Browsing by Author "Meireles, Pedro"
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- Bem-estar na vida vs bem-estar no ginásio: relação com a retenção de sóciosPublication . Gonçalves, Celina; Meireles, Pedro; Carvalho, Maria JoséThis research aims to understand if the well-being in life (WBL) and well-being at the fitness club (WBC) is related to the fitness members’ retention. Several investigations mention the relationship between physical exercice (PE) and well-being (WB). Although wellness is influenced by multiple factors, it can also be maintained through participation in physical activities (Warburton, Nicol, & Bredin, 2006). Conscious fitness consumers towards performance also better perceive their WB (IDEA, 2000). In this regard, both consumers and the interaction between PE and wellness require a better understanding. Barros and Gonçalves (2009) add that the happier the consumer is, the happier he will feel and, consequently, longer will be retained (Gonçalves, Biscaia, Correia, & Diniz, 2014). Data were collected from a health club with a sample of 151 members. The questionnaire consisted of three parts: sample characterization; WBL and WBC (Diener, Suh, & Oishi, 1997) and 5 items for retention (Ferrand, Robinson, & Valette, 2011; Gonçalves et al., 2014). A pilot study was conducted with 30 members, elaborating the final version of the instrument. The analysis was performed with SPSS software, version 22, using descriptive and inferential analyses, multiple linear regressions and Cronbach's alpha was used to analyze the internal consistency of WBL (α=0.907), WBC (α=0.870) and retention (α=0.866).This model demonstrates good adjustment (F=121.233 (p<0.001); R2 0.629), has no multicollinearity issues and exhibits good percentage of explained variation (62.9%). The WBC shows a statistically positive contribution to predict retention (p<0.00). Although WBL has a positive regression coefficient, it is not statistically significant to explain retention (p<0.294). The analysis of the consumers’ WBC is important so the potential dropout risks can be detected. Also, BEV analysis is fundamental to understand the potential fitness consumer and the relation of PE with happiness.
- Consumer behavior in a fitness gym and Health Club: study of frequency, satisfaction and retentionPublication . Meireles, Pedro; Gonçalves, Celina; Carvalho, Maria JoséThis study aims to understand the relationship between the frequency of use, satisfaction, and retention of members in fitness, in a Health Club located in Oporto. In the fitness market it is indispensable to understand the characteristics of faithful members, in order to act appropriately with each segment. Accordingly, the frequency which a member goes to the gym (Ferrand, Robinson & Valette, 2010), their satisfaction (Gonçalves, 2012) and retention of members in fitness - if the members remain subscribed for a long time and influence other people to become members (Alexandris, Zahariadis, Tsorbatzoudis & Grouios, 2004) - are key variables to understand them. Data was collected in 2014, with a sample of 146 members of the studied fitness club. The instrument was constituted by the sample characterization and another part containing questions to understand the behavior of fitness consumers: frequency of use, satisfaction and retention. Subsequently it was conducted a pretest with 30 members and based on these results the final version of the instrument was prepared. The statistical analysis was performed with SPSS software: descriptive and comparative analyses were performed. Cronbach's alpha was used to assess the internal consistency of the satisfaction and retention items. In this study the percentage of those going three or more times to the gym is significant (64%; n=96). These results are consistent with satisfaction in the gym since most members are very satisfied with their gym, intend to remain (92.5%; n=138) and would recommend the gym to others (84.2%; n=123). The results indicate that the health club managers must act to keep those who are less likely to remain, those with less frequent use, and have a lower satisfaction and consequently lower retention.
- Consumer behavior: case study of a fitness club on frequency of use in satisfaction and retention.Publication . Gonçalves, Celina; Meireles, Pedro; Carvalho, Maria JoséThe purpose of this study is to understand the relationship between the frequency of use, satisfaction and retention of members in a fitness Club in Oporto. Understanding the consumers’ behavior in fitness industry is important, in order to act accordingly to their needs and, consequently, increase the fitness clubs yield, keeping more and better members (Ferrand, Robinson, & Valette, 2010; Gonçalves, Biscaia, Correia, & Diniz, 2014). This is particularly crucial when the activity reports show a decreasing number of permanent members. Talley (2008) refers to the frequency of use among a set of variables directly linked to increased adherence, while Ferrand et al. (2010) refer that regular frequency of the fitness club is vital to members’ retention and impacts positively on the clubs’ profitability. Similarly, Gonçalves et al. (2014) studied a set of variables that influence retention but only mentioned the frequency of use as a key variable for future studies of members’ retention in fitness and MacIntosh and Doherty (2005) support that the frequency of use is relevant to understand the decision to remain at a fitness club. Moreover, the authors add that the frequency that the member goes to the club is synonym of his satisfaction at the club (Alexandris, Zahariadis, Tsorbatzoudis, & Grouios, 2004) and, consequently, his decision to remain there. Method The surveys were distributed by an experienced interviewer in a club located in Oporto. Members were asked to participate in the study when arriving at the club, and the surveys were self-administered. Data was collected in 2014, with a sample of 146 members. The instrument was constituted by the sample characterization and questions to understand the behaviour of fitness consumers: frequency of use, satisfaction and retention. The frequency of use variable was suggested in literature (Ferrand et al., 2010) and by fitness managers (Talley, 2008). Satisfaction in the club was measured using 5 