Member retention for independent gyms and studios across the US

Keep the members you worked hard to get.

Retention Desk builds the welcome messages, win back campaigns and member emails that keep people coming back to your gym or studio, then shows you who is likely to quit next. Everything is written for your business and ready to send from the tools you already use.

Free snapshot and free pilot campaign, then $397 a month per location at any size. No contract.

Retention Snapshot

Example

For: [Your gym or studio]

What is working

Your 6am classes fill up, and your reviews name your coaches.

Where members may be slipping

No next step after the free first class.

Your Instagram went quiet five weeks ago.

Three fixes

1. Email members who have not booked in [30 days] with [a free week back].

2. Offer a two week intro after the free class.

3. Share one member story a week.

Plus a sample win back email written in your voice.

Built for any studio where people come back every week

If your members, clients or students pay monthly, buy class packs or book ongoing sessions, Retention Desk fits. Every message uses your words, whether you run classes, sessions or lessons.

Every member who stays is one you do not have to win again

1 in 3

members leave the average gym every year.

About half

of new members quit within six months.

6 members

kept each month cover Retention Desk at the average $69 gym membership. At a $150 studio membership, it takes 3.

Source: HFA data via Gymdesk, September 2026.

How it works

See the work before you pay anything.

  1. 01

    Retention Snapshot

    Free

    A one page audit of your gym or studio from public info: what is working, where members slip, and three fixes, plus a sample win back email in your voice.

  2. 02

    Pilot campaign

    Free

    One complete win back campaign for past members and trial leads who never joined, ready to send from your own email or member app.

  3. 03

    Retention Desk, every month

    $397 a month

    Four things, built around your classes, coaches and voice.

See a sample of each

Every month

90 day welcome journey

Ten messages that walk each new member from day one to their 90 day mark.

Built in your first two weeks, tuned every month

Win back campaign

Three emails and two texts to past members and trial leads who never joined, built around one offer you choose.

First week of each month

Four member emails

One every Monday in your brand, with your logo and colors: a coach tip, a member spotlight, what's on, and a monthly challenge.

Every Monday

Results report and at risk list

Last month's numbers, who came back, and the members who stopped coming or are coming less. The most saveable get a personal check in, as many as your coaches can send, and the rest get one shared check in email.

First business day of each month

Nothing reaches your members until you approve it. Everything goes out from your own email or member app, under your own name.

Pricing

One flat price per location.

Retention Desk

$397

a month per location

Month to month, cancel anytime

Welcome journey, win back campaign, four member emails and a monthly report

The same price at any size

Your member data is deleted when you leave

Founding rate

First 5 gyms or studios

$297

a month for your first 6 months, then $397

Founding spots still open

The same full service

On every location you have when you start, counting as one of the first 5 gyms or studios

In exchange for a testimonial and your results data

Month to month, cancel anytime

Will it pay off at your size?

Your dues decide it, not your headcount. Here is how many members it takes each month to cover the fee (one member paying one month of dues).

Your monthly dues$40$69$100$150$200
To cover $397106432
To cover $29785322

At $69, 6 members who came back or stayed cover one month's fee. Your monthly report shows whether the members who came back covered it.

Our price promises

  • One price at any size. A location's price never goes up because you gained members.
  • Any price change comes with 30 days notice by email, and never during a founding rate's first six months.
  • One founding rate and one free pilot per business, however many locations you have.
  • No setup fee and no long term contract. Cancel by replying to any of our emails.

Start free: your snapshot and one pilot campaign cost nothing.

Samples

See exactly what lands in your inbox.

These are the real templates, shown with a sample gym and made up numbers: Bayside Strength Club, offering a free week back.

Your free Retention Snapshot

A one page look at your gym or studio, built from your website, reviews and social media, plus a sample win back email written in your voice.

  • What is working, in your own details
  • Where members may be slipping
  • Three fixes you can use this month
  • A sample win back email, with [brackets] for anything only you can decide

Arrives by email, usually within a day of asking.

Get your free Retention Snapshot

Bayside Strength, your Retention Snapshot

Thomas Sousa to Dana

Hi Dana,

Thanks for asking for a Retention Snapshot on the website. Here is yours, built from your site, your reviews and your Instagram.

