8 Social Media Marketing Tactics Profitable Gyms Use (That You’re Missing)
8 Social Media Marketing Tactics Profitable Gyms Use (That You’re Missing)
Key takeways
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Pick your platform and commit: Instagram for younger members and Reels, Facebook for local ads and older demographics, TikTok for high-energy challenges.
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Make your members the stars: Share transformation photos, behind-the-scenes content, and member spotlights.
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Mix free value with smart promotion: Follow the 70/20/10 rule (70% educational content, 20% shared content, 10% sales). Run seasonal campaigns and limited-time offers when people are already in buying mode.
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Use paid ads strategically: Start with $10-20/day targeting a tight 5-10 mile radius. Test different headlines, retarget website visitors (they’re 8x cheaper to convert), and scale what works.
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Let SEO close the deal: Social media builds awareness, but people Google “gyms near me” when they’re ready to join. Optimize your website and Google Business Profile to capture those high-intent searches.
Table of Contents
▼Over 510 million people, follow the #fitness hashtag on Instagram with another 135 million following #fitnessmotivation. These figures show that your potential gym members are already on social media.
According Statistica, 77 percent of people use social media to learn more about a product or brand, and 71% of consumers are more likely to make a purchase based on social media referrals.
It’s time to position your gym so that your target audience can easily find you. When the biggest boxes do gym social media marketing, they use a combination of engaging posts, user generated content, and even social media advertising. Luckily, that’s exactly what this post covers.
here are the best social media marketing strategies we’ve seen some of the biggest gyms in the world use.
Why Social Media Marketing for Gyms is Non-Negotiable
Social media is where your potential members are spending their time. The average person already spends two and a half hours per day on social media. But even while in the gym, your target audience is scrolling before a workout, between sets, and while cooling down. It’s their digital community space. If you’re not posting, your competitors are.
Social media is one of the best ways to build a community, establish your brand, and keep your membership pipeline full.
But which platforms do you use?
The best social media platforms for gyms
One big mistake gym owners (and even other small business owners) make is trying to be on every platform. The key is to pick one or two and do them exceptionally well.
Instagram: It’s perfect for transformation photos, short video clips of classes (Reels), workout tutorials, and “day-in-the-life” Stories.
Facebook: Ideal for building a private members-only group, sharing gym announcements, running events, and using a highly-targeted local ad system.
TikTok: According to industry sources, fitness content has an engagement rate of 9.3% on TikTok, higher than any other industry content. The platform is built for short, high-energy videos, fitness challenges, and trend-based content.
That’s the social media channels sorted. Now, let’s look at how you can use them to attract the right members
How to use social media marketing for gyms: Examples from the biggest gyms
1. Create a targeted seasonal campaign
An example is LA Fitness’s “Welcome to Your Comeback” campaign. They designed a witty campaign to run during the New Year season when people are most focused on their fitness resolutions. It gave people a reason to return now.
The lesson here is that you don’t need a huge production budget. You just need to tie your marketing to the seasons.
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For Fall you could say: “Fall Into Fitness: Build Your Routine Before the Holidays”
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For winter: The classic “New Year, New You” resolution push but with a spin.
2. Focus on building a community
This breakdown published on socialsci shows just how critical important a social media presence was for Gymshark, especially in the beginning. Basically, what they did was establish authentic influencer partnerships with a wide range of fitness creators, actively engage with followers directly, and create high-quality, motivational content.
These are all strategies your gym can adopt to create a vibrant online community, even if you don’t have expensive social media management tools.
We’ve seen how successful this strategy can be in building strong brand loyalty and a sense of belonging among your community.
Your angle could start with something like “Member of the Week” spotlights across your social media accounts, or running a gym-wide challenge and posting the leaderboard every day. Simply, make your members the heroes of your social media.
3. Don’t be afraid to sell on social media
There’s a strong case for just providing value with your social posts and boosting brand awareness. But, you can use the platforms to promote active deals
For example, see this archived facebook ad we pulled from the Facebook ad library.
$1 down for a planet fitness black card? It’s almost too good to pass up!
You can also tap into existing consumer behavior by running promotions around Black Friday, Cyber Monday, etc, aligning your offer with a time when people are already in a “buying” mindset.
The advantage here is that you’re offering a no-brainer deal for potential customers, and, paid social media ads can reach a broader audience.
4. Share genuinely useful educational content
Content that your audience finds useful should always be at the top of your social media content ideas board. This could be nutrition tips, workout tips, or even member success stories. These will help you educate potential clients/members as they consider your gym.
Let’s look at a simple example of this.
Back in 2001, CrossFit launched (Workout of the Day) and shared the content on social media. This simple strategy of providing fitness advice helped them establish as an authority in the space.
anybody can do the workouts, knowing they were acting in information from fitness professionals. It was simple, easy to follow, and truly helpful.
How do you implement this in your gym?
Share a “How to Perfect Your Squat” video or a “3 Quick martial arts takedowns for beginners” carousel that anybody scrolling can engage with
5. Show BTS content to show authenticity.
Behind the scenes content humanizes your brand, because people connect with people. Show new equipment being unboxed, personal trainers lifting together, or even martial art instructors failing complicated moves.
These will make your gym space feel less like an intimidating establishment and more like a place you can walk into and train with real people.
Use paid ads to reach local members (when organic isn’t enough)
Organic reach is great at engaging users and building long term success with your social media efforts. But sometimes, you need paid promotions to convert people looking to buy right now.
We already touched on this with the Planet Fitness add.
Since the fitness industry sees an average conversion rate of 9% on Facebook ads ( higher than most other industries,) your gym is in a great place to take advantage of this opportunity. Here’s how:
6. Try hyper-local targeting
If you’re looking for high-quality leads, tighten your targeting radius; you don’t members who need to commute for an hour to reach the gym.
To do this, target a tight 5 or 10-mile radius around your gym’s address. You’ll reach the right people who are more likely to show up.
7. Start with a smaller budget and experiment
You don’t need a massive budget to see big results. Start small, with $10–$20 per day. Then, test two different ad images or two different headlines against each other. See which one gets more clicks, turn off the loser, and put your budget behind the winner.
8. Don’t forget to retarget website visitors
This is your most powerful (and cheapest) audience. Tag every visitor and run specific campaigns focusing on them. It’s a simple but easy-to-do, and can save you a lot of money as well!
Retargeted visitors are up to 8 times cheaper to reach, and much easier to convert compared to cold leads.
Double the effectiveness of this tip by pairing with with the previous; start with a small budget and expand on successful campaigns.
How SEO amplifies your social media efforts
People often use search engines when they are ready to buy. They go to Google and type “gyms near me” or “best gyms in [Your City].”
If your gym has REALLY made an impression with your social content, they may search for your website specifically.
That’s why optimizing your website and your Google Business Profile to capture those high-intent local searches is important.
Your social media strategy builds awareness, but smart SEO will seal the deal. One place to start is showing up in keywords people are searching for.
We’ve already done the research across hundreds of fitness businesses and identified the exact content and keywords that attract new members. Instead of guessing what works, you get a proven plan to follow.
Download your free list of low-difficulty keywords for gyms; no credit card required. With it, you can start creating content that ranks on Google and brings new members through your door.
Are you ready to get the best social media marketing strategies for your gym? Click here!
FAQs
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Author
Matthew Iyiola
I’m Matthew, a personal trainer turned SEO who’s worked with brands like Gymfluencers, Sailo, ClickCease, and Fraud Blocker. These days, I help small to medium sized companies grow their reach with smart, search-focused content.