All that glitters is not gold? Opportunities for improvement in the services provided by fitness centers

This article identifies, based on the importance-performance matrix, which attributes fitness academy managers should focus their attention on, with the aim of refining their quality strategies. The results reflect the capture of perceptions from 362 gym users regarding eleven attributes of fitness academy services. Among the main findings, two deserve special mention. First, the service deficit that fitness academy users identified concerning the aspects of changing rooms and bathrooms. Second, exercise equipment and instructors also appear as service weaknesses, due to their high importance and performance below expectations. These are the attributes that demand improvement actions with a greater level of urgency.