The Best Ideas for Increasing Your Gym’s Memberships in 2026

Growing a gym membership base requires more than just great equipment and trainers. In today's competitive fitness landscape, you need smart marketing strategies that reach potential members where they already spend their time—on their phones, scrolling social media, and searching Google. The good news? You don't need a massive budget or marketing degree to implement these ideas effectively.

This guide covers eight proven strategies to boost your gym memberships, from running targeted ad campaigns to building your own mobile app. Each idea builds on the others, creating a comprehensive marketing system that can transform how you attract and retain members.

Idea 1: Run Social Media and Google Ads

Instagram, Facebook, and other social media platforms are excellent for sharing gym activities with your community and followers. But you may encounter difficulties getting your gym in front of new people who have never heard of you. A great way to solve this is by running ads on Google and social media.

Social media ads are friendly to almost any budget, and you can initiate ad campaigns in minutes. You'll pay upfront for a number of impressions, which is when a person stops scrolling to view your ad. Here's how to get started:

  1. Click on the ads manager button on your gym's Instagram, Facebook, or TikTok accounts.
  2. Determine the age group, location, and demographic that you'd like to reach on social media.
  3. Select interests, hobbies, and careers that line up with people who'd be most likely to join a gym. These include people who like jogging, hiking, or even Muay Thai.
  4. Launch your campaign. When you hit the number of impressions you purchased, your ad campaign will close.
  5. Your social media platform will send your campaign's detailed statistical analysis directly to your account. Review this and use it to make informed decisions about your next campaign.

Social media ads are just one type of ad campaign you'll want to run. If you also run ads on Google, you'll be able to get your gym in front of even more people. Follow these steps to get started:

  1. Sign up for Google Ads.
  2. Go to the Keyword Research Tool and enter your location.
  3. Start searching for keywords—phrases and words that people search for in Google—that are related to your gym. For instance, keywords can be "gyms in [your town]," "best gyms for CrossFit," etc.
  4. Google will return a detailed sheet that shows statistics and prices for each keyword and related keywords.
  5. You'll want to select keywords that fit your budget and have a search volume (the number of people searching for that word per month) of over 100. Google prices each keyword, and more popular ones are more expensive. Whenever someone clicks on your ad, Google will deduct money from your account.
  6. Launch your campaign. After your campaign ends, you'll get a detailed performance analysis from Google.

During both social media and Google ads campaigns, you'll most likely notice a greater number of visitors to your social media pages and your webpage. You might also receive more direct messages in your socials and your website inbox.

To turn these interested people into your customers, you'll need to respond to them quickly and invite them in for a consultation. Potential customers will love quick feedback and might be more likely to join your gym.

Idea 2: Keep a Record of Leads

Did you get a direct message, email, or even just a "like" on a post from a potential customer during your ad campaign? Create a Google or Excel spreadsheet and record their info.

Enter the following information into your sheet:

Even if these people don't join your gym by the end of the ad campaign, there's still a possibility that they're interested in joining your gym in the future. You'll want to keep their names on file and follow up with them every now and then.

Never bombard your leads with texts and calls. Doing this will put them off of your gym.

Whenever you run an ad campaign, have your lead record ready to go. This spreadsheet should be a major part of all ad campaigns you run. With some consistency, you'll most likely be able to pick up a few more gym memberships.

Idea 3: Build A Mobile App for Your Gym

The vast majority of people use apps, so why not create your very own app for your gym? "Wait, don't I need coding knowledge to build my own app?" you ask. Adalo is a no-code app builder for database-driven web apps and native iOS and Android apps—one version across all three platforms, published to the Apple App Store and Google Play. This means you can build your very own app without any tech knowledge.

Ada, Adalo's AI builder, lets you describe what you want and generates your app. Magic Start creates complete app foundations from a description, while Magic Add adds features through natural language.

With over 3 million apps created on the platform, Adalo's visual builder has been described as "easy as PowerPoint." Magic Start generates complete app foundations from a simple description—tell it you need a booking app for your gym, and it creates your database structure, screens, and user flows automatically.

The following are just a few features you can include in your app:

Contacting you will be as easy as clicking on your professional-looking app.

By including a direct messaging tool, you'll also appeal to Millennials and Generation Z—two groups of people who love messaging apps and dislike talking on the phone. This demographic is great to appeal to because they're quickly becoming a large part of the market.

