Marketing Your Spinning® Classes
By Cheryl Squadrito Moskovitz

Ten years ago, when I started teaching the Spinning program, I designed my own flyers promoting my two very first classes. After getting approval from my manager, I papered the club, my office and nearby coffee shops. I even asked a guy friend to hang one in the men’s locker room! Every time I was in the gym, I asked members to attend my class, even if they never tried Spinning. It took a few months, but eventually I built that class into one of the most popular in the club.

You don’t have to be a graphic designer or public relations executive to boost your class attendance. Here are some basic ways to market your Spinning classes:

Collect e-mail addresses from your students. Keeping in touch via e-mail is grassroots marketing in the high-tech age. I alert my students if I’m subbing or doing something special for class like a themed ride.

You can even create an e-newsletter to send to your students with companies like Constant Contact or Mail Dog. The e-newsletter should be informative and fun, and don’t forgot to invite your regulars to bring a friend.

Word of mouth. Word of mouth is the best kind of advertising. Once you’ve earned your regulars, encourage them to bring a friend or loved one to class. If everyone brings one person, you’ve doubled your class size!

Paper the house. If your club permits, make some flyers. Programs like Microsoft Word and Apple’s iPages offer easy-to-use templates and appropriate clip art that make creating an eye-catching advertisement for your Spinning classes a breeze.

Not sure what to put on your flyer? Plan a special class like Rock of the ‘80s or Tour de France, and create a reason to promote yourself!

Take music requests. I’m known for the music in my Spinning class at my gym, and I think one of the reasons is that I include at least two requests on every playlist. I have all-request playlists that my regulars love.

Make headlines. As a former reporter, I love writing features about interesting people. If you have an interesting student in your class, notify your local newspaper or TV channel and pitch a story. For example, a grandmother and granddaughter who take Spinning classes together every Saturday morning, a charity ride or special needs class could all make good stories.

If you do get media coverage, everybody wins. Your students are profiled, the gym gets free publicity and you get in the spotlight. Plus, it’s something for your e-newsletter. Before you call the media, though, make sure clear it with the club managers who may have specific rules about coverage. In the best-case scenario, the club will have a marketing specialist who can help you!