Tracking attendance is essential to the success of your clients as well as your fitness business. It means you spend more time with your members and allows you to be as efficient as possible in growing your business and expanding your membership base.
It shows you care
When you track attendance, it shows your members that you really do care that they're in gym. They know their presence is noted, and that whether or not they come does indeed matters. Even more importantly, reaching out when a member hasn't attended for a while shows that you miss them and that you look forward to seeing them in your school or gym again soon. Additionally, if your member management software triggers alerts when a member checks in and needs staff attention (such as to sign a waiver or pay an outstanding bill), taking care of those items when they walk in the door means that your follow ups with them between class can be focused on their progress and your curriculum, rather than bill collections and other administration issues.
It makes your members more successful
The most important part of a successful fitness routine is consistency. By tracking attendance, it's easier to keep your members on progressing toward their goals. They can see the impact of their attendance on their progress, and you can encourage them when they're consistent and coach them when they're not.
It makes your product, and therefore your business, more successful
By tracking attendance, you can easily spot trends to help you maximize your product offering. If notice that your Monday/Wednesday 6pm class is filled to the brim, you can consider offering a similar class at 6pm on Tuesdays and Thursdays. If you see low attendance on Friday evenings, you may find that slot might be better filled by a targeted "invite only" or "limited time" class that would draw a bigger crowd. Do your students with 2x/week membership usually come both days they're eligible? If so, maybe it's time to trial a 3x/week option to increase your revenue.
By using an automated way to track attendance, you can concentrate on what really matters - making your students and your business hugely successful. Actively tracking attendance is a great way to help you identify which members may be at risk of leaving your gym, studio or school.