Tips for offering on-demand virtual fitness classes

Five years ago, gyms and fitness studios were scrambling to set up ways to deliver virtual classes to loyal members during an unprecedented pandemic. 

Today, despite people pouring back into gyms, virtual fitness classes are still convenient, valuable, and popular. And they can form an important part of your business model.

Here’s why virtual fitness classes are still worth investing in, plus tips for making your online offering stand out from the crowd.

Should you offer virtual fitness classes?

Short answer, yes. But let’s unpack this. Back in the pandemic, livestream and on-demand fitness content experienced a huge boom, for obvious reasons. And, just like Zoom meetings and WFH days, people got used to the idea of doing some of their workouts at home. 

So, today, while there may not be a need to offer virtual classes, it’s become something of a ‘want’ for many members. By offering classes and fitness content online, your members can take their fitness regime on the road with them when travelling. They can slot in quick sessions if they don’t have time to get to the gym. And they feel like they’re getting more bang for their buck from their membership.

And for you? Offering virtual classes could help boost your bottom line. For starters, members may be less likely to pause their membership when going on holiday. And then there’s the potential for an additional revenue stream if you put premium content behind a paywall. 

Question is, what should your virtual content include? Let’s take a look at best practices.

Tips for producing virtual fitness classes your members will love

Creating a compelling workout video that keeps viewers engaged is about more than just hitting ‘record.’ It’s a matter of blending your workout or class content with a professional, quality production… without blowing your budget, of course.

Before you start filming, think about what you’re trying to achieve with the content. Clearly define the workout’s focus and give it a name (e.g. 20-Minute Core Blast, Full Body Strength for Beginners).

Then think about how you’ll structure the video (e.g. warm-up, main workout, cool-down) and be sure to tell your viewers exactly what to expect at the start of the session. 

When filming, keep these three tips in mind.

1. Set the stage for success

The look and feel of your video matters. A lot! Strive for natural lighting, or otherwise invest in a simple ring light or a portable LED light to brighten your space and even out the shadows. And choose a clean, uncluttered background that won't distract your viewer. A plain wall is perfect.

2. Get the audio right

Sound quality matters. If you’re talking in the video, then use a lapel mic to capture everything that’s said. Minimize background noise. And, if you use music, double check you’ve got the correct music license for commercial use on the platform you’re publishing on.

3. Polish it in post-production

Unless it’s a livestream, then you’ve got a great opportunity to give your virtual fitness content a makeover after filming. For example, you could add visual cues like a countdown timer for intervals or rest periods, or add the name of exercises as they are being performed. You can also add your branding at the start and end of the video.

How to deliver your virtual classes

With all this awesome content ready to go, how are your members going to see it? For starters, let them know it exists by creating little ‘teasers’ or snippets that you can post on socials as part of your marketing strategy.

Then, to make it easy for people to actually access the content, you’ll want an app like Hapana’s. It gives you a really user-friendly way to add content, organize it in categories, and make it searchable. You’ve also got the option of creating custom membership types where your virtual classes are an add-on, which essentially helps you monetize your videos.

For members, it’s easy to browse and filter content. Then, once they’ve found a workout they want to do, they can easily cast it to their TV. 

To see how you could start adding virtual fitness content to your offering, take a tour of Hapana today.