Why Free WiFi Is No Longer Considered A Luxury

Almost every major gym group in the UK offers free WiFi for its guests and members, and it’s important for smaller and independent gyms to stay competitive. In this blog let’s take a look at why it’s important, the benefits, and what Astaris recommends.

Is it still considered a luxury?

We would argue no, almost every public venue such as shopping centres, restaurants, gyms, and more… has a free WiFi network available. People use WiFi in so many various ways, not just to stay connected. With the rise of various online streaming services like programmes and podcasts, people are utilising their time as productively as they can. So watching the latest episode of that show you’ve been binge watching whilst fitting in your 10K steps isn’t something unusual.

It’s an area you simply can’t afford to skip, and what’s worse than no WiFi at all? A bad WiFi signal of course! Having a waek WiFi signal will leave members frustrated, which is something we’d all like to avoid.

Edge on your competitors

Gyms have various different features that allow them to appeal to their target market, and it’s important to stay competitive with other businesses, particularly if you are a local or independent gym. Some things cannot be changed, such as price and other costs, but service can make all the difference.Â

Having the resources and tools available such as a good WiFi connection will allow your members to get the most out of their time in your gym and stay longer.

How do I know what WiFi is right for me?

There are so many options out there when it comes to choosing WiFi for your gym or any other business, that it can be tricky to know where to start. There are different flavours of internet connections and it very much depends what is available in your location, however it is imperative that you have decent business grade kit, if you want to get fast, reliable speeds from your connectivity.

Astaris’ go-to recommendation for any business is the best of the best, Cisco-Meraki. It is tried and tested and is top of the range for those who want to invest in the best. For those with a smaller budget, or a smaller venue, Astaris recommends the Ubiquiti kit as it still offers great strength, speed, and reliability for your gym.

Why is it important?

You wouldn’t cut corners in other areas of your business, commercial gym equipment is more suitable than the equipment you could buy for your home, and the same goes for your WiFi and its network. Not only that but having a connection that drops out constantly and requires a lot of maintenance will slow down your business, as well as rack up some hefty call-out fees. That’s why we recommend going with a business WiFi that has the capacity (sound systems, guest usage, tills, PCs, and more…) and comes with ongoing maintenance, so when you do need it, it doesn’t cause any unnecessary downtime.

Fitness apps are booming

The fitness industry as a whole has seen an extreme economic surge, and fitness apps have taken centre stage! Many subscription-based fitness apps allow people to follow dietary and workout plans, and will require an internet connection to work, by providing your members with the options to use these apps in your gym will help them to feel encouraged and spend more time in your gym.

Modern-day marketing

As most of us know, marketing has taken an almost 100% digital approach, and it’s all around us without even realising. Having a business suitable WiFi with a feature called ‘Purple WiFi’ allows you to collect valuable customer data, and target these people with ads for your business.

Many gyms will host events where members can ‘bring a friend’ for free, this is a great opportunity to get new potential customers into your business, agree to your WiFi terms and conditions and then proceed with various online marketing tactics to convert them into paying monthly members.Â

This is one of the best returns on investments you can get out of your WiFi and is something that we highly recommend.