BUYER BEHAVIOR #2

My Segment once again for this assignment is small gym operators with approximately 60+ customers. I have found that these gyms are the ones that have a little more cash flow to make advertising decisions and that are looking to continue to grow and have the ability to grow. I interviewed the Operations Manager at a local gym in town I used to train at, as well as a friend and Co-Owner of a gym out west, and the owner of a boxing gym in town.

1^stInterview: 

This operations manager said that all buying decisions go through the owner. In fact she said he handles all of the the advertising as far as where it is coming from and what system to use and she just executes. At first when they had to decide between alternatives price was always a limiting factor and in the end, what determined what system or funnel they would use. They had to learn through a lot of trial and error. Now when the owner is faced with a decision about advertising he has a mentoring group he reaches out to. They advise him on what has worked and what he should do. That doesn’t always determine what they decide but it helps. They now, through experience have an idea of what works and what doesn’t so they know what to stay away from. As for importance I think it was interesting she said they used to focus on money and then they started to focus more on quality and if the process would bring in new customers. As they have grown they have realized that style is most important for them, they have their view on the gym and they don’t want anything that changes that. Most of their advertising is done online so it’s usually always done online but they do communicate through social media with the companies they’ve used in the past. The way they evaluate the purchase is by asking themselves did this advertising agency bring in new customers for us and did it bring in the right customers. They have a particular customer group they like to reach and for them it is very important to stick with that group.

2^ndInterview:

This Co-Owner says every decision is discussed with the other Co-Owner and they must both be on board. The biggest evaluator for them and seeing what has worked in the past and where they are trying to go. He said there was a time where they were pretty happy with their customer base and did not need to focus so much on advertising and growing, but now it is something they are really focused on. Similar to the 1^stinterview, he said at first money was the biggest factor for them. So much that they did not use any kind of agency or social media advertising other then word of mouth and posting on their social media page. When they were in dire need of more customers that’s when they focused more on the quality of the service and what results it would yield. Now their biggest concern is who will do the work, both Co-Owners are busy and have other engagements outside of the gym and they don’t do much of the operations.

3^rdInterview:

This boxing gym owner says he relies a lot on friends, business partners, and local business owners to help when deciding on alternatives. Although his biggest limiting factor right now is money. Many social media advertising costs upwards of $800 a month that right now he needs for other parts of his business. He says sometimes when dealing with alternatives he asks if he needs to spend the money right now on advertising or can he get by for a little longer. Most of these decisions like the prior interviews are done online, and the way he evaluates the decision is based on his time. Did he have to work 80 hours a week to only get a couple more customers or was he able to have a balance and he said he’s found that most of the time it requires lots of time he does not have. 

Conclusion:

I think I would have a little more success with a gym like that of the 2^ndinterview. They are established and looking to grow but because owners are busy they rely heavily on their head coaches to do the work. When the head coach doesn’t have the time then projects like social media advertising don’t get done. The 1^stgym seems like they know what is going on and they have a system that works. The operations manager agrees it takes a lot of time but right now that is how the Owner likes to have it. I think the boxing gym definitely needs these services but because money is such a huge issue it would be hard to work around that. I feel like I most gyms are catching on and need these services so I might be a little late to the game but I have hopes I can still offer better benefits.