Posted by on May 6, 2013 in Marketing | 0 comments

30 Year Anniversary Campaign Update

This week alone we have received over 50 contest entries, and we are now up to 367 as of this writing.  Additionally, the corporate Facebook page has been growing at a steady clip of 125 new likes per week since the campaign’s inception. Nice surge, FB growth, impressions, and “action”/entries in the first month of the campaign across the board!  More gyms are posting the campaign info to their FB pages; we continue to post it to the top of the MGE FB page/wall; Bloggers are blogging; and April Parenting Magazine (10 million circulation) are all likely helping with impressions and “action” as well as the US Family Guide ads/posts (see report below).  We believe that, at least in some part, this is translating at the gym level.  Please be sure to file hard copy coupons that come in and track enrollments with the MGM “how did you hear about us” function, selecting the “30 Year” option. Relating to the contest, here is a recent entry by a family. ...

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Posted by on May 6, 2013 in Products | 0 comments

My Gym Staff Uniform Protocol

All staff members working in a My Gym on any given day must wear the same style shirt in the same color with an appropriate black garment on the bottom (sweatpants, shorts, etc.). For example, you may choose to have your staff wear the following: the blue logo T-shirt on Mondays and Wednesdays, the red logo shirt on Tuesdays and Thursdays, the green logo shirt on Fridays, and a specialty shirt such as “My Gym Rocks” or “Property of My Gym” on Saturdays and Sundays. This is just one example of a uniform protocol you might institute in your gym. You may decide to always have your staff wear only the blue T-shirt or only the yellow T-shirt, etc. Have fun picking your color scheme. The rationale and research: Many gym owners were asked for their opinions, as were numerous key gym employees. MGE considered all opinions, took a hard look at other companies operating in the world today, and also considered My Gym’s long history and tradition. At...

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Posted by on Apr 25, 2013 in Support & Programming | 0 comments

Staff Scheduling and Time Off Requests

We have updated the Scheduling and Time Off Request Protocol document to include updated MGE recommendations as well as recent franchisee ideas. If you find yourself covering for your staff on a regular basis or dealing with staff squabbles about covering shifts, we advise that you review and implement this policy. Click Here for the “Scheduling and Time Off Request...

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Posted by on Apr 25, 2013 in Support & Programming | 0 comments

Teacher Appreciation Week is just around the corner!

Teacher Appreciation Week is May 6th – 10th. This gives you the perfect opportunity to honor your My Gym teachers as well as market your classes to school teachers with some great summer deals. With all the focus on marketing, don’t forget about your My Gym teachers: Post a status on your Facebook board with pictures and something nice about each teacher. A simple handwritten thank you note goes a long way. Plan a staff lunch at the weekly meeting. If you are crafty, Click Here for ideas. Check out the Print System to begin creating your flier, and the Exact Target template can be found in Global Emails (1. 30 Year Teacher Appreciation Week). Ideas for Teacher Appreciation Specials: 30th Anniversary Special Teachers enroll their children and receive UNLIMITED CLASSES for ________! (A month or all summer) Teachers enroll their children and receive a FREE Lifetime Membership! Teachers enroll their children for 2 months and get the 3rd month FREE! Teachers enroll their children and receive ½ OFF...

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Posted by on Apr 25, 2013 in Technology | 0 comments

Extranet Upgrade

The extranet upgrade will take place late this Sunday night. We chose that time because the extranet will probably be down for a few hours while the upgrade is happening. If you need to use the extranet this weekend, please plan around this time frame. By the time you get on it Monday morning, we should be up and running with the upgraded extranet. Keep in mind that, from that point forward, you will not be receiving weekly updates from MGE. As mentioned in our previous update about the extranet, MGE updates will be hosted on the homepage of the new extranet. You will be receiving an email notifying you that a new update was placed on the extranet. IMPORTANT: IF YOU OR SOMEONE ELSE HAS AN EMAIL ADDRESS THAT IS NOT RECEIVING THE WEEKLY UPDATES AND WOULD LIKE TO RECEIVE THE NOTIFICATIONS (EMAILS THAT WILL BE SENT OUT EVERY TIME A NEW UPDATE IS POSTED ON THE EXTRANET), PLEASE SEND INFORMAITON TO MPEREZ@MYGYM.COM. We have done an immense...

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Posted by on Apr 25, 2013 in Products | 0 comments

Spend $500 and get $75 back! …and more!