RETENTION SNAPSHOT
BAYSIDE STRENGTH CLUB
Prepared by Thomas Sousa from public information · October 2026
WHAT IS WORKING
Your 6am strength classes fill up, and your reviews mention Coach Marcus by name. The Saturday team workout gives members an easy reason to bring a friend.
WHERE MEMBERS MAY BE SLIPPING
  • There is no next step after the free first class, so trial visitors leave without an offer.
  • Your Instagram went quiet five weeks ago, so past members have nothing pulling them back.
THREE FIXES FOR THIS MONTH
1
Email members who have not booked in [30 days] with [a free week back].
2
Offer a two week intro after the free class.
3
Share one member story a week on Instagram and in your Monday email.
For context: the average gym keeps 66.4 percent of members a year, and about half of new members quit within six months (HFA via Gymdesk, Sept 2026).
SAMPLE WIN BACK EMAIL
Subject: A free week back at Bayside

Hi [first name],

It has been a while since we saw you at Bayside Strength Club, and the 6am crew is still going strong.

We would love to have you back, so your next week is on us. Come to any class, from the 6am strength sessions to the Saturday team workout.

Reply to this email or book a class at [booking link], and I will save you a spot.

Coach Marcus
Bayside Strength Club

Words in [brackets] are yours to choose before you send it.

If this looks useful, I can build your full win back campaign for free: five messages over ten days to past members and trial leads, ready to send from your own email or member app. Want me to put it together?

Best,

 
Thomas Sousa
RETENTION DESK
BY SOUSA AESTHETICS
Call or text 727 490 9963
1701 Central Ave, St. Petersburg, FL 33713

If this isn't useful, just reply "no thanks" and I won't email again.

Your free pilot campaign

One complete win back campaign for past members and trial leads who never joined, built around the offer you choose.

  • Five messages over ten days: three emails and two texts
  • Your coaches, classes and offer in every message
  • Sending steps for your own software
  • A code word in every message, like COMEBACK, so you can see who came back
  • Nothing goes out until you send it

Two weeks after it goes out, we ask for three rough numbers and look at who came back together.

Get your free pilot campaign

Bayside Strength, your free win back campaign

Thomas Sousa to Dana

Hi Dana,

Here is your free win back campaign for Bayside Strength Club, built around your offer of a free week back.

It goes to past members who cancelled or froze in the last 6 months, plus intro leads who never joined. If your list is long, start with the people who left most recently, and send each message on its day.

DAY 1 EMAIL
Subject: Your free week back at Bayside

Hi [first name],

It has been a while since we saw you at Bayside Strength Club, and we would love to train with you again.

To make coming back easy, your next week is on us. Come to any class on the schedule, from the 6am strength sessions to the Saturday team workout, and pick up where you left off.

Reply COMEBACK to this email or book a class at [booking link], and I will save you a spot. When you come in, just mention COMEBACK at the front desk.

Coach Marcus
Bayside Strength Club

Words in [brackets] are yours to choose before you send it.
DAY 3 TEXT

Bayside Strength Club: Hi [first name], your free week back is waiting. Book at [booking link] and mention COMEBACK at the desk. Coach Marcus

Words in [brackets] are yours to choose before you send it.
DAY 5 EMAIL
Subject: What's new at Bayside this fall

Hi [first name],

A few things have changed since you last trained with us. Olympic lifting now runs on Tuesday nights, and open gym goes until 9pm on weekdays. [Add anything else that is new this season.]

Your free week back is an easy way to try it all.

Book any class at [booking link] and come see what is new.

Mention COMEBACK at the front desk when you come in, or just reply COMEBACK.

Coach Marcus
Bayside Strength Club

Words in [brackets] are yours to choose before you send it.
DAY 8 TEXT

Bayside Strength Club: Hi [first name], Coach Marcus checking in. Your free week is ready when you are: [booking link]. Mention COMEBACK at the desk.

Words in [brackets] are yours to choose before you send it.
DAY 10 EMAIL
Subject: Last call for your free week

Hi [first name],

A quick note before your free week back ends on [the date your offer ends]. If you have been meaning to get back into a routine, this is an easy place to start.

