# Gym marketing design: class schedules, promos and signage [Canonical HTML page](https://gradiently.design/guide/gym-marketing-design) A gym's marketing lives in two places at once: on members' phones and on the walls they sweat beside. Here is how to design timetables, promos, challenges and posters that read at a glance in both. ## The short version - Gym marketing design covers class timetables, membership promotions, challenge posts and posters on the gym floor, and works best when all of them share one look. - A class schedule should be organised by day in columns or rows, with times as the strongest element and class names second. - Membership promotions need one offer, one deadline and one way to join, stated plainly without small print in the headline. - Posters inside a gym are read from a distance and on the move, so they need large type, high contrast and very few words. - Common print sizes at 300 dpi are A4 at 2480×3508, A3 at 3508×4961 and an 18×24 inch poster at 5400×7200 pixels. Good **gym marketing design** is readable from across a room and recognisable on a phone. It covers four jobs: a class schedule people can scan in seconds, membership promos with one clear offer, challenge posts that get members talking, and posters on the walls that match all of it. Design them as one family, with the same background, type and colours, and the gym starts to feel like a brand rather than a room full of equipment. The same principle is covered for any business in [brand consistency](https://gradiently.design/guide/brand-consistency). ## Designing a gym class schedule The timetable is the most looked at thing a gym publishes. Members check it daily, often while standing at the front desk or scrolling on the way in. Make times the strongest element, because that is what people search for first, then the class name, then the instructor and the studio. | Time | Monday | Wednesday | Friday | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 06:30 | Strength basics | Strength basics | Strength basics | | 12:15 | Express HIIT | Mobility | Express HIIT | | 18:00 | Spin | Boxing | Spin | | 19:15 | Yoga flow | Circuits | Open gym | A simple timetable layout: times down the side, days across the top. Keep class names short and the same every week. - **Times on the left, days across the top**, so people can scan down for their slot. - **Colour code by type, not by day.** Strength in one colour, cardio in another, calm classes in a third. - **One font**, in two weights at most. Timetables get cluttered fast. - **Changes flagged plainly**, with a cancelled class struck through rather than deleted, so people notice. An A3 portrait gym timetable poster titled This week at the studio, on a bold dark gradient background An A3 timetable poster for the front desk, on the same background as the gym's social posts. ## Gym promotion ideas for new members January, September and the start of summer are the moments people decide to join a gym. A promo post at those times has to do one thing: make the offer clear enough that someone acts on it now. One offer, one deadline, one way to join. Put the conditions in the caption or on the sign up page, not across the headline. A portrait gym promo post reading No joining fee in January, new members, sign up at the front desk or online The feed post: one offer, said once, in large type. A vertical story reading Three days left, no joining fee, offer ends 31 January A story reminder near the deadline, in the same look. Notice there is no price in either design. Prices change and vary by plan, so link to them rather than baking them into an image you'll forget to update. [Sale post design](https://gradiently.design/guide/sale-post-design) covers promo layouts in general. ## Challenge posts that get members involved A gym challenge, such as thirty days of movement, a rowing distance or a squat ladder, gives members a reason to show up and a reason to post. Design it as a small campaign: a launch post, a tracker members can screenshot, weekly updates and a finish. Keep every piece in the same layout so the challenge is recognisable on the wall and on the feed. 1. **Launch post** The challenge name, the dates and how to join, posted a week before it starts. 2. **Tracker** A story size grid of days that members screenshot and tick off. 3. **Weekly update** A shout out to people sticking with it, with their permission. 4. **Finish** A thank you post and a photo from the final session. ## Posters and signage inside the gym Posters in a gym are read from a treadmill, between sets, or walking past at speed. That means huge type, strong contrast and very few words: a headline, one line of detail, and where to find out more. If a poster needs a paragraph, it should be a leaflet at the desk instead. Place posters at eye level where people pause: by the water fountain, the changing room door and the front desk queue, rather than above the mirrors where nobody looks. ### Avoid - Five offers on one poster - Thin type on a busy photo of equipment - Small print that nobody can read from a bench - A different style for every poster on the wall ### Do - One message per poster - Bold type on a calm, dark or light background - The essential detail large, the rest online - One template family across every wall - A5 flyer 1748×2480: 1748 × 2480 - A4 poster 2480×3508: 2480 × 3508 - A3 poster 3508×4961: 3508 × 4961 - 18×24 in poster 5400×7200: 5400 × 7200 Print sizes at 300 dpi, drawn to scale. A3 and 18×24 suit walls; A5 works as a desk flyer. If the background runs to the edge, ask your printer for bleed and crop marks. [Poster design](https://gradiently.design/guide/poster-design) covers layout, and [window signage design](https://gradiently.design/guide/window-signage-design) covers posters facing the street. ## One look from the wall to the feed When the timetable on the wall, the promo on Instagram and the challenge tracker in stories all share one background and one type style, members start recognising your gym's posts instantly. Many gyms land on black, red and condensed capitals. A colour drawn from your own space, perhaps the flooring, the rig or the light through the windows, sets you apart. - Rubber floor: #0d1117 - Steel blue: #1f3b4d - Signal green: #3ddc97 - Chalk: #e8edf2 An example gym palette: dark ground, a steel blue, chalk for type and one bright accent for times and highlights. Gradiently suits this well. Design on one Mark and, on Pro, resize to every format in one step, from an A3 poster to a story, with the background rendered fresh at each size. Print PDF exports include bleed and crop marks, and for gyms with many coaches, bulk create, also on Pro, turns one instructor card and a spreadsheet of names and classes into a card for each. Members see the same look everywhere, and the [fitness coach social media](https://gradiently.design/guide/fitness-coach-social-media) guide covers the posts that bring individual clients in. ## FAQ ### How do I design a gym class schedule? Put times down the side and days across the top, make the times the strongest element, colour code by class type and keep class names short and consistent. ### What size should a gym poster be? A3 (3508×4961 pixels at 300 dpi) or 18×24 inches (5400×7200 pixels) suit walls. A4 and A5 work for noticeboards and desk flyers. ### What makes a good gym promotion post? One offer, one deadline and one way to join, in large type, with conditions in the caption or on the sign up page. ### How do I run a fitness challenge on Instagram? Post a launch a week ahead, share a tracker members can screenshot, post weekly updates and finish with a thank you, all in one consistent layout.