LONDON, 3 October 2023 – ScreenCloud, a market-leading digital signage company, has announced it is integrating Microsoft Azure to its workplace productivity solution. The integration is designed to improve employee engagement and elevate workplace productivity through seamless integration with Microsoft productivity applications. The new solution is available through the Microsoft Azure Marketplace which reduces billing overhead on finance and procurement teams.

ScreenCloud integrates Azure Kubernetes Services and Azure DB for PostgreSQL among other services to deliver a solution that allows organizations to display real-time information from Microsoft applications such as Teams, Power BI, Viva Engage, and SharePoint directly on workplace screens. 

The integration will enable organizations to unlock efficiencies in employee communications and aid in improving productivity and compliance. 

Mark McDermott, CEO of ScreenCloud, noted: "The days of relying solely on video and image files for digital signage are fading fast, ScreenCloud envisions a future where content is dynamically generated from the web, leveraging deep integrations with strategic partners like Microsoft. Our collaboration empowers customers to elevate employee engagement using the content and systems they already have, but now reaching the entire workforce via screens, not just the knowledge workers."

The majority of ScreenCloud's clientele depend on Microsoft's ecosystem, creating and storing content within its various applications. With ScreenCloud solutions pulling information from those repositories, such as Sharepoint files, Power BI dashboards or Teams content, the improved collaboration will drive this even further. Customers will be enabled to utilize more up-to-date content that can deliver insights and better engage employees rather than manually copying across content.

"Frontline workers are the backbone of the global economy," said James Chadwick, ISV Ecosystem Lead at Microsoft Corp.  "By seamlessly fusing Microsoft's robust business technologies with ScreenCloud's expertise in digital signage, we are empowering these workers with insightful, real-time information. The integration aims to enhance engagement, retention, and overall well-being, fostering a happier and more productive workforce."

“Choosing Azure as our hosting platform is more than a technical decision; it's a commitment to our customers,” said Alexander Nikitin, Director of Engineering, ScreenCloud. “Our bedrock principle is the reliability and steadfast security of our systems, ensuring our service's 24/7 availability. With the strength of Microsoft Cosmos DB for Postgres, we can confidently promise enhanced fault tolerance and improved tenant segregation.

“Ultimately, the robust and developer-friendly infrastructure Azure provides accelerates our development process, allowing us to innovate faster and meet the ever-growing demands of our clientele, who will experience the immediate convenience of consolidated billing and seamless Single Sign-On integrations.”

In today’s world, every workplace has become a digital environment, with Microsoft a driving force of the interconnected online spaces. ScreenCloud plays a crucial role by offering the means to access and comprehend these spaces through the use of an often-overlooked, albeit ubiquitous communication medium; screens.

ScreenCloud availability through the Microsoft Azure Marketplace reflects both businesses' aligned values of connecting the modern workplace, streamlining communication channels and improving the well-being of workers. Both companies believe strongly that all technology used in the workplace must have a place and a purpose. It must deliver useful improvements for the lives of employees. This collaboration will make this objective a reality for thousands of deskless workers across the world.

To learn more about what ScreenCloud's partnership with Microsoft means for our customers, click here.

ScreenCloud adopts Azure to deliver a solution empowering enterprises to boost productivity and employee well-being through automated display of real-time content on workplace screens.

ScreenCloud Announces Microsoft Azure Integration, Transforming Workplace Digital Signage

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Our 10,000+ customers share content to hundreds and thousands of employee-facing screens every day – in warehouses, breakrooms, factories, foyers, offices, cafeterias, and depots across their organizations.

That's why we created ScreenCloud Stories, a curated collection of real-world digital signage applications, which shows you how some of the world’s biggest & best enterprise brands drive business-wide impact with screens that communicate.

By partnering with us, most of our customers are looking to improve one or more of the following:

Read ScreenCloud Stories to see how digital signage can help your organization today!

ScreenCloud Stories is a curated collection of real-world digital signage applications, which shows you how some of the world’s biggest & best enterprise brands drive business-wide impact with screens that communicate.

