1) What size and types of health clubs do you service?

Our software and payment processing services were designed to work in a very wide range of club types and sizes. We service many small to mid-size clubs such as aerobic studios, pilates, personal training, boxing, and martial arts facilities. We also service many large multi-purpose health clubs (30,000 square feet plus) offering a wide range of member services and programs with member bases ranging well over 5000 members. Our web-based software application is very conducive and cost-effective for running multi-club locations from one central office. This is a big advantage when it comes to servicing our multi-club chain clients. We service anywhere from 3 club chains to businesses with over 150 clubs. There really is no limitation or restriction in the size or type of club we can service.

2) What other services and software features does eFit offer for clubs?

  • EFT bank drafts and credit card debit processing
  • Billing and collection services for delinquent accounts
  • Point-of-Sale and Inventory Control Program
  • Body Measurements and Weight Tracking
  • Guest Passes sent to all new members
  • Birthday Card Mailings
  • Renewal Notices
  • Session Tracking
  • Print Built-in Membership Agreements
  • Guest and Prospect Tracking
  • Membership Cards
  • Timesheet Application

3) How easy is it go get a hold of your customer support people?

One of the biggest frustrations we here about is not being able to talk to a live person quickly and easily. Unfortunately it seems common place for companies to have lengthy auto attendant menus, making it very difficult to talk to a live person that can help you. After taking the time to navigate through their confusing and frustrating auto attendant menus, many times you still end up just going to someone's voice mail where they call you back at their convenience. We choose not to use this automated feature on our phone system and pride ourselves on answering the phone in person. We also have a philosophy of One-Source Customer Service. Everything from sales to tech support is provided under one roof by eFit Financial. This enables eFit to maintain accountability and ensure quality support and service at all times. Many service companies outsource their technical support and other services to a third party. Communication and accountability are lost by pushing you off to a third-party. Without consistent quality customer service, we could not survive. We believe in providing clients with on-going support via our toll-free phone lines, fax, e-mail, and web site. We also provide member services through these same channels.

4) Can I just use your software without eFit doing the payment processing and billing?

Yes, if you are just looking for a simple yet effective club management program, we have a Software Only option for you. This is a good option for those clubs that want to do their own billing and collections but still need a software program to manage their member base. However, in most circumstances eFit can provide payment processing and billing services for far less than clubs can do it themselves in-house. This is one of the big advantages to outsourcing your receivables management to a third party. If you start out using the Software Only option, we make it very easy to switch or upgrade to our Full-Service program. All it takes is a phone call and eFit can take over the payment processing, billing, and collections for your club.

5) Does eFit follow up on EFT and credit card payment returns?

Yes, we immediately contact your members by phone for any EFT or credit card payment returns as well as bounced checks. In addition to making phone calls we send return notices and letters directly to the members home. The follow up is very professional and courteous and we are able to recover this "expected income" much quicker for you. If we are unsuccessful at getting the payment from a member you are not charged a fee. This creates a strong built-in motivation to collect for you because we only get paid on actual monies collected.

6) Is eFit compliant with all PCI and CISP standards?

Yes, eFit is 100% compliant with all CPI and CISP standards. This is the regulatory agency that oversees procedures for credit card payment security. We adhere to a strict set of guidelines for credit card processing, encrypted data storage, and online security.

7) How does eFit's prices compare to other companies in the industry?

Apples to apples we have the lowest overall price compared to any other service company in the health club industry. Our software access fee is only $85.00 per month and our EFT processing fee is only 3.5%, the lowest in the industry. eFit Financial offers a very unique blend of services, products, and support that is hard to find elsewhere in the market. eFit continues to provide the absolute lowest cost of any comparable web-based software, payment processing services, and customer service. Few companies offer the same package of services as eFit, making it difficult to evaluate a true side-by-side comparison.

8) How can your services be so much less expensive then your competitors?

We are able to offer club owners the lowest overall cost without sacrificing customer service or product quality. We have accomplished this by deploying the latest technology, smart management, low overhead, combined with a long-term commitment to our clients. With today's technology we can provide service and support better, faster, and at a lower cost. We take a longevity approach toward sales, not a high volume numbers game. Our ultimate goal is to service a new client for the life of their business. In order to achieve this long-term relationship, we must provide good service each and every day.

9) How are you different from your competitors?

We are the only ASP (Application Service Provider) that has made the substantial investment to properly deploy and secure a web-based application. To provide a true web-based software platform takes a unique blend of dedicated resources of technology, skilled people, and experience. No other company utilizes an Oracle database, the most secure and fastest database for web-based applications. Our technical architecture provides the most data-secure system using digital data encryption, firewall, and world class certified data center for locked-down data storage. We have developed a very robust, feature-rich program that is simple to use. We combine all this technology and software features at the absolute lowest price of any comparable service company.

10) Is your software simple to learn and easy-to-use?

