In this episode of "The Pilates Business Podcast," host Seran Glanfield shares invaluable insights on creating the ultimate fitness studio that marries client satisfaction with peak business performance.
From the strategic layout and design that enhance client experience and maximize revenue per square foot, to operational efficiencies like soundproofing and use of space, Seran dives deep into the elements that make a fitness studio not just appealing, but also profitable. She emphasizes the significance of mood-boosting lighting, color schemes that strengthen brand identity, and the undeniable power of social media appeal through photo-friendly zones.
Whether you're looking to refine your studio's design or elevate its operational efficiency, this episode is packed with strategies to help you achieve your goals.
GRAB YOUR FREE RESOURCE:
The Studio Owner's Guide to MASTERING REELS
📲 Follow Seran on Instagram @seran_spring_three
❤️ Loved this episode? Leave a review - your review helps spread the word about the show and I read each and every one!
🎧 Never miss a new episode! Be sure to follow or subscribe to stay up to date
Work with Seran:
🌟 Join the Thrive Membership and get the support and accountability you need as you grow your business
🌟Enroll in the Marketing Intensive and get everything you need to master your marketing and finally build a thriving studio business
Join my FREE FB group - and ask me your biz questions!
🤳 Join the Growing A Studio Business Facebook Community
In this episode of "The Pilates Business Podcast," host Seran Glanfield shares invaluable insights on creating the ultimate fitness studio that marries client satisfaction with peak business performance.
From the strategic layout and design that enhance client experience and maximize revenue per square foot, to operational efficiencies like soundproofing and use of space, Seran dives deep into the elements that make a fitness studio not just appealing, but also profitable. She emphasizes the significance of mood-boosting lighting, color schemes that strengthen brand identity, and the undeniable power of social media appeal through photo-friendly zones.
Whether you're looking to refine your studio's design or elevate its operational efficiency, this episode is packed with strategies to help you achieve your goals.
GRAB YOUR FREE RESOURCE:
The Studio Owner's Guide to MASTERING REELS
📲 Follow Seran on Instagram @seran_spring_three
❤️ Loved this episode? Leave a review - your review helps spread the word about the show and I read each and every one!
🎧 Never miss a new episode! Be sure to follow or subscribe to stay up to date
Work with Seran:
🌟 Join the Thrive Membership and get the support and accountability you need as you grow your business
🌟Enroll in the Marketing Intensive and get everything you need to master your marketing and finally build a thriving studio business
Join my FREE FB group - and ask me your biz questions!
🤳 Join the Growing A Studio Business Facebook Community
Have you ever walked into a studio and thought, oh my goodness, this space is incredible. Well, what if I told you that you could also create that same feeling inside of your own studio for your clients, no matter what its size is? Today we're diving into the world of studio layouts and how you can be really smart with your designs. Stay tuned and you'll hear all the ins and outs of how you can maximize your studio space to really enhance the client experience and ultimately boost your business. Well, hi there, I'm Sarah. In Glenfield. I'm a business and marketing strategist just for boutique fitness studio owners like you. If you're ready to be inspired and make a bigger impact, you're in the right place. All you need are a few key strategies, the right mindset and some support along the way. Join me as I share the real life insights that will help you grow a sustainable and profitable studio.
Speaker 1:This is the Pilates Business Podcast. Welcome back to the Pilates Business Podcast. I'm Sarah Ann and I'm so thankful that you're here with me today talking about this topic that we often we're not often talking about here on the podcast, so I'm kind of excited to dive into this with you today. Now, it's no surprise that the energy and the atmosphere inside of your studio has a big impact on the experience your clients get at your studio, and so we want to make sure that the way that your studio is laid out, the way that you've set up your studio space, really optimizes that client experience in a way that makes your clients feel welcome and gives them the space that they need, but also is designed in a way that really supports your business. And what I mean by that is that when it comes to your studio space, there's a lot that goes into it, that the layout is kind of important. We want to make sure the sound is good. We want to make sure that all of the textiles in that area, from the floor to any seating areas, is all in alignment with your brand and the way that you want your clients to feel inside of your studio. We also know that you're running a business, so it's not just about making it as beautiful as possible. We also want to make sure that we are maximizing the dollars per square foot that you are generating in revenue. We all know how much you're spending in rent. We all know how expensive rent is these days, and so you want to make sure that you are using your space as optimally as possible, because it really isn't just about square footage, it's also about creating an environment that welcomes and inspires and retains clients, and I truly think that when you have designed your studio really, really well, it does so much to the energy in the room, to the energy that your clients show up to your studio with. I should say, and I'm sharing this truly today because I know that there's often rooms for a little bit of tweaking and adjustments and refining that can often have a big impact on the way that you do your business and the way that your kind of the energy flows in your studio.
