Avery Fitness Center Data Case

The Avery Fitness Center Project

The Avery Fitness Center is located in a mid-size city in the southeastern United States; the company offers a variety of exercise programs to its member under the supervision of personal trainers. The company was founded 10 years ago and operates from a single location in an old shopping center near a large university. AFC primarily targets older men and women. Some of the members are struggling with health issues. Many customers are attracted to the large indoor therapy pool that allows exercise using water resistance, which is much easier on bones and joints than traditional exercise options. Individuals become members of the fitness center by paying a monthly fee; they pay additional fees for special classes, use of personal trainers, etc. Although business had been steady, AFC managers believe that the company could grow substantially without adding additional facilities. As a result, AFC managers are interested in better understanding the kinds of individuals that are attracted to AFC an how best to recruit more of these kinds of people. More specifically, the AFC researchers are addressing two research problems (1) Determine member demographics and usage patterns and (2) investigate how members learn about AFC.

To address these research problems, researchers decided to conduct an online survey of AFCs customer base. Customer was defined as any individual in the company’s member database who had visited AFC at least once in the previous 12 months. Surveys were sent to 400 members drawn using a simple random sample; respondents completed and returned 231 usable surveys for a response rate of 58%. Survey respondents were then matched with total fees paid over the next 12 months. After editing, coding and cleaning the data, the researchers were ready to begin data analysis.