Once you finish creating your app, you can publish it to the Apple App Store, Google Play Store, or your own website. Your app will be available to all your current customers, and you'll also get your app in front of a large audience of potential customers by being on the two major app stores.

Unlike platforms like Glide or Softr that don't support app store publishing, Adalo handles the entire submission process. And with unlimited database records on paid plans starting at $36/month, you won't hit data caps as your membership grows—a common limitation with competitors that charge extra for additional records.

Idea 4: Run a Google App Ad Campaign

When you get your app up and running, promote your app with an ad campaign like you did with your website and social media on Google. Access your Google Ad account and follow these directions to get your app in front of more eyes:

  1. Choose the "App Campaign" type from the campaign selection and start building your campaign.
  2. Set your campaign subtype to "App Installs," which will help your app get more new downloads.
  3. Link your app from the Apple App Store or the Google Play Store to the campaign.
  4. Determine the location of people who will see your app. You'll want to set this location to a radius where people can easily reach your gym.
  5. Enter the demographics of the people you wish to reach. Type in the same demographics that you used in your previous ad campaigns.
  6. Deposit as much money as you'd like to spend on the campaign.
  7. Upload screenshots and short videos that illustrate your app's functions. Make sure these are clean and easy to understand. If these represent your app poorly, people won't download your app.
  8. Launch your campaign! When enough people have downloaded your app or clicked on your ad, your money will run out.

Google will also send you a detailed analytics report that you can learn from for your next campaign.

When you run an app ad campaign, you won't need to choose keywords—Google will use its powerful algorithm to place your app in front of an interested target audience.

Just like traditional social media and Google Ad campaigns, an ad campaign for your app is a great way to introduce people to your gym and your app. App ad campaigns are also budget-friendly, so you'll be able to share your gym's app with a large audience starting at a few hundred dollars per campaign.

Idea 5: Diversify Membership Types

When you create different types of memberships, you'll cater to a wider audience. For instance, some people might only want to work with one of your personal trainers, others might only want to lift weights, and some might just want to use the treadmill and elliptical.

More people will give your gym a serious look when you have a list of different membership options.

By giving people more options, you'll expand your marketing reach. All people love having options when it comes to purchasing, so you might get more members without having to invest in more equipment, which can help increase your profit margins.

If you've built a gym app with Adalo, you can easily manage these different membership tiers within the app itself. Members can view their specific plan benefits, upgrade or downgrade their membership, and access only the features included in their tier—all without you needing to manually track who has access to what.

Idea 6: Offer Corporate Memberships

Instead of just targeting individuals for memberships, make sure that companies are also on your radar. Do your research using Google Maps, LinkedIn, and Google to find companies in your area that employ ten or more people.

Offer each company a corporate membership at a special price that allows people from that company to use your facilities for a limited time each month.

Who doesn't want to have happy and healthy employees? Corporate gym memberships will appeal to many business owners and can help improve camaraderie between employees. This is also a great way to introduce people to your gym.

When some people decide they want to use your gym regularly, give them a special membership discount. Doing this can help you get more individual memberships by catering to local businesses.

A gym app makes corporate memberships even more attractive to businesses. HR managers can easily track employee usage, and employees can book classes or equipment directly from their phones. With Adalo's no data caps on paid plans, you can onboard entire companies without worrying about hitting storage limits as your corporate client list grows.

Idea 7: Launch a Merch Line

Take your gym's logo to the streets by creating your own merchandise. It's 2026, and making merch has never been so simple. Use a site like Gelato to get your gym's logo on shirts, bags, classic trucker hats, and more.

When your customers wear your merch, they're advertising for you for free. This can help spread the word and get more people to sign up for your gym.

If you want to take your design game to the next level, hire a freelance designer from a site like Fiverr or DesignCrowd. You can select from a variety of designers and communicate with them every step of the way to ensure the artwork they design meets your standards.

Head-turning, professionally designed merch can help spread the word about your gym. Consider adding a merch store section to your gym app where members can browse and purchase items directly—another feature you can build without coding using Adalo's visual builder.

