From Dashboards to Decisions
Focusing on the metrics that drive engagement and retention leads to actionable insights and smarter decisions.
BY JON FELD
It’s a true paradox: Most fitness operators today are drowning in data but starving for clarity. Dashboards are full and reports are shared weekly, sometimes daily, yet decisions still feel slow, uncertain, or reactive. Marketing pushes for more leads. Operations focus on retention. Leadership debates which numbers matter most. The problem isn’t access to information; it’s knowing which metrics truly drive behavior, accountability, and growth.
“The biggest mistake I see is that operators give their teams access to data without giving them context or coaching them on what to do with it,” says Ben Ludwig, chief operating officer of OHM Fitness HQ and director of advisory and consulting services for APEX Wellness. “Instead of feeling empowered, teams feel overwhelmed. Data should simplify decisions, not complicate them.”
This disconnect between measurement and momentum is where many fitness businesses stall. Metrics become passive scorekeeping rather than active tools for decision-making. Vanity numbers dominate conversations, while the behaviors that truly predict retention and lifetime value go unmeasured or ignored.
The operators who break through this noise don’t track more metrics. They track better ones and embed them into the daily rhythm of their business.
Why More Data Rarely Leads to Better Decisions
Fitness facility operators today have unprecedented visibility into their businesses. CRM platforms track lead flow. Marketing dashboards report impressions, clicks, and conversions. Club management systems capture attendance, revenue, and cancellations. But clarity doesn’t automatically follow access.
“I always suggest operators start simple,” says Jeff Sanders, chief growth officer at Energy Fitness and a member of the HFA Board of Directors. “When you start with too much data or too complex of a dashboard, it becomes overwhelming and hard to know what you’re even looking at.”
The result is decision paralysis. Teams hesitate to act because they don’t know which metric deserves attention or which number signals a problem worth solving. Leaders may feel informed, but staff members lack direction.
Both Ludwig and Sanders point to the same root issue: Data without interpretation doesn’t drive performance. Metrics only become powerful when they are tied to clear behaviors, ownership, and decisions.
Vanity Metrics vs. Metrics That Move the Business
Every fitness business tracks some form of leads, trials, and sales. Those numbers matter. But on their own, they rarely explain why people stay, leave, or disengage.
“A metric becomes a vanity metric if it’s not directly actionable,” Sanders explains. “That changes depending on the goal. If you’re running an ad for leads, impressions don’t matter nearly as much as clicks and form-fills. But if your goal is brand awareness, impressions suddenly become meaningful.”
Ludwig frames the distinction more bluntly: Actionable metrics must tell someone what to do next.
“I use a simple filter,” he says. “If a metric doesn’t clearly tell a person what to do differently tomorrow, it’s not worth measuring regularly. For example, ‘Attendance is down’ is interesting. ‘Members attending fewer than 1.5 times per week in weeks two through four churn at three times the usual rate’ is actionable.”
The second insight points to a specific group, a timeframe, and a behavior that needs intervention. It also suggests ownership; coaches, front-desk staff, or managers can act on it immediately.
Ludwig
Sanders
“The biggest mistake I see is that operators give their teams access to data without giving them context or coaching them on what to do with it.” • Ben Ludwig
Making Metrics Actionable Across the Organization
Identifying the right KPIs is critical in building metrics (see sidebar below). The bigger challenge is ensuring those metrics influence daily behavior across marketing, operations, and leadership.
“Metrics only matter when they’re embedded into the rhythm of the business,” Ludwig says.
That rhythm doesn’t involve reviewing massive dashboards every day. Instead, keep the following in mind:
● Daily huddles should reference one or two key numbers.
● Weekly meetings should focus on trends, not spreadsheets.
● Monthly reviews should connect metrics directly to decisions already made.
“Most teams don’t need more dashboards,” Ludwig adds. “They need fewer numbers discussed more often.”
Sanders emphasizes belief and consistency. “You have to cast the vision of the metric,” he says. “It’s not enough that people understand it. They have to believe it’s vital. Then you review it consistently until it becomes habit.”
When Data Changes the Strategy Entirely
One of the most powerful uses of metrics is not optimization but course correction.
In one consulting engagement, Ludwig worked with owners who were convinced they needed more leads. The data told a different story.
“The modality was new to the market,” he explains. “The issue wasn’t lead volume; it was education.”
Instead of increasing ad spend, they redesigned the first 14 days of the member experience to include:
● Mandatory second-visit scheduling;
● Structured coach follow-ups tied to missed sessions; and
● Clear expectations around frequency.
