Why 45% of People Who Book Our Events Don't Show Up, And What We've Learned
After six years of running events for workplaces, residential communities, and public runners across Birmingham, we've noticed a pattern that doesn't show up in the highlights reel, but that tells us everything about the people we're trying to reach.
A lot of people book onto fitness events and simply don't come.
Not a few. A lot.
The numbers that stopped us in our tracks
We started tracking our attendance data properly a couple of years back, and what we found wasn't entirely surprising, but it was striking enough to change how we think about our work.
Now, we're not sharing this to have a moan. And we're certainly not pointing fingers.
Life is genuinely busy, and things do get in the way.
Work runs late. Energy disappears. Plans change. And, well, this is Birmingham, the British weather has an uncanny ability to storm in at precisely the wrong moment.
But the more conversations we've had with our community over the years, the more we've come to understand that the reasons people don't show up are far more nuanced than a clash in the diary.
The reason nobody talks about
Here's what we've learned after doing this for six years: sometimes people don't come because they're nervous.
“Sometimes the barrier isn’t interest. It’s confidence. And that’s worth remembering when judging the success of any wellbeing initiative.”
Not nervous in a dramatic, life-or-death way, but quietly, privately nervous in a way that's very easy to dismiss and very hard to talk about. Before the event, the worry can feel completely overwhelming.
They worry they'll be too slow and hold everyone back
They don't know a single person and dread the awkwardness
They're convinced they won't fit in
They doubt their ability to keep up, or even finish
They panic about being left behind, literally and figuratively
They've quietly convinced themselves they're "not really a runner"
They're carrying something heavier, anxiety, low mood, or something they haven't named yet
And so, on the time of the event, it's easier to just… not go.
The booking gets quietly shelved (especially if it’s free and they haven’t lost money. The kit stays folded. No one need ever know.
What the data doesn't tell you
When we look at our attendance figures, the raw numbers tell us who showed up. What they don't tell us is who almost did.
In the world of corporate wellbeing and community fitness, we've often heard programmes judged on participation rates alone. Low turnout gets labelled as disengagement. Events get cut. Budgets get redirected. And the people who almost came, who were one small reassurance away from walking through the door, are never accounted for.
We think that's a mistake.
NOT ALL ABSENCE IS THE SAME
There's a meaningful difference between someone who booked and didn't come, and someone who never even considered coming. The first person showed up in intent. They raised their hand. They wanted this, and something stopped them at the last hurdle.
That last hurdle is almost never laziness. It's often fear.
And fear, unlike scheduling conflicts, can be worked with.
What this means for workplace wellness
If you're a wellbeing lead, an HR manager, or a community organiser in Birmingham, or anywhere, this might sound familiar.
You organise the event. You promote it. People sign up. And then, on the day, the room is half full.
The temptation is to question the format, the timing, the topic. But before you do that, it's worth asking a different question: do people feel safe enough to come?
Safe to be a beginner. Safe to be slow. Safe to be uncertain. Safe to be seen trying something new in front of their colleagues.
At Run of a Kind, that's been the single most important thing we've worked on since we launched during the pandemic in July 2020.
Our tours are built around the idea that running doesn't have to be competitive, performance-based, or intimidating. They're equal parts moving and stopping. No one gets left behind, and we mean that literally.
But we also know that no amount of messaging on a poster prepares someone for the moment they have to actually walk through the door on their own.
The welcome and the thought behind the entire experience - during and after - is just as important.
Run of a Kind is Birmingham's first and only running tour company. We offer guided running tours of Birmingham for all abilities, from complete beginners to seasoned runners, as well as bespoke events for workplaces and communities.
Find out more here.