Recreation Center Membership Continuation: The Power of PRICE

Community parks and recreation departments continue to expand the size of indoor recreation centers with more dedicated spaces and an increased scope of services that includes a significant investment into the fitness division of the operation. Many modern community recreation centers require memberships, with the revenue from memberships creating self-sufficiency, and allowing the facility to operate with limited reliance on a declining tax-based support system. Keeping existing members is less work than recruiting new members, and the industry must continue to investigate how specific operation variables influence continuation. This study examined community recreation members’ (three locations; n = 353) perceptions of price, staff, equipment, programs, locker rooms, and facility parking effects on the intention to continue membership. The data were collected online, and the direct effects are examined using SPSS, AMOS, and MS Excel Advanced Statistical Analysis. The results of this research determined that membership price was the primary positive contributor to willingness to continue membership in the overall model and for each of the three locations, staff and equipment were significant in the overall model, yet the importance of these service quality dimensions differed by location. Finding differences at each location demonstrates why each operation needs to conduct regular assessments to track and gain insight into what matters to their unique customer group.