Speaker 1:Let's start off by thinking about how you can kind of place things in your studio in different size spaces, and I know some of you listening have a lot of equipment. Some of you listening have all different types of equipment. If you are a classical studio, you might have all the different types of pieces of the different, from chairs to barrels, reformers and Cadillacs. You might also have tower units or springboards and you probably will have some other props that all need a home, and I think that's one of the most important things that we want to do when we're thinking about your studio setup and layout and design is to make sure that everything that you put in your studio has a place and that, for most of you probably is sort of a rule that you kind of live by, because I know many of you really like to have a nice, tidy, clean space and that is really important for your clients to also see and for your to really create that optimal experience. A disorganized, untidy, unclean studio is not going to support a strong brand or probably client retention, so be just keep that in the back of your mind. So getting organized with where you're placing things and how you're presenting things and how you're placing things, is really, really important. There's so much you can do these days and I mean I love all of the organizing that we can see people do on all of our social media. It's like I think it's fascinating and we can watch shows and Netflix about it. We can do all the things. We can read books about organizing, but we really want to make sure that we are using your space optimally but also making it look maybe as pretty as possible For things like balls and bands and things like that.
Speaker 1:You want to make sure that you perhaps are utilizing some vertical space, especially if you have a small studio. So you might want to make use of some shelving with baskets and make it so that your clients are able to access those if they need to, your teachers can access those if they need to. You want to make sure that perhaps you have things, if you do use some baskets, that you are perhaps labeling those baskets so that things don't get put back in the wrong place by yourself, your clients or your teachers, and that will just help to streamline these things. And these are really small things, I know that often have a really big impact, but when you design your studio really really well, it just creates a lot of seamlessness in terms of the entire client experience. Now, when it comes to larger studios, if you have a bit more space, you might want to sort of designate specific zones within your studio for different activities. So you may already do this sort of.
Speaker 1:Naturally, I might come organically to you where you perhaps designate a certain area for mat work or perhaps an area that is more well lit and brighter and vibrant for perhaps more energized movement that you might offer, and then you might want to also perhaps have a quieter space if you have the, if you're also offering one-on-one sessions, and I will say that you want to. You know I spend quite a lot of time actually talking with studio owners about about sound in studios, because it is often one of the things that we overlook when we first open. But it is so important to make sure that you have some soundproofing in your studio to make sure that you're it doesn't get loud, as you perhaps have more than one or two teachers in the room or perhaps as you are Teaching a class with a lot of people, and it's amazing how quickly we find the volume can shoot up, which often is a little off-putting to some people or it may not be to your clients. But what you can do is make it so that your that your studio has appropriate soundproofing for what you want the experience to look like, and there are so many options out there right now that I encourage you to look into from coverings and wall or pieces of art, there are also also soundproof type Pieces, and that is a really smart way to utilize space as well and make the experience sort of that really nice experience you want for your clients. Now, if you've got an exceptionally large space and you are Struggling with the energy in that space. There are lots of things you can do with movable dividers to sort of separate One part of that space from the other, and that's kind of a nice thing to do, especially if you've got a lot of different things going on at the same time in one space. Often it can feel quite chaotic for some clients or for some studio owners to be in a space where there's a lot of people moving around and doing different things, and sometimes having dividers or differentiating those different areas within that space with some plants or some console table or that sort of thing can really help to to to create that differentiation of space.
Speaker 1:Okay, now I will also add that light is really powerful and we the natural light I think is is the best. That what most of us are looking for in our studios. It's not always possible to get in the way that we want it, and the reason why is we know we are all movers, we're all kind of in tune with you, know how we're feeling and we know that natural light has a huge and very positive impact on energy levels and on mood. So be mindful of the lighting in your studio and Be mindful of how that might impact your clients energy as well. So Some studios will have brighter lights at the beginning of class, turn them down towards the end of class to sort of show that Sort of you know design, that experience so that people kind of perhaps slow down a little bit towards the other class, and some studios will have dim lights Throughout the session. It really does have a big impact on how your clients show up in your studio. So if you're finding that clients are low energy and your low energy and your lights are kind of dim, then I would encourage you to consider perhaps upgrading your lighting a little bit, because it is so incredibly powerful.
Speaker 1:Now, in addition to that, I don't I want to also just touch on your color palette in your business, in your studio, on and walls and wherever else you plan on when having color in your studio. And I will say that you know how you design the walls of your studio and what you paint or what wall coverings you use is entirely up to you, but I will always encourage you to stay on brand. So if you have a logo, that is one color and then you walk into the space and there's a few other different kinds of colors around, it's gonna sort of cause a bit of a chaotic situation for your brand, and what I would much rather you have is that you have a very cohesive and consistent brand presence. So the colors that you're using whether they're in your email, on your logo, on your signage are also consistent with the colors that are in your studio business as well, and that is a really nice way to sort of make sure that that is sort of a thread, a common theme that your clients experience in your studio. Now, really quick top tip and this is a good one for you guys, especially if you're in a place where you're looking at perhaps designing a new studio or perhaps designing a specific part of your studio.
