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The Gym Is A Market-Place

  • Writer: Mohsen Mirkhani
    Mohsen Mirkhani
  • Sep 8, 2019
  • 8 min read

Updated: Oct 3, 2019

Do you work out? Do you go to a gym? What do you think about when you think of a gym? Do you think of a place where we exert energy and inflict tremendous amounts of pain on ourselves in an effort to look good and be in shape? That is what usually happens unless all you work out is your chops talking to all your friends and just being at the gym for the ride more than anything else. What else do you think about? Do you want to know what I think about when I walk into a gym, when I see a packed parking lot full of cars that have been driven there through rain, sleet, snow, ice and hail or even the most beautiful sunny days? I see a market place. Just like a baseball stadium or a hockey arena. They are all market places. Don’t believe me? Let’s consider what a market place is. A market place can be any platform or circumstance where groups of like-minded people gather for either commerce or consumption. Baseball stadiums or hockey arenas are full of people who enjoy the respective sport and while they are there they will cheer on their favourite team probably also while having something to eat and drink. Let’s not forget, since probably every single person in a baseball stadium or hockey arena loves their sport, they will be inundated with opportunities to support their favoutrite team through the purchase of merchandise. As well, because of the sheer mass of the amount of people within a stadium or arena, the opportunity to capture the attention of people who have similar needs, wants, and desires of every human, will be there for the companies who spend the most amount of money to showcase their brand directly to the many spectators. Obviously marketplaces can be great opportunities to advertise in because you can showcase specific products or services to people that use or are interested specifically in those products or services. An example can be selling baseball related merchandise in a stadium or hockey related equipment or merchandise in an arena. There will likely be masses of people enjoying the game in stadiums or arenas which also means they will be consuming some or most of the advertising. This is the purest and most sought after type of advertising. Advertising directly and in the atmosphere to people who use or will strongly consider using a product is the purest and most sought after type of advertising.

Gyms have been an institution in communities all over the world and have helped people in so many ways for decades. This article is to explain how gyms in and of themselves are also marketplaces on a micro level and how gyms have a unique ability to serve a greater market place on a macro level. If you walk into any given gym on any given day what do you notice? What do you see? I see like-minded people all striving for better health, a better fitness level, a social and creative outlet which all lead essentially to a better life. Gyms are vital for the physical and mental improvement of those who take advantage of all the benefits available. Don’t get me wrong. You don’t necessarily need to go to a gym to take part in the physical and mental improvements of exercise but gyms offer so much more. They offer a community and they are a marketplace for members and for businesses.

On a micro level, gyms are full of people who will share some of the same interests to a certain level. You can be sure for the most part that every single person in a gym from the youngsters trying to learn and trying to figure out the equipment, to the seasoned gym veteran who have their workouts down to perfection, to the more senior members working out to keep their energy levels high and to stay feeling healthy and active to everyone in between, they are there at the gym for a reason. They left the comfort of their homes, their electronics, their fridges and all their other activities to exert pain on themselves in an effort to be healthy and fit. This has tremendous significance regarding the impact gyms have on the lives of members and indicates the level of commitment most people have to their gym. Why would someone in a gym be there unless they want to look and feel better, become healthier, improve their self-image and increase their strength. Since we know people go to the gym to essentially become better versions of themselves and will follow similar paths to do so because the path is similar and even predictable for everyone even though the steps they take might be very different, we know a lot about what these people are interested in. We know people who work out at the gym care about their nutrition, their sleeping habits, their body, their minds and generally their overall health levels. Why else would they go through the pains, hardship and intensity of working out if they didn’t want to improve their overall health. Now, because we know these facts and because the gym is full of this type of person, we know we have a marketplace. Just like there will be baseball fans at a stadium, there will be people at gyms interested in their health and wellbeing as well as the products that will help them reach their fitness and health goals. This is a marketplace with tremendous potential that strives to constantly be aware of the newest trends, fashions, technologies, ideologies and personalities that will help them perform better in order to reach their goals.