In 2023, the evolution of employee experience and internal communications on the frontline has become a pressing concern for businesses. With basic staff needs often left unmet and a growing disconnect between employers and frontline employees, organizations are faced with the challenge of reestablishing meaningful engagement and communication channels. This blog post explores the current state of frontline employee communication and offers insights on how businesses can address these issues to meet the fundamental needs of their workforce.

Want to know more about the frontline employee experience in 2023? Check out our white paper.

Challenges in Frontline Employee Communication 

Many organizations struggle to effectively communicate with their frontline employees, with only 23% reporting that communications from head office reach their entire workforce. This imbalance often leaves frontline staff in the dark, leading to a lack of engagement and alignment. One major hurdle is the overreliance on email as the primary communication channel, despite many frontline workers lacking access to company email or digital devices. To ensure effective communication, messages need to be tailored to the target audience, and organizations must find ways to reach employees where they are.

Forward-thinking organizations are adopting an 'omnichannel' approach to internal communications, integrating multiple channels to deliver a seamless and consistent experience. By prioritizing impactful channels like digital signage, businesses can effectively reach frontline employees and overcome the limitations of traditional methods. Digital signage allows tailored communications to be displayed throughout the workplace, capturing employees' attention and eliminating the need for them to access emails or intranets outside of work hours. This approach promotes engagement, information retention, and inclusivity across all levels of the organization.

Many organizations face inefficiencies in their frontline workflows, impacting elements such as rostering, internal mobility, and employee reward and recognition. By optimizing these processes, businesses can enhance efficiency, reduce costs, and alleviate the burden on internal resources. However, organizations often overlook simple solutions, such as leveraging digital signage, which can effectively capture the attention of frontline workers and facilitate better communication. By identifying these quick wins and incorporating digital signage into their communication strategy, organizations can improve the frontline employee experience.

Enhancing Health and Safety Communication 

Effective health and safety communication is crucial, yet only 24% of businesses strongly agreed that their compliance communication in this area is straightforward to deliver. Insufficient communication in this regard can have severe consequences, including safety incidents and non-compliance that negatively impact both employees and the company's bottom line. To address this, businesses need to establish regular and engaging safety communication channels. Digital signage can play a vital role in displaying visual reminders and providing timely information that reinforces the importance of safety in the workplace.

Measuring the Success of Internal Communications

Despite the importance of measuring the success of internal communications, 83% of organizations lack an effective way to do so. To gain a stronger voice in the boardroom and validate long-term plans and investments, businesses need to define clear objectives and identify key metrics related to their people function. Employee surveys and data analysis can provide valuable insights into the impact of internal communications initiatives. Additionally, digital signage offers an engaging way to gather feedback and track employee sentiment, contributing to the overall measurement of internal communications' effectiveness.

In the ever-evolving landscape of employee experience and internal communications, meeting the fundamental needs of frontline employees is crucial for businesses' success. By adopting an omnichannel approach, optimizing workflows, leveraging automation, enhancing health and safety communication, and measuring the impact of internal communications, organizations can create a more engaging and connected workplace for their frontline staff.

Interested in learning more about the frontline employee experience? Get our white paper here.

Delve into the state of frontline employee communication in 2023 and uncover strategies to meet their evolving needs – with insights derived from a ScreenCloud survey of hundreds of HR and business leaders across 11 industries. Learn more in our blog and white paper.

The State of the Frontline Employee Experience in 2023

The turnover rate for manufacturing workers is reportedly 500%, nearly eight times the national average. An indicator of employee turnover trends is employee engagement rates, as businesses with highly engaged employees have a 43% positive difference in turnover.

With our last research on manufacturing employee engagement showing digital signage as a cost-effective and reliable method to communicate with the manufacturing floor, we created an infographic with data on how digital signage can improve your organization’s internal comms, drive employee engagement, and connect your factory floor.

With the majority of frontline staff lacking a corporate email address, employers need to get creative with their communication methods. Both automation and technology can solve the problems that plague Operational, Internal Comms and HR manufacturing managers.

