FitGrid LIVE integrates Zoom directly with your MINDBODY software so you can give existing clients the option to workout at home while also attracting new clients from around the world.
Here’s an overview of what you need to do to get set-up:
Setting up a connection between FitGrid and Zoom is super-easy. Follow these steps and you’ll be up and running in 5 minutes.
After making the initial decision on which classes you want to live-stream, you can always go back to view your schedule and tweak your settings.
For more details, view our FitGrid/Zoom Installation Guide support article.
How you set up your MINDBODY account to work with FitGrid LIVE depends on the circumstances at your studio. Here are our recommendations based on a few key variables:
If you are only live-streaming:
If you are streaming classes that people can also attend in-person:
Learn more about how to prepare your MINDBODY account for streaming classes.
Inside your FitGrid LIVE settings page, you’ll have the option to manage your live-stream class schedule, as well as view class rosters, class information such as Zoom links and class-related meals.
Clicking on any of the classes will launch a popup window with a number of class details, including:
Use this guide to understand when they will appear.
FitGrid LIVE currently supports one live-stream class at a time. If a live-stream class is ongoing, and the next instructor clicks the unique link to begin the next live-stream, they’ll receive a warning that a session is ongoing, along with two options:
If they select #1, the prior live-stream will end and everyone in that live-stream will be removed. Catastrophic, right? So be sure to warn your instructors about this! If they select option #2, the first live-stream will continue, and the new live-stream will not start. Note: this only happens with instructor links. Clients who click their link before the stream starts simply go to a waiting room.
To ensure that there are no issues with overlapping classes, we recommend leaving at least 15 minutes between your classes and communicating clearly and repeatedly with your instructors. Advise them to check the schedule twice and ensure they are starting their streams 5 minutes before their scheduled start time.
Before you test your first live-stream, make sure you have followed these steps to prepare your Zoom for streaming classes.
Once you’ve set up your Zoom with optimal settings for live-streaming, here is what you will need to test these settings:
What to do:
Below is a template we’ve drafted as an example for you to use to notify your clients that they can still book classes at your studio, but in a virtual format. Feel free to modify the message to match your style.
We’re partnering with FitGrid (a fitness technology company) and Zoom (an online live-streaming service) to live-stream your favorite classes so that you can stay active and connected during this uncertain time. Here’s how it works:
That’s all there is to it! Thank you for staying active and being a part of our community. Looking forward to seeing you in (virtual) class!
Ahead of your first live-stream class, make sure you have downloaded the Zoom App and tested your live-stream quality–you will want to experiment with doing a live-stream with a camera through your desktop computer, phone, and/or laptop.
Here are a few things to note as you prep for your live-stream class:
For further assistance with Zoom, check out these helpful articles and videos to help you get started.
Any mobile phone, laptop or desktop computer with video capabilities can work for live-stream video content, but make sure you are familiar with its functions and are fully comfortable using the equipment to avoid technical difficulties (especially when live-streaming). Charge your phone or computer as well as any headset or earbuds you might be using. Set up a tripod, or create a makeshift tripod out of stacked books or boxes. You may want to film a few test shots, to make sure you are fully in the frame but close enough to the camera so that clients can clearly see you.
When it comes to selecting the backdrop of your live-stream, pick a simple environment if you can, too, such as a clean, bright room with limited furniture and clutter. Clients will have a much easier time focusing on your instruction without these distractions in the background vying for their attention.
To freshen up your look, you can implement one of our favorite insider tips- Zoom’s “beauty filter” which ads a soft filter to your screen for smoother appearances. To do this, click on the bottom left button on the Zoom screen, “video settings,” and click “touch up my appearance.”
Most fluorescent and overhead lighting does not work well with videos. It creates a flickering effect that can distract the viewer and interfere with the quality of your video. Film your workouts with natural light if you can, propping the camera near the window and facing towards the source of the light. The light should illuminate you so that you stick out from the background of your video, and so clients can clearly see your movements to imitate your form for each exercise.
In most cases, the camera, webcam, or smartphone you are using to record your videos does not have the greatest quality audio. If you are live streaming a workout, try to limit your speech to only necessary instruction, and make sure you speak clearly and slowly, enunciate each word, and project your voice. Avoid rooms with echoes or noise drifting in from nearby family or friends, if you are quarantining together.
You could also use a wireless microphone or Bluetooth earbuds, such as AirPods, to achieve higher quality audio. Be sure to fully charge your mic in advance, so they do not run out of battery in the middle of class and disrupt the audio!
Zoom allows you to share audio from sources like Spotify, Pandora, Youtube, etc. while allowing the instructor’s voice to layer over the music, the steps you need to take to do this are listed below.