Book any class at [booking link], and we will see you on the floor.

Just mention COMEBACK at the front desk, or reply COMEBACK to this email.

Either way, thank you for being part of Bayside. The door is always open.

Coach Marcus
Bayside Strength Club

Words in [brackets] are yours to choose before you send it.

In PushPress, open your People List, filter for cancelled and frozen members plus leads, select them and use Send message for each day. PushPress texts stop at 160 characters and members cannot reply, so both texts above are written to fit.

To see what this brings back, ask your front desk to jot down anyone who mentions COMEBACK or replies with it. Reply with the day you send it, and two weeks after that I will ask for three rough numbers: how many it went to, how many replied and how many came back.

Keep your email tool's unsubscribe link on every email, and send the texts only to people who agreed to get texts from you.

Change anything you like before it goes out, or reply and I will adjust it.

Best,

 
Thomas Sousa
RETENTION DESK
BY SOUSA AESTHETICS
Call or text 727 490 9963
1701 Central Ave, St. Petersburg, FL 33713

Your monthly results report

On the first business day of each month, one page built from your member export.

  • Active members, joins, cancellations and retention
  • Who came back from the win back campaign
  • Whether the dues from members who came back covered your fee
  • New members still visiting at 30, 60 and 90 days
  • A personal check in for each of your most saveable members, as many as your coaches can send (20 a month to start, up to 40)
  • One shared check in email for everyone else the rules flag, plus a text for members who agreed to texts
  • Next month's plan

Shown with made up numbers. When the rules flag more members than your coaches can reach one to one, the report counts all of them and names the rest for the shared check in email.

Bayside Strength, your November results report

Thomas Sousa to Dana

Hi Dana,

Here is your November results report and at risk list. Each person on the list has a check in message ready to send.

RESULTS REPORT
BAYSIDE STRENGTH CLUB
November 2026 · prepared by Thomas Sousa from your member export
 7 past members came back this month, about $623 a month in dues.
YOUR NUMBERS
418
Active members
Up 6 from October
31
New joins
Up 3 from October
25
Cancellations
Up 4 from October
93.9%
Retention
Down 0.9 points from October
Retention is the share of members active on November 1 who were still active at month end: 387 of 412.
WIN BACK RESULTS
Offer: a free week back
Got the campaign
 
140
Replied
  
12 · 9%
Came back
  
7 · 5%
7 members back at your $89 membership is about $623 a month in dues.
AGAINST YOUR FEE
About $623 a month in dues came back against your $397 Retention Desk fee, so the win back covered it.
How this is counted: past, frozen and trial members your export or front desk shows as back this month, at your main membership price. It can include people who came back on their own, and it leaves out members the welcome journey and check ins helped keep.
WELCOME JOURNEY RESULTS
New members still visiting at each mark
30 days
  
24 of 28 · 86%
60 days
  
19 of 25 · 76%
90 days
  
15 of 22 · 68%
AT RISK THIS MONTH
3 members are on the at risk list below, each with a check in message ready to send.
1 not seen in 14 days or more · 1 visiting half as often or less · 1 new and quiet after week one
NEXT MONTH'S PLAN
KEEP
Keep the free week back offer and the 6am push, which brought back the most members.
CHANGE
Rewrite the Day 14 welcome message, where the most new members went quiet.
SUGGESTED OFFER
Your old rate for 30 days, for members who left more than three months ago.
Built from your member export of November 30. Your member data is used only for your campaigns and reports.
AT RISK LIST · NOVEMBER 2026
3 MEMBERS TO CHECK IN WITH
Longest away first. Each message is ready to send; words in [brackets] are yours to choose.
Taylor S.  NO VISIT IN 14 DAYS OR MORE
Last visit 25 days ago · 0 visits this month, 8 last month
Next step: Coach Marcus sends the check in text
CHECK IN TEXT
Hi Taylor, Coach Marcus here. We have missed you at 6am. Want me to save you a spot this week?
Alexis R.  NEW MEMBER, QUIET AFTER WEEK ONE
Last visit 16 days ago · 1 visit this month, 4 last month
Next step: Dana reaches out personally
CHECK IN EMAIL
Hi Alexis, it was great having you in your first week. How are you feeling about training so far? If the schedule is tricky, I can help you find a class time that fits.
Chris M.  VISITS DOWN BY HALF OR MORE
Last visit 6 days ago · 3 visits this month, 10 last month
Next step: Invite Chris to the Saturday team workout
CHECK IN TEXT
Hi Chris, the Saturday team workout is a good one this week. Want to join us at 9?