Advancing technology not only helps ease communication, but also digital friction; with the amount of apps employees have to use, employees could be losing out on productivity every time they switch apps, thereby making a single sign-on (SSO) function that streamlines communication pivotal to the manufacturing industry.

Non-fatal workplace incidents cost businesses billions of dollars every year. Digital signage offers a noninvasive, customizable and real-time communication line to your frontline to keep your workforce in-the-know on the latest and most relevant safety information.

More specifically, digital signage can help your compliance communication via:

With the high turnover rate within manufacturing employees compared to the average employee turnover rate, HR managers need to be proactive in creating a specialized strategy to further include frontline employees in their organization’s internal comms.

When it comes to the 12 million manufacturing workers in the United States, the top five challenges to employee engagement are: monotonous work; physical demands; limited autonomy; shift work; and safety concerns. An increase in employee engagement not only affects retention, but also increases overall workplace safety, productivity and profitability.

In general, frontline workers are 50% more likely to stay at their job when they’re empowered with sufficient technology. As the latest generation ages enough to enter the workforce, Gen Z are also the most likely to leave the frontline. Since Gen Z is more tech-savy than their previous colleagues, it’s important to implement the technology needed for a smooth employee experience and retain younger candidates rather than alienate them.

Find these facts useful? Keep them on-hand with the full version of our infographic here.

Manufacturing employees are currently facing turnover rates of 500%. Compared to the national turnover rate of 24%, it’s clear that there needs to be a specialized strategy to reach manufacturing employees. With our newest statistics, HR leaders can be informed on how to strengthen their internal comms and hold onto their best talent.

INFOGRAPHIC: How digital signage connects the manufacturing plant floor

You might have heard the term dwell time in relation to online engagement, with the marketing disciplines of SEO, paid search marketing and social media marketing referring to this key metric.

And while improving dwell time is a goal of many marketers online, there are also reasons to improve dwell time in the real world too.

Digital signage is increasingly used to interact and communicate with people in a variety of industries, from retail and hospitality, to offices and warehouses. But why does increasing the dwell time on your digital signage matter? And maybe more importantly, how can you use dwell time to improve engagement with your business goals?

Dwell time is how long someone (consciously) looks at your content. You can also think of it in terms of audience engagement and how long they interact with your content. Usually, especially online, the longer the dwell time, the more likely action will be taken. 

In the real world, a longer dwell time on display content can simply mean they spend more time consuming the information.

It may seem like a relatively elementary metric, but it’s one of the hardest things to achieve when it comes to creating content.  

As dwell time can refer to both online and offline engagement, there are two different processes to analyse dwell times.

When you think about dwell time in the online world, this is actually quite easy to measure. In fact, the simple formula to work out your average online dwell time is as follows:

Dwell Time = (Total Time Spent on Page) / (Total Number of Visits to the Page)

When it comes to good vs bad dwell times, it will depend on your message, branding and even your goals. But in general, a dwell time of over 30 seconds is seen as a positive. A lower dwell time often correlates with a high bounce rate, which is where people click away from your web page.

You can calculate dwell time for individual pages or for the entire website by aggregating data across all pages. Now to gather this data, you’ll need access to your analytics website. That could be Google Analytics or a similar platform. 

When people typically refer to dwell time, they talk about time customers spend on a particular page on your website. This figure can be really insightful when you’re trying to push a product or service, optimize your PPC ads or improve customer engagement on your website.

When it comes to measuring your dwell times in the real world, it can be a little harder. And of course, you're not measuring search results or engagement with ads, but how long people spend engaging with a specific message.

To work out your dwell time data for digital signage, the formula is as follows:

Dwell Time = (Total Time Spent looking at a screen) / (Total Number of people who look at the screen)

Of course, this might be harder to calculate if you can’t track how many people look at your screen daily.

Some helpful ideas to calculate dwell time on your screen are:

Time-series analysis: This is where you track data over a specific period of time, or multiple times, to build up an average. For example, you might manually track engagement for one hour each day over a set period of time to get an average of how long people engage with content.

Cameras: Video analytics can track the number of people in front of the screen and the duration of their presence.

WiFi tracking: If your signage is in an area with WiFi access, you can use WiFi signals to detect the presence of devices (and presumably people) nearby.

