Carly Ochs COMM 497d Social Media Strategy XYZ Boxing Gym. Target Audience:

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1 Carly Ochs COMM 497d Social Media Strategy XYZ Boxing Gym Target Audience: The target audience for XYZ Gym should be a combination of Penn State students as well as members of the surrounding community that are within the age range. This target audience would be appropriate because they are cited as one of the most active fitness age groups, and Penn State students are always looking for fitness options that are close to their apartments and not necessarily on campus. A specific target audience that XYZ Gym should try to forge a relationship with would be the Club Boxing Team. This team would be a great way for this gym to gain valuable customers, but also provide a point of marketing for the gym itself. If XYZ Gym would reach out the Club Boxing Team, they could use this as a strategy to draw in other students who would then be convinced that the gym was a serious training place if a sports team would use it as their facility. The trainers at the on campus facilities tend to be a little relaxed when it comes to motivating their customers, so as a gym dedicated to helping each individual, the commitment of your trainers should be stressed to the target audience. These constraints to the target audience should not seek to rule out the community members of State College because it may take a longer time to attract Penn State students away from the on campus gym facilities, and the members of the community of State College are always looking for new fitness centers to work out at. Competitors Social Media Efforts: I researched two separate fitness centers that are located in downtown State College and found that most of these gyms only used Facebook and a general website to advertise their services online. There were some common threads to the way that they marketed themselves, as well as their online presence. The specific Facebook pages for these centers were easy to find on their website s landing page, which was a plus because I did not even have to try and do a Facebook search, a link was provided for me. The website s were generally the same across the board for the three fitness centers, each had some photos of the amenities provided for their members and a class schedule. Each website seemed to start to look the same except for the background color and font being used. XYZ Gym could really get a leg up on the competition if they would provide a more interactive website that perhaps had customer testimonials, videos, and music that would be associated with working out. The website for XYZ Gym needs to immediately put the viewer in a fitness (specifically boxing) state of mind because this way when someone logs on to the website they could imagine themselves working out at your gym because they are motivated by simply looking at the website. Testimonials would be a

2 great way to introduce XYZ Gym to State College. By providing examples of customers who have been positively affected by the unique training process at this particular gym, a sense of trust and loyalty would be built within the community and among the students. Targeting members from club athletic teams may be a good place to start with the students on campus, because the student body may be more likely to believe an athlete rather than just another student. The club teams do not have the access to the gym facilities that the varsity teams do, so XYZ Gym can provide an outlet for cross training that may be different than their sports but still benefit them. Most of the social media strategies and those of the websites were the same, but listed below are the specific breakdowns of the three fitness centers in State College that I researched because they are similar to XYZ Gym. North Club Fitness Center: The North Club Fitness Center used a website that was very user friendly and had large, easy to read text and headlines. The website had contact information at the very top which was a great way to make sure that each and every person visiting the website knew where they could find the telephone number and address without searching very hard. Testimonials were used by North Club Fitness Center but they were done so with only first names being used, and no ages were provided. With customer permission, XYZ Gym could provide the last name and/or age of those providing the testimonials to make it more personal and genuine. The first names only approach to North Club s testimonials makes it seem as though they could possibly be fraud examples. North Club took advantage of advertising social media on their website by providing a link directly to their Facebook page in the menu section. North Club s Facebook page was incredibly detailed and involved. Although it does not seem like they have a specific social media editor, there are several updates and posts per day that keep the wall portion of the page active. Pictures, posts by friends, and posts by instructors are used to show that North Club cares about its customers and their feedback. Specific classes were advertised on their Facebook page and they also forged a relationship with Penn State University by running promotional events at sporting events and advertising them on their Facebook. XYZ could use some of the approaches from North Club s Facebook to generate a fan base and provide feedback for customers. Website: Facebook page: id=

