

You must ensure consistency in communication with your members, whether they’re new or have been with you for a long time. Consistent communication helps members to feel motivated and to build a rapport with your fitness service.

Ambiance and music when branding your gym

Have you heard about creating sensory branding? 

Though it is a new concept for many people, it really is an important aspect of branding your gym. Your choice of music during workouts has a strong impact on the minds of members. Whether you like grooving on Jazz beats when doing Zumba or love playing high–energy beats for street style workouts, it must fit the brand personality of your gym.

As music creates a vibe and ambiance, determine the type of beats that resonate with the audience’s mood and type of exercise. For instance, the music in your yoga section should be different from the music you play around the walking tracks and in the lifting zones.

Summing up

Branding your gym is not only about creating a slogan or logos. It covers the full range of experience your members will have, from seeing an advert on social media to the ambience you create and customer service you offer. Your branding should remain consistent for your members regardless of how long they have been with you and what marketing strategy you use. A killer brand gives your members the pride and confidence they need to remain loyal patrons of your gym, and also to recommend it to all their friends, which is priceless. Take your business to the power of Hapana. Get a demo today and experience the difference firsthand.