On a micro level, gym members create a community of like-minded people who share similar interests, desires, values, goals and standards. People who commit to working out at a gym strive to better themselves and become a part of a social network that understands the amazing feeling working out does provide and can relate to the pain it takes to achieve their fitness goals. Gym members know what it takes to get that 6-pack, those defined arms, that slender and strong lower body and can appreciate and applaud the effort given to look our best. Some of the biggest commitments and stress exerted by many people revolve around going to the gym, eating healthy foods to contribute to their health and appearance and staying current on new trends and workout routines that can propel people to better results faster. This can be an all-consuming lifestyle with many daily choices made around going to the gym and improving at the gym. This community shares activities and lifestyle choices that those outside this community do not. This creates a sense of appreciation and aspiration for one another that is hard to find in other areas of life and the best part is this community is massive and very accessible. Most people can make the choice to start working out and join a community to change their life and perspective for the better. The amount of people who work out at gyms across your city in different and nuisance regions of your city is a testament to how integrated gyms are within any community. Due to the diverse areas, populations and demographics within a city that have gym members that are just as integrated to that area and culture, the ability to appeal to the market using the strategies and tactics that will identify to a specific area or a specific gym does exist. This allows different companies or advertisers the opportunity to showcase their product or service to a specific area or gym that can relate to what is being offered. Very similar to the fact that some baseball stadiums in some cities enjoy local beverages as opposed to others, certain gyms or gym members in specific areas have a consistent viewpoint that may not be feasible in other areas. The marketplace can change depending on location however the needs, desires, requirements and ideologies will remain constant because of the underlying principles that gym members have. Healthy living, healthy eating will lead to a healthy lifestyle, happiness and fulfillment. Now it’s up to the advertisers to select where they can fit into with their services and messages to become more attractive to the select group of people within any given area.

Gym members are a very special marketplace because they are regular human beings with extraordinary visions of themselves working to raise their performance and standards. They are constantly looking on ways to improve and participate in theories, ideologies, products and services that will help them achieve their goals faster. It takes a certain dedication and work ethic to commit to working out, a gym network and community and this is why gym members have predictable habits and morals that make them strive for a better version of themselves. This predictable nature can make gym members and gyms a marketplace with tremendous potential due to the amount of members and the constantly growing numbers of people wanting to join the community. Gyms are institutions in any given community and as young boys and girls become older, they too will see the benefits gyms offer pertaining to their mental health, physical health, attitude, wellbeing, social and creative outlet which means there is a major possibility they will also join the gym increasing the size of the marketplace.

Gyms have been around since the 1850’s and the industry has matured to the point and is at a size where new technologies are rapidly advancing however non like Spotlight. This new member-centric vision and strategies gym members can utilize with Spotlight will take their gym planning and performance to the next level with the tools available to make workouts more convenient, efficient, enjoyable, impactful all while growing the network and community each gym member can have adding value to each workout. Spotlight makes each workout an experience to grow your social network by knowing who is at each local gym customizing your workout experience by getting all the benefits of the gym available including now, the members of the gym. Are you someone who wants to work out with a select group of people? Be it, heavy lifters, cardio fanatics, members who only work out in a class format or anyone in between, now you can find out where those people are and either contact them or see them at the gym which gives you the ability to grow your network and raise the value of your work out experience. Are you someone who works out their chest on international chest day, Monday? Don’t you hate it when you show up for a chest work out and find everyone else at the gym working out on the same equipment making you change your routine because you don’t have time to wait for others to finish with the equipment you want? Now you don’t have to. Spotlight lets you see who is at each gym in your local area and gives you the ability to decide which gym you want to go to based on who and how many people are at the gym. No other platform gives you the ability to customize your gym work out like Spotlight does. Think of all the social connections we can make if we can get to learn about the other people we could meet at the gym where we spend countless hours at. We all want to zone in, listen to our tunes and work out, we all agree to that but we also all want to connect and the gym is another social setting where people of like-minded interests see each other but have no idea how we can mutually benefit from each other. Now we can. There will always be instances where we want to connect with someone for advice or any other type of mutually beneficial experience and now we can search out those who we work so hard with in the gym to find out how we can help each other. Privacy settings will of course advocate your preferences and you will be able to set-up your account how you believe is best for you but now you and everyone else can be someone at the gym and showcase your skills and abilities with those who can actually gain from your skillset. It’s time to grow our network with those who can actually make a difference in our lives and it can start with the person you see working hard every day, the person right next to you that can make an impact in your life.

Now with Spotlight we will finally know who we are working out with for all those long grueling and rewarding hours.

It’s time to be someone at the gym and it’s time to use Spotlight to help improve your workout experience.

 
 
 

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