3 East Coast Health and Fitness: East Coast Health and Fitness website was generally speaking pretty much the same as North Club, except for the layout was much cleaner and appeared to me to look more professional. A simple white background was used with text that was a dark color and easy to read. Each separate page of their website had a banner that was a picture of their gym. This was an easy way for pictures to be displayed without a viewer of the website actually having to click on a separate link. The pictures at the top of the page made it easy for the cleanliness and up to date equipment to be showcased. East Coast s website did a good job of detailing the different fitness plans that they offer. The homepage had descriptions of each of the exercise options including personal training. The personal training section was fairly short, so XYZ Gym could take advantage of focusing most of its attention on the personal training aspect of their website. At the top of East Coast s website there was an option to Like the gym on Facebook. Once you clicked Like you were given the option to go visit the Facebook page. This marketing strategy of allowing a person to Like the business before they even visited the page was great. This way, when a person accesses their Facebook page the Like will show up in their newsfeed, and could possibly generate some interest in their friends list. This is an easy way to get some publicity on Facebook without dedicating a lot of time that XYZ Gym might not have to the cause. Website: Facebook page: Fitness/ ?sk=info 3 Social Media Sites XYZ Gym Should Use: Twitter: While researching other fitness centers located in State College, I could not help but to notice that none of them advertised a Twitter account. I searched on Twitter to see if perhaps they had one but did not have a link from their website to the account and was unsuccessful in locating anything. This could be a beneficial way for XYZ Gym to gain some ground on the competitors. The age group (18-35) that I suggested XYZ Gym target uses Twitter quite frequently, especially the student population. XYZ Gym could create a Twitter account that could provide daily inspiration to their followers. General updates and class times could also be communicated using their Twitter page. Example Tweets: Don t miss out on Joe s Martial Arts class today from 1pm-2pm! Come get a good workout in on the weekend.

4 Facebook: Exercise to stimulate, not to annihilate. The world wasn't formed in a day, and neither were we. Set small goals and build upon them. "He who has health, has hope; and he who has hope, has everything." Come to XYZ Gym to focus on your health and hope! Most of XYZ Gym s competitors use Facebook to connect with their customers and provide feedback. This use of social media could be a great way for XYZ to show State College pictures of their facilities without overwhelming them on the website. Facebook allows you to create albums, and you could title these albums according to the content. Perhaps an album showing the grand opening of XYZ Gym could generate some interest and show State College what the facilities are all about. In addition to posting pictures, Facebook allows for some longer and posts than Twitter. These posts could include inspiration, much like Twitter, but instead this inspiration could come straight from the existing customers at XYZ Gym. Existing customers could leave their own messages at the front desk at XYZ Gym when they leave after a workout, and employees could translate these to the Facebook page with permission from each customer. Example Posts: YouTube: Some daily inspiration from our own customer, Dan Smith: Hey there Facebook world! I just got a great workout in at XYZ Gym and let me tell you how great I feel now. Don t let anything stop you from coming and working out today, the feeling you have afterward will be more rewarding than anything else. The trainers are here for YOU, use them! Today and only today we will be offering free massages after your workout. State College s best massage therapists will be at our center today to provide you with some relaxation after you get a great workout in. Stop down today, get your fitness down, and then get some well-deserved relaxation! Penn State University s own Club Boxing Team will be putting on a demonstration tonight at our very own fitness center. Members of the team will be available to talk about their daily routines and the dedication that it takes. Don t miss the chance to get some inspiration to help you continue to fight every day! Nothing allows a person better insight to what a company is all about more than video. XYZ Gym could use this to their advantage by providing video of the classes that are offered. YouTube is a great tool that is free to use and also very simple. The videos of the classes could provide that extra incentive for those who may be completely sold on the idea of this boxing gym through text. The trainers could be showcased for their talents. The public would get a feel of what the gym is all about. Example Videos:

5 - Beginning, middle, and upper level classes being recorded so that all of the different types of fitness classes are showcased. - Personal interviews with the trainers and their customers that tell about what a daily work out is like at XYZ Gym. - A promotional video that uses text, video, and testimonials to showcase XYZ Gym as a whole. Blogs to Follow: ESPN has various sports blogs, but this particular one on MMA fighting is essential for those who want to stay up to date on the sport. ESPN provides insider information and interviews athletes in mixed martial arts that are performing well. This could be a great way for XYZ Gym to keep up to date with what kind of routines athletes in their field are using, as well as a good way for XYZ to have conversation starters. By having some current background knowledge about the fighters, trainers could connect with their customers who may also be interested in the sport. This particular blog has a large variety of posts that have to do with healthy living and fitness. The first article in April was about the risks of vegetarian diets for thyroids, which may seem unrelated to boxing but trainers need to stay up to date with the latest trends in diets and work outs. This blog is a good way for trainers to get inspiration for routines and individual work outs as well as how to advise their customers on how to eat. The Wall Street Journal s health blog can relate to XYZ Gym because customers want to know that they are in the hands of trustworthy and knowledgeable people. These articles could be printed out by the trainers after they have read them and posted on a bulletin board in the gym. Customers would then feel free to read these and feel compelled to talk about the issues with the trainers. This could be a way to spark conversation and therefore trusting relationships between the trainers and the customers.