You don't have to implement all these strategies to calculate your dwell time. Simply checking to see if people look at your screens and whether they understand the message can be enough.

Running a survey testing if visitors read and understood the content is a good start.

How does dwell time affect digital signage?

Digital signage is what we call a glance medium: you look at a screen, and move on. It’s what happens between looking and moving that is make-or-break – this is the importance of dwell time.

Dwell time affects digital signage the same way it affects other kinds of media, like websites and social media. The longer people spend looking at your screens, the more likely they are to take action, and the stronger the action.

Ultimately, you can fill the time between people looking at your screens and moving on with content that achieves maximum conscious recognition. However, you might only have a few seconds to do so.

Various studies have shown that it takes between 1.5 - 4.6 seconds to pay full attention to content shown on a screen. Some put it as low as 0.7-0.9 (Quividi)

How to make an instant impact with digital signage

When trying to achieve maximum dwell time with any medium, especially digital signage, you need to ask yourself the 4 Ws:

This is effectively understanding your audience or user base, and ensuring you give them what they are looking for, or what they need. And, putting it in a format that they can view and understand easily.

With digital signage, when creating a playlist, there is always the risk of creating something that only you or your company finds informative and entertaining. You know a lot about the product, so you may understandably assume that it’s more compelling than it actually is. Unfortunately, this isn’t going to work when your content has to compete with smartphones and other distractions. 

So, break down these four questions and the way to quickly make an impact with your digital signage will become clear.

Understanding your audience is one of the most important parts of this equation.

Is your audience the general public, or are they company employees?

What kind of demographic are they? Young or old? Local or multi-national? Students or workers?

Are they looking for something specific, or are they just passing by?

Are they in buyer mode, travel mode or work mode?

Is there something they need to know to make their day better?

What do you want to achieve with your content?

Depending on your audience, this could be anything from sales to promotions to event announcements.

What action do you want your audience to take?  Getting someone to make a real-life action as a result of your content is the Nirvana of digital signage; influence purchasing decisions, gain more social media followers or fill your event with participants. 

Timing and smart scheduling is essential. As an example, if you’re using digital signage for a digital menu board, then showing your breakfast menu during the lunch service is not as powerful as showing your lunchtime deals. 

One of the benefits of digital signage is that you can change and schedule your content depending on specific times of the day.

The location of your screens also plays a very large part in the dwell times with your content, and the effectiveness of your message.

Of course, the use case for your screen may also vary - but whether you're setting up digital signage in a hotel or retail store, or in a logistics warehouse, these points all apply:

Is it easy to stop and look at your screen?

Do your screens have any relation to their surroundings?

Are your screens in a high traffic area, or hidden in a corner?

Can people see your content even if they're not right in front of the display?

Make sure it's easy to see your display, both in terms of the screen placement and the size and style of your content.

This means uncluttered messages which can be viewed from a distance.

How to increase digital signage dwell time

Once you've put your displays together, it can often be a case of trial and error to see what works best.

This is especially the case if your content isn't necessarily a focal point, such as a menu board or source of crucial information.

And if you need your content to inspire an action, such as a purchase, a visit or another form of interaction, then working out how to keep your audience fixed on your digital display can be an effective course of action.

These are some of the best ways to improve signage dwell times and, potentially, engagement.

We’ve heard it a thousand times; content is king. If you want to optimize dwell time, content is pretty much a low hanging fruit, and a great place to start. 

Firstly, think about targeting your content by following the 4 Ws (who / what / when / where). If you’re in an office, your audience will glance at your screen more often (and across a longer time period) than customers in a shop. Your playlist and content should reflect this. 

Next, it’s time to incorporate some dynamic content. Let’s be honest, seeing the same content makes people unlikely to look at the screen, which can be detrimental to your efforts. You want to find the balance between repeating content so nobody misses anything, and keeping things dynamic to hold interest and attention.

Speaking of dynamic content, here's another way to optimize your dwell time using content scheduling.

