Aimee Embree

Marketing Plan
I concluded after much consideration, it would be a great passion of mine to have
business in the fitness industry. When going to the gym, theres always one thing missing, if not
two or three missing. If you want all of the amenities in one place, you have to pay a large
amount to obtain all of them. What if there was a way around the almost $100 monthly gym
membership that fancy gyms offered? Well, there can be, and that is the idea I modeled my
marketing plan around. Customers should have the option to pay for the amenities they want to
use and not be charged for the ones they dont use. I created a fitness center in which each
member pays a base fee for the gym equipment, and pays for any extra amentities as they see fit.
Executive Summary:
The NAICS code my business would be associated with is: 713940 classified as Fitness and
Recreational Sports Centers. The marketing strategy would include a concentrated marketing
strategy because it is best fitting for new businesses to feel out who their customers can and will
be. The target market is men and women between the ages of 18 and 35 who seek a healthy
lifestyle through fitness. The product is the service of providing a facility to accommodate all of
the fitness gurus needs. This entails a gym with state of the art fitness equipment for cardio and
strength training, as well as a locker room with showers for all base member guests to use. I plan
to offer the gym either somewhere between the University of Minnesota and the St. Paul MIAC
colleges. Because the gym would be just starting out, the budget would allow for advertising
through social media sites such as: Twitter, Facebook and Instagram, the use of Groupon
promotion and a website with a blog to be updated at least weekly. More marketing to happen
when sales show a profit. The base gym membership would allow customers to use the cardio
and strength training equipment, as well as showers and locker rooms, and cost between $25 for
one person and $45 for two living under the same household. Add ons are specified in detail
below. The first year profit estimates to a total of $253,890.00. I adjusted the second year of sales
to be a 3% increase, and the 3rd year a 2% increase in sales because a majority of people who
attend the gym are returning customers. Specifics in sales are in an attached spreadsheet. Before
implementing any plan, it is wise to have employees designated for each task. One employees
are designated for a task, especially a financial advisor, then resources need to be monitored and
finally to take the plan implementation slow and steady.
Industry Analysis:
NAICS code: 713940 Fitness and Recreational Sports Centers
o Annual Sales:

$3,511,550,000

o Identification of at least three industry trends:

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Aimee Embree
16,938 clubs in 2001 to 30,500 clubs in 2012
The number of adult users of clubs increased from 18 million in 1995 to
22.5 million by 1998.
The total number of commercial clubs decreased from about 13,500 in
1990 to 12,000 in 1991. By 1997, the number climbed again reaching
more than 13,000.
o Identification of at least three competitors:
Rambo A Ltd. $987,200,000
Bally Total Fitness Corp.
$728,000,000
Central Sports Company Ltd. $496,200,000

Marketing Strategy:

Segment:
o I have chosen a concentrated marketing strategy because it is said to be best for
companies just starting out to limit their market at first and build their customer
base. It also costs less. Later I would have a multi segment for already fit people
continuing their fitness journey and unfit people looking to better their health but
for the sake of this project we will just stick with a concentrated marketing
strategy.
Target:
o My target market is going to be anyone between the ages of 18-35 who are
interested in fitness whether they be fitness experts or if they are looking to
improve their health in a facility that can accommodate their needs. They would
be living or working within 15 miles of the fitness center location, with an annual
average salary of $30,000-$50,000.
Position
o Product:
The product will be a service providing fitness fanatics with a facility to
accommodate all of their needs. There will be a gym with state of the art
fitness equipment for cardio and strength training, as well as a locker
room with showers for all base member guests to use. Classes, tanning,
sauna/pool/hot tub, and other amenities will be able to be added on after a
gym membership is purchased. I have yet to decide whether I want to
provide a daycare for members to drop their children off while they work
out-sometimes it is just a TV and an adult to make sure they are being
watched.
o Place:
I would open this gym up somewhere in the metro area of the Twin Cities.
Unfortunately fitness centers are a rather saturated industry whether it be
smaller 24 hour gyms or larger gyms. Since this gym would be somewhat
trying to accommodate those fitness members who might not want to pay
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Aimee Embree
a large price or cant afford a higher priced gym, I want to keep it
appealing to college students. With that being said I would offer the gym
either somewhere between the University of Minnesota and St. Paul
MIAC colleges. Some might argue that Universities provide their own
gym to students but the amount of students who use them are not high.
Actually, I would be willing to bet a majority of them have some sort of
fitness membership elsewhere.
o Promotion:
I would want to keep advertising somewhat affordable for obvious reasons
that we would just be starting out. I want the prices to speak for
themselves and make it its own kind of promotion that it will hopefully
attract customers to begin with. First, I would create a website for the
company. On the website I would also have a blog, which is to be updated
at least weekly, if not a couple times a week. I think using Groupon is a
huge way to get customers in because they like deals to begin with and it
will advertise at the same time. I would use social media as well because
it doesnt cost anything other than paying for it to be updated. Lastly I
would use a referral promotion to reward those people who use word of
mouth to advertise for us and also provide a little extra award to those
who sign up after hearing about it through a friend.
o Price:
Price is the trickiest thing of the 4 Ps to figure out. I want to keep if
relatively affordable for customers but also want to provide them with an
extremely unique and great experience in the club. The base gym
membership which would allow customers to use the cardio and strength
training equipment as well as showers and locker rooms would cost
between $25 for one person and $45 for two living under the same
household. Extra add-ons would be the use of the pool/hot tub/ sauna,
fitness classes, tanning. Each add on would cost $8 a month for one, $10 a
month for two, or $15 a month for all three.
Sales Forecast:
I studied the use of fitness centers throughout the year, when they are highest and when they
plummet during warmer months. I used Reference USA as a place to find this data. I compared
my pricing and sales with Planet Fitness and LifeTime Fitness to see if it was reasonable-which
it was. My gym will compare more to Planet Fitness than Lifetime Fitness because of the pricing
and the size will be smaller than LifeTime. I adjusted the second year to be a 3% increase in
sales, and the 4th year to be a 2% increase in sales because a majority of people who attend the
gym are returning customers. The spreadsheet with the rest of the data is attached.
Implementation and Control:
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Aimee Embree
Implementing the marketing plan is going to be a slower process, and may need to be
tailored as the process moves along. Its important with implementing a marketing plan to do a
little bit at a time, rather than diving in right away. Before implementing any plan, it is wise to
have employees designated for each task. Perhaps one of the more important task delegations is
having a financial manager watching over all of the spending to assure we stay on budget. A time
frame is wise to decide on before anything happens, as well as assessing the resources available.
Once finances and resources are assessed as well as task management decided on, then the plan
is ready for implementation. Throughout this process, it is okay for changes to happen at any
time, and not be resistant to change. If it is whats best for the company, then it needs to be done.

Works Cited

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Aimee Embree
Jordan, M. (2006). Top Health and Fitness Trends to Guide the Professiona. American Fitness,
24(1), 5.
Keyzer, P., Dietrich, J., Jones, V., Norton, K., Sekendiz, B., Gray, S., & Finch, C. (2014). The
Australian fitness industry risk management (AFIRM) project: Building best practices.
Journal Of Science & Medicine In Sport, 18e3.
Lautenslage, A. (2005, March 27). Implementation: The Key to Effective Marketing.
Retrieved March 3, 2015, from http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/193460
SURGING PLANET FITNESS Taps a Demand for Low-Cost, Hassle Free Health Clubs.
(2009). American Fitness, 27(2), 9.
White, M. C. (2014). Why Your Gym Membership Is a Waste of Money. Time.Com, 1.

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