Building Community and Creating Repeat Customers in the Fitness Industry

EMILY: I’m Emily Washcovick, Yelp’s Small Business Expert. Every episode I pick one review on Yelp and talk to the entrepreneur… and the reviewer… about the story and business lessons behind their interactions. Let’s see what’s behind this week’s review.

KYLE: How I discovered Chrome Cycle was, I think it was a pretty unique scenario. Basically, my friend introduced me to spin class. And he’s over there in OC, where I’m in LA.

The first time I did spin class, it was in a different studio. I don’t remember the studio’s name to be honest, but I enjoyed it. I liked it. Right after, like, “Oh, you know, this is something that I can do on my own.” Cuz I did think it was intimidating going to your first spin class.

When I signed up and did it on my own, at first I thought I was gonna do it by myself. I was totally prepared. I was psyching myself up, like, “Okay, I’m gonna do my best in this class.” But, it was actually funny because my friend who introduced me to OC, he saw that I was going to this Chrome Cycle studio, and he surprised me.

Basically when I signed up, when I went to the front desk, I signed up and I said my name. You know, “Oh, it’s for Kyle.” They accidentally revealed that my friend was already there. Like, “Oh, your friend’s there.” And I’m like, “My friend?” So when I went inside the studio, where the bikes are, I saw that he was there. So it made the situation, my whole first time there at Chrome Cycle, even funner. You know, I like the music, I like the instructor, I like the equipment. I like the whole vibe and the energy around it. I think that’s basically my first experience there.

I liked the community. I liked how the instructors, not just Abby, but all the instructors, they take their time to get to know you and to know your name and it’s just a pretty good, welcome experience to be honest.

EMILY: Kyle M. had tried spin before, but hadn’t found a class he loved enough to regularly attend until Chrome Cycle. He had a great first experience there, which led him to leave this review:

KYLE: I’m a newbie when it comes to spin class and fitness in general. And even though the class I went to was hard and challenging, it was very rewarding right after. It was one of my instructor’s birthdays. I think her name was Abby. So they brought snacks at the end for everyone to try as well.

Anyways, I like the staff because they were friendly and understanding that I was still starting out. The music and the lights bring a good energy during the class and the class overall is amazing and I would definitely go again.

EMILY: A short and sweet review – that covers everything someone going to an exercise class for the first time would want to know – from difficulty level to overall vibe. Ninette W, who owns Chrome Cycle, took a winding road to the fitness industry. Her personal connection to spin, and her unorthodox journey to business ownership, helped inspire Chrome Cycle’s welcoming environment.

NINETTE: I worked in the corporate world for well over a decade and I was really passionate about being a lawyer, but I did feel a real pull against my health. And after years and years of practicing law in a really intense litigation environment where you often had to just overlook your own – you know, sometimes I didn’t get to eat lunch and that was very normal – overlook your own eating and sleeping and wellness routines. They would just go out the window when you got really busy on a court schedule.

I felt my health sort of deteriorate over time. I was increasingly more stressed out. It honestly took years to undo the stress that built up over that time. And towards the end of my legal career, I really knew I needed a change to be a happier, healthier person.

I did look a little bit within my industry, within my field. I tried to have a more, kind of, lifestyle approach. But, just the nature of litigation doesn’t lend too much to being able to control your own schedule. And I knew it was time for me to take control of my schedule, my health, my wellbeing.

The one thing that always kept me grounded and sane and feeling anywhere near like a human was that I would try to make regular time weekly for my spin classes. And those spin classes were just…it was my wellness. It was the way I tried to stay healthy and de-stress when I was in a really stressful situation.

So I fell in love with spin. I have been indoor cycling for over 20 years. It’s my other passion and it just very organically became my second career and opening a business where I wanted to give back to my community that stress relief and that motivation to stay healthy and well, while you are in an intense and stressful work environment. That was my goal and here I am.

EMILY: Spin kept Ninette healthy during a stressful time in her life. So it makes sense that she puts her all into providing an amazing experience for the members of Chrome Cycle today. She made a drastic career change, but notably, she had a pre-existing passion for her new industry and plenty of experience with it. Of course, in the fitness industry, a business is going to need to address an initial learning curve with its customers.

KYLE: I’m gonna say from a newbie’s point of view, cause I do remember how I felt back then. But I’m not gonna lie, it is gonna be intimidating ‘cause there are gonna be people who look like they’ve been there and who’ve been doing it forever.

