EMD UK, the national governing body for group exercise, has announced the consumer launch of Class Finder will take place early in the new year, providing consumers with the largest ever online database of group exercise classes.
Class Finder will be the first ‘Expedia style’ group exercise platform promoting instructors’ classes across multiple sites and reaching more consumers than ever before.
Group exercise includes everything from challenging HIIT sessions, bootcamps and studio cycling through to yoga, water fitness and barre classes. Group exercise instructors and venues have just ten weeks to register and include their class details ahead of the consumer launch of the site, which is supported by Sport England and Open Active.
EMD UK has invested heavily in the development of the online database ensuring a great user experience and incorporating open data from a range of sources. The new Class Search function will provide users access to over 45,000 weekly classes using data accessed for the first time through Open Active, and including classes from operators including GLL, Bookwhen and Fusion Fitness.
Class Finder enables instructors to list all their class details in one place, which can also be accessed and shared by other open data publishers. This will revolutionise the way in which instructors reach potential customers. They no longer have to manually log and update their classes in multiple places, which will reduce the administrative burden and also publicise their classes with a much wider audience. Other prominent open data users include Sport England’s This Girl Can, Change4Life and London Sport.
The new Moving Medicine tool launched by Faculty of Sport and Exercise Medicine UK, targeting healthcare professionals with the latest evidence and information to talk to patients about the benefits of physical activity, will also be supporting the launch of Class Finder by linking to the landing page on their website.
Ross Perriam, CEO of EMD UK, said: “We want to make it easier for the public to find their local group exercise class options and get involved in a healthier lifestyle. We believe that using open data is crucial to making that happen.
“Class Finder is an incredible development for the industry as it will enable instructors to increase their visibility and reach a wider audience resulting in more people attending their sessions. With over 45,000 classes available per week already, we are proud to be supporting these inspirational instructors to reach even more of our nation and showcase the benefits of group exercise.”
Group exercise participation is at an all-time high with over one million new weekly participants in the past two years. Class Finder will enable instructors to reach people new to exercise or those looking for a new fitness option. Group exercise ranks consistently as one of the top five most popular exercise formats in the UK and its popularity continues to grow.
EMD UK reached out to group exercise participants to find out what they wanted from a fitness class database and incorporated this feedback into the building of Class Finder. Along with the class name, instructors will be able to share details of timings, cost, location, equipment required, intensity, accessibility and specialist requirements so participants can use search parameters to locate classes for their specific needs.
Jade Cation, Head of Business Development at EMD UK, said: “It was about time something was created to make it easier for group exercise instructors to promote their classes. It is archaic that instructors are having to manually log and update their classes in multiple places. Other industries such as hotels (Booking.com) and travel (Skyscanner) have been using the open data system for years; now fitness can catch up! Using Class Finder will enable instructors to get their classes seen in more places without the administrative hassle.”
For more information or to register your classes on Class Finder, visit https://www.classfinder.org.uk/