Spend $500 and get $75 back from ShopMyGym! Have you been thinking about placing a big order for My Gym merchandise? Well, now is the time to do it! If you spend $500 or more on ShopMyGym between now and next Tuesday, April 30th, you will receive a $75 gift certificate to use on a future purchase. After your qualifying purchase, you will receive an email with your coupon code. For those of you who have already placed an order of $500 or more during the month of April, we will send you a coupon code good for $25 toward a future purchase. These coupons apply to future purchases of $250 or more made by July 31, 2013. Click here to take advantage of this offer. Birthday Party Theme Marketing Posters are Shipping Now. My Gym is launching its Birthday Party Theme program, which will include themed party goods and programming based on kids’ favorite characters. This exciting program is launching at the beginning of May, and you will...

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Posted by on Apr 25, 2013 in My Gym Foundation | 0 comments

MGCA: Nearly Impossible Decisions…

This week the Challenged America Gift Appropriations Committee must choose a small number of gift recipients from a large and deserving group of children. Which of this tiny sample of applicants would you award? Girl, age 3, who has never spoken a word because of developmental delays; unable to chew solid foods; poor balance – Needs $500 for speech, physical, and occupational therapy Autistic boy, age 3, cannot communicate and is unresponsive. Needs $500 to join the Early Autism Project for therapy Boy, age 13, suffers from Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy and is losing the use of his hands and cannot use the mouse on his computer to learn, read, and research life skills. Needs a special laptop w/Dragon program to continue schooling Girl, age 5, with several disorders including Cerebral Palsy needs $511 for a “Tomato Chair” that would allow her to sit with family at the dinner table and play on the floor without falling over. Girl, age 7, has inability to produce perspiration, inhibiting her from playing...

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Posted by on Apr 25, 2013 in Support & Programming | 0 comments

Building Blocks Webinar

We held a webinar this past week on Building Blocks. Thank you to everyone who participated. Your discussion, roleplays, and ideas were great and extremely helpful for many other gyms. We encourage all owners and staff to listen to the recorded webinars found on the extranet under the Webinars and Tutorials...

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Posted by on Apr 25, 2013 in Marketing | 0 comments

Ubbi Partnership

As per last week’s update, we have recently reached a marketing deal with a high-end diaper disposal pail company, Ubbi. Beginning this week, every operational gym in North America is receiving a FREE unit (normally $80 retail), literature, and a poster to be placed by the unit/diaper changing area. The unit will be white and come packaged with our logo to adhere to it. They have been tested and work great. Even better, there are no special bags to purchase. Going forward, Ubbi will be the preferred diaper pail company and marketing partner for My Gym, and Ubbi diaper pails will be made available to new gyms as part of their opening equipment package. Please be on the lookout for your Ubbi Diaper unit. Be sure to replace your current unit with it, and place the literature out according to the enclosed introduction letter. Please email Matt Hendison with any questions or comments at...

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Posted by on Apr 25, 2013 in Support & Programming | 0 comments

Regional Training Seminar

The West Regional Training Seminar is one week away……Get Pumped and Excited and bring your ideas to share. If you need hotel options, please click here. Things to Bring We would like you to bring a hard copy of your class schedule that will be shared with other gyms at your seminar. PREPARE AND BRING YOUR IDEAS FOR THE IDEA SHARES. We are excited about all of our meetings, but this year we want you and your staff to come prepared specifically for our Idea Shares. Please inform your staff to plan and prepare ideas ahead of time and bring them to the seminar. Every year, we have gotten fabulous ideas that we have incorporated into our current curriculum, and a lot of people have said they wished they had had more time to prepare. This year we want all gyms and staff members to bring ideas to show others. Do whatever works; bring pictures and/or written ingredients, or just be prepared to act them out. Get creative and...

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Posted by on Apr 25, 2013 in Marketing | 0 comments

2013 Marketing Campaign

My Gym is Celebrating 30 Years of Family Fitness Our 30 year anniversary marketing campaign is in full swing and going extremely well. After just the first 3 weeks, we have surpassed 300 contest submissions, achieved millions of impressions, and received reports from several gyms of very good activity and enrollments. Among our various methods of marketing and promoting the campaign, we have been appealing to bloggers throughout North America. IF YOU HAVE A POPULAR MOMS/PARENTING BLOG IN YOUR AREA, PLEASE SEND THE INFORMATION (WEBSITE, FACEBOOK PAGE, ETC.) TO MATT HENDISON AT MHENDISON@MYGYM.COM, AND WE WILL REACH OUT TO THEM. Congratulations to My Gym Austin, TX for winning our contest that randomly identified a gym that has incorporated the 30 Year Anniversary logo as their profile picture on their Facebook page and posted the campaign information/link to both their webpage and Facebook page. We know many more gyms have done this, and that is GREAT. If you have not done so, please DO! Plus, now is a good time...

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Posted by on Apr 25, 2013 in Marketing | 0 comments

Google AdWords, Facebook, and more!

