How to crush fitness SMS marketing for your gym or fitness club

You’ve got a killer gym or studio, high-energy classes, and a solid community. So why are your marketing efforts not translating into business growth? It might be time to seriously consider exploring SMS marketing for your fitness business if you haven’t yet.

SMS marketing is a simple addition to your gym or fitness studio’s marketing strategy that pays off in many ways: fewer no-shows, more signups, and more genuine engagement.

SMS (short message service) marketing is exactly what it sounds like: using text messages to communicate with your fitness members and prospects. It includes anything from one-on-one personalized texts, to automated high-volume promos and reminder texts that trigger at the exact right time (e.g. thank you texts after membership sign-up, class reminders the day before, new weekly class schedule, etc.).

SMS marketing for gym and trainers is fast, personal, and highly likely to get customer engagement – thanks to push notifications, the fact that 30% of consumers prefer to get promotional messages via SMS (over 40% for Gen Z), and 81% of consumers check their text notifications within just five minutes of receiving a text.

Here are some specific reasons text messaging marketing is a must for your gym or fitness studio:

• 98% open rate for texts
• Get seen within minutes – faster than other channels
• Perfect for time-sensitive updates like reminders, re-schedules, flash promos
• Highly personal: Incorporate name, birthday, classes, trainer info—you name it
• Motivational: Send short, fun nudges that keep members inspired and on track

Whether you’re running a CrossFit box, yoga or Pilates studio, or personal training business, SMS marketing is a modern and super-efficient way to engage with, convert, and retain more members and clients – without a ton of manual work.

Text marketing for gyms and fitness studios isn’t just for “your class is canceled” notices. There are a ton of ways to use SMS to engage customers, drive more business, and improve customer experience. Here are some top text messaging use cases for gyms and trainers:

Prevent costly no-shows with a quick reminder anywhere from 24 hours or 1 hour before a class or training session. Bonus: Include a “Reply C to cancel” option for easy rescheduling.

Need to follow up with leads who booked a trial but didn’t sign up? A friendly text is a perfect way to nudge them – and it’s way more effective than an email:

Life happens and sometimes a customer takes a break from their fitness routine. Bring inactive members back with a personal, encouraging check-in:

For personal trainers, SMS is perfect for goal check-ins, accountability nudges, and celebrating wins. And once your client list gets long, using an SMS platform is a smart way to save a lot of time.

Not every text has to sell. Share value with something simple like a “Wellness Tip Wednesday” to build trust and retention.

Now that you’ve got some ideas around different ways to use text messaging as a gym or personal trainer, let’s make sure your texts actually make an impact. Here are the best practices that keep your messages welcome – and effective.

Your members are busy. Get to the point fast and include a call to action (something they can do). For example:

Use first names, reference past classes or trainers, and pay attention to birthdays and anniversaries. People love feeling seen and these little details build trust, leading to more responses and engagement.

With SMS marketing, it’s not just what you send but also when you send. Tailor your texts to hit the inbox at the best time, based on what you want to achieve. For example:

• Morning motivation texts (6–9 AM) = energy boost and class sign-ups
• Reminder texts (24 to 1 hour before class) = fewer no-shows
• Re-engagement nudges (early evenings or weekends) = better response

You’re probably wondering: “OK, how do I actually do this?” Here’s a simple step-by-step guide to doing text message marketing as a gym, trainer, or fitness business owner:

Don’t be that business that uses personal phones for texting. Not only is that against compliance laws, it’s also an extremely inefficient and unreliable method – for both sender and recipient. Instead, your best bet is to look for an easy-to-use SMS tool that:

• Is compliant with privacy laws (TCPA in the U.S., GDPR in Europe)
• Can integrate with your CRM, sign-up forms, or booking software
• Let’s you automate messages

(Spoiler alert: Sinch Engage checks all those boxes.)

Even if you have all of your customers’ phone numbers, you can’t just start sending marketing texts to them out of the blue. You need to get clear opt-in consent (or permission) via:

• Website pop-ups: “Get 10% off when you sign up for SMS alerts.”
• Social media promos: “Text ‘JOIN’ to 12345 for exclusive deals.”
• In-store QR codes: “Scan to subscribe & get early sale access.”
• Online or in-person sign-up forms.

Choose whichever method works for you! If you’re using online or in-person sign-up forms, be sure to use opt-in consent language like this:

When you’re running a fitness business, there are certain parts of your customer experience that should run like clockwork – like sending a welcome message to new members and checking in after a couple of days to remind them of your offerings.

Rather than sending these messages manually, a great SMS platform helps you automate them. For example:

1. A class sign-up from a new member comes in
2. On the same day, send a welcome SMS: “Thanks for signing up, Jen! Your class is at 5PM tomorrow. Bring water 💧 and energy 💪”
3. Then two days later, send a follow-up SMS: “How did it go? Want to lock in your next class?”

“Automation” might sound scary, but don’t worry: It’s easy if you use the right SMS platform. An all-in-one messaging platform like Sinch Engage will connect directly with your CRM, member lists, and forms, and make the whole process simple for you from setup to send.

With SMS marketing, just like with fitness, you can ensure better results when you monitor your progress and keep improving. So ideally, you should keep an eye on:

• Reply rates
• Click-through (if using links)
• Opt-outs
• Class attendance before and after reminders

The right SMS platform will track these metrics for you. And with that information, you can test different message formats, send times, and CTAs to see what works!

SMS marketing as personal trainer or gym/fitness club owner (and actually getting results from it) can be super time-consuming, or really easy – it all depends on what tools and processes you use.

If you’re looking for smart, reliable, and easy, Sinch Engage is the all-in-one SMS platform you need. You get:

• Fast setup and reliable sending for any text, any time, to any recipient
• A simple visual campaign builder
• One unified inbox to manage all conversations
• Security and GDPR & TCPA compliance already built in
• Integrations with your CRM (like HubSpot, Salesforce, Zoho CRM) and web forms
• Excellent customer support (like 24/7 email and chat)

SMS marketing is fast, personal, and insanely effective for engaging and retaining members and clients. Whether you’re looking to reduce no-shows, re-engage lost members, or just boost the vibe in your fitness community, SMS is a no-brainer for leveling up your gym or fitness brand.

Book a demo or try Sinch Engage for free start exploring SMS marketing today.

Author: Linda Le Phan Linda is a Content Marketing Manager at Sinch.