Reply with any changes to the plan and I will build December's campaign around it.

Best,

 
Thomas Sousa
RETENTION DESK
BY SOUSA AESTHETICS
Call or text 727 490 9963
1701 Central Ave, St. Petersburg, FL 33713

What your members see

A note from your coach, or your own brand.

The Day 1 win back email, two ways. Win back emails go out as a plain note from your coach unless you ask for your brand. Your Monday member emails always come in your brand, with your logo and colors.

Plain note

Standard

Reads like a personal email from your coach, inside whatever header or footer your email tool adds.

Your free week back at Bayside

Bayside Strength Club to Jordan

Hi Jordan,

It has been a while since we saw you at Bayside Strength Club, and we would love to train with you again.

To make coming back easy, your next week is on us. Come to any class on the schedule, from the 6am strength sessions to the Saturday team workout, and pick up where you left off.

Reply COMEBACK to this email or book a class at baysidestrength.com/schedule, and I will save you a spot. When you come in, just mention COMEBACK at the front desk.

Coach Marcus
Bayside Strength Club

Bayside Strength Club, St. Petersburg, FL
Unsubscribe

In your brand

On request

The same words with your logo, your colors and a booking button. Every Monday member email arrives this way.

Your free week back at Bayside

Bayside Strength Club to Jordan

BAYSIDE STRENGTH CLUB

Hi Jordan,

It has been a while since we saw you at Bayside Strength Club, and we would love to train with you again.

To make coming back easy, your next week is on us. Come to any class on the schedule, from the 6am strength sessions to the Saturday team workout, and pick up where you left off.

BOOK YOUR FREE WEEK

Or reply COMEBACK to this email, and I will save you a spot. When you come in, just mention COMEBACK at the front desk.

Coach Marcus
Bayside Strength Club

Bayside Strength Club, St. Petersburg, FL
Unsubscribe

Bayside Strength ClubText message

Bayside Strength Club: Hi Jordan, your free week back is waiting. Book at baysidestrength.com/schedule and mention COMEBACK at the desk. Coach Marcus

Day 3 text, 149 of 160 characters

Texts stay plain either way

A text has no design to tailor, so the Day 3 and Day 8 texts read the same in both versions. They go only to members who agreed to get texts from you, and each one fits your texting tool's character limit.

Client guide

Everything in one PDF.

The free snapshot, the pilot campaign, the monthly service, a sample report, pricing and straight answers to common questions, in nine pages you can print or share with your team.

A guide built for your business carries your own Retention Snapshot, a sample win back email in your voice and the math at your own prices. It is free, and it comes by email from Thomas, usually within two weekdays.

Thomas Sousa, founder of Retention Desk

Who's behind it

Hi, I'm Thomas Sousa.

I'm an NCEP certified personal trainer in St. Petersburg with 16 years under the bar, and I run Sousa Aesthetics. Before that I worked in field sales and marketing.

Retention Desk brings both together for gym and studio owners: a trainer's sense of what keeps people showing up, and the follow through to reach everyone who drifted off. Retention Desk runs on a team of AI agents that research your business, draft every piece and check it against your details and our rules. I review each piece and send it to you myself, and I'm the person you talk to.

Based in St. Petersburg, Florida. Working with gyms and studios anywhere in the US.

Questions owners ask

Getting started

Is this only for gyms?

No. It works for any business where people come back every week: yoga, Pilates, barre, dance, pole, martial arts, boxing, cycling and wellness studios. Everything is written in your words, whether you have members, clients or students.

Do you work with businesses outside Florida?

Yes. Everything happens by email and in the tools you already use, so Retention Desk works with gyms and studios anywhere in the US.

