Planet Fitness: The Genius of Target Marketing

Pizza in a workout? Uh, yes. While some of their tactics are often debated, Planet Fitness is a masterclass in target marketing. I'm Tory, and as always in this episode, I'm going to break down the strategies big brands use into actionable universal lessons your business can learn from, no matter the size. Back in 1992 in Dover, New Hampshire, two brothers took over a struggling Gold's gym. At the time, it was just another gem in the crowd battling for the same clientele. They featured the usual free weights, fitness classes and healthy juice bars. But because the town they launched in was so small, there wasn't enough population for everyone to cater exclusively to bodybuilders and serious athletes. So the challenge began. How do you persuade the rest of the population to give fitness, and more importantly, a gym membership, a try? What these two brothers were about to lay out would revolutionize the fitness industry. Recognizing that cost was a significant barrier for many people considering a gym membership to their first disruptive move brings us to strategy number one. Offering an affordable pricing model. They introduced a low cost membership Starting at just $10 a month, drastically lower than the industry average at the time. But not just at the time. The average cost for a gym membership in the US in 2021 was $37.71. This approach opened the doors of fitness to a much wider demographic and immediately distinguished Planet Fitness from its much higher priced competitors. But that only worked up to a point. According to Rondeau. We still had the old model. We still had the bodybuilders, the powerlifters, the heavy dumbbells. The problem is that we had more of the opposition's lunk heads coming in than we had beginners coming in to give it a shot. This leads us to strategy number two. Simplified equipment and services. They got rid of their juice bar, childcare services and overly complicated machine equipment that only appealed to a certain clientele. Instead they they decided to provide basic cardio and strength equipment along with some additional amenities like tanning and massage chairs. By holding off on trying to appeal to everyone and streamlining their offerings, they not only started to create an intimidation free atmosphere, but also got rid of costs associated with constantly fixing broken equipment. The seeds of an inviting space that prioritized newcomers were being sown. This takes us to strategy number three, a judgment free zone. One thing we wanted to have with Planet Fitness is what I call the Big Mac, so it tastes the same wherever you go. With their judgment free zone, Planet Fitness aimed to create an atmosphere where everyone feels welcome regardless of fitness level or location. They reinforce this concept through their staff training, branding and gym policies to ensure consistent customer experience from the gym's purple and yellow branding displaying the slogan evoking a sense of inclusivity and positivity to their distinctive and often controversial lunk alarms Noise alarms which are triggered whenever someone drops weights too loudly or behaves in a way contrary to the gym's culture. These serve as a lighthearted yet effective reminder of Planet Fitness's commitment to providing a comfortable, non intimidating environment for its members. This approach not only differentiated Planet Fitness from many of its competitors, but it also helped to cultivate a welcoming, inclusive atmosphere. This resonated very strongly with a wide range of people, including those new to fitness or seeking a more relaxed workout environment, AKA their target marketing. While you may not have extensive resources in multiple locations, you can definitely learn from these three universal lessons. Offer competitive pricing to attract a broader customer base and stand out from competitors, you can get started by simply understanding the market you're operating in. Look at your competitors, their pricing strategies and their value propositions. You can do this by visiting their websites, looking at their marketing materials, or even just making some mystery shopping calls. For example, if I owned a bakery, I would call a local competitor and say hi, how are you? I'm hosting a small party next weekend and I'm considering of getting a few dozen cupcakes. I was wondering if you could help me understand your pricing and options. Remember, you're not just looking at the prices, but also what's included in those prices. Simplify your offerings. To refine your offerings, start by analyzing your products or services to find out which are most popular, profitable and closely aligned with your brand. Use sales data to assess the performance of these offerings and and identify any that aren't selling or are just a bit too costly. Then streamline your offerings by focusing on what you do best while de emphasizing or even removing underperforming services or products. Lesson 3 Prioritize customer experience. You should cultivate an inclusive and welcoming environment to encourage customer loyalty and positive word of mouth. You can get started here by evaluating customer perception. Create a survey and ask your customers how inclusive they perceive your business to be. You might use rating scales like 1 to 5 to evaluate their feedback feeling of being welcomed, respected and valued. From $10 memberships to pizza nights, Planet Fitness has shown us the power of thinking outside the box and daring to be different. Maybe you won't hand out pizzas, but you can rethink your pricing, simplify your offerings or foster an inclusive environment. Whatever your industry, remember to keep pushing keep innovating and keep focusing on what matters most your customers. As always, if you like what you heard, make sure to subscribe and give us a thumbs up. Drop a comment down below and let me know what other business strateg you like to see me break down. Until next time. Bye bye. I can find this client info. Have you heard of HubSpot? HubSpot is a CRM platform so it shares its data across every application. Every team can stay aligned. No out of sync spreadsheets or dueling databases. HubSpot grow better.