items based on Diener et al. (1997) scale and general satisfaction was measured using a single item based on Alexandris et al. (2004). Retention was measured using 5 items [e.g. recommendation (Alexandris et al. (2004)] based on literature. All items were measured with a 7-point Likert-type scale (1=strongly disagree, to 7=strongly agree). The statistical analysis was performed with SPSS. Cronbach's alpha was used to assess the internal consistency of the satisfaction and retention items (α=0,933). Results In this study the percentage of the members going three or more times to the club is significant (64.0%; n=96). The results show high overall satisfaction levels. Also, the different items of cognitive assessment of satisfaction at the club are highly assessed, especially when referring to the positive experience at the club (91.1%), the level of satisfaction (90.3%) and considering themselves happy at their club (87.0%). Regarding retention, almost all the items show that the members are retained, as the majority intends to remain at the club. Most say that if they were to subscribe now, they would make the same decision of choosing that club (87.0%) and intend to recommend the club to family and friends (84,2%). However, a lesser percentage plans to buy more club services’ (44.5%) indicating that this item can’t be valuable in assessing retention. Moreover, for the comparative study, the results show no significant relationship in the frequency of visits to the club with the overall satisfaction, satisfaction with the club and with the retention. Discussion and implications These results are in accordance with the study of Gonçalves et al. (2014), which also didn’t indicate any significant relationships between variables and against the study of Ferrand et al. (2010) and some practice references (Talley, 2008), which state that managers consider the frequency of use as a predictor of satisfaction and a determinant factor of members’ retention. Thus, these results suggest better research and analysis in this and other clubs, since generalized conclusions to fitness can't be drawn. However, although not mentioned in this study, it appears to be important that managers make an effort to encourage customers to attend the club more often so that its profitability remains positive. Yet, it is suggested that the clubs’ context and characteristics deserve a continuous study of the satisfaction and retention comparing to the frequency of visits to the club. The results indicate that the fitness club managers must act to keep those who are less likely to remain, those with less frequent use, and those who have a lower satisfaction and, consequently, lower retention.
- Consumer behaviour in Fitness Club: study of the weekly frequency of use, expectations, satisfaction and retentionPublication . Gonçalves, Celina; Meireles, Pedro; Carvalho, Maria JoséThis study aims to understand the relationship between the weekly frequency of use, expectations, satisfaction and retention of members in a fitness Clubs. In this market it is indispensable to understand the characteristics of faithful members, in or- der to act appropriately with each segment. Accordingly, the weekly frequency, which a member goes to the gym, their ex- pectations, satisfaction and retention are key variables to understand them. Data was collected with a sample of 146 members. The instrument was constituted by the sample characterization and questions to understand the consumer behaviour in fitness (weekly frequency of use, expectations, satisfaction and retention behaviours). The statistical analysis consisted on descriptive and inferential analyses, using SPSS software. In this study the weekly frequency did not show the explanatory capacity to predict the satisfaction and retention. The relationship between expectations with satisfaction (73%) and retention (64%) was statistically significant. Finally, the relationship between satisfaction and retention (63%) was positive and significant. The results indicated that fitness club managers must act to keep those who are less likely to remain, who aren’t the ones who go less times a week to the club, but those who have a lower satisfaction and, consequently, lower retention.
- Perceção dos atributos do serviço antes e após o reposicionamento: estudo de caso de um clube de fitnessPublication . Gonçalves, Celina; Meireles, Pedro; Carvalho, Maria JoséA presente investigação tem como objetivo perceber se existem diferenças na perceção dos sócios de um clube de fitness, antes e após o seu processo de reposicionamento estratégico. Foram recolhidos dados no respetivo Clube de fitness em 2009, amostra com 154 sócios, e recolhidos novamente, depois do reposicionamento estar estável em 2014, com uma nova amostra de 151 sócios. O instrumento utilizado foi parte de um questionário, já validado para o mercado do fitness em Portugal (Gonçalves, 2012), sobre a perceção dos serviços de fitness. A análise de dados foi realizada com o software SPSS Statistics efetuando-se análise descritiva (através de medidas de localização, medidas de dispersão, medidas de forma, tabelas de frequências e diagramas de barras). Utilizou-se ainda o coeficiente alfa de Cronbach para analisar a consistência interna geral do questionário e por dimensão. Os resultados indicam que a identificação do clube não foi alterada com o reposicionamento, pois os sócios continuam a reconhecer o seu clube como familiar e diversificado. A perceção geral sobre o clube, ou seja a diferenciação, melhorou após o seu reposicionamento estratégico, contudo, nem todos os atributos das suas dimensões têm o mesmo valor para o sócio. No presente estudo é a dimensão Imagem que contém os itens melhor percecionados pelos sócios, em ambas as recolhas, embora esta perceção tenha sido melhor, em 2014, após a alteração de posicionamento. As dimensões Recursos e Serviços, seguem-se à Imagem, evidenciando-se igualmente uma melhoria na perceção após o reposicionamento. Assim, o presente estudo reforça a importância da contínua investigação da perceção dos atributos do serviço para cada contexto para se perceber quais os atributos que devem ser mantidos, melhorados ou mesmo alterados, bem como, demonstra a importância da constante adaptação das organizações de fitness às exigências do mercado.