I think, even the first day, one of the people on the front desk told me…You know, I asked them for tips, like, “Oh, this is my first time.” They would tell me, “Oh, just do as much as you can and just have fun doing it.” I guess when it actually did happen, I had nothing to expect. I didn’t look up any YouTube videos. I just thought it was gonna be a normal biking class. But, I thought the vibe was really good. I didn’t expect the music, I didn’t expect the lights. Now that I’ve been doing it, I do know it depends on the instructor itself, what music you hear.

But honestly it felt more like a concert or a rave-type vibe, just cuz of the lights. I do like that it also incorporates some community aspect where usually they tell you to stay on beat. You usually do try to match everyone else in the room or match the instructor. So I guess that’s the experience that you should look forward to when you first do it. You know, it might be intimidating. But overall the music, the liveliness of the room, the lights, everything about it just makes it a pretty enjoyable experience.

EMILY: I remember my first spin class, too. There was so much happening. And the motions you have to do feel so weird if you haven’t done them before. But then if you go enough, you can really start getting into it – closing your eyes and moving to the beat during class. But in the beginning, it feels very counterintuitive even for avid cyclists. The staff at Chrome Cycle is ready for this and meets their customers where they’re at.

NINETTE: So the one thing that I always tell, especially people who ride a bike outside or cyclist or someone who’s never been into an indoor cycle class, is really forget everything you know about a bicycle. You’re not riding a bicycle. Bicycle is meant to move ergonomically. And you’re not gonna do any of that. You’re gonna get on this contraption that looks like a bicycle, but it stands still. And you’re gonna have a lot of fun. You’re gonna sweat it out. You’re basically gonna be dancing on a bike.

At Chrome, our emphasis is: of course, we wanna have fun and do all the choreography that you see everywhere else, but our emphasis is interval training. So it’s really focused on sprints and resistance sprints. So we’re working. You go uphill, you go downhill (you simulate going uphill and downhill obviously). So you’re gonna get on this contraption that looks like a bike and there’s a knob on the bike that allows you to control your resistance so that you can simulate being on a flat road or being on a hill.

And then, of course, we always set up our customers so that they understand. Like I said, you get on a bike and it’s very natural, right? When you get on a bicycle outside, it’s very natural. It’s very clear what you’re supposed to do. With all the fun moves that have been introduced into indoor cycling, it’s not natural at all. Your body doesn’t really wanna do…Like, what do you mean? Oh, now I have to flex my abdomen too? I have to engage my core while moving my legs really fast?  So it takes a little bit of getting used to, but we always try to set everybody up with the right tools. And then you have these shoes—and this is very similar to cycling outside—you do have shoes that clip into the bike to keep you really securely on your bike.

And in our studio, there are three rows of bikes all facing the same way. The instructor is up being your ultimate example and your guide for your class. And you’ll follow along with what the instructor does. And the instructors are really good at providing an experience where you’re driven and motivated by their guidance, the music that they choose to go along with that guidance, and the lighting effects. You know, if you’re in a really deep gritty hill, we want those lights turned down and we want you really focused and working. If we’re doing some fun recovery choreo, where you wanna see that you’re bouncing along with everybody else and you’re all on the right leg doing the same thing, that’s when the lights come up and enhance the ride.

EMILY: To keep customers coming back, there’s more to it than just the nitty gritty of the classes. You can find a good workout all over the place. And that’s true for most businesses—you’ll have competitors who do pretty much exactly what you do. For Kyle M., what set Chrome Cycle apart was the culture. And that’s very intentional on the business side.

NINETTE: I can very easily define the Chrome culture. We are first and foremost all about community, making people feel welcomed and more than welcomed, safe.

You know, you’re vulnerable coming into a new experience and doing something that you look around and everybody knows what they’re doing and you’re like, “Oh my God, I don’t even know how to put these shoes on.” So, first and foremost, we’re about community, making our community feel safe, welcomed, and part of this experience, whether it’s your first class or your thousandth class. It really doesn’t matter. We try really hard to impart to our customers: We don’t care what you do in there. We care that you move your body in a way that gives you the workout that you need today. So, we really wanna make sure that people understand that we’re gonna try to give them the safest instruction and tools and the best way to use those.