Use your strategy to adjust the display based on factors like time of day, day of the week, or audience demographics. For example, a digital signage display in a gym could showcase workout tips and motivational quotes during peak workout hours, while promoting smoothie specials and recovery products during quieter times.

Fresh content isn’t difficult to achieve; show news via the Live News or RSS Feed apps, create a social media wall to show real-time posts with Taggbox or Walls.io (great for user-generated content too), or schedule a countdown to your next promotion or product launch. 

Apps like Canvas also mean you can create on-brand posters, signs and notices that you can edit directly in ScreenCloud, with changes shown immediately across your screen network. 

Use the who / what / when / where principles to come up with content ideas

Schedule content to sync with peak and quiet hours

Use tools like Canvas and Live News to your advantage

You can use screen placement to enhance the content you’re showing. Strategically place your digital signage in high-traffic areas where it's likely to attract the attention of your target audience. 

Also think about factors like eye-level visibility, proximity to points of interest, and optimal viewing angles. For example, a digital menu board at a fast-food restaurant entrance can grab the attention of customers as they enter, leading to increased dwell time and sales.

Promoting a sale item? Position those items near your screen for immediate impact. You may also want to push smaller impulse buys at the most convenient locations. In a retail store for example, this would be near the check-out register (studies have shown that this approach is effective in 87% of shoppers.)

Incorporating interactive elements into your digital signage can encourage viewers to engage with the content for longer. Luckily, there are many ways to do this, including:

For example, a retail store could feature a virtual dressing room where customers can try on different outfits using gesture-based controls. An experience like this will see dwell time sky rockets. 

You can take things one step further by adding ambient music or sound effects. Some studies have shown that ambient sounds can improve focus and attention. This is also why tech companies like Apple invest so much in unique sounds for their products. Ambient sound effects can shape our entire experience.

For your digital signage, you can consider using subtle background music or soundscapes to create a relaxing environment or incorporating sound effects that correspond to on-screen actions or events. For example, a digital signage display in a retail store could feature soft background music and the sound of a cash register ringing during promotions, immersing customers in the shopping experience and encouraging them to browse longer.

Improving dwell time is a one of the key metrics for online marketers. But how can you improve dwell time in the real world using digital signage?

Dwell time is how long someone (consciously) looks at your content. You can also think of it in terms of audience engagement and how long they interact with your content. Usually, especially online, the longer the dwell time, the more likely action will be taken.

How Dwell Time in Digital Signage Affects Your Business

Computers are so ubiquitous that you often forget they’re even there. Sure, every employee has one on their desk, and every company spreadsheet is actually stored on a server somewhere, but that’s only scratching the surface. Tiny computers power everything from smart kitchen appliances to car entertainment systems to your office’s digital bulletin board. 

Mini PCs and PC sticks are fantastic options if you need a small, basic, cheap computer to display messages, updates, and dashboards. Both are typically more powerful than devices like the Chromecast with Google TV while retaining the small form factor. There aren’t strict definitions for mini PCs and PC sticks, though, making it hard to find and pick the best device for your end goals.

A mini PC, sometimes known as a small form factor (SFF) PC, comes with almost all the same hardware that a laptop or desktop computer has but with a smaller footprint. Granted, mini PCs are not as fast as larger computers, but they have a processor, RAM, storage, and ports for connecting peripherals like monitors, keyboards, and mice. They can run operating systems like Windows, ChromeOS, or Linux and can handle basic web browsing, productivity apps, and multimedia playback.

Depending on the specs and configuration, a Mini PC is usually around the same size and shape as a hardcover book. Some are optimized for lots of onboard storage, some for faster processors, and some for specific use cases, like powering tradeshow kiosks, security systems, or digital signage screens.

Since there’s no universal standard for mini PC specs, it isn’t easy to establish a narrow price range. Asus’s Chromebox 5, for example, has variants ranging from $299 to $980, all with the same size dimensions.

Generally, we recommend looking for a mini PC from a reputable manufacturer with at least 8GB of RAM, 128GB of storage, and a VESA mount. Some of our favorites include MSI’s PRO DP21 or their Cubi 5, Apple’s Mac Mini, and Asus’s ExpertCenter PN64 or Chromebox 5. PCs are less powerful than any of those options and don’t have any advantages over a smaller form factor device like a Chromecast with Google TV, Station P1 Pro, or PC stick.

