Party Zone is the overall name of Bodyworks' special events programming. Events take place in one of many of the club's eight themed areas: the AthletiZone, the CyberZone, the Maze, the SplashZone, the VertiZone, the AquaZone, the Virtual Zone and the Jump Zone. Birthday parties are still the most popular type of Party Zone event, Burns says, but the area has also been used for field trips, church lock-ins and family reunions.

Since last year's win, the Party Zone's offerings and success have increased significantly. The club has added additional party packages and 24-hour online booking for members and nonmembers. Also, themed parties, including character appearances, have been added to the Party Zone options. Parents and children can choose from Spider-Man, Darth Vader, a Jedi Knight, a pirate, a butterfly fairy, an Indian princess and a clown. So far, the most popular option has been the pirate, Burns says.

The most memorable party for Burns was a graduation party and lock-in that hosted 275 students from a Lubbock, TX, high school.

“We actually cleared out the entire free weight area to give them a hangout area,” she says. “We had recently purchased an oversized blow-up projection screen and sound system. We set up a ‘dive in’ movie for the pool area where they could swim or float and watch movies outside. We converted our group exercise room into a casino, where there were all kinds of casino tables and games that the kids could play — for no money, of course.”

Two of Bodyworks' five locations have Party Zones. The company holds about 20 to 25 events per week, each with 10 to 20 participants. In May, the Party Zone brought in $24,000, well over the company's monthly goal of $10,000. Party packages range from $150 to $210 for general parties and upwards of $400 for private parties. Club members receive a 10 percent discount off of all party packages, Burns says.

Because the events are open to nonmembers, the Party Zone also brings in many new memberships. In fact, at Party Zone's main location, the events bring in an average of 20 memberships a month, resulting in $30,000 in additional dues each month — in addition to the revenue of the events themselves.

To continue to meet the needs of the community, Burns is working out the logistics of offering at-home parties, which will include use of Bodyworks' mobile rock wall, spider climber and multi-sports jumper. Burns credits print advertising, television ads and word-of-mouth advertising as instrumental to the program's success and second consecutive win.

“Every day, we get phone calls from people wanting to book a party that don't even know our prices or what we really have to offer,” she says. “They have just heard that we are one of the best places for a party, and that's what they want.”

Best New Member Integration Program

Big Vanilla Athletic Club
Arnold, MD

The Big V 90-Day Challenge

Some of the members at Big Vanilla Athletic Club in Arnold, MD, are pretty good friends. They have formed weekly cooking clubs, go on trips together and create their own Web sites.

This type of camaraderie and friendship in a fitness facility is a club owner's dream, and one made into reality through Big Vanilla Athletic Club's 90-Day Challenge program, says Julie Lincoln, director of fitness at Big Vanilla Athletic Club.

The program assigns new members into five teams of 12 to 20 people. For 90 days, the teams compete against each other by gathering points for coming to the club at least three times a week, attending an educational lecture, participating in a team challenge or trying a group exercise class. Participants have scorecards that track their workouts and attendance at weekly events. Those totals are combined with the totals of their teammates and are averaged at the end of the 90 days to determine the winner. The name of the winning team is engraved on the official 90-Day Challenge trophy, which is on display in the club's café. Individual winners from each team, who are chosen by the team coaches and team members, are also recognized and receive free personal training or a massage.

The program began in 2005 and runs twice a year with a fall and winter challenge. Although competition is important in the program, Big Vanilla Athletic Club wanted the challenge to be less “The Biggest Loser” and more accountability-based.

“We view the challenge as a starting point for permanent lifestyle alteration, not as a simple goal-achievable program,” Lincoln says. “Goals are set, but ultimately, the true benefit is that a habit to exercise a minimum of three times a week at the facility is established, and now you have peers who interact with you as long as you are a member.”

The challenge attracts all types of exercisers, Lincoln says, including beginners, competitive athletes and morbidly obese members. Many even repeat the program several times to stay on track with their health goals, she says.

“Some of our repeaters, which there are many, credit the program for drastically improving their quality of life,” Lincoln says. “It never ceases to amaze me how supportive perfect strangers can be to one another when they are told that they are now a ‘team.’”

The 90-Day Challenge costs members $120. Repeaters pay $90. Nonmembers can join the challenge if they purchase a three-month membership to the club, but only a few of the 500-plus people who have completed the challenge do this, and those who have opted for the short membership usually join the club after the challenge's completion, Lincoln says.

Marketing for the program includes in-house fliers and banners, promos on the Big Vanilla Athletic Club Web site, and inclusion in the club's program guide that is published three times a year and distributed within the club and throughout the community. The club's sales staff also hype the program with new and prospective members, which Lincoln says helps promote the program and sell more new memberships.

Once costs for marketing, staff (10 employees), the awards and the closing ceremony are factored in, a typical single challenge with 50 participants nets $3,725.

Besides bringing in revenue, the program also builds a strong and supportive community within the club. The participants make friends with each other and the staff, Lincoln says.

“It is a labor of love,” Lincoln says, “and to be recognized for a program that has improved hundreds of lives is wonderful.”

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