January 2015

Bill McBride is an icon in the health club industry.

If we were to list all the accomplishments he has earned working with a number of prominent athletic clubs, we wouldn’t have time for anything else!

• Co-Founder, President & CEO of Active Sports Clubs
• Founder, President & CEO of BMC3
• International Presenter
• Industry-recognized expert in retention, club operations, and more

Areas of Experience:

• Sales and Marketing
• Leadership and Management
• Member experience
• Operations

A message from John…

Over the years I’ve worked with Bill on assorted projects and have enjoyed every moment we were together. Bill is very approachable, personable, fun, well informed, likes a good cigar and glass of wine and has insight in areas we don’t even know exist.

All the items mentioned above are Bill’s “life work”. He is committed to making a positive difference in people’s lives through a profitable fitness/preventative wellness delivery system. He sees the positive impact this industry can play on the quality and longevity of our population.

Bill McBride’s Nuggets of Wisdom…

When John asked me to write for {the} Soapbox, I was honored…Working together makes everyone better and John with the Petra team has made BMC3 and Active Sports Clubs better.

I’ve always believed that if you have a high attention to detail on all of the small things, you will usually have the big things right as well.  Focus and attention to detail are cornerstone principles for operating clubs at the highest level.  Retention is all about the “touch points” our members have with our clubs.  Poor retention usually isn’t the result of one thing, it’s “death by a thousand cuts”.

Towels & Locker Room consumables aren’t commodities; they are true differentiators to the brand.  

One of the biggest impact items a club can do is have great lobbies and great locker rooms.  The locker room is the personal space for our members.  It’s where they store their stuff, sit, get undressed, shower, get ready and generally “sort them selves out”.

The attention to towels being clean with no tatters or stains, folded neatly (Tri-Fold with band visible recommended), the presentation of amenities and dispensers, the quality of the liquid products and the contentiousness of the club towards the environment all play significant roles in positive touch points with our members.

A great exercise is to have your team walk through your property and write down every conceivable touch point.  Start from the exterior of the building and work through every conceivable touch point.

• Parking Lot – clean, safe, well lit
• Entry – windows, doors and handles clean with organized communications
• Lobby / Desk / Travel Path
• Locker Room entry / Inside & outside of lockers
• Scales / Blow Dryers / Curling Irons / Ironing Boards / Etc.– All working and clean
• Carpets clean – any tatters or strings trimmed
• Walls clean without scuffs
• Fitness Center / Fitness Equipment spotless (detailed not just clean) including cup holders and steps
• Studios spotless with equipment stored/staged neatly
• Wet Areas / Pools – clean with everything organized (hooks for towels/keys/Etc.)
• Member spaces clean and welcoming
• Offices immaculate and professional
• Staff in uniform
• Clean Stations available and neat (Hand Sanitizer with Wipes) throughout the club

You get the idea… every touch point

Have your team do this exercise independently, compile the lists into one and do a team walk through discussing all the individual ways your members interact and experience your club.  This drill will be eye opening and educational for the team on looking at the club in a much more detailed fashion.

If you’d like to learn more about this topic or any other topic on Club Operations, Sales, Retention, Management, feel free to reach out to me via email or check out our website.

Bill McBride, President & CEO
50 Crestridge Court, Danville, CA 94506
(415) 299-9482
BillMcBride@BMC3.com
Bill.McBride@ActiveSportsClubs.com