A PC stick, also known as a computer stick, is like a mini PC that’s been shrunk down to the size of an oversized USB flash drive. Stick PCs have a processor, RAM, and storage, but one thing that sets them apart from mini PCs is that instead of connecting to a screen or monitor via HDMI cable, stick computers have an HDMI output attached flush against the body of the device.

While they tend to look almost identical to Amazon’s Fire TV Stick, PC sticks are around 3-4x larger and often come with slots for USB, microSD, ethernet, and other inputs. Their processors are almost always less powerful than a mini PC but sometimes come with as much as 8GB of RAM and 256GB of storage.

It’s getting harder to find a PC on a stick than a few years ago. In 2015, we got both Intel’s incredible Compute Stick and Asus’s Google Chromebit. Unfortunately, both had short runs, with no ongoing software support or follow-up generations. Today, your PC stick options are limited to MeLE’s Fanless PC Stick, Azulle’s Access4, or, when speed isn’t essential, the AIOEXPC PC Stick, with prices ranging from $130 to $310.

Like all hardware purchases, beware of anything that doesn’t have at least 100 reviews or sufficient documentation. Too-good-to-be-true deals from unknown dealers come with malware and extremely unreliable performance.

How to know if you need a mini PC or a PC stick

Depending on your use case, you’ll likely want to prioritize one of three hardware variables: processor speed, RAM, or onboard storage. Plenty of other minor differences affect how and where these types of devices work best, but for most people, they’re too in the weeds.

If you’ll need your computer to handle a lot of user input (e.g. editing images or PowerPoint presentations) or multitasking, processing power will be priority number one, go with a mini PC. 

Lots of RAM has benefits similar to those of a faster processor. But it can also play a significant role when running a standalone, mostly passive app that renders a lot of data (e.g., dashboards, data visualizations, etc.). For use cases when your PC needs to access and manipulate large datasets, go with a mini PC with 16GB of RAM.

On the other hand, if you’re looking for more of a basic media player (e.g., digital signage or an advertising screen), try to estimate how much storage space your content will take up and go with a PC stick if the total is 128GB or less.

Digital signage screens powered by mini PCs and PC stick

Remotely pushing employee and customer engagement messages to screens is one of the most effective uses of small form factor computers. The best digital signage devices have a low profile and rarely require significant processing power, RAM, or storage. Sub-$50 streaming sticks can get the job done but have a low ceiling for capacity, compatibility, and customizability. A full-blown PC running a familiar operating system opens up all kinds of options.

If information-sharing is your primary goal, a PC stick would be more than enough to power a simple slide that consolidates notifications from several team apps or combines separate calendars into a single source of truth.

Upgrade your setup to a mini PC, and you could create more powerful, professional signage, like a screen that moderates user-generated content or a dashboard with an independent zone for showing upcoming office or clinic visitors. And when you want to push more to your screen than the hardware can handle, you can always turn a mini PC into a thin client that merely “streams” content handled by another computer in the cloud or on your local network.

Create screens that communicate with hardware you already have

All it takes to create eye-catching signage is a screen and a WiFi connection. Mini PCs and PC sticks are a convenient, affordable way to add more power to older displays, but they’re not the only option. You’re spoiled for choices when it comes to digital media players, with passable devices as cheap as $35 and high-end hardware coming in just under $600.

ScreenCloud’s compatibility with Android, ChromeOS, Windows, and MacOS, combined with its free 14-day day trial, means you can start experimenting with digital signage in just a few minutes. Plug in that old screen you have lying around, plug in an internet-connected device, and start building!

Mini PCs and PC sticks are fantastic options if you need a small, basic, cheap computer to display messages, updates, and dashboards on a TV.

Mini PCs vs PC Sticks: Differences and use cases for each

You’ve done it! You’ve created a fitness class that you know people are going to love. You’ve planned the routine, you have an amazing space and music to make people want to move.