Idea 8: Run Promo Periods

Limited-time promotional periods can get people into your gym in no time. There are several types of promotional periods you can run, but here is a list of our favorites:

Contact the owners of BJJ gyms in your area and offer discounts. The coaches will most likely happily refer their students, as BJJ players who engage in strength training and cardio are less likely to get injured whilst on the mats. This can be a win-win for everyone!

Whenever you run a promo period, advertise it on your social media platforms. Ask new people who visit your gym to follow you on social media, and don't forget to put them into your lead list that we recommended for Idea #2.

Your gym app can automate much of this promotional work. Use push notifications to alert members about new promos, create referral tracking within the app, and let new members sign up directly through their phones with promotional codes applied automatically.

Next Steps

Work on these ideas every day. Implementing our suggestions is like starting a new workout routine: consistency is key to seeing real results. If you strive to get 1% better each day, you'll most likely improve your gym memberships by leaps and bounds in a few months.

Building a gym app doesn't have to be complicated or expensive. With Adalo's AI-assisted platform starting at $36/month with unlimited usage and no surprise charges, you can have a professional app in the App Store and Google Play within weeks—not months. Magic Add lets you describe new features in plain language and adds them to your app automatically, so you can keep improving your member experience as your gym grows.

The combination of smart advertising, consistent lead tracking, promotional strategies, and a professional mobile app creates a marketing system that works together. Each element reinforces the others, turning casual interest into committed memberships.

FAQ

Why choose Adalo over other app building solutions?

Adalo is an AI-powered app builder that creates true native iOS and Android apps. Unlike web wrappers, it compiles to native code and publishes directly to both the Apple App Store and Google Play Store from a single codebase—the hardest part of launching an app handled automatically. With pricing starting at $36/month including unlimited database records and no usage-based charges, it's also more affordable than alternatives like Bubble ($59/month with usage limits) or Flutterflow ($70/month without a database included).

What's the fastest way to build and publish an app to the App Store?

Adalo's drag-and-drop interface combined with AI-assisted building makes it possible to create and publish a gym app in weeks rather than months. Magic Start generates complete app foundations from a simple description, and the platform handles the entire App Store submission process for both iOS and Android.

Can I easily build a mobile app for my gym without coding experience?

Yes, with Adalo's visual builder—described as "easy as PowerPoint"—you can create a professional gym app with features like booking and scheduling, workout planning, and direct messaging. Over 3 million apps have been built on the platform by non-technical users.

How much does it cost to build a gym app?

Adalo's paid plans start at $36/month with unlimited database records and no usage-based charges. This includes publishing to both the Apple App Store and Google Play Store. Competitors like Glide start at $60/month but don't support app store publishing, while Softr starts at $167/month for a Progressive Web App with record limits.

Do I need to hire a developer to maintain my gym app?

No. Adalo's visual builder lets you make updates and add features yourself using Magic Add—just describe what you want in plain language. Unlike platforms like Flutterflow that require technical knowledge and separate database setup, Adalo includes everything you need in one platform.

How can I run effective ads to promote my gym?

Run both social media ads on platforms like Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok, as well as Google Ads to reach new potential members. Social media ads are budget-friendly and allow you to target specific demographics, ages, and interests, while Google Ads let you bid on keywords people search for, like "gyms in [your town]" to capture high-intent searchers.

What should I track when running gym marketing campaigns?

Create a lead spreadsheet to record every potential customer's full name, how they contacted you, the date of contact, and your follow-up dates. Even if leads don't join immediately, they may be interested in the future, so consistent but non-aggressive follow-up is key to converting them into members.

What promotional strategies work best for attracting new gym members?

Effective promotions include "Bring a Buddy" referral programs, seasonal launch discounts, free fitness testing periods, and partnerships with local businesses like BJJ gyms. Corporate memberships are also powerful—research local companies with 10+ employees and offer them special group rates to introduce multiple potential members to your facility at once.

Can my gym app scale as my membership grows?

Yes. Adalo 3.0's modular infrastructure scales to serve apps with over 1 million monthly active users, with no upper ceiling. Paid plans include unlimited database records, so you won't hit data caps as you add members, corporate clients, or booking history.

How can gym merchandise help with marketing?

Creating branded merchandise like shirts, bags, and hats turns your existing members into walking advertisements for your gym. Use print-on-demand services like Gelato to easily produce merch, and consider hiring freelance designers from Fiverr or DesignCrowd to create professional, eye-catching designs that people will want to wear.