You know, our classes are difficult. They’re not easy spin classes. They are difficult classes and they are designed to be a goal, whether you’re a beginner or an advanced rider, there’s always something in there. There are just different levels of what you can do within the class. And it’s designed that way so that we do keep you coming back and engaged and interested. If you can master it and tap out, then why would you keep coming back to Chrome? Right? So we always wanna make sure that we challenge ourselves, our riders to have something to strive for every class.

So a beginner who walks in, someone like Kyle who’s like, “I don’t even know how to set up my bike yet,” we wanna make sure that we keep giving them those tools so that six, seven classes in, he’s now setting up his own bike and he is moved from the extreme side to a little bit over, to be more ingrained in the community of the class.

And that happens really naturally when we pay attention to our people. So the right people find the right places, right? Our people also are very motivational and very intentional with the way that they speak to their classes. So, depending on how many advanced riders or just how many beginner riders, they will tailor their instructions to those people and say, “Okay, you know what, Sarah, you ride every day. Get your ass up and outta that saddle. You’re not slacking today.” Right? Giving motivation in a way to someone who’s advanced, that would be really, really, really scary and not motivational at all to someone who’s in their beginning classes and the instruction in the same class can be: “Sarah, get your ass up and sprint right now. I want you in this sprint. Beginner riders, you’ll get there. Keep your butt in the saddle and push as hard as you can.” You know, a differentiation to show that we recognize there’s a variety of levels of ability in the room.  And we wanna give motivation. We don’t want to be making you feel like we’re scolding you or making you feel like, “Oh, you’ll get there one day, you’re just not good enough yet.” No, it’s about building that ability to get there through positive reinforcement.

EMILY: Kyle M. quickly went from being a Chrome Cycle first timer to a regular. He makes room in his busy schedule to go and complete really challenging classes. A big motivator for him is being personally recognized and acknowledged by the Chrome Cycle staff.

KYLE: In general, when I first started doing spin, it was kind of tiring. It was intimidating. But, one of my friends, he’s a person who does spin a lot in every studio mainly in the OC. So essentially, we did it for fun on the weekends. And ever since I started liking spin, I started thinking like, “Oh, the more I do it, the more I get better at doing it.” Not only that, I do a good workout. I feel good right after. I think that’s for spin overall. One of the reasons why I keep coming back to Chrome Cycle is honestly just the community aspect there.

You can say that other studios have lights and other studios have good music as well. You know, same equipment, same vibes. But I felt like Chrome Cycle was one of the first studios that I went to that greeted me, welcomed me really nicely, and remembered my name. I think that was like a really big one, because when they said my name, I was wondering how did they know my name? How did they remember me? I made friends with one of the instructors there. It’s actually not Abby. Her name’s actually Julia.

She used to go to my college. I think we just missed each other by one or two years. But she’s very friendly. She makes sure that I have a good time every time I sign up for a class. And yeah, that’s why I keep coming back.

EMILY: It’s really meaningful to Kyle to be addressed by name and he’s definitely not alone in that. A customer appreciates being noticed. And a little goes a long way. So how does Chrome Cycle do it? By prioritizing it…and taking some shortcuts when they need to.

NINETTE: First of all right, Kyle, he doesn’t know what we have right behind the counter. So he doesn’t know how much cheating we do. And that’s great. I love that his experience is like, ‘Wow, I can’t believe they remember our name.’

We can see their name, we can see what bike they’re sitting on. We can see that it’s their first time taking a class with us. So we try to also make every person who walks in, not only do they walk in and we ask their name, but we tell them our names. Like, “Hey, Kyle, it’s great to meet you. I’m Ninette. I’m gonna be setting you up on your bike today.”

We also wanna instantly, from the very beginning, create that sense of comfort. And it’s a two-way street. And we’re about a community. So it’s not just like you’re just ‘customer A.’ We want every customer who walks in to feel like we see them.

And what we do is we let our instructors know. They can see the roster as well, but once class starts, we do write the names of new people down on stickies for them so that they can see. And most instructors…everybody’s got their thing in class or their strengths and their weaknesses. But most of them are really good about starting out class by saying, “Hey, who’s new to Chrome and who’s new to me? Raise your hand.” You know, “Round of applause.” And even that little touch makes people feel just like, “Oh, cool. Oh, good. And I’m new so when they see me, I’m not doing everything, I feel more comfortable because like I’m already identified as new, back off, leave me alone.”