Speaker 1:With the world that we are in today, your clients are incredibly visual. With the world that we are in today, you are looking for content to post to your social media that reflects what happens in your studio. So you wanna make sure, or you wanna try to make it your, or to design your studio in a way that allows you to be able to capture images and videos of your studio in its best possible light, and so, if there is a way that there is a layout that works really well for that, then that is a really wonderful thing to have. In addition to that, I would always recommend that if it's possible for you to be able to put your signage or logo inside your studio of course we want it outside as well, right, but if we can have it also inside your studio, what you might end up finding happens is that you film content in front of your logo, in front of, perhaps, your tagline that you may have as a decal on your wall, or if you have any sort of background that you can put on a wall space, that will be a great place for your clients to perhaps even snap a selfie of themselves in your studio and be able to tag you. So if you're thinking about marketing and you're thinking about a space upgrade, that is a really nice thing to do. That sort of has, like this, double whammy effect on your business, okay.
Speaker 1:So we wanna be thoughtful about all of the ways that we're using our studio. We're not just teaching in our studio anymore. Often, our studio is also a place where a photo shoot is happening on a very regular basis, right, all right. So now I know many of you have studios, who that are that you use for different things. So if you have different types of equipment, you might be moving equipment around quite frequently and I hear this happening quite a lot and if that is the case, then you wanna be mindful or if you're thinking this might be the case for you, you wanna be mindful of how you are organizing your equipment, how you're organizing your schedule so that you are optimizing the use of time when you are moving equipment around, and so you wanna make sure that you have, perhaps, spaces that maximize the offerings that you have. You're able to offer those classes that you really want to offer, but you're perhaps not spending a whole ton of time moving reformers out of the way to offer a Mac class, or changing your tower units into reformers, and so on.
Speaker 1:So I would use that. Although in the beginning you'll be more than happy to do it, down the road it gets a little bit cumbersome, so be mindful of that. And as you're thinking about some of those things, I will also add that you want to make sure that you are using your space in the most profitable way for your business, and what I have found is that sometimes this is kind of a secondary to the decision-making process around what to offer in your studio, but it probably should be the primary sort of factor driving your decisions, and that is, you want to put on classes and offerings that maximize your revenue that you create in an hour of your time and also in that maximizes the revenue that you create in your studio at any given time. Okay, so if you are offering a class or sessions that are not profitable for you or not as lucrative for you, then it might be worthwhile revisiting your offerings, because we want to make sure, like I said in the beginning of this episode, that we are maximizing our revenue per hour and also our revenue per square foot. So have a think about what that looks like in your business and even what you want that to look like in your business, and that will help you to perhaps make some decisions about where you might want to focus your time and energy and effort as you continue to grow through 2024.
Speaker 1:A quick recap on space we want to make sure that it is flows nicely, that it represents your brand and that it creates a certain energy that you want to have in your studio business. We want to make sure that any storage solutions are sleek, that are functional and make it super easy for things to get put back where they need to go. We do not want a messy, untidy, unclean studio. It is not good for business at all, so any sort of innovative storage ideas will go over very, very well and probably make your life a whole lot easier as well. You also want to be mindful of colors that you use in the studio and, of course, where your logo is placed. And if it is nowhere in your studio right now, then perhaps that's one quick and easy fix and fun way to make sure that your brand is represented both outside the studio and inside the studio.
Speaker 1:If you can create a space where your clients can share great pictures of themselves at your studio, you are cultivating the ability to connect with clients online and encouraging your students, your clients, to participate in your online presence as well. And be mindful, as you set up your studio, about how often you might need to move things around and if you need to, and what that looks like for you. Now, above all, when it comes to studio layouts, you want to be as smart as possible about how you use it to drive maximum revenue in your business. It's not just about the space that you have. You could have this beautiful, huge studio, but it's also about how you use it and we want to make sure and I want to make sure for you that you are optimizing what you are getting out of your studio and making sure that you are maximizing the revenue that you are making. Okay, so keep on staying creative and don't ever underestimate how powerful it is to have a very well-designed studio space. So I hope this was helpful to you as you go about building your boutique fitness business.
Speaker 1:If you love what you heard, it would be so appreciative if you could just take a quick minute, pop into wherever you're listening to this and rate and review this podcast. It would mean a ton to me and would help to get the podcast out there into our community so that more teachers and studio owners, just like you, can feel supported on their journey in our industry. Did you love this episode and want more? Head to Spring3.com and check out my free resources that will help you run a profitable and fulfilling studio business. Before you go, one last reminder there is no one way to do what you do, only your way. So whatever it is that you want to do create or offer you've got this. Thanks again for joining me today and have a wonderful rest of your day.