{"id":4251847,"date":"2024-01-31T12:23:47","date_gmt":"2024-01-31T10:23:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.deptagency.com\/case\/democratising-fitness-for-all\/"},"modified":"2025-02-27T09:27:23","modified_gmt":"2025-02-27T07:27:23","slug":"democratising-fitness-for-all","status":"publish","type":"case","link":"https:\/\/www.deptagency.com\/en-nl\/case\/democratising-fitness-for-all\/","title":{"rendered":"Democratising fitness for all"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n\tThe Gym Group<\/p>Democratising fitness for all<\/p><\/div>\n\n\n\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\n\t<\/div>\n\n\n\tThe Gym Group, a leading low cost 24\/7 fitness operator with 230+ UK locations, is on a mission to break down barriers to fitness for everyone in the country.\u00a0<\/p>\n\tJanuary is arguably the most critical (and crowded) time in the health and fitness calendar. After appointing DEPT\u00ae as its lead creative agency, our first task was to develop a through-the-line creative concept that would not only make an impact during this period but have the longevity to serve as a brand platform throughout the year.<\/p><\/div>\n\t\n\t<\/div>\n\n\n\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/picture>\n\t\n\t<\/div>\n\n\n\tJoin the group<\/p>\n\tOur immediate goal was to boost revenue during the peak trading periods of January and February by successfully bringing in new members to The Gym Group.

Our creative mission focused on driving consideration throughout the mid- and lower funnel. Within those phases, we had two critical levers to pull to drive conversion: convenient locations and value for money.\u00a0

We needed to align them, however, under one creative idea that would resonate during the busiest period in the health and fitness calendar and stand the test of time.<\/p><\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\n\t<\/div>\n\n\n\tYou\u2019re closer than you think<\/p>\n\tKeeping costs low is one way to democratise fitness, but when it comes to getting real value out of a membership, people need to believe that they\u2019ll get there, and often. That\u2019s what we set out to do.\u00a0

Although we recognised that the individuals comprising our audience had different motivations for going to the gym, they were united by the fact that their goals would be easier to achieve with a Gym Group nearby.

Helpfully, more than 50% of UK adults are within a 15-minute drive of a Gym Group, a stat that quickly became the cornerstone of our campaign.

We leveraged this insight to highlight how convenient locations, paired with great quality equipment at accessible prices, make it easier for our audience to kick off the year with a new workout routine \u2013 whatever their motivations to exercise may be.<\/p><\/div>\n\t\n\t<\/div>\n\n
\n\t\u201c<\/span>\n\tJanuary comes with its fair share of problems and so many brands are looking to be the solution. Well, this is one of those wonderful times you discover you’ve been sitting on what your audience wants all along. Good quality, low cost and extremely close by \u2013 so it makes sense to just say it over and over and over again.<\/em><\/p>\t
\n\t\u201d<\/span>\n\n\tBel Moretti, Creative Director, DEPT\u00ae<\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/picture>\n\t\n\t<\/div>\n\n\n\t\u201cThere\u2019s a Gym Group \u2018round the corner\u201d<\/p>\n\tWe developed a hyper-local campaign strategy with a single-minded message: \u201cThere\u2019s a Gym Group \u2018round the corner.\u201d\u00a0

Knowing how proximity plays a crucial role in achieving fitness goals, the campaign highlights how The Gym Group breaks down barriers to exercising and gives people a great value fitness experience.\u00a0

Bad day? There\u2019s a gym group \u2018round the corner.\u00a0
Great day? There\u2019s a gym group \u2018round the corner.\u00a0

The campaign concept celebrated and educated our audience on the RTBs \u2013 good quality, low cost, and convenient facilities \u2013 that positioned The Gym Group as the most convenient answer, whether you have good vibes, need good vibes or are just in the mood to move.\u00a0

Focusing on location as a key value driver helped differentiate The Gym Group from other big players in the category, namely those with strong consumer perceptions of premium equipment. This allowed us to create an ownable space for the brand to recruit new members.<\/p><\/div>\n\t\n\t<\/div>\n\n\n\tThe power of absence<\/p>\n\tOur creative campaign aimed to resonate with potential members by promoting a sense of convenience and community while highlighting how The Gym Group\u2019s many accessible locations break down barriers to fitness.\u00a0

And sometimes, the best way to prove the value of something is to show what happens in its absence.

