Why do health clubs – operations that pivot around the idea of doing people good – have to work so hard, and spend so much money, to engage customers? That was the question posed by Ray Algar, MD of Oxygen Consulting, who spotted a discrepancy between the way in which gyms perceive themselves – as socially minded operations that help people live healthier, happier lives – and the way the public sees them: as contract-wielding enterprises that take your money and then leave you to fend for yourself, not caring if you attend or not. Was there something that could be done to shift public perceptions, wondered Algar, encouraging people to see gyms as businesses with a social agenda – businesses they would therefore be proud to be associated with? And could this social agenda be delivered without ignoring commercial realities…

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