Fitness Industry Growth Sparks Increased Interest in Appointment-Plus Personal Trainer Software

Feb. 7, 2013 - PRLog -- Scottsdale, AZ – Appointment-Plus, the worldwide leader in online scheduling solutions and creators of the industry’s most feature-rich and flexible scheduling system, is becoming the personal trainer software tool of choice among a growing number of fitness facilities, trainers and staff as more and more implement the technology into their businesses. This growing trend parallels the projection made by the U.S. Department of Labor in its Occupational Outlook Handbook, 2012-13 Edition, which anticipates employment of fitness trainers and instructors to grow by 24 percent from 2010 to 2020.

The handbook goes on to state that the increased need for fitness professionals stems from more and more businesses and insurance organizations recognizing the benefits of health and fitness programs for their employees, resulting in more incentives to join health clubs, gyms and other fitness facilities.

As the need for fitness professionals increases, so too does the need for an efficient way of scheduling and managing clients’ personal training sessions, classes, programs, events and other fitness-related activities. Appointment-Plus (http://www.appointment-plus.com/scheduling_software/perso...) is the premier online scheduling software solution for automating, improving and simplifying this time-consuming and tedious process, as it enables individuals to instantly and conveniently book their appointments online, without having to call them in or send an e-mail request.

The result is an effective scheduling process for both trainers and their clients.

“Personal trainers and fitness instructors depend on accurate client appointments to properly plan their workday, but scheduling clients in the traditional manner—over the phone or by e-mail communication—is a burdensome task that can add hours of extra time each week to their already busy schedule,” says Bob La Loggia, CEO of Appointment-Plus. “With Appointment-Plus, they can completely automate and streamline the way they book their clients’ appointments, thereby saving time that can now be focused on their number-one priority: their clients’ training.”

Fitness facilities, trainers and instructors that use Appointment-Plus simply place a “Book Now” button or unique scheduler link right on their Web site, Facebook page, newsletter, or in a client e-mail. Once clicked, the client can view availability, specific trainers and services (if configured on a facility-level), and even pre-pay for their appointments. Once confirmed, the system does the rest, without any additional action from the trainer or client. The appointment is automatically booked for the select date and time.

Other beneficial features include:

·        Automated e-mail and text message reminders, which can reduce the “no-show” rate by almost 75 percent.

·        Online client payment options and payment processing.

·        Repeat client reminders.

·        Mobile scheduling apps for Apple and Android phones and tablets.

·        Valuable plug-ins that integrate with common software applications, such as Google Calendar and QuickBooks, in the Appointment-Plus Marketplace.

·        The scheduling industry’s premier customer support department.

Being a cloud-based technology like Facebook, Amazon and e-mail, Appointment-Plus is accessible from any Internet-connected device, including smartphones and tablets, and does not require any downloads or installation to use.  This characteristic also enables a fitness facility or trainer to accept appointments 24 hours a day.

About Appointment-Plus: Launched in 2001, Appointment-Plus (http://www.appointment-plus.com) was the industry pioneer in online scheduling software, utilizing the software-as-a-service (SaaS) business model since its inception. Today, Appointment-Plus is the worldwide leader in mobile and online appointment scheduling software with three million appointments booked every month and nearly a billion dollars in commerce conducted annually through its system.  Its Scheduling Cloud™ API also enables larger organizations to build custom applications on the powerful Appointment-Plus engine, while its integrated Marketplace allows businesses to easily interface with Microsoft Outlook Calendar, Google Calendar, Constant Contact, QuickBooks and other popular business tools to help businesses and organizations manage their operations more effectively, productively and successfully.