So, to drive home the message of convenience, we developed a creative concept that explored the challenges people face without easy access to the gym.\u00a0

The campaign was brought to life by showcasing the various creative yet challenging ways people try to incorporate exercise into their routines.\u00a0

Dramatic home workouts, runs in bad weather, living room lunges, makeshift equipment like bags of rice or tins of beans, taking the stairs on the tube\u2026 with one clear solution \u2013 the better way to achieve your January fitness goals is at \u2018the Gym Group \u2018round the corner.\u2019

Strategically, our creative approach broke category norms by making The Gym Group feel familiar while building a connection beyond the functionality its gyms offer.\u00a0

It pushed up against \u2018justifiable\u2019 excuses we knew our audience would make while creating the perception of being a supportive brand, all in all bringing locality and achievements together under one campaign execution.\u00a0<\/p><\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\n\t<\/div>\n\n\n\tTell them the right way<\/p>\n\tWe took a \u2018funny-but-true\u2019 approach to our TOV, which was built around being warm, real, and witty.\u00a0

So the typical \u201cpush yourself to the limit\u201d lines were replaced with \u201cyou\u2019re five minutes away from finally squatting that 60kg\u201d, and \u201cready to revitalise your workout regime?\u201d became \u201chome workouts not quite hitting the spot?\u201d.\u00a0

While the campaign was centred around the consideration and conversion stages of the funnel, we established design and branding principles that ensured every piece of creative was distinct to The Gym Group to build salience and support us in landing the RTBs.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p><\/div>\n\t\n\t<\/div>\n\n\n\tResults\u00a0<\/p>\n\tWe maximised the campaign\u2019s reach and impact with a comprehensive through-the-line strategy, spanning various channels including CTV, social, branding, OOH, DoorDrop, and audio; reaching 1,309 million in total.\u00a0
It\u2019s fair to say our creative approach resonated with the audience, achieving phenomenal results. In terms of the overarching goal, the campaign supported +16% YoY total revenue growth in January and February, as well as:\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\t
  • +7% in-platform sales vs. target<\/li>
  • +212% clicks to site vs. plan\u00a0<\/li>
  • +84% video views vs. plan<\/li><\/ul>\n\nDiving deeper into creative performance, OOH performed particularly strongly in terms of ad recall, with 54% of respondents recalling the campaign\u2014significantly higher than the norm of 42%.\u00a0

    We also saw strong uplifts across the board when it came to OOH memorability. Amongst those who\u2019d seen the ads:<\/p>\n\n\n\t
  • 86% said it had a clear message<\/li>
  • 73% said it attracted attention\u00a0<\/li>
  • 81% deemed it to demonstrate a competitive price<\/li>
  • 76% deemed it to demonstrate good\/many locations\u00a0<\/li><\/ul>\n\nDiving deeper into creative performance, OOH performed particularly strongly in terms of ad recall, with 54% of respondents recalling the campaign\u2014significantly higher than the norm of 42%.\u00a0

    We also saw strong uplifts across the board when it came to OOH memorability. Amongst those who\u2019d seen the ads:<\/p>\n\n\n\t
  • +14% aware TGG near where they live or work<\/li>
  • +14% brand familiarity\u00a0<\/li>
  • +16% would consider TGG<\/li><\/ul>\n\nOn social media, our native assets on TikTok delivered the vast majority of signups at a significantly lower CPA, while on Snap they drove a +5pt uplift in brand awareness.

    Upon launch, it was recognized as Ad of the Day in The Drum<\/a> as well as featured in Campaign<\/a>, Little Black Book<\/a> and Creativebrief<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\t\n\t<\/div>\n\n
    \n\t\u201c<\/span>\n\tThis hyper-local campaign is all about demonstrating how we break down barriers to fitness and offer exactly what people care about when it comes to choosing a great value, high quality, and conveniently located gym. It\u2019s brilliant to work with the team at DEPT\u00ae on this exciting new campaign, supporting us at this most important time of year in the fitness calendar!<\/em><\/p>\t
    \n\t\u201d<\/span>\n\n\tAmy Binns, Head of Marketing Communication, The Gym Group<\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n
    \n\tOn our mind<\/span><\/h2>\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t
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    Bringing selfies to life with AI\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t

    View Work<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\n\t

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