On-Demand Fitness Content as an Operator Retention Tool
Member retention is the top challenge on every operator's list, and increasingly, it comes down to whether your cardio floor can compete with what members already have at home. On-demand fitness content is one of the clearest ways to close that gap, and the data backs it up.
Life Fitness On Demand+ puts that competitive edge directly on your equipment. Here's what it includes, why it works as a genuine gym member retention strategy, and how Facility Connect helps you prove it.
What Life Fitness On Demand+ Includes
Life Fitness On Demand+ is a complimentary software upgrade that gives Symbio and SE4 customers free access to more than 500 on-demand fitness experiences. No extra subscription needed, no hidden added cost.
That library breaks down into two parts:
On-Demand Workouts: More than 400 instructor-led classes are available across treadmills, ellipticals, bikes, PowerMills, and Arc Trainers. Classes vary in difficulty level and are led by top instructors from around the world, with content available in English, Spanish, German, French, Japanese, and Russian.
Interactive Terrains: The Interactive Terrains Course Package brings more than 140 dynamic terrains and real-time performance feedback to Symbio and SE4 consoles, available with a single click inside Facility Connect. It includes an elevation and course-segment progress bar, in-exercise terrain changes without pausing, Adaptive Flex Deck and Out of Saddle alerts for smarter training, and advanced metrics inside the Life Fitness Connect app.
Together, this makes Life Fitness On Demand+ one of the more complete on-demand fitness platforms available directly on connected equipment. Conveniently, it is not a separate app members have to find, download, and remember to use.
The Data Behind Why On-Demand Content is Good for Business
The retention case is backed by real numbers:
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61% of gym members use on-demand content to work out some of the time
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58% say having on-demand content on their console is a reason to stay at their facility
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46% said they're likely to join a gym that has on-demand content
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81% of members who don't currently use on-demand content said they'd try it if their gym offered it
That's a gym member retention strategy with numbers behind it. It's one more reason on-demand content deserves the same attention operators give to equipment mix or class schedules.
Your Brand, Your Way
One feature that sets Life Fitness On Demand+ apart: the ability to stream your own video content directly on facility cardio equipment. Instead of only offering third-party classes, operators can create and display their own workout videos, healthy living tips, or facility highlights, putting their brand and staff in front of every exerciser on the floor. It's a simple way to strengthen the gym member experience and build loyalty to your facility specifically, not just to the content library.
How Facility Connect Ties It Together For Operators
On-demand content works best as part of a connected system operators can actually manage and measure. Facility Connect is built for exactly that, with six core capabilities:
- Equipment Management
- Insightful Data Analytics
- Streamlined Maintenance
- Software Update Assurance
- Enhanced Brand Empowerment
- Life Fitness On Demand+
The Insightful Data Analytics piece is where on-demand content becomes measurable. Rather than assuming members are engaging with the content, operators get real fitness member engagement data and gym member behavior analytics like which classes and terrains get used, on which equipment, and how often. That turns member workout data into fitness facility member insights operators can act on and gives multi-location teams a form of health club member retention analytics they can compare site to site.
Key Takeaways for Facility Operators
The numbers show on-demand fitness content is a real driver of gym member engagement and retention, and Life Fitness On Demand+ delivers it free, in six languages, across your existing cardio equipment.
Paired with Facility Connect's gym member activity tracking software and data analytics, operators get a full loop: content that keeps members coming back, and the visibility to prove it's working.
Explore Life Fitness On Demand+ today.