Then it gets to the allocated time slot…. and no one turns up. Perhaps you get a few people but your class could take so much more. Plus, these are barely enough students to keep your class running.

Whether you’re a fitness club owner, sports center manager or personal instructor, promoting your class is always going to be one of the main challenges to overcome. The good news is the fitness, health, and gym industry pulled in $30.6 Billion in revenue in 2022 (statistica). Your students are out there, you just have to find them.

We’ve put together some of the best tips for promoting fitness classes using modern methods and available technology. These should get students dropping through your door in droves. We’ve also included a few radical tips that could help you stand out from the crowd when pushing your classes.

Instagram is a low-hanging fruit because it has a huge user base — there are 2 billion monthly active users after all. It's also popular with a wide range of age demographics including 18-29-year-olds (59%) and 30-49-year-olds (33%). If your target audience sits within that bracket, it can be a great way to promote your fitness classes (source).

Some of the tactics you could use on Instagram include:

Reels, even for brand pages, have a much higher engagement rate than regular posts (source) and are relatively simple to create. It could be as straightforward as taking an image or video or using pre-created templates.

A tool like Adobe Spark, or Canva, will allow you to create a graphic in the custom dimensions 1080 x 1920, which is perfect for uploading to Instagram stories with images or information about your class.

Remember that Instagram is a visual medium, meaning that you want highly engaging visuals that stop those fingers from scrolling. Whether this is your class doing exercises, tips and advice to inspire your audience, or fun images of your team or fitness club, make sure to hook your viewers with instant action and good preview images.

Posts on Instagram with a location receive 79% more engagement (Atisfyreach) and for a fitness class that will take place in a specific area, this can be really useful for attracting locals.

Simply add location stickers to your Instagram stories and check in on your actual posts to make yourself more visible.

Even for general health tips, it can be a good idea to tag your venue, or at the very least your city or region.

Accounts that perform well on Instagram tend to have consistency across the content they produce, the branding and their posting schedule.

Make sure that when people look at your account, they can clearly see your theme and even the subjects of your content at a glance. This means taking time to create engaging preview images and title cards.

Images are good, but video is better. Using video is proven to provide higher engagement on social media and Instagram is no different.

This doesn't necessarily mean that every post needs to be a video, but it will most likely be your best performing content. Run a few tests to see what works best with your audience with regards to content types, video styles and other formats.

The decline of Facebook is very much overstated. In fact, this is still one of the biggest social media platforms, catering heavily in the US to millennial women. Statistics show that 54.7% of Facebook users are women and that 70% of them are between 18 and 29 years old (backlinko). 

Whatever your audience, Facebook remains a great place to promote your fitness classes. You’ll also want to consider doing some Facebook Live videos. Now, the benefit of using it, over say pre-recorded video, is that Facebook notifies your page fans when you’re “Live” in a video so that they don’t miss it. 

Some tips that will help you to make the most of your broadcast include:

You want to build anticipation so that when you hit “Live” your audience is aware and already there, waiting to watch. One of the ways you can do this is by coming up with a specific broadcast, rather than just plugging into a fitness class in action. 

For example, why not do a Q&A with you answering your client’s most common questions? Sharing knowledge is a great way to attract viewers and remove those paint points.

In the same way you might use a Q&A approach, think about what your audience might gain from watching your Facebook Live. Will they learn how to do a new exercise, how to improve their form, or why one exercise might be more effective than another? 

One pitfall many people make is treating their Facebook Live like it’s pre-recorded when you’re “Live”. Remember that viewers can send in questions and respond to your comments. You can and should use that opportunity to create a two-way street.

You could use a fitness challenge in several ways to promote your class. One idea is to offer the challenge to your current students, get them excited and push them to chase their goals. You could also use the challenge to draw in new students. 

Pick the right season for your challenge to get the maximum effect – New Year, after a celebration, or just before the summer when people are focused on their body goals are all good periods.

Sometimes, just creating the challenge may be enough if you’re managing a small community. Or, you could go big and create flyers, hold a fun run with your class students, or use the other tips on this list to promote the challenge.

