When Planet Fitness set out to overhaul its customer experience strategy, it was not because something was broken. With almost 50 clubs nationwide and a rapidly growing footprint, the business was thriving. But operational friction had started to creep in. Too many systems, too many manual tasks, and too many missed opportunities to truly connect with members.
Enter QContact and a partnership with CXG, a proud member of the Digital Solutions Group, that has since earned industry recognition for hitting 50 000 5-Star CSAT Surveys.
The challenge: Too much noise, not enough connection
As Planet Fitness scaled, complexity followed. Staff were juggling siloed platforms to manage calls, emails, and memberships, causing delays and dropped leads. Admin teams were buried under repetitive tasks like buddy sign-ins and appointment bookings. Feedback collection was patchy, internal communication was inconsistent, and engagement among new members was not sticking. In the first eight weeks, the most critical period for member retention, many weren’t even showing up.
And there was no clear view of customer satisfaction across the network.
The solution: Personalisation at scale
With CXG leading the implementation, Planet Fitness rolled out QContact across its operations to bring every part of the member journey into one streamlined, intelligent system.
Everything now runs through a single, integrated platform. From calls and emails to WhatsApp messages and lead capture are fully synced with Planet Fitness’ in-house membership database. Staff can instantly see a member’s full history: from sign-up to payment activity to previous conversations. It is fast, fluid, and frictionless.
But it is not just the plumbing that’s changed. The entire approach to customer engagement has shifted.
“Planet Fitness shows what happens when Customer Experience is both a business and boardroom priority. By combining QContact’s intelligent technology with CXG’s success approach, we have turned every member interaction into a moment of value. This is CX lensed to drive growth” said Brandon Meszaros, CEO of CXG.
Smarter workflows, less admin, more human time
Today, Club General Manager (CGM) follow-up calls are auto-assigned meaning no more Excel list wrangling. WhatsApp nudges go out to new members encouraging them to book that all-important first visit. If they do not show, reminders follow. After they do, an automated feedback survey hits their inbox.
Manual admin has dropped dramatically. Take buddy sign-ins: previously the source of 600 to 700 support tickets a month, automation has slashed that figure to just 237 in May. This goes beyond pure efficiency and injects a new level of effectiveness into business operations.
The lead journey reimagined
Planet Fitness is not just managing leads better. They are capturing smarter ones. Social ads now include a short survey asking about fitness goals before a lead is even submitted. That information feeds straight into QContact, giving sales teams a head start with personalised gym tours that convert.
It is one of the most thoughtful lead journeys QContact says it has seen across any industry.
CX that rewards loyalty and fuels growth
The CRM system is also fuelling organic growth. The Planet Fitness app is integrated with QContact, so when a member refers a friend, everything is triggered automatically. Once the friend signs up, the referring member gets a WhatsApp with their reward.
Guests who come along for buddy workouts are tracked and added into tailored follow-up journeys, often converting into new members themselves.
The results: From CX talk to CX impact
The data speaks for itself:
- CSAT scores jumped from 2.83 to 4.18 within six months of implementation.
- Over 50,000 five-star reviews have since been logged providing real feedback, at scale.
- Lead volumes from WhatsApp and social are up more than 10%, with stronger conversion thanks to better targeting and personalisation.
- Internal processes are leaner, and staff are freed up to do what they do best: build relationships on the floor, not babysit inboxes.
Why it works
Plenty of gyms boast about the latest equipment or trending classes. What makes Planet Fitness different is how deliberately they have chosen to lead on customer experience.
“Most businesses do not put this much intention into every stage of the customer journey, especially not in the fitness space. Planet Fitness is setting a new benchmark for personalisation and CX in this industry,” says Oliver Wing at QContact.
This is not about technology for technology’s sake. Think about it as aligning operations with what actually matters to members and executing it with consistency, elegance, and care. As the partnership between Planet Fitness, CXG, and QContact continues to evolve, this is customer experience as a strategic weapon and the results are only just getting started.
