What Is Google Apps And How Can It Help Your Gym?

Who uses Outlook for their small business these days… it’s so 1999! The problem is many box owners are still using primitive software solutions when running their gyms. Or worse, they are stuck using sexypants385@hotmail.com to manage their business. Sexy pants might have cut it in the sixth grade but not to run your CrossFit Gym! What about your files and documents? Or how about your waiver forms? Are they safely filed away in the cloud or are they bursting out of big-ass filing cabinets in your office or stacked up in huge piles all over your desk? Unfortunately, this is most CrossFit gyms we have worked with and the truth is the lack of administrative prowess is damaging your business! In fact, we have seen that…

“the largest factor preventing gyms from breaking their membership plateau isn’t a lack of leads, it’s a lack of operational capacity!”

Fortunately, there is a solution. It’s called Google Apps. Ask yourself this: why have 5 million businesses gone over to Google Apps? Simple. It has increased their productivity and therefore their profitability! And it will do the same for your gym business.

What is Google Apps For Work?

Google Apps for Work (formerly Google Apps for Business) is a suite of cloud computing tools offered on a subscription basis by Google. From just $5 per month per user, it includes Google’s popular web applications including Gmail, Hangouts, Google Drive, Google Calendar, Google Sheets, Google Forms, GoogleDocs and more. This suite of applications has been one of the biggest contributors to our 4X growth over the last 12 months, and I believe it can do the same for your gym. So let’s get right into the benefits and how it can help your gym.

#1 Gmail

Sure you’ve got an email account already so why do you need another one? Like I said, sexypants385 doesn’t cut it here… With Google Apps you get a custom email (like kody@wodsites.co for example) plus 30GB of inbox storage. Because the licensing is per user you can easily add more members of your team creating new emails as you go along. One of the most loved characteristics of Gmail is its accessibility. With Gmail you can access it from any location and from any computer without having to download contacts or messages into your device. All you need is an internet connection.

So How Can It Help Your CrossFit Gym?

Perception is everything in marketing right? You may have started our using a personal email account to run your business, however, now it’s time to show that you’re a professional business with professional email addresses. The level of professionalism has a huge impact on your general brand value and will affect your ability to attract new clientele, charge higher fees and secure strategic business alliances. Google Apps allows you to create a whole suite of email addresses for your CrossFit box and to monitor and manage them all from a simple dashboard. It will also give you the freedom as a business owner to run your business from any device and any location. I don’t know about you, but I don’t plan on growing a business that I am chained to, and Gmail means I don’t have to go into the office to get work done.

#2 Google Drive

When you use Google Apps such as Docs, Drive and Calendar you are storing all your work in the cloud. With 30GB of storage per user you have a ton of space to put all your documents, set permissions and access them however you want to. (If you need to you can buy more storage for $10 per user per month and then it’s unlimited!) Business users have the option to sync all or some of their files to a designated local folder and any changes made locally are automatically mirrored in Drive and vice versa… that’s super handy! The other great thing about storing your files on the cloud is that all the docs save automatically, so you’ll never lose data if say your computer crashes (we’ve all been there!).

So How Can It Help Your CrossFit Gym?

Cloud storage can really save your neck if you’re a box owner. This is because documents will still be accessible if your laptop is stolen, if your pcs get a virus or if a member of your team goes away on vacation or sick leave. Save your work files in Drive, access them from any device and share them instantly with your team wherever you all are! It also helps you collaborate in real time with your team. For example, if you’re in a budgeting meeting with your team, you can all be looking and editing your spreadsheet at the same time, or if you a doing programming with one of your coaches who is currently away with your comp team for the weekend, you can do a phone call and work together on the same Google Doc in real time and discuss the next month’s programming. It really does boost your ability to work together as a team. Expert Tip: Use AODocs to convert your Google Drive in to a full on cloud server environment where any files added to your drive are converted into company file. This means if staff leave it adds an extra layer of security to your documents.

#3 Google Docs

The Google Docs feature is a lifesaver for businesses which require multiple collaboration. If you don’t use it then you will be doing one of three things right now. 1) Emailing updated documents amongst your team who are saving them locally to their laptop or desktop. 3) Using Dropbox to share files that can’t be edited in real time. 3) Using an office server which probably can’t be accessed remotely or from your home pc. The problem with all three of these is that it is easy for files to get lost, the most up to date version of the document can become hard to find, team members don’t receive updates, you can’t work on the document at the same time and revisions can be lost. With Google Docs multiple users can create, edit and track changes on documents so that other team members can access the latest version all in real time. Users can even set permissions for documents that may be confidential.

So How Can It Help Your CrossFit Gym?

Imagine all the files you require to run your box such as your programming notes, budgets, coach development docs and schedules being able to be accessed by your team and edited in real time. Imagine if you or your staff could update a document and the whole team could get it instantly… EASY! Imagine being able to comment directly on documents and instantly notifying your team of changes to the document. It would easily 2X, 3X, or more your productivity overnight. You can even import or export your cloud docs onto desktop versions like Microsoft Word and PDF files so you can share them with more primitive folks!

#4 Google Hangouts

Communication just got a whole lot easier with Google Apps Hangouts! Businesses can run HD video, voice or text to communicate with one another. This of course saves a ton of time on travelling not to mention those awkward “Can you hear me, are you there” Skype calls. Get up to 25 people on your meeting, share videos, slides or documents and really communicate with your team.

So How Can It Help Your CrossFit Gym?

I don’t know about you but I want to build a business that allows me to create the kind of lifestyle that I want. Including being able to take proper holidays. These apps help me to do that. Imagine if your whole team could attend a meeting wherever they are and whether they are using desktop, laptop, tablet or phone! This means that if your coaches are in the box, your admin is in the office and you’re on the beach (yep we said it!) that you can all catch up effectively.

#5 Google Calendar

One of the biggest pains for businesses is nonproductive meetings. You know… where nobody turns up, where someone forgets or when you remembered but can’t connect via Skype. The great thing about the Google Calendar feature is that it allows you to schedule events in everyone’s calendar, everyone gets reminded by Gmail and everyone can join via Hangouts or at the physical location of your choosing!

So How Can It Help Your CrossFit Gym?

The Calendar is great for running CrossFit gyms because it is so customizable! Why not colour code your calendar for different meetings or set reminders for events such as “collect membership fees” or “Complete programming for the month”. Administrators can also set permissions to calendars to that only certain employees can see or edit making it really useful for Box owners. You can also link your Google Calendars to Calendly.com so that perspective clients can book in one on one PT sessions, nutritional consultations and more. It’s a pretty awesome tool. Plus, any decent third party application will link with Google Calendar.

Still Not Convinced? Here’s 3 More Great Reasons To Use Google Apps For Your CrossFit Gym

1. Accounting – Create a budget tracker in Sheets, share it with your teammates and edit it in real-time. Your sheet is automatically stored in Drive so everyone always has the latest version. This is really handy for keeping track of membership fee payments, sales at your Box or payrolls.
2. Spam Protection – Google got super-hot on spam lately and Apps is no different. Gmail’s spam protection, no ads and 99.9% guaranteed up-time means no distractions and more productivity for your team.
3. Grow Your Team – With Google Apps it’s easy to grow your team without breaking the bank. At just $5 per user, per month it’s easy for you to add users as your team grows or remove them if you need to cut back. No commitment and minimum expense for box owners.

Check out this blog about 101 Blog Ideas For CrossFit Gyms.