Important Things to Consider While Negotiating with Gyms!

Every gym has its own terms and conditions, therefore to get the best offers on a gym membership requires careful research on various membership offers. Before you get down to negotiating on rates, it is important to check out on various factors.

Gym Type:

There are different kinds of gyms so you have to look into what it is that you what to achieve by going to a gym. Do you want to enroll into a specialized gym, where you have a separate training instructor for yourself and a training course that is specially designed to help you meet your fitness goals else do you want to enroll into a regular gym where you are trained along with others. Those looking for a completely new approach to fitness training should consider enrolling into something like Yoga Studio.

Compare Gym Rates, Check Discounts and Other Offers Carefully:

Plan ahead and see what you can spend and establish a budget for yourself and then compare gym rates. Some gyms have discount offers during the off season, while some give special offers to attract people. Look into the gym rates for various programs and check what their competitors are offering. Usually gyms offer membership discounts at the time of the New Year and some of the offers can be really lucrative like a couple of months of free membership, availability of free gym gear, or a two year membership available at the price of one. The best way to gain information on discount offers is to sign up for the gym’s newsletter and have a close watch. Most gyms have their own websites, where they will put up information on monthly contracts and almost zero-enrollment fees.

Negotiate Skillfully:

Once you have chosen a particular gym, you have to negotiate with them. Make an offer that is below you budget. Most often staff will state that they cannot change rates because of the gym policy on membership dues, but if the gym is a small gym or has started recently, they will be ready to consider. In case of larger gyms, you have to skillfully convince the staff that you expect a discount on enrollment. Specify competitor rates, but most often gyms are aware of what their competitors are doing, but it is a good approach to get a reduction.

In addition to bargaining on the membership rates, you should think about negotiating on trainer’s fees. Usually trainer’s fee is negotiable and it is not unusual to see free personal trainer sessions offered for those who become new members. When you decide to continue with the trainer’s services, negotiate a rate that comes within your budget. Trainers are usually flexible and usually accept member rates.

What you need to understand about gyms in general is that they will always show out that their rates are non-negotiable, but the thing is that you can bargain with them and bring down the rates. The competition is high and every gym has to meet its monthly targets to keep it going. Usually gyms employ a staff of commission-based sales team with whom you can negotiate and they will be flexible, if you skillfully make your point on rate reduction.

As someone who is going to be using gym facilities on a regular basis, you should get your money’s worth, so if you find a gym with rates that are satisfying to you, check out others.

Check Your Company’s Employee Offer for Gyms:

It’s not uncommon for companies to have deals with local gyms by which their employees get a discount offer or rates that are highly slashed down to a third of the original rates or even free membership. So, if you are employed at a company, it would do well to check out on this with the staff at the HR department.

Do No Opt For Long-Term Membership or Advance Membership Fee Payments:

Usually there is a lot of enticement from the sales agent to sign up for a long-term contract. Unless, you see yourself serious usually a long-term membership fully, opting for a month-to-month membership agreement is the right option. You can cancel the contract whenever you want and there is no need to pay any penalty. Sales agent may also suggest that you pay for a year in advance, but this is something that you should avoid because in case the gym suddenly closes or you have to move away, the paid money would be wasted as you will not be using the gym’s facilities.

In case you are not planning to utilize the gym facility for throughout the week, ask the gym for a limited weekly access plan, because this will work out cheaper. Many people work out only three or four days a week, so cutting out payments for days that you would not be using the gym helps to save money.

Find Out On All Applicable Fees:

The fees that you have to pay to the gym at the end of every membership period, should not come as a surprise to you, with hidden costs added, so much so that what you see on the bill is far above what you are expected to pay. This is where you need to be alert and check out what you are really in for by checking up with the sales agent on all payment related information. If you find certain fee demand to be too high or unacceptable, mention this at once to the sale agent. They might show you a program in which you do not have to make certain types of fee payments and enjoy just the kind of facilities that you really need for your workout sessions.