About Fitness Business Pro's Readers

Mission Statement

Up-to-the-minute management information is vital to successful business leaders in any industry. In a changing and growing field such as fitness, that information is critical.

The traditional fitness industry model has evolved from tennis clubs to gyms to health clubs. That world continues to expand and includes the government, hotels, resorts, corporate, schools and universities, retailers and more. As the independent voice of the entire fitness industry, Club Industry’s Fitness Business Pro aims to help all fitness facilities do their business better by bringing news, trends, analysis, products and ideas to industry leaders.

Club Industry's Fitness Business Pro provides this educational experience in a variety of formats including the printed magazine, e-newsletters, special reports and the Club Industry shows.

The tagline on our cover says it all as to the focus of the publication and our commitment to our reader: “Management News for Health and Fitness Facility Leaders”

Target Audience

Our target audience is owners, CEOs, COOs, general managers, directors and other management professionals at for-profit and nonprofit fitness facilities, colleges and universities, government and military fitness facilities, corporate and medical wellness facilities.

General Considerations

1. Articles submitted are for exclusive publication in Club Industry’s Fitness Business Pro magazine and for use on the Fitness Business Pro Web site.
2. In general, the magazine does not publish unsolicited articles. We follow our editorial calendar closely. The only additions to the calendar generally are our Top News stories and our Industry Observer news items.
3. The time between article acceptance and publication can be one to six months. We cannot guarantee publication in a certain issue.
4. Permission for anyone to reprint the article must be obtained from the publisher.
5. Only articles that have not been published elsewhere and for which we have a writer’s contract will be published.
6. You will notice on our editorial calendar that we run columns on such topics as clubs, technology, spas and seniors. We do not accept queries for these columns; they are written by regular columnists who generate their own materials.

Style Guidelines for Manuscripts

1. We focus on business and management-related issues as well as news and trends about the industry. We are not a how-to publication. Articles should always include a news or trend hook. Monetary issues should be included in all stories where applicable. Tell the reader what this news and/or trend means to them, their business and the industry.
2. We do not send articles to anyone for review (including individuals interviewed for the story). Please do not do so either. If you want to verify facts, please feel free to call the individuals and double check facts with them, but never e-mail, fax or mail your story to them.
3. Articles appearing in our publication are not designed to promote a company or product. Therefore, we do not include company-specific manufacturer information in the articles, and we do not quote manufacturers. Manufacturers and suppliers are not to be named in features; however, some Special Reports include a sidebar that lists all manufacturers of products that pertain to the subject of that Special Report.
4. Please omit literature citations. If you would like to cite prior research or a researcher as background or for added credibility, please do so in the body of the text. For example, “Dr. Joe Smith at the University of America, previously found…”
5. Use active voice (They opened the club two years ago.) rather than passive voice (The club was opened two years ago.)
6. Use the simplest word that makes the point. For example: choose "use" instead of "utilize;" use "rain" instead of "precipitation" event.
7. Do not include your own personal opinions unless you are writing one of our Focus On columns. Any opinions stated in an article should be attributed to the source that offered that opinion.
8. Present all sides of a story whenever possible.
9. Eliminate any information that is not directly related to the subject matter or present that information in a separate sidebar.

Mechanical Requirements

1. Most of our feature articles and Special Reports run from 1,500 to 2,000 words unless indicated otherwise during your discussion with the editor.
2. The simplest way of delivering articles is by e-mail. E-mail the article as a Microsoft Word attachment. (The editor’s e-mail address is: pam.kufahl@penton.com
3. You must send us your signed contract prior to finalizing the article (an editor will mail you a contract). You can fax it to 913-514-6815 or mail it to:
Pamela Kufahl
Club Industry’s Fitness Business Pro
9800 Metcalf Ave.
Overland Park, KS 66212
4. Suggest a short, intriguing title on the first page, but remember that the title may be changed by the editorial staff.
5. Include subheads within the article.
6. Include your name, address, telephone number and e-mail address at the end of the article.
7. Include a list of your sources with their phone numbers at the end of the article so we may call them should we need clarification.

Step by Step Author Guidelines

If you’d like to write for the Step by Step section, e-mail Jennipher Shaver at jennipher.shaver@penton.com with your mug shot, one-paragraph bio and three article ideas. Step by Step authors are required to sign a copyright contract and are not paid for their articles. The columns need to be geared towards the owners or managers of fitness facilities, have a how-to approach and be around 750 words