One of the keys to our success as a company is we’re in the trenches with you.  As we explained in earlier posts, we aren’t just some software or billing company looking to capitalize on a market - we’re gym owners who came from the .com startup world.  

As I tour around the world visiting gyms, I will often see gym systems which employ a computer/keyboard/mouse and screen as their “kiosk”.  We feel this concept is utterly flawed at best, and lazy at worst.

We do not believe your kiosks should be computer based. And we’ve build a ecosystems of smart-device apps that work together to make your business run smoother.

Why the computer and mouse?

There’s a couple reasons why a “kiosk” would be employed via a keyboard and mouse.  (None of them acceptable).

1. It’s faster to build this way.  Most system are built as web apps, so the easiest and fastest solution is to build another web app as a “kiosk” and force you to use a web system (computer/keyboard/mouse) to use it.
2. It’s cheaper to build this way.  in the same notion as above, building the “kiosk” as a web app hosted via a web page, they don’t have to have specialized development costs in designing and building a native app for a smart device.
3. It requires less skill to build this way.  Smart device development is much more expensive; rather they can leverage the existing web application developers they already have on staff to build a web version of a kiosk.

Why is a computer bad on the gym floor?

1. It’s not scalable.  There’s only a certain amount of space and money you should invest in a kiosk solution.  Each web based system with a TV/monitor, keyboard and mouse requires an excessive amount of precious space - and is very costly to setup.
2. It’s unsanitary.    (Dirtier than a toilet?!) Some systems leverage the kiosk to do checking in, workout result tracking as well as buying products. This means, after a workout (blood, sweat, tears and all), your clients are all using and sharing one keyboard and mouse.  :/
3. It’s slower.  The simple action of approaching a computer, and using the keyboard and mouse to enter data is as much as 20 times slower than using finger gestures on a smart device. Also, generally speaking, the typical “all in one” kiosk setups other systems promote means people queuing up at one central place to do all their tasks.

Why Individual Based Smart Device Based Apps?

1. It’s cheap.  While we support iOS and Android devices, we’ve built all of our apps around the $50 Amazon Fire tablet.  Which means you can pop up as many kiosks as you need, for a fraction of the cost of a computer.
2. It is scalable.  Since we have built each app as their own standalone app and targeted a $50 device, you can literally pop up kiosks for your unique needs.  Have heavy check-in flow? Add another check-in app to the front of the gym.  Do a lot of product sales? Throw another store app by your retail goods.
3. It provides clear cut places to do clear cut things.  Certain actions at the gym logically occur in certain places.  Checking in should always take place before class at an entry point.  If not - how do you know someone has paid and is waivered before entering the gym floor?  Place each of your kiosks in the appropriate place to encourage better customer flow and less confusion.

At PushPress, we do not just do things to get things done.  We do things to get them done RIGHT - and we’re looking to take our clients along with us for that ride.  Yes, building an all-in-one web based kiosk system is easier. But we don’t think it’s right, and we’re willing to put in the work to build the right solution for our clients.

Book a quick 10 minute initial call with us today to see if we’re a good fit for your gym!