How to Write a Gym Member Newsletter That People Actually Read

Why Most Gym Newsletters Fail — and What a Good One Looks Like

Most gym email newsletters look the same: a header with the gym logo, a list of class schedule changes, a promotion for a PT package, and a footer with contact details. Members open the first one, skim it, and stop opening subsequent ones within two months. The unsubscribe rate creeps up; the open rate creeps down; the newsletter becomes a cost centre with no measurable return. (see ukactive State of the UK Fitness Industry report) (see Sport England Active Lives survey)

A well-made gym newsletter is different. It is something members look forward to receiving — genuinely useful or enjoyable enough that opening it is a small pleasure rather than a chore. This kind of newsletter reduces churn by maintaining the member’s sense of connection to the gym between visits, surfaces things they did not know were on offer, and keeps you front of mind when they consider whether to renew.

This guide covers what to include, how to structure it, which tools to use, and how to measure whether it is working.

The Retention Mechanism: Why Newsletters Reduce Churn

A member who visits your gym three times a week has a strong connection — they see staff, talk to other members, feel the community. A member who visits once a week has a weaker connection; one who visits occasionally or has been going through a quiet period has a fragile one. For the latter group, a well-crafted newsletter is a touchpoint that maintains the relationship during low-attendance periods — a reminder that the gym exists, is active, and that they belong to it.

Members who feel connected to a gym during a quiet training period are more likely to return to regular training than those who drift away entirely. The newsletter is not the most important retention tool, but for the segment of your membership that trains infrequently, it may be the only one that reaches them.

Content: What to Include and What to Avoid

What works

Member spotlight or achievement. One member’s story — in their own words where possible — is the highest-engagement content a gym newsletter can carry. A member who ran their first half marathon, hit a body composition goal, returned to fitness after illness, or simply trained consistently for a year: their story is real, relatable, and motivating. Achievements do not need to be dramatic; a member who has shown up every week for six months is as inspiring as one who lost three stone. Always ask permission before featuring a member and let them review the content before you send it.

One practical training or nutrition tip. A single, usable tip — not a listicle, not a product pitch, just one specific thing a member can try this week. “Three reasons your warm-up might be the reason you’re not progressing” or “The one thing most people get wrong about protein timing” — specific, actionable, and demonstrates that your team knows what they are talking about.

What’s on this month. Class timetable changes, new class launches, events, challenges, closures. Operational updates that members actually need. Keep this factual and concise — one paragraph or a short bulleted list.

A brief personal note from the owner or manager. A short paragraph — 3–5 sentences — that sounds like a real person wrote it. Not corporate-speak, not marketing copy: a genuine observation about something that happened at the gym this month, something the team is excited about, something personal about the season or the local area. This is the content that makes members feel they know the people behind the gym.

One offer or prompt to action. One — not four. A current joining offer for referrals, a class that has space, a PT availability window, a merchandise item that has just landed. One thing, with a clear link or instruction.

What to avoid

• Multiple competing promotions in a single email — members ignore everything when faced with too many asks
• Content that is only relevant to a fraction of the membership (a specialist technique article in a newsletter going to 400 generalist gym members)
• Long articles — a newsletter is not a blog post; links to your blog are fine, but the newsletter itself should be scannable in 2 minutes
• Purely promotional content — a newsletter that is entirely offers and calls to action trains members to mentally mark it as spam

Length, Format and Frequency

Length

Aim for a 3–5 minute read. In practice, this is roughly: member spotlight (150 words), training tip (100 words), what’s on (100 words), owner’s note (75 words), one offer (50 words). Total: approximately 500 words of actual content plus your visual structure. Members who want more can follow your blog and social media; the newsletter should respect their inbox and their time.

Format

Clean, simple design. Your gym’s brand colours and logo, clear section headings, readable font size, mobile-optimised (more than half of your members will read it on a phone). Avoid design that looks like a flyer — newsletters that look like they were created by a human for other humans perform better than those that look like advertising.

Frequency

Monthly is the sweet spot for most independent gyms. Fortnightly is possible if you have enough content; weekly is only sustainable if newsletter production is someone’s explicit responsibility and there is consistently enough genuine content to fill it. A monthly newsletter that is genuinely good is more valuable than a weekly newsletter that is mostly filler.

Platforms: Which Email Tool Is Right for a Small Gym

Mailchimp

The most widely used option for small businesses. Free up to 500 contacts / 1,000 emails/month; paid plans from ~£10/month for larger lists. Good template library, basic automation, reasonable analytics. The right choice for most gyms with lists under 500 members who want something they can set up themselves in an afternoon.

Kit (formerly ConvertKit)

Better automation and segmentation than Mailchimp at the same price tier. Cleaner interface. More appropriate for gyms that want to send different content to different member segments (new members vs long-term members vs lapsed members). Free up to 1,000 subscribers.

Klaviyo

More powerful automation and analytics than either of the above; better for gyms that integrate their email platform with their membership software (Klaviyo has native integrations with many gym platforms). More complex to set up; overkill for most independent gyms with straightforward needs.

Integrated gym platform email

Many gym management platforms (Glofox, TeamUp, ClubRight) include built-in email functionality. The advantage is that member data is already there; the limitation is that these tools are typically less sophisticated as email platforms than dedicated tools. For basic operational emails (booking confirmations, class reminders), use your gym platform. For a newsletter with proper design and analytics, a dedicated email tool is worth the minor overhead of maintaining the list in two places.

Segmentation: The One Segmentation Worth Doing

Once you have a newsletter running consistently, one segmentation is worth implementing: separate your active members from your lapsed (cancelled or frozen) members. Active members get the standard newsletter; lapsed members get a modified version — the same content, but with a specific rejoining offer in the offer section. This captures the segment most likely to re-engage at the moment their interest is highest (when the newsletter reminds them what they are missing), without cluttering the standard newsletter with win-back messaging that active members do not need.

Metrics: What to Track

• Open rate: The percentage of recipients who open the email. Industry average for fitness/wellness emails is approximately 20–25%. Above 30% is excellent for a gym newsletter; below 15% suggests your subject lines, sender name, or content quality need attention.
• Click rate: The percentage who click a link. For a newsletter with one primary CTA, 3–6% click rate is healthy.
• Unsubscribe rate: Below 0.3% per send is normal; above 1% signals content that members do not want to receive.

Track these monthly. A declining open rate over 3 months signals a content problem; a spike in unsubscribes after a specific send tells you something about what did not land. Both are fixable once you can see them.

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