Fitness Studio Email Campaigns: A 12-Month Plan (2026)

Part of the guide: Fitness Studio Email, SMS & Loyalty

May 21, 2026·Nataliia· 9 min read All posts

A fitness studio needs about six one-off email campaigns a year on top of its automated sequences: a January join drive, an April push, a summer retention note, a September back-to-routine offer, a holiday gift or pass campaign, and a mid-year win-back. Send each to a segment, with one offer and one button. Expect modest numbers: Benchmark Email's health and fitness average is a 19.85% open rate and a 0.95% click rate, so a 600-person list yields roughly six clicks per send.

19.85%→

Health and fitness average open rate

Benchmark Email industry table

0.95%→

Health and fitness average click rate

Benchmark Email industry table

0.09%→

Health and fitness unsubscribe rate

Benchmark Email; all-industry is 0.10%

13%↑

Share of Anytime Fitness joins in January

Anytime Fitness spokesperson, via TCB Magazine

Estimates for illustration; actual numbers vary.

What should a fitness studio email calendar include?

Anchor campaigns to the moments people decide to join or return. An Anytime Fitness spokesperson told TCB Magazine that about 13% of the chain's annual new memberships are added in January against 7% to 8% in an average month, with further spikes in April and September. That is one company's data, so check your own join dates by month before copying it.

Suggested calendar (the January, April and September slots follow the quote above; the others are our assumptions to test):

Month	Campaign	Segment	Single goal
January	New-year join drive	Prospects and lapsed	Book a trial class
April	Pre-summer challenge	Prospects and active	Sign up for a 4-week challenge
June or July	Summer attendance streak	Active	Keep attendance up
September	Back-to-routine offer	Lapsed and prospects	Book a restart session
November or December	Gift pass or holiday schedule	Active	Buy a gift pass
Any quiet month	Win-back	No visit in 60 to 90 days	Return for one class

Automated welcome and reminder sequences run alongside this calendar. Our guide to email marketing for gyms and fitness studios covers those flows in detail.

What results should I expect from each send?

Use industry averages as a floor, not a promise. Benchmark Email's industry table lists health and fitness at 19.85% opens, 0.95% clicks and 0.09% unsubscribes, against 25.54%, 1.45% and 0.10% across all industries. Its page does not state the data period. Mailchimp's benchmarks page shows an all-industry average of 35.63% opens and 2.62% clicks (December 2023 data) but no fitness row. Vendors measure opens differently, so compare your numbers with one source only.

Worked example (assumption): a list of 600 people.

Opens at 19.85%: about 119 people.
Clicks at 0.95%: about 6 people.
If 1 in 4 clickers books a trial class: 1 to 2 bookings per campaign.

Decision rule: if your click rate is under 0.95% after three sends, fix the offer and the button before sending more. If you are above it, test a second offer rather than a higher send frequency.

How do I segment each campaign?

Send each campaign to a segment you can name from your booking system. Three segments cover most needs:

Active: attended in the last 30 days. Send reminders, challenges and referral offers.
Lapsed: no visit in 60 to 90 days. Send win-back offers.
Prospects: joined the list but never booked. Send trial offers.

The 60 and 90 day lines are working definitions you can change to match your class cycle. Export last-visit dates monthly from your booking tool and tag contacts. For a trial-to-member flow, see this trial to annual member email sequence.

What do the law and Gmail require?

Fitness studios are not exempt from marketing email rules. The FTC's CAN-SPAM compliance guide requires truthful header information, non-misleading subject lines, a clear disclosure that the message is an ad, a real physical address and a clear opt-out. Opt-outs must be honored within 10 business days, and penalties can reach $53,088 per violating email.

If you send more than 5,000 messages a day to Gmail users, Google's bulk sender guidelines add SPF, DKIM and DMARC authentication and one-click unsubscribe, and ask you to keep reported spam rates below 0.30% (recommended below 0.10%). Most single-location studios send far less, but the same hygiene helps inbox placement. These are not legal advice; check requirements for your own country, since UK and EU rules differ.

How do I write a campaign people click?

Follow one rule: one segment, one offer, one button. Give the date and the outcome in the subject line, for example "Restart week: 3 beginner classes, Sept 8 to 12". Put the button in the first screen. Name the instructor or class so it does not read as a mass blast.

Send a test to your phone before every campaign, because many readers will open on mobile. After each send, log opens, clicks, unsubscribes and bookings in a sheet so the next campaign beats the last. Our fitness studio newsletter guide shows a recurring format you can reuse between campaigns, and email and SMS services are available if you want it run for you.

FAQ

How many campaigns should a fitness studio send per year?

About six one-off campaigns plus automated sequences is a workable starting point. Adjust once you see your own join and cancel dates by month.

What is a good open rate for a fitness studio?

Benchmark Email lists 19.85% for health and fitness. Treat this as one vendor's average, not a target.

When is the best time to promote memberships?

Anytime Fitness reports January as its peak at about 13% of annual joins, with April and September as smaller peaks. Test those windows against your own history.

Do I need permission to email members?

CAN-SPAM does not require prior consent in the US but does require a working opt-out and an honest sender identity. Other countries require consent, so confirm your local rules.

Should I email inactive subscribers?

Send them a win-back message, then remove people who do not respond. Keeping complaints low protects inbox placement.

Sources

Benchmark Email, email marketing benchmarks by industry
Mailchimp, email marketing benchmarks (December 2023 data)
FTC, CAN-SPAM Act compliance guide
Google, email sender guidelines
TCB Magazine, New Year, New Gym Membership (second-hand: quotes an Anytime Fitness spokesperson)

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Nataliia

Local marketing strategist with 10+ years at global agencies — OMD, Dentsu, GroupM, and BBDO. Now helping small businesses get the same data-driven edge. Based in Europe, working with clients in the US, UK, Australia, and beyond.

About Nataliia