The start of a new year is peak season for fitness center and gym marketing, with consumers eager to improve their health and fitness. But opportunities for fitness centers and gyms to grow in rural markets go beyond New Year’s resolutions; the bigger opportunity is driven by several important trends:

• Growing awareness of health benefits: Older Americans are prioritizing health and fitness. Rural communities tend to have larger aging populations than other areas, making this demographic shift even more relevant. ¹
• Importance of Community: Community-based and group fitness are becoming more popular with every passing year, especially among the rural population who highly value social connections and shared experiences.¹
• Rising Fitness Spending: The average American is spending between $20-$100 every month on their gym membership.¹

Currently, there are 22 million active fitness consumers within the rural markets Mspark serves.²

A Partner to Grow Your Membership in Untapped Rural Markets

Mspark partners with gyms, fitness centers, and boutique fitness studios to cost-efficiently target your most valuable potential customers and engage them with multi-channel advertising campaigns.

As you plan your marketing strategy for rural consumers, it’s important to understand which media types generate the best response and ultimately acquire new members. Rural consumers have higher response to mail than other media, making it a cornerstone of any advertising campaign for this audience.³

Advertising Response by Media Type in Past 12 Months:

Rural consumers are also 31% more likely to make buying decisions based on coupons or offers they have.³

4 Components of Successful Multi-Channel Gym Marketing Campaigns

By combining the persuasive power of digital advertising with the tangible impact of direct mail, we’ve seen response rates climb as much as 450% and conversion rates increase by up to 28%.⁴  Keep reading below to learn 4 key components of successful multi-channel campaigns:

No.1) Most gym members average a 20-minute roundtrip commute to their facility.⁷ Efficient targeting to the household level ensures you reach your most likely potential members, making the most of your advertising dollars.

No. 2) Capture attention with offers:

• 78% of recipients will open/read a single offer or promotion;
• 77% will open/read multiple offers or promotions.⁵

No. 3) Prompt action in person and online with direct mail: 64% of consumers have taken action in response to direct mail.⁵

• 57% of recipients have visited a brand’s website after receiving direct mail. ⁵
• More than one-third of recipients have visited a retail location or purchased a product or service in response to direct mail. ⁷⁵

No. 4) Increase response with personazliation:

• 68% of consumers are more likely to engage with a personalized message from a brand.⁶
• 55% of consumers expect mail from brands to be personalized to them in some way. ⁵

Learn more about integrated, multi-channel advertising campaigns. Click “get started” below to connect with an expert to discuss your fitness center marketing goals.

Sources: Smart Health Clubs, 11 Fitness Trends to watch in 2025 ^1; Mspark Analytics, ESRI²; AdMall AudienceSCAN 2024³; US Modern Postcard, Direct Mail Statistics 2024⁴; USPS Mail Moments 2023⁵; The State of Direct Mail Consumer Insights by LOB and Comperemedia⁶; Home Fitness Takes You to The Next Level, temo.fit, November 2022⁷