So, I think with Kyle, and I remember I was there the first morning he came in. And I was the one who messed up. So I was there ‘cause I was coming in for class. I don’t even think I was supposed to be working, but it’s my studio. So of course I walk in, I work, right?

I forgot his friend’s name, but his friend had gotten there early and he said, “Hey, I’m here to surprise my friend Kyle. Can you put us on two bikes next to each other?” And his friend, I wanna say his friend, his name was Justin. Let’s call him Justin. So Justin picks the bikes that they’re gonna sit on and he goes into the room. He gets ready and set up and he’s in the room like 10 minutes before class starts. Kyle comes in and he was like, “Oh, can I have a bike in the back?” And I walk up and was like, “Oh, Kyle, your buddy’s already in. He picked the bikes for you.” And he was like, “…my buddy?” So we knew Kyle’s name before he walked in because his friend. It was a whole setup. My friend Des, was like, “It was a surprise.” And I was like, “Oops. Well you don’t know which friend.”

And it was funny and cute and we all laughed. And then we did take Kyle inside to set up and I believe he got there just like it was pretty close to when class was starting. So we were kind of, let’s get you in there and get you set up as quickly as we can. Also after class, we hung around and Kyle and his friend also stayed. And that does make an impression on us too, cuz they stayed for a little while and we got to chat with them. And that’s really when you learn people’s names. I’m not gonna pretend like, oh, the next time he came in and I saw the name Kyle on the roster, I was like, oh, I know Kyle.  No, it took the recognition of seeing his name on the roster with his face and being like, Oh yeah. And that happens to us, you know, two, three times. And then it gets to a point where we not only remember their names, but we also have their shoes ready cuz we remember their shoe sizes.

EMILY: The Chrome Cycle team has systems in place to assist them in remembering names and experience levels. By doing that, they give themselves the space to learn customers’ names and create deeper relationships naturally with time. If there are tools you can turn to in order to build camaraderie with your customers, those tend to be worth it. And the results are noticeable.

KYLE: I remember the first few times I did with Julia, not immediately after the class but later, maybe even during the nighttime, I would get an email. She would thank me for going through class, and ask me for recommendations about music. And telling me that she hopes to see us again. And honestly, I would just feel very much welcome about that. I like that she asked me for music recommendations, even though I don’t have any music. And that’s how I felt welcome into the community.

EMILY: The studio reaches out to customers the same day of a class to continue the community-building, solicit feedback, and reinforce the good impression. Some business owners may be worried about spamming customers, but people have busy lives and often need the reminder of their positive experience. It may prompt them to sign up for another class or follow your business on social media.

NINETTE: Well first of all, this is pretty new in the last maybe six months, we started using a platform that I love. It’s like an add-on platform that’s not social media. It helps us reach out to our customers after class. So instructors will send emails and messages and everything is encrypted. So, my instructors can send out an email and it’s coming from Chrome Cycle Studio, or Julia at Chrome Cycle Studio, without having to share her personal email.

And when customers reply, you know, it’s not like, oh, now this instructor’s gonna be harassing you and has all your personal info. They reply, it’s encrypted. So they feel safe and comfortable replying too, if they don’t want us to have their personal details.

And, in that, it is really important for me that the instructors are sharing our socials because part of that sense of community isn’t just about when you’re at the studio, it’s seeing what’s going on. And honestly, the reason that I work hard to keep up our social is because we want people to see, “Oh, that looked fun. Oh, did I miss that? Oh, there was this theme ride. Oh my gosh. Look, that group, that fun bunch looks fun. Oh my gosh. Look how packed that class was.” Because I want them to come back. Right? I do. I want them to feel FOMO, right?

I want them to be like, “Wait, I wanna be part of that.” So it’s important to me. I would say post-Covid it’s been really rough to spend money in certain places. And marketing is something that suffers. It just has to. It’s an intangible. You know what? Paper towels just come first, right? Shoe spray comes first. So the intangibles have to give, and marketing is one of ’em. So right now, I’m running all of our social because I don’t have a social media manager. It is so time consuming.

And one thing that we do at Chrome that I think may be a little bit more unique is that we do try to make sure that there’s an announcement every class. Follow us on Chrome. Follow me personally. Let’s keep in touch. The instructors that are not so active on social media, at least they’re: “Oh, follow Chrome Cycle. We’ll follow you back. We wanna be engaged.”