6 Accounts to Follow on Twitter: This Twitter keeps the boxing fan up to date on when fights are being aired on HBO, as well as provides links to articles about boxing. Perfect for XYZ to keep tabs on the sport that they fashion their gym after. Much like HBO s Twitter account, ESPN provides up to date information on boxing, but also incorporates more specific interviews with athletes that are the biggest in boxing currently. XYZ Gym needs to be up to date on boxing if they want to be seen as a legitimate boxing gym. (@trboxing) Instead of providing links to a lot of long articles about boxing, Top Rank Boxing provides smaller, more condensed tweets about boxing and what is going on in the sport. This would be perfect for XYZ trainers and employees to look at during breaks to get some quick information instead of reading a long article. (@yourhealthtips) This Twitter account gives daily general health tips. These tips could be used by your employees as well as used to give advice to XYZ Gym s customers. (@PulseonFitness) Training aids, tips, and all around fitness information is given in this Twitter account. Keep up to date on your sector of business by reading these short and simple tweets on a daily basis. Timeline for Implementing Social Media: I have put together a simple 14 Day timeline to help you get your social media platforms up and ready. This timeline could be stretched out over time and does not need to be completed in 14 consecutive days, but when you have the time to do a little every couple of days or weeks. Getting the social media platforms up and running will not be the most time consuming, and remember that social media marketing is an ongoing process that can be added to with time. Day 1 Think about potential things that you would want to say to your customers through social media, make a list of anything inspiration that has inspired you to open this gym and think about how you could translate this to inspirational things for your customers. Day 2 Create a Twitter and YouTube account. Day 3 Ask your trainers to add to that list of inspirational things. Day 4 Create a Facebook page. Access your competitors Facebook pages and check out what they are doing and how they interact with their followers and fans. Day 5 Follower the 5 Twitter accounts that I proposed, look at how and what they tweet. Day 6 - Start tweeting. Limit yourself to 1 or 2 tweets per day at first to establish yourself on Twitter. Day 7 Create an album on Facebook to showcase your grand opening and amenities. Day 8 Upload a YouTube video showcasing your classes and facilities. Day 9 Post a status or two to Facebook. Try to reach out to fans in the State College area and PSU students.

7 Day 10 Start tweeting about 5 times a day with tweets similar to those that I provided as an example. Do not feel overwhelmed, but tweet when you can and when you think you have something substantial to contribute. Day 11 Try to start updating your Facebook page at least once a day if time permits. Rotate between status updates, pictures, inspirational quotes, etc. Day 12 Post another YouTube video with an interview with one of your trainers. Day 13 Keep active with your Twitter and Facebook page. Day 14 Invite your trainers to tweet and share their inspiration with your fans and followers. This timeline, as stated above, can be stretched out over time. Do not feel overwhelmed with your social media and instead use it to your advantage when you have the time to update it. The important part with social media is to update on a steady, but not overwhelming basis. A steady update of your Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter accounts can prove to be beneficial and help establish a good relationship between your customers and your company. Summary: The important thing to take away from this proposed social media strategy is to remember that you can use social media at the times that are most convenient to you. You could potentially update the Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube accounts from home if you feel that updating them during the workday takes away from your responsibilities to your customers. By checking out your competitors social media platforms you can decide for yourself which components of their strategies that you like and that you would want to work into yours. The gym facilities in State College are lacking in using YouTube and Twitter efficiently, so XYZ Gym could be one of the first in the area to really take on using Twitter and videos as a way to connect with customers. By using Twitter you can update your customers in a way that is efficient in using your time, which may be limited throughout the day. Draw inspiration from the proposed blogs and Twitter accounts that I have recommended and use those resources as a way to make your social media platforms more effective.