So you’ve got the next big fitness idea that will revolutionize the world: You’ve invested the time and effort in educating yourself about the finer points of entrepreneurship and running a business, found suitable angel investors, and you’re all set to go…or are you? Well, the good news is that you’ve got a good start. But a good idea, sufficient capital, and business acumen won’t be enough to ensure that your brand will be noticed and find its niche in an already-oversaturated market. You need to differentiate your business, yourself, and your product from the thousands upon thousands of other entrepreneurs, businesses, and products out there…you need a little Branding.
Branding, in a nutshell; is the delineation and expression of the unique characteristics, values, and underlying philosophy behind your fitness product or service. Branding establishes your identity and sets you apart from your competitors. So how do you establish your brand identity? Your Emarketing Concepts team is here to give you some basic tips for doing just that. Are you done warming up? Let’s start:
The Audience comes first – One of the most important questions; if not the most important question that will define your brand identity is: who is your audience? Who is your product or service meant for? What particular characteristics, social group, age group, or niche group are you trying to target and communicate with? This will help you to discern what their needs, expectations, and perceptions about your product or service might be, and market it accordingly. Knowing your audience will also help you to tailor your messaging for them.
Choose your words carefully – As stated above, your audience will determine how you present your fitness product or service to them: how you communicate product features and specifications, advantages, service terms, and membership benefits. This entails effective use of language, tone, specialized terms or jargon, and word choice. Proper use of language extends to all of your brand messages: things like slogans, mottos, value statements, your mission-vision statement, printed signs and print advertising. Once you’ve established your communication style; be consistent and stick to it.
Get your Logo on – Your Company/product/service logo also communicates your brand to your intended audience; but on a more subliminal, non-verbal level. This logo should be easily recognizable, distinct, and relevant to your product, service, or business. Choose colors and fonts that will compliment your branding, and use images that are relevant to what your business, product, or service is about. Don’t choose a logo just because it looks cool: your logo should give your target audience an idea about your business, product, or service and be memorable. Avoid complicated designs: make a logo that can be seen from afar, and that is easy to recognize at any size. If you’ve done your job, then simply seeing your logo will trigger brand recall from your audience; plus, you can use this logo on merchandise such as shirts, headbands, towels, sports mugs, and more!
Name it – Choosing a name for your business may seem like an easy task, but a lot of thought should be put into it; as your business’ name will give your target audience their first impression of you, and you want this impression to be a good one. Remember that the name you choose for your business will either make or break your introduction to them. Make your name easy to remember, make it unique, and make it easy to say. You can use things like alliteration (e.g., “Jim’s Gym”) for some interesting effects and for more recall; but this may come off as a bit cheesy if you’re not careful. Choose words that are both relevant and appealing to your target audience, or words that resonate with your business’ service, product, philosophy and values.
Marketing is Key – Now that you’ve established most of your brand’s identity; use your slogan, motto, logo, and business name to create suitable materials for the promotion and advertising of your fitness product or service. Come up with marketing strategies and an effective campaign using sound market research and aggressively promote the heck out of your fitness product or service: put up some posters, distribute flyers, get on a local radio or TV station…your marketing style and strategy will be dictated by the customers you’re trying to reach.
Go Online – And while we’re on the subject of Marketing, having an online presence is actually a good way to let people know about your fitness product or service. This usually takes the form of a Website. Your business’ official website will be the online nexus for customer interaction and introduction. Make sure to design for user-friendliness: use easy-to-read fonts, add alt-text for images, and language that is suited to your target audience. You can also create social media profiles for your business.
Emarketing Concepts has powerful digital software and marketing solutions designed to drive sales and increase brand awareness for fitness trainers, gyms, studios and fitness brands. We offer digital marketing solutions that can help make your fitness business, product, or service stand out from the rest. Call us up at (800) 811-6003 or contact us online to find out more about our digital marketing packages and services.