Yes, by servicing health clubs and fitness centers for over 25 years, we have learned the large majority of all club owners are looking for a very simple and easy-to-use software program. With eFit Club Advantage we have all but eliminated frustrating user’s guides, expensive training seminars, and costs associated with ongoing support. Our software program is extremely simple and self intuitive which minimizes training and support. With just a couple of short 30 minute sessions over the phone, we can have you and your staff navigating through the software with complete confidence.

11) What type of features do I have with your member check-in system?

Our check-in program is very feature-rich, giving you the control and tracking you need to manage the check-in process. Members check-in by scanning a barcode card which instantly displays their photo to the computer screen, logs their attendance, and confirms status with a green or red light. A green light indicates the member is current and in good standing. The red light indicates the member is either expired, cancelled, or not in the database. The program also has full audio capabilities containing male or female greeting voices. Special messages can be left for members and flagged upon check-in.

12) What are some advantages of using your web-based software application?

Remote access 24/7: Club owners have the freedom and convenience to log-on to the industry's best club management system. Anywhere. Anytime. Enjoy the flexibility of logging on to your secure program from any computer with Internet access.

Unlimited training, support, and upgrades: Our software access fee of only $85.00 per month includes the following: unlimited access 24/7, unlimited users, toll-free tech support, unlimited training, all upgrades and enhancements, and our member check-in program. Most other traditional software companies charge extra for all of the above items.

Data Recovery: If your computer crashes…no problem you haven't lost anything. Because we are an ASP, your club's "up-to-the-minute" data resides on our servers. Our system acts as a nightly storage and back-up for all your club data (including attendance data and member photos), thus eliminating the hassle of backing up and restoring data locally from your PC.

Simple Networking: You can eliminate the technical headaches and high cost of an internal (peer-to-peer) network. You can have multiple computers logged on using the application at the same time. The Internet provides simple built-in networking capabilities for multiple computers at no additional cost.

13) Will my data be safe? Where is my data stored? What type of security to you have?

Do you ever wonder where your data is going after you hit Enter? Most companies do not have the proper security and technical infrastructure to insure the transportation and storage of your critical data. Many systems move your data over open unprotected Internet connections, making it vulnerable to interception. Member data is first moved over unprotected (non-encrypted data) connections from your club to company's office (point A to point B). The data is then stored on unsecured servers residing locally at their office. In some cases your data is again moved from the company's office to a co-location center (point B to point C) over the same unprotected connections. eFit's security infrastructure locks out unauthorized users by sending your data through encrypted format directly from your computer to our servers, which are located at a locked-down data center.

Your data is stored on powerful servers which reside at Via West, one of the nation's most secure and technologically advanced certified data centers. This is the best and only way to truly prevent access to your critical information. These systems are checked and monitored 24/7 by a technical staff. Our club management software application is powered by an OracleTM database, the most robust and secure database available for web-based applications. Within the Oracle database the data is again encrypted for additional protection. eFit deploys multiple security technologies such as a firewall, and SSL (Secure Socket Layer).

Our system has true built-in redundancy, fail-over, and nightly data backup stored offsite. This exclusive combination of technology makes Club Advantage the most data-secure web-based application in the industry.

14) Is it difficult to switch to eFit services if I'm currently using another company?

No, it is very easy to transfer accounts from your current service to eFit. You start by entering your new members first. We then help you transfer your existing active accounts (data conversion via disk or e-mail file). There are no start-up costs or transfer fees when starting up with eFit. All your existing EFT accounts, paid-in-full, and manual billings will be transferred and entered at no charge, assuring cash flow is not interrupted. As a final step, we'll help clean up the remaining files, which may include past-due members that may not have been serviced properly by your existing service, old pre-paid members, or any expired members that did not renew their membership.

15) How easy is it to get started with eFit?

We make it very quick and easy to get started. There are no start-up fees or minimum charges. We can have your club up and running within just two days. Simply give us a call on our toll-free number at 877-772-3348, and we will walk you through our set-up process step-by-step.

16) How will my members be treated by eFit?

We realize your members are the basis of your club's success. Anytime we contact your members we conduct ourselves in a completely professional and courteous manner. Creating a positive experience makes for a happy member, and a happy member translates in to a long-term paying member. We can help in this process by providing a good check-in system, access to account information, and answers to billing and payment questions. This same attitude is carried through when we contact your past-due members for payment, we remain firm but conduct the conversation in a polite and respectful manner.

The secret of using a third-party management system is to completely separate you from the collection process. It's very important for your members to disassociate club attendance with payment. Trying to collect payments directly from your members puts you in a compromising position, making it difficult to deal with your members should a payment problem arise.

17) Can I enter my own membership data on your system?

Yes, our unique program allows health clubs and fitness centers to enter their own membership data, giving you complete control. This eliminates the need for a third-party to enter your membership data, which greatly reduces data entry mistakes and keystroke errors. At the completion of member entry you can print a built-in membership agreement for the member to sign. The membership agreement can be customized with your club's logo and edited for state regulations, liability waivers, and club rules. This feature eliminates the need and expense to have pre-printed membership agreements.