If you have a lot of spare spaces you could look at a corporate scheme or offer for a group of people who might all sign up at once. This is great for approaching companies and asking them to invest in a gym fitness program for their employees.

Many companies are under pressure to encourage physical activity in their employees and reduce the strain of working in an office all day. Present the idea that not only will the employees benefit, and be more likely to attend when their peer group is interested, but that the company will benefit too.

If it's a hard sell, remind them that, according to a recent study, employees who exercise regularly are 13% more productive at work.

As you know, many people will turn to Google when looking for a new fitness class in their area. And the ideal situation is that your website appears on the first page of Google for some of the main search terms related to your activities. Organic search, or SEO (search engine optimization) is the process by which you create content to rank for your services.

Optimized pages on your website (landing pages)

Content for sites such as Medium, Reddit or local news websites

Tools like Google Trends and Google Keyword Planner can help you to discover not just the keywords people use, but when those keywords are most popular too.

A peak in traffic for the search term “fitness classes” in January is perhaps not surprising. But you can also spot the trends over time for a variety of activities or types of fitness services.

This is a great way to attract local search traffic to your fitness class that will be relevant to potential members. Try to find the keywords your audience would be searching, for example, “body pump class near Charlotte”. You can then create blog posts or landing pages which are designed to answer questions related to these queries to make it discoverable.

If you feel yourself getting overwhelmed, just keep these tips in mind:

Try to create content that answers core questions (for example 'How can I lose my winter belly?') and offer useful and actionable advice

It's fine to sell your service, but make the bulk of your content about them, your audience, and answer their problems

Keep your headers and page names short and insightful

Don’t forget to include your business contact details on your website

Where possible, try and add descriptive tags to your images and videos

Use language that your potential customers can relate to and understand

You may be asking, “How do I create a fitness ad?” especially if you’ve met other instructors with similar results. Online ads can help you connect more directly with your ideal audience. And despite being one of the more expensive options on this list, they can be very effective – 49% of people click on text ads and 16% on video ads (Zipdo)

Online ads for fitness classes deserve an entire guide of their own, but for now, keep these simple tips in mind

For fitness classes, social media platforms like Facebook and Instagram are excellent choices due to their highly visual nature and ability to target specific demographics. You could also think about fitness-focused websites or forums where your target audience is likely to hang out.

Google ads are also a useful platform and can be perfect for local searches.

People are drawn to eye-catching visuals, so make sure your ad stands out. Use high-quality images or videos that show off your classes, facilities, or happy clients breaking a sweat.

Everyone loves a good deal, so consider offering special promotions or discounts in your ads to entice potential clients. It could be a free trial class, a discounted membership package, or a referral bonus.

Don't forget to include a clear call to action in your ads prompting viewers to take action, such as "Sign Up Now," "Book Your Spot Today," or "Learn More." Make it easy for people to engage with your ad and take the next step towards joining your fitness classes.

Once your ads are live, monitor their performance closely to see which ones are driving the most engagement and conversions. Use analytics tools provided by the advertising platforms to track metrics like click-through rates, conversions, and return on investment. This data can help you refine your ad strategy and optimize future campaigns for better results.

How many gym members do you already see each day or each week? Often, current members have untapped potential for signing up for fitness classes, but we still look outside for new members.

Digital signage can be a useful tool to reach passing trade, which can also mean people within your venue.

Now, you’d need to already have digital signage installed in your gym space or studio for this to work. Unlike ads and Instagram marketing, digital signage is restricted to the screens you own and manage. That means people need to physically be in your space.

But once they are, you can accomplish so much with your digital signage. Here are just a few ideas:

Showing a discount on your fitness class, a special offer, or even featuring a “member of the week” is a great way to make the most of your screens.

The Noticeboard app from Screencloud allows you to create and display custom messages with imagery, logos and more.

Had enough of under-booked fitness classes? We look at the best ways to promote your gym classes and fitness sessions using techniques from ads to signage.

Whether you’re a fitness club owner, sports center manager or personal instructor, promoting your class is always going to be one of the main challenges to overcome. We look at how to promote your gym classes using different methods.

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