And a lot of times I will post a story and I’ll tag five or six people in class, just cause I know that they’re taking the class and I know their handles. You know, whoever I find I tag. So that they can see it, repost if they like, they don’t need to. But like, hey, we see you, we see you working in that class. And then that gives them that sense of the community extends, not just for that hour that you’re in class, but all week long.

EMILY: Ninette has invested her own limited time on Chrome Cycle’s social media accounts. It has been important for her to prioritize them because they keep customers coming back.

KYLE: I do follow them on social. I think that’s also why I go to Chrome Cycle. I’ve been following them on Instagram ever since I went. I have a good time. My favorite instructor in one of the emails she always leaves her socials and stuff. I clicked on Instagram and I found that we have a lot of mutuals together. That’s how I found she went to UCI, which is the college that I went to. So that’s how I got to know her a little bit more and she got to know me a little bit more. But yes, I do follow the Chrome Cycle Instagram. They also follow me back. I don’t know how. I don’t know why. But I guess they do remember me. ‘Cuz sometimes I think like, oh, only the instructors that I go to remember me. Or I always think, you know, how do they have the memory to remember me? Cuz there’s a lot of other people. But, I guess that’s why I feel the community aspect of it, right? Not only are the instructors nice. I mean, the fact that the Instagram follows me means I’m part of the community, right? So that’s why I really enjoy it.

EMILY: Building a community doesn’t have to feel daunting or unattainable. Sometimes something as simple as an Instagram follow can provide a customer with a sense of belonging and loyalty. And when a customer goes to review your business, all of these little touches will come into play. Controlling what you can is important because sometimes the things you can’t control are brought into reviews.

NINETTE: So the reviews are scary a lot of times. I think it’s easy for a person, just a consumer, especially younger people, who are very opinionated and kind of don’t necessarily have the ability to look at the big picture of things. We’ve definitely had some reviews…it hurts my heart a little bit because it’s something so outta my control.

We’re in this kind of neighborhoody building and people being like, “Oh, it’s great there’s free parking. But the building needs work or it’s a little dilapidated.” I can’t control that. So you’re gonna knock off a star for something like that. That’s just like a lack of awareness or knowledge when people do things like that. So I try to take everything with a grain of salt and focus on the reviews that really are just talking about our service.

You know, we had someone: “Can’t give it five stars because there’s no shower. And that’s just my policy.” Okay. But did you take a phenomenal spin class? But I understand that’s the way that person rates. Their rating isn’t just about the experience, it’s about the facility. And as long as people explain that, I feel a little bit better, but it’s tough. It is nice to see an influx of positive reviews and people commenting on the service. Those – knock on wood – are, you know, we usually, we get five stars for our friendliness, our community, our vibe. The service that we provide itself, the actual class experience, that means the most. So, if people are rating the way that I wanna see them rated, I have no doubts that we’re gonna get great ratings.

EMILY: Ninette knows what she should focus on. She has to take some negative reviews with a grain of salt and trust that Yelp users are also seeing the amazing five-star reviews that comment on the Chrome Cycle community. And she makes it a point to reply to feedback.

NINETTE: I think it’s important to reply when anybody puts anything in writing about you or your business. Period. First of all, no harm can come of it, right? Second of all, you let people know that like: hey, we’re looking, we care, this is important to us. Third of all, you can correct a record. Or, even more importantly, you can address a concern.  So a lot of times I won’t reply publicly or I’ll leave a generic public reply: “So sorry you had that experience, Katie, I’ll message you with further…” And I will say, “Hey, I’m the business owner. I’m really sorry you felt, whatever it was, ignored or you hurt your finger.”

I will reply and, and ask people like, “How can I make this right? How can I make this better?” And you know when I will stop replying? Is when people are like, “You just want me to change my review.” And I’m like, You know what? Yeah, I do. But that’s not why I’m writing. And I also do wanna make sure that I try to erase that bad taste in your mouth. So I can’t make the experience you had better, but I do wanna see what I can do to make your next…Can I get you back in the door? Can I make your next experience better?

So it’s important to me to correct records. Acknowledge, praise. People take time to write a review. You know, there are a ton of times where I’m like, “I should write a review. I had a great experience.” And then do I? No cuz I couldn’t make that five minutes. And that’s why I wanna acknowledge and really recognize the people that do because if they leave a positive review, it’s cuz they want other people in their community to have this great experience at this place that they had a great experience and that is altruistic. So I do wanna acknowledge that.