As per last week’s update, in addition to being our consultants for Google AdWords (“GAW”), Back At You Media (“BAY”) has now partnered with My Gym Enterprises to provide expertise, training, and best practices to help each gym market more effectively and drive revenue using social media and online marketing. Initially, BAY will focus on the big social networks, the first one being Facebook, followed in the coming weeks and months with information and guidance for Google, Yelp, Pinterest, and Twitter. Whether you are a seasoned pro, novice, or not “in the game” at all, we are now going to provide franchisees with everything you need to “do it yourself” and be successful. The first E-Book, which focuses on Facebook, includes setting up and managing your own pages, best practices, posting relevant content, building your likes, and gaining access to MGE approved content on a regular basis. Everything you need to know is contained in the E-Book, although we know questions may still arise. Back At You is available...

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Posted by on Apr 18, 2013 in Support & Programming | 0 comments

Powerful Weekly Meetings

What constitutes a powerful weekly meeting? What should I be discussing in my weekly staff meeting? We just review programming; isn’t that enough? How am I supposed to have time for training in my meeting? These are all questions we frequently hear from owners and directors. To have a powerful weekly meeting you need to be prepared ahead of time. Proper preparation will assist you with staying on track, as many times we want to discuss things but just never get to them. Prepare your meeting agenda the day before your meeting and come prepared with any additional materials to assist in saving time. Click here to view a Weekly Meeting outline sample. Using a Prize Wheel at Community Events Potential Events to Attend/Participate Going to and participating in local events is vital to the growth of your My Gym. Not only do you gain exposure; these community events are a fantastic opportunity to capture people’s information and get new leads. Always check with local resources (print, TV news...

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Posted by on Apr 18, 2013 in Marketing | 0 comments

Exact Target Updates

“Old Style” Global Emails It has come to our attention that some owners are still using old versions of Exact Target global emails that have been saved in your files. All My Gym marketing material, whether in print or on the web, should reflect our latest look and feel. We understand that, with your limited time as a My Gym owner, it is easier to change a few dates on the camp email you have been sending since 2007, however the old styles must not be used any longer. Please begin using the new global emails provided for you with the new look and feel (and for 2013, the 30th anniversary logo). Rest assured you will not have to retype everything into the new email! MGE has created a tutorial that shows how to store frequently used content for easy insertion into other emails. Click here to view the tutorial. New & Improved Global Portfolio The Exact Target Global Portfolio has been reorganized and cleaned up as much as...

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Posted by on Apr 18, 2013 in Technology | 0 comments

Extranet Updates

In the next two weeks, we will be launching an upgraded version of the extranet. The functionality will be similar; the navigation and “look and feel” will be much better. This will also be the new home for MGE to update franchisees, meaning the Weekly Update will be going away, and all Updates will be given to franchisees via the extranet. You will be notified via email each time a new update is posted. A few other fun features. Google AdWords Section (Inside the Edit Your Website & Schedule Section) Google AdWords Pages: Inside this area, you will see that we now have 5 AdWords landing pages developed. All of these pages are check marked, which means they “live” on the Internet. Sometimes, through random Google searches, these pages can be found, even if you are not using them. This is not always bad; but, if you do not want these pages to live on the Internet, simply uncheck them. WARNING: IF YOU UNCHECK A PAGE THAT YOU ARE...

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Posted by on Apr 18, 2013 in Technology | 0 comments

My Gym Email Addresses

Below are excerpts from previous updates in case you missed them. If you have already read the below update and have received your new email address, please skip. We are now taking orders for the next round of email addresses. We will be activating the next batch of email addresses at the end of April. For your email to be active, you MUST notify Natalie Wise at nwise@mygym.com immediately and let her know what email address you prefer. Please read below for all details. For International Gyms: Email addresses are available for you as well. If you wish to purchase email addresses, the price is $4 per month for 25 gigabytes of space or $2 a month for 1 gigabyte of space. Please email Natalie Wise at nwise@mygym.com to let us know what email address you would like. * * * Dear Franchisees, On the heels of our recently completed marketing materials updates, we have identified another branding and consistency area that needs to be modified – the email...

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Posted by on Apr 11, 2013 in General | 0 comments

Grand Opening in Harlem, NY

We would like to congratulate Brian Davis and his team on the opening of their second location in New York, NY. The Harlem location opened to the public on Thursday, April 4th, with an overwhelming response. They are continuing with open house events this week and will begin classes on April 15th. Please send warm wishes and congratulations to...

