Christian runs a gym in Spain. Except, he doesn’t live there. From his home in Denmark, he oversees Circle Gym, a circuit-style fitness studio that depends on consistent new-member trials to keep business moving.
Managing a business from 2,000 kilometers away is no easy feat. But with the help of CloudTalk’s AI Voice Agent, Christian has found a way to turn late-night leads into next-day bookings, without needing round-the-clock human coverage. Since launching the system, trial bookings have increased by 150%, over 20 hours of manual work have been eliminated each week, and the business is now ready to scale with confidence.
About Circle Gym
Circle Gym is a circuit-training studio based in Spain, offering fast, structured 23-minute workouts. Designed for structure and simplicity, it appeals to members who want a fast, effective routine without needing to think about their program.
The business is run remotely by Christian Stistrup, an experienced fitness entrepreneur based in Denmark. With no day-to-day presence on site, Christian has built the gym to operate with minimal manual processes, relying heavily on automation to drive consistency and growth.
“I can’t be there in person, so every system has to work on its own. And lead response was the part that needed the most help.”
Problem
Leads Were Coming In, But Calls Were Falling Through
Christian has never been the type to “post and pray.” From the start, his growth strategy was hands-on: shoot engaging videos, run Facebook ads, collect leads, and—most importantly—follow up.
“A lot of gyms just wait for people to show up but we’d call every lead, multiple times if we had to. That’s how you convert.”
The trouble wasn’t generating demand. It was what happened after a lead came in.
Unreliable Timing
His small team could only handle outbound calls during limited hours, usually between 4 p.m. and 8 p.m., and that left long gaps in response time. If someone signed up at night, they wouldn’t get a call until the next afternoon.
By then, the opportunity was already fading.
“People are impulsive. They sign up because they’re motivated at that moment. If you don’t reach them quickly, they forget. Or worse, they go somewhere else.”
Inconsistent Execution
If a staff member was late, sick, or unavailable, no calls went out. That led to days where zero leads were contacted.
“We depended on individuals being available and ready. But sometimes, our staff was not available. And when that happened, we got zero bookings.”
No Way to Handle Simple Questions
Prospects often had quick questions (about pricing, schedule, location) but there was no system in place to answer them automatically.
Christian was seeing the impact of these problems firsthand. On a typical day, his team might make 150 calls. And yet, all that effort translated into just 4 trial bookings/day. It was exhausting, expensive, and hard to scale.
Evaluation
Testing the Waters with AI, Starting Small
The idea to try CloudTalk’s AI Voice Agent came from a simple question: What if we didn’t need extra staff to make 24/7 calls?
Christian wasn’t expecting magic—just something that could handle lead response without requiring more human hours.
“If I could save 20 hours a week and still get a few bookings, that alone would’ve been worth it,” he says.
He launched the AI with a simple goal: match what his team was already doing, minus the manual effort. But once it went live, the results exceeded expectations. Leads were contacted within seconds, conversations felt natural, and the system handled everything—from booking to FAQs—without needing staff intervention.
Solution
A Voice Agent Playbook That Covers Every Scenario
To fix these issues, Christian implemented a four-agent AI voice system with CloudTalk. Each agent plays a role in the lead journey—from first contact to rebooking.
1. Outbound Agent: Immediate Lead Response
This is the frontline agent. It calls new leads within seconds of form submission, confirms interest, offers time slots, and sends a confirmation via SMS.
“It’s fast, natural-sounding, and most people don’t even realize it’s not a person.”
2. Callback Line Agent: Handles Callbacks
When someone doesn’t answer the initial call but calls back later, this agent is ready to greet them and continue the conversation. It helps convert leads that would’ve been lost without live coverage.
“Before, we had no way to catch those callbacks. Now someone’s always there.”
3. FAQ Agent: Answers Common Questions
Trained on basic info like opening hours, pricing, and gym format, this agent handles the most frequent questions instantly, no need for staff to reply manually
“People ask the same things over and over. This just takes care of that.”
4. Reminder Agent: Rebooks No-Shows
This agent follows up with people who didn’t show up for their free trial. It offers to rebook and gets them back into the flow
“A lot of people don’t show the first time. This gives them a second chance, without us needing to chase them manually.”
The Booking Trick That Changed Everything
One tweak made a huge difference: instead of asking leads to book themselves through a calendar link, the AI flipped the question.
“Originally, we sent a link for them to book online. Maybe 5% followed through,” Christian recalls. “Now the AI just says: ‘What time works for you?’ It’s so simple, but it works. People reply, the AI locks it in, and we’re done.”
The entire process feels natural, even though it’s automated. In fact, most people don’t seem to notice (or mind) that they’re not speaking to a human.
And the impact?
Results
“We went from 5% conversion with links to double-digit bookings just by letting the AI ask, ‘What time works for you?’”
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150% Increase in Trial Bookings: Bookings jumped from 4 per day to 10 per day, thanks to faster follow-up and better conversion.
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20+ Hours Saved Weekly: Manual calling and back-and-forth scheduling used to take up hours every week. Now, it runs on its own.
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100% Lead Coverage: Every lead is contacted within seconds—regardless of the day or hour. No leads get missed due to availability or shifts.
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Double-Digit Conversion Rate (up from 5%) with Direct Booking: Instead of asking people to book themselves, the agent books for them. That alone made a major difference.
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Rebooking No-Shows: Instead of giving up on no-shows, the AI now re-engages them automatically, which recovers leads that used to go cold.
What’s Next: Scaling the Model
Christian is already planning to open a second location, and the AI setup is ready to roll.
“We just copy the agents, update the scripts, and we’re live. No need to hire and train a completely new team from scratch.”
He’s also exploring calendar integrations and more advanced re-engagement flows for members who stop showing up after joining.