What tools does this work with?

Any tool you already use to email or text members, from Mindbody, Glofox, PushPress, Zen Planner or Jackrabbit to plain Gmail. Every piece arrives ready to paste in, and our free software guide shows where to find your win back list in each.

My software already sends automated emails. Why add this?

Keep them. Your welcome journey goes into those automations, or into your email tool if it has none. What most software does not do is pick the members most worth a personal message each month, write that message for a coach to send, and build a fresh win back around a new offer.

Can you connect to my software instead of an export?

Not yet. Today you send one member export a month, and nobody else logs in to your accounts. The form below asks which software you use and whether you would rather connect it, and those answers decide which connections we build first.

How soon does it start?

Your welcome journey arrives for review in your first week, and your first win back campaign in weeks two to three.

What do you need from me?

A 10 minute intake, an export of your member list once a month, the offer you want to make people who left, and a quick approval on each piece.

How much of my time does it take?

About 10 minutes for the intake, loading your welcome journey into your software once in your first two weeks, an export once a month, a quick look at each piece, and the sending: five win back messages over ten days, one member email each Monday and your coaches' check ins. Everything arrives ready to paste, with steps for your software. We ask every pilot how long sending took and will post the real number here once three pilots have told us.

Day to day

Do you email my members directly?

No. Everything goes out from your own email or member app, under your name, and only after you approve it.

Do you use AI?

Yes. A team of AI agents researches your business, drafts every piece and checks it against your details and our rules. Thomas reviews every piece and sends it to you himself, and AI training on your data is switched off.

How many members get a personal check in?

As many as your coaches can send. You tell us in the intake, 20 a month to start and up to 40. New members going quiet come first, then members whose visits dropped, then those who stopped coming most recently. Everyone else the rules flag is still named in your report, with one shared check in email (and a text for members who agreed to texts) to send together.

What if my members ignore email?

Each win back campaign includes two texts for members who agreed to get texts, and the at risk list gives your coaches a personal message to send from their own phones. The code word shows who actually came back, not just who opened an email.

How do you count who came back?

Every win back message asks people to mention a code word, like COMEBACK, at your front desk or reply with it. Your report counts the past, frozen and trial members your front desk or export shows as back, and when you give a range we use the lower number. Some may have come back on their own, so your report says how every number was counted.

Price, terms and data

Is it worth it for a business my size?

The price is the same at any size, so your dues decide it. At $69 a month it takes about 6 members each month to cover the fee, and at $150 about 3; the table under Pricing shows more. Your monthly report says plainly whether the members who came back covered it.

Once my welcome journey is built, what am I paying for?

The journey is yours to keep. Each month you get a new win back campaign, four member emails, your results report with the at risk list and check ins ready to send, and a rewrite of the journey's weakest message.

Is there a contract?

There's no long term contract. It's month to month under our one page service terms, you can cancel anytime, and your member data is deleted when you leave.

Can my price go up?

Not because you gained members. Any change comes with 30 days notice by email, and never during a founding rate's first six months.

Do you guarantee results?

No. Your monthly report shows what happened and how each number was counted, including whether the members who came back covered your fee, and you can cancel any month.

Is sending you my member export safe?

It is used only for your campaigns and reports, never sold and never used for another business, and it is deleted within 30 days after you leave. If we ever learn it was seen by someone it should not have been, we tell you within 72 hours. The details are in our service terms.

Do you work with more than one location?

Yes. Each location is $397 a month and gets its own journey, campaigns and report. A business with several locations counts once toward the first 5, gets the founding rate on every location it has when it starts, and gets one free pilot.

See what your gym or studio is missing.

Choose the free Retention Snapshot, a free pilot campaign, both, or a client guide built for your business. Send me your business name and website or Instagram, and I'll build what you pick in your voice. Already sure? Choose Ready to start, and I'll email you the link to begin.

No cost and no contract. Prefer email? thomassousa@sousaaesthetics.com
Or call or text (727) 490 9963

Start free

What would you like?

For your pilot campaignSkip anything you're not sure of, and the campaign leaves a blank for you to fill in. Your size and price let us show what the pilot is worth in dues.

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