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Posted by on Apr 11, 2013 in My Gym Foundation | 0 comments

Autism Awareness Month

Challenged America Reaches Out Throughout April, MGCA will be hard at work raising public and private funds to provide gifts for a record number of My Gym Kids who suffer from Autism, the fastest-growing serious developmental disability in the U.S. Because Autism costs a family $60,000 a year on average, many of your gym’s families may need our help. If we can help someone in your city, please direct them to apply at www.challengedamerica.com. Stay tuned for...

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Posted by on Apr 4, 2013 in Marketing | 0 comments

Google AdWords, Facebook, and more!

As per last week’s update, Back At You (“BAY”), our Google AdWords (“GAW”) consultant and vendor, will now be replacing We Engage as our Facebook/social media experts as well as adding overall online marketing (advertising, online reviews, etc.) consulting to their list of duties. By fully adding BAY to our team, MGE and our gyms will have “one-stop” turnkey services and support in this critical area of our business. Next week, we will be sending directives and information relating to how gyms can additionally benefit from BAY and their social media/other online marketing expertise. In the meantime, back to working with BAY for Google AdWords. Google AdWords is a powerful tool for elevating your enrollment and spreading the word about your gym, and it is one of the most used forms of advertising today. Currently, there are about 70 franchises making use of this service who have overwhelmingly proven that, with this tool, campaigns can be much more effective. In an effort to assure maximum synergy and continuity with...

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Posted by on Apr 4, 2013 in Marketing | 0 comments

2013 Marketing Campaign

My Gym is Celebrating 30 Years of Family Fitness We are LIVE! Our 30-year anniversary marketing campaign launched on Monday; and, so far, it’s going great and firing on all cylinders. The contest/enrollment discount coupon is live on the MGE Facebook page where all marketing (listed below) is driving consumers. The MGE website and all gyms’ websites have been updated with a Win a Free Year at My Gym banner. Facebook posts have started by MGE and our sponsor partners (Little Tikes, Chuggington, and BabyGanics), reaching what will be hundreds of thousands of targeted consumers. Posters have arrived and are hanging in gyms. TVs in gyms are playing the campaign promos. Parenting Magazine will have a feature in their May issue (April 7 street date) reaching 10 million readers. Major media PR hits are beginning to happen. (CLICK HERE to see Katie Fowler of Alexandria, VA, featured on NBC in Washington D.C. last week.) So far, over 70 mom blogs (and counting) from around North America have committed to...

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Posted by on Mar 28, 2013 in My Gym Foundation | 0 comments

MGCA: We did it!

MARCH TOTALS: Cost of Bradley’s communication device/software: $655.15 Price of Zachary’s cooling vest: $179.94 Marissa’s competitive wheelchair wheels: $654.00 Aaron’s weighted blanket and swing: $178.48 $1,667.57 Chance to improve young lives:...

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Posted by on Mar 28, 2013 in Marketing | 0 comments

Google AdWords, Facebook, and more!

Last fall, MGE began to offer the online marketing company, Back At You (“BAY”), to franchisees for consulting, setup, and optimization of your Google AdWords (“GAW”) initiatives. Based on the results and feedback we received from their work to date, effective immediately, BAY will now be replacing We Engage as our Facebook/social media experts as well as adding overall online marketing (advertising, online reviews, etc.) consulting to their list of duties. By fully adding BAY to our team, MGE and our gyms will have “one-stop” turnkey services and support in this critical area of our business. In an effort to assure maximum synergy and continuity with all of our Facebook Pages, please remove We Engage (Bill James and/or Kyra Stempel) as administrators on your fan page and add Mae Perez / mperez@mygym.com. Mae will then add Back At You as an administrator as well. For instructions on how to edit the administrators of your fan page, please click here. In early April, we will be sending directives and information...

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Posted by on Mar 28, 2013 in Marketing | 0 comments

2013 Marketing Campaign

My Gym is Celebrating 30 Years of Family Fitness IT’S TIME TO GET EXCITED!!! We are just 4 days away from the official launch of our 30-year anniversary marketing campaign!!! The specific campaign, between April and August, is running in two parts: Phase 1: April-June messaging to include: Free Membership and 30% off first 4 weeks of classes New members and returning members who have not been enrolled for last 4 months My Gym’s contest to crown Americas fittest and healthiest family The contest is the big hook to draw media and consumers in and to generate buzz. We have been hard at work lining up partners for marketing and prizing, and we are proud to announce that Parenting Magazine, Little Tikes, BabyGanics, Chuggington, and The President’s Council on Fitness, Sports and Nutrition are all on board. Phase 2: July-August messaging to include: My Gyms across North America are having a FREE 30th Birthday/Open House.Visit Mygym.com for the gym nearest you as well as specific day(s)/time(s). All marketing during...

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