What you’ll need:
How to get started:
What you’ll need:
How to get started:
There are many ways to configure your audio and visual setup for great performance, regardless of which route you choose, make sure to test your setup before your first public class–every piece of gear and software application operates slightly differently.
Click here for more Zoom audio tips or if you need additional help setting up your optimal audio settings, you can visit our support article here.
Inside your FitGrid LIVE settings page, you can view all of your class rosters and all clients pre-registered for each of your classes, alongside their email address, the name of the emails they have received regarding class, and the unique Zoom link emailed to them.
In the event they didn’t receive it, you’ll be able to copy their unique link and re-share it with them if it is within the 30-minute pre-class time frame. To do this, click “Details” next to any upcoming class and copy the client’s unique link and re-share it with them.
Live-Stream Link Distribution FAQs
Immediately following registration, FitGrid will send the client an email confirming they are registered for a live-stream class. Approximately 60 minutes before the class starts, FitGrid will send the client another email containing a unique link that’ll give them access to the live-stream. This email will arrive within minutes if the client booked within the 60-minute pre-class window and class start time is approaching. Note, if the client does not already have the Zoom application on their device, they’ll be taken through a brief, step-by-step download process. Should the client access the live-stream before the instructor arrives, they’ll be placed into a virtual waiting room until the instructor starts the stream.
Approximately 30 minutes before the class’ scheduled start time, FitGrid will send the class instructor an email containing a unique link that’ll make them the “host” of the live-stream. They can click it anytime to start setting up. If the instructor is changed at the last minute, the previous instructor will need to send the new instructor this unique link. Each class’ host link can also be accessed from within the FitGrid LIVE dashboard.
Sometimes emails coming from other email service providers (ESPs), such as marketing, auto-generated or bulk emails, are moved into the Promotions tab or sometimes spam. Have your clients and instructors check these alternate folders (e.g. spam, junk, promotions) to see if the email ended up there if it did, they will want to flag it or change the label (un-check promotions) so that the next time they register, it will go directly into their inbox.
This appears roughly 30 minutes before class on your Live-Stream Set-up page (again, it may take a few minutes to show up). Anytime after the button appears, you can go in and start setting up.
Currently, we do not have the ability to check-in clients to class in MINDBODY when they click on their Zoom link, although our team is working on this! In the meantime, we recommend two options:
This first version of FitGrid’s solution doesn’t specifically help you with this. That’s because it doesn’t include hosting (where the recorded videos are stored so your clients can access them later). We are working on this! For now, if you want to distribute videos but control who can watch them, you can upload them as unlisted Youtube videos or put them into Google Drive and make them only accessible with a special link, then send that link to your members. You can also BOTH live-stream and record at the same time. When your instructor begins their stream, there is a button in Zoom they can press that starts recording the session.
The initial FitGrid implementation supports only one Zoom user per studio in Mindbody. We’re currently working on making it possible to utilize multiple Zoom users under that Zoom account to schedule simultaneous live-streams.
This is a feature that is included in our Silver and Gold plans. Please note, that the integration will require you to purchase a ZOOM Pro account, which is $14.99/month.
In this first iteration, that’s a way that someone could sneak into a class. There will be crafty ways that folks can get around the restrictions we have put in place, especially at first. Our goal is to give you access to this feature and then improve it as we go–making it tougher for people to sneak around the system is on our radar, but in the face of the Coronavirus crisis, we believe the most important thing is to keep students engaged so that you can keep your community intact and keep some revenue flowing.
That’s up to you. You control their access and pricing via MINDBODY. We create the bridge between MINDBODY and Zoom so that whatever you set up in MINDBODY will have unique Zoom links generated and sent.
Ahead of troubleshooting, make sure you have the Zoom mobile app on iOS or Android (available on Apple App Store and Google Play).
If you cannot hear other participants in a Zoom meeting, follow these steps to troubleshoot the issue.
If you are experiencing issues using your microphone with the Zoom mobile app, follow these steps to troubleshoot the issue:
We recommend that you test Zoom ahead of your first live-stream class – you will want to experiment with doing a live-stream with a camera through your desktop computer, phone, and/or laptop. If you are ready to live-stream your class and your camera is not showing up in the Zoom Settings or it is selected and not showing any video, follow these tips to troubleshoot why it may not be working.
Disconnecting and reconnecting your Zoom-FitGrid integration is like rebooting your computer, sometimes you just need a restart to get the systems in sync. There are a few reasons why you may need to uninstall and reinstall your zoom integration for optimal success, a few of them being:
If you need to disconnect FitGrid LIVE from Zoom, please follow these steps.
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