Case Study: Millennium Dance Complex Las Vegas

“FitGrid measures retention accurately with numbers that make it clear to see how our efforts are paying off. Not to mention, I have some instructors thanking me for introducing FitGrid becayse they love how much easier it makes their job and they feel empowered to truly connect with clients to keep them coming back.”

– Chelsea McGriff, Owner

Studio Details

dance

Using FitGrid Since
February 26, 2019
Location
Las Vegas, NV
Number of Studios on FitGrid
6
Number of Instructors
42

Average Open Rate

74.2%

Average open rate of follow-up messages sent by instructors via FitGrid Pro

Return Rate Increase

22.4%

Increase in 1st-time clients returning to the studio after receiving a FitGrid follow-up vs. those who didn’t

Average Retention Rate

43.3%

Avg percent of clients returning to the studio 2+ times in a 30-day period

(33% = industry average)

The Challenge

Chelsea McGriff, owner of MDC in Las Vegas, knew that her studio’s market was much different than Millennium’s sister studios — and that their approach to client communication should be too. As part of a franchise, she realized that her location’s attendance patterns were much different than that of the locations in other cities. MDC Las Vegas was used to catering to clients who preferred drop-in dance classes while they are staying in the area for work or events, which made retention the biggest challenge they faced.

“I run the business pretty much on my own, and instructors would ask me to email clients back with answers to questions such as a song played in class,” Chelsea explains. “It was very time-consuming emailing each individual client to address specific questions, so the fact that instructors could send clients messages themselves to answer questions through FitGrid was a very attractive feature for me.”

The Solution

Chelsea came across FitGrid through a MindBody webinar and was “immediately pulled in” by the promises to aid in strengthening the community at her studio for improved retention rates. She first implemented FitGrid with only a few of her instructors but quickly introduced the entire staff to the program after her initial “guinea pigs” loved how it strengthened their communication with clients.

Chelsea set up follow-up messages to be sent out from her instructors to clients on their first, third, and fifth visits, to congratulate them on their progress and field any feedback or suggestions they had. “Some of our classes have more than 20 students, and we have more than 40 classes on our schedule,” she explains. “The ability of my instructors to check in with clients, especially new clients, after their first class has been extremely important for us to make their experience the best it can be.”

By using FitGrid Pro follow-up messages, Chelsea’s instructors were able to take communication into their own hands and strengthen their bonds with more clients than they could interact with during class alone.

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Results

Since starting with FitGrid, Millennium Dance Complex has sent 1,373 personal follow-up messages (and counting!) since starting with FitGrid in February, with an impressive open rate of 74.22%. And the effects they are noticing on their client relationships keep getting better with every new message.

“FitGrid measures retention accurately with numbers that make it clear to see how our efforts are paying off,” she says. “We’re starting to see an increase in retention, which means that instead of sending messages at a 1st/3rd/5th-time visit cadence (since there are more repeat clients than new ones), we can now reach out to clients after their tenth and twentieth visits.”

Chelsea has noticed a significant impact since joining FitGrid, not only on clients but on the instructors that teach at her studio. “I have some instructors that also teach at other dance studios nearby, and they’ve thanked me for introducing FitGrid. They love how much easier it makes their job and their ability to truly connect with clients to keep them coming back.”