The results were dramatic: Upfront cash tripled, and lifetime value more than doubled. “The data didn’t just improve a decision,” Ludwig says; “it completely changed the strategy.”
Sanders shares a similar lesson from testing website pricing transparency in which leads increased, but conversion quality dropped. Only by tracking the full journey—from form-fills to new members—did the team realize the experiment wasn’t delivering the intended outcome.
“If we [had] stopped at leads, we would have missed the goal entirely,” he says.
Leadership’s Role: Interpreting, Not Just Reporting
Both Ludwig and Sanders agree that metrics don’t drive culture; leadership does.
“Leadership acts as the interpreter,” Ludwig says. “If leaders only review dashboards, teams disengage. But when leaders translate metrics into priorities—what matters this week and why—teams align.”
Sanders highlights collaboration at the top.
“You need multiple leaders looking at the same data and wrestling with it together,” he says. “Siloed leadership builds walls, not teams.”
When leadership aligns on what the data means—and what actions it requires—teams downstream execute with far more confidence.
“I always suggest operators start simple. When you start with too much data or too complex of a dashboard, it becomes overwhelming and hard to know what you’re even looking at.” • Jeff Sanders
Data as a Growth Engine, Not a Scorecard
When used well, metrics create predictability: revenue stabilizes, retention improves without implementing constant discounts, and staffing becomes proactive rather than reactive.
“Data doesn’t just increase revenue,” Ludwig says. “It reduces uncertainty, and that’s where most operators quietly lose margin.”
Across multiple brands, focused KPI strategies have delivered:
● 10%–20% increases in first 90-day retention;
● Higher attendance without increasing class count; and
● Faster, more confident decision-making at every level.
The biggest lesson, both leaders agree, is simple.
“Metrics don’t grow businesses,” Ludwig says. “People using metrics well do.”
To learn more, attend Jeff Sanders’ session on “The Data-Driven Operator: Turning Metrics Into Momentum” at The HFA Show, March 16-18, 2026, in San Diego.
The KPIs That Actually Predict Retention
Although many operators obsess over top-of-funnel performance, Ben Ludwig, OHM Fitness HQ COO and APEX Wellness director of advisory and consulting services, argues that the most important KPIs live after the sale.
“Most fitness businesses already track lead flow, booking rates, show rates, close rates—that’s table stakes,” he says. “Where operators fall short is what happens next.”
He organizes the most impactful KPIs into three categories.
1. Activation Metrics: The First 30 Days
The earliest behaviors of a new member are the strongest predictors of long-term retention, often far stronger than revenue metrics.
“The first 30 days tell you almost everything you need to know,” Ludwig explains.
Key activation indicators include
● Whether a member returns for a second visit within 48 hours;
● How many sessions they complete in the first two to four weeks;
● Whether they attend at least twice per week; and
● How often coaches interact with them early on.
“A small studio might track this manually,” Ludwig says. “A multi-unit brand needs automation. But the KPI doesn’t change—only the tooling does.”
2. Engagement Metrics: Ongoing Behavior
Once a member is activated, consistency becomes the signal to watch.
“Engagement lives in weekly behavior,” Ludwig notes. “Are people showing up? And when they don’t, does anyone notice?”
Important engagement KPIs include
● Weekly attendance per active member;
● Missed sessions followed by outreach; and
● Program adherence: Are members actually doing what they signed up for?
High-volume gyms should analyze trends across large populations, while boutique and coaching-led models benefit from tracking individual patterns and personalized outreach.
3. Retention and Revenue Quality Metrics
Churn percentages tell only part of the story. The deeper insights lie in how long members stay and what happens before they leave.
“I look at average length of engagement, lifetime revenue per member, freeze-to-cancel ratios, and reactivation rates,” Ludwig says. “A member who cancels after 18 months usually shows declining engagement well before that.”
Energy Fitness Chief Growth Officer Jeff Sanders echoes this focus on quality revenue, especially for recurring models.
“If you’re built on recurring revenue, you have to be tracking EFT added and EFT lost weekly,” he says. “That’s the heartbeat metric. It tells you whether you’re truly growing or just masking problems with one-time sales.”
Key KPIs Every Operator Should Track — read here
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Health & Fitness Business (HFB) is the leading health and fitness industry publication. Published monthly by the Health & Fitness Association (HFA) and distributed free to the industry, HFB offers analysis of the opportunities, challenges, issues, and news that impact the industry.
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