The Evolution of an Ecosystem

Although the term “ecosystem” dates back to the 1930s, it’s only been fairly recently used in relation to health club needs. Originally coined to describe a biological community of interacting organisms and their physical environment, an ecosystem has evolved to encompass any complex network or interconnected system.

In the club world, an ecosystem is truly about connectivity—connecting members to their facilities and to each other and connecting operators to all the member and club data and insights they need to optimize business decisions.

In that sense, an ecosystem, in part, includes, “connected smart equipment, apps, and digital training content that allows people to enjoy a fully personalized training experience thanks to AI technology that adapts the training program to every single individual,” notes Enrico Manaresi, PR and media relations director at Technogym. “On the operator side, it should include an open platform CRM with dashboards, professional applications, and the possibility to integrate third-party software or devices already in use in the club.”

Pioneering Ecosystems

The Technogym Ecosystem—which it has been developing and perfecting for nearly 25 years—is an end-to-end solution. It's able to adapt on the one hand to the lifestyle of each member by offering a personalized training experience tailor-made to members’ needs, passions, and aspirations, and, on the other, to the needs of the operators, thanks to an unprecedented number of integrations with apps and software.

The innovation started back in 1996, when Technogym launched its Wellness System, among the first software systems of its kind, allowing members to start up their equipment based on programs customized to them. The milestones continued from there. In 2002, Technogym offered the first equipment-based personal entertainment systems. In 2007, they debuted the first connected equipment. Five years later, they introduced the Mywellness cloud.

Where Evolution Has Taken Technogym

Today, the Technogym Ecosystem is an open platform that can be easily integrated with software applications—membership software, marketing, and payment platforms, body analysis, and assessment devices—already used by the club or with members’ consumer apps and wearable devices. Moreover, Mywellness, Technogym’s wellness lifestyle CRM, allows clubs to accelerate their digital strategy, improving member experiences and increasing ROI thanks to the surge in the attraction rate, retention, upselling, and secondary spend.

On the member side, the Technogym Ecosystem offers personalized, engaging training experiences, allowing them to track their exercise and gain access to their data stored in different platforms in an easy and seamless way.

Many people want to train both at the gym and at home, with the possibility of remaining connected to their personal trainer, to challenge other members in contests, or run against their best past performances.

To that end, “our equipment, apps, and on-demand video training content keep each member connected to their own, personalized training experience for fitness, sport, or health anytime, anywhere,” says Enrico.

While the Technogym Ecosystem is comprehensive—and growing—these are its core components and integrations:

• Membership software. As an open platform, Mywellness is compatible with more than 150 partner membership management software platforms in 30 countries around the world, with three levels of integration. Mywellness automatically synchronizes membership data and ensures continuity with the software already in use in the club.

• Dashboards. Using open API technology, Mywellness insights can be integrated into third-party websites, dashboards, and business intelligence systems, adapting to the needs of the club and offering constantly updated data.

• App and wearables. Many members already track some of their workout activities within their favorite apps and wearables. The Technogym open platform is compatible with a wide range of apps, such as Strava and RunKeeper, and with trackers like Apple, Garmin, and Polar. It also features the latest integration with Apple Music allowing members to listen to their favorite music while they train. This integration allows members to have all their information recorded in a single app, making the training experience continuous and always connected.

• Assessment devices. This includes training and physical well-being devices. The Technogym open platform offers members the opportunity to synchronize their data—weight, BMI, etc.—within their profile, resulting in the ability to track results over time. This is made possible through compatibility with third parties, such as Tanita, InBody, and Seca professional measuring devices, which allows for body assessment with or without supervision.

• Payments. Through the integration of payment methods such as Apple Pay, Google Pay, Stripe, Visa, MasterCard, and others, the Technogym platform enables the sale of classes and services directly, managing the purchase in person without having to use external payment methods.

“Technogym has been investing for years in our unique digital ecosystem, with the objective of growing the industry, and making it more attractive to end-users and more credible to institutional stakeholders, such as insurance companies, health systems, healthcare providers, and others,” concludes Nerio Alessandri, Technogym’s founder and CEO. “We know we’ve come far, but our goal is to continue innovating and adding apps, digital services, and on-demand content to help the Technogym Ecosystem optimize the member experience and operator ROI.”

To learn more about Technogym, visit their website.