Fitness & Tanning
Indoor tanning and fitness have been linked indirectly for many years. Just take a look at those infomercials that are prevalent on late-night television. If they are for a diet, fitness or weight-loss product they always feature before and after pictures. If you pay attention, you’ll notice that the person in the after picture is always darker than they were in the before picture. Why? Because a tanned physique looks leaner and more contoured.
People used to think big muscles meant someone was a dumb jock and indoor tanning was nothing more than a fad. With proven health and self-esteem benefits, tanning and fitness maintenance have become a lifestyle choice.
In the early 1980s, when tanning first started to boom in the United States, the fitness industry was one of the first areas to embrace it. The two work hand-in-hand because they complement each other. Relaxing in a tanning unit can ease stress and after a few sessions—when a member sees the results—he or she will feel better too. Seeing results is very important because one of the fitness industry’s biggest problems is the effort needed for a person to attain the desired results.
Gyms and fitness centers always are preaching about changing your appearance and they all promise results but never show the hours of hard work required to achieve those results.
In a 2003 survey of more than 2,000 International Health, Racquet & Sports-club Association (IHRSA) member clubs in the United States, 89 percent of the clubs do not offer tanning. There are an estimated 23,500 health clubs in the United States. That means that more than 20,000 health clubs in the country don’t offer tanning.
Salons need to recognize that the members of those clubs are potential tanners. Through creative cross promotions, salon operators can lure fitness lovers—significantly boosting their clientele. Most people work out because they want to change their appearance, so tanning is far from a hard sell.
Experts agree that tanning allows you to see significant results in the first seven to 14 days. In fact one fitness center owner in New York says the key is to get people tanning and working out three or four times a week. “Tanning is such a good experience that we feel that offering our members two or three free tanning sessions can easily turn them into regular tanners,” he says.
A Co-Op Affair
Co-op advertising between tanning salons and fitness centers makes sense because both are ways to improve your self-image and relieve stress and tension. According to one seasoned veteran, it is one of the most profitable forms of advertising. “It always works well with our area merchants,” she says. “They feel this is a great exposure opportunity with a no-cost perk because to look good is to feel good.”
And it is very simple, says another expert. “Salons have their base of customers, as well as gyms, with some overlapping in both,” he says. “However, if the gym offers the salon the opportunity to put some fliers and/or sales material in the gym—and vice versa—they then have a better chance of expanding their customer base. In addition, if they both run local advertisements in the same newspapers, they might be able to save on the cost by splitting it up while offering a complete fitness and tanning package.”
One salon in Michigan is located right next to a Powerhouse Gym. The owner says the co-op agreement between the two has been very successful.
“There are many ways to cross promote,” she says. “You can piggyback off each other on mail-outs to members of either the gym or the salon, offering discounts or upgrades. It really depends on the relationship between the salon operator and the fitness center operator.”
The best chance for a salon to grab fitness lovers is at the beginning of the year, because one of the biggest problems gyms and health clubs have is the New Year’s resolution syndrome— people join in January, but quit by March because they don’t see the results right away.
A lot of people start out the New Year with bold resolutions and the best of intentions. They vow to get in shape only to teeter off and blame the hectic pace of life. The harsh reality of fitness can sink in quickly for the average person. People who want to suddenly look like WWF wrestler The Rock after 10 years of abusing their body will be disappointed because it might take six months to notice even a slim difference in appearance.
That’s the time for salons to flex their creative muscles. Customer awareness is key because the connection between tanning salons and fitness centers is an obvious plus to those involved in the industry, but consumers aren’t quite as knowledgeable. Certain promotions can link tanning and fitness, though.
“The gym we partner with recently ran a special to encourage people to utilize the club’s personal trainers,” says the Michigan salon owner. “The special featured people on 12-week programs.
At the end of the 12 weeks, the members had lost a lot of weight and the gym wanted to post pictures of each individual. Before they smiled in front of the cameras, the people wanted to get some color so they came over and tanned with us.
“The gym posted the pictures on their windows so people who were tanning with us saw the pictures when they passed by the gym. It encouraged a lot of our members to want to get fit. Inside the gym a lot of its members saw how good the people looked with tans so they came in to the salon to try tanning. It was a perfect way to appeal to both sets of patrons.”
The promotion worked because it was creative enough to appeal to tanners as well as fitness lovers. Another plus was that the gym made the program public by posting the pictures in the newspaper.
“The gym was just very smart about it,” she says. “It became a big phenomenon. If you ally yourself with someone as creative as you want to be then it can be an absolute skyrocket success. It’s not a natural transition for tanners to join a gym but there are ways to maximize that.”
Results also depend on the trends and demographics of each individual market. Salon should tailor cross promotions around the time of year.
“For instance, we did something for January that we called ‘Shape Up for the New Year,’” she says, “In the promotion, we included a membership package and an introductory tanning package. It was the perfect time to do it because—as we all know— the busiest time for a gym is January.”
Another salon owner in California says the most effective method has been simple exposure. “We trade out our informational tents with the gyms in our area,” he says. “We place theirs within our resorts and they place ours in their gyms.
Occasionally give gift certificates to the fitness centers to use as prize rewards or employee incentives.”
End Results
Working out and tanning already have a symbiotic relationship because anybody who wants a healthy glow also would like to have a well-defined physique. Overweight people with dark complexions do not look as overweight as pale people who are overweight. It’s plain and simple.
The advantage of a tanned physique is that it gives you a more defined look. If you work out, you are going to be healthy and if you look the part you are going to live healthy.
When you have a tan, you actually look and appear thinner and leaner because dark colors—like dark clothing—absorb light. If you go on a fitness program and tan at the same time, you will see much quicker results than if you only worked out. Therefore, it tends to make people stay on their program longer.
Experts agree, adding that pale skin creates a shadowing effect and it creates a blind spot on your muscles, so the darker you are the less the light reflects off of it. Just think about the term blinding snow.
“Tanning is a natural fit,” says another salon owner. “People like to look good and tanning is the finishing touch.
When you spend a couple hours busting your butt at the gym it’s very relaxing to lie down for 20 to 30 minutes in a tanning bed. It’s a nice way to relax and round off the workout.”
Co-op advertising with a fitness center or gym in close proximity to your salon is smart business. Salon operators need to recognize this profit bonanza and act quickly—a business partnership can include a coupon trade-off, signage swap or programs for educating each other’s clientele on the benefits. Share some ideas with the manager or operator of the fitness center nearby. Use examples and explain in detail how your tanners are people who care about their health and how tanning and working out at the same time will enhance a person’s appearance and get them in the cycle of tanning and fitness, fitness and tanning.
Your customers will dramatically change and improve their appearance and their all-around outlook on life. It’s a fantastic concept and it really is catching on.
