Data-driven insights and strategic planning can lay the foundation for a successful social media strategy
As the New Year approaches, interest increases significantly as everyone resolves to stay fit, eat healthier, improve their mental health and live a more active lifestyle. You know what to do.
For brands in these sectors, this period provides an excellent opportunity to attract and engage new potential customers. However, to make the most of this, preparations must start before the clock strikes midnight on December 31st. The fourth quarter (Q4) is critical for strategizing and laying the foundation for a successful New Year’s campaign.
Saskia Topp, founder of ekhos (echoes) agency, a leading digital marketing agency for the health, wellness and fitness industry, said: “For fitness and wellness brands looking to make the most of the New Year craze, “Being ready in the fourth quarter is critical.”
Topp said this preparation allows brands to position themselves effectively to ensure they are top of mind when consumers embark on their fitness and wellness journey in January.
“Many brands overlook the importance of the fourth quarter, assuming that the influx of customers will come naturally,” Topp continued. “However, without strategic positioning, they risk getting lost in the hustle and bustle of the New Year’s rush. Taking advantage of the January surge is quick, and those who are prepared will maximize growth during this critical time.”
Topp adds that digital marketing is where brands will find their greatest success—whether that’s through social media, a strong media buying strategy, SEO, or email and automated marketing.
“By leveraging these tools, we help brands connect with their audiences and achieve impactful results,” Topp added. “At ekhos, we specialize in developing impact-driven digital health strategies that ensure your brand not only stands out, but thrives during the most competitive season of the year.”
Make the most of last quarter
The fourth quarter holds special strategic importance compared to other quarters because it provides a long-term perspective. From this foundation, fitness and wellness brands can analyze performance over the past year, identify trends and set clear goals for the coming year. At this point, decision makers typically already have the metrics and data.
“Data-driven insights will be invaluable in guiding the preparation process for Q1,” Topp explained. “However, many digital marketing strategies fail to take full advantage of the wealth of data available. We rely entirely on data when developing our digital strategy, ensuring every decision is backed by solid insights.”
Top said that by analyzing digital metrics such as online consumer behavior, engagement rates and ad effectiveness, brands can pinpoint what is working and where there are opportunities for improvement. This detailed data analysis enables ekhos to develop highly targeted and effective campaigns that align with their audience’s New Year’s goals.
“In the highly competitive digital health space, those who can harness the full potential of data will truly stand out and achieve impactful results,” Topp said.
For example, ekhos recently partnered with leading HIIT fitness studio Shred415 to refine its social media strategy based on detailed consumer insights. The result was a highly engaging campaign that resulted in a significant increase in customer interaction and conversions. The brand saw a 154% increase in engagement from March 2023 to March 2024, a 22.3% increase in organic searches over six months, and an overall increase of 15% in average revenue from October 2022 to October 2023. %. Another client, Power Plate USA, saw a 42.6% increase in organic followers across all social media platforms and a 55.1% increase in video views.
Adjust social media content
The new year is an ideal time to align (or re-align, as the case may be) social media content with shared intentions and resolutions. Here’s how fitness and wellness brands can effectively create content that resonates with these goals:
Identify and achieve key goals:
- Goal Key Resolutions: Identify common and trending health goals such as strength building, recovery, convenience, mental health, and adopting a healthier lifestyle for longevity.
- Target content: Develop content with practical tips, human stories, and achievable milestones to inspire your audience while leveraging UGC (User Generated Content) and ekhos’ budget-friendly influencer strategy to expand reach and engagement through UGC.
Attractive content format:
- Diverse content types: Keep your audience engaged with a variety of content formats including videos, LinkedIn and Instagram carousels, social media trends, infographics, and interactive posts. Each social media platform should offer different content tailored to its audience.
Keep up with the trends:
- Incorporate trends: Keep up with social media and industry trends, optimize SEO titles and participate in challenges and trending topics to increase visibility and engagement.
Activity example:
- Intentions and Goals Challenge: If you’re a fitness studio, create a challenge that encourages your audience to commit to their fitness goals. Offer rewards such as discounts, brand partner gifts, free trials, or branded merchandise to participants who stay engaged throughout the challenge.
- Recommend a friend activity: January kicks off with the “Refer a Friend” campaign, which offers incentives such as discounts or free bonuses when customers refer a friend. This can be combined with fitness studio challenges to encourage participants to participate with friends. This strategy can expand your brand’s reach, build community, and drive sales during the New Year rush.
- Brand partners: Partner with well-known complementary brands to offer bundled promotions, joint events or giveaways during the month of January. This can expand your reach, introduce your brand to new audiences, and create added value for your customers, thereby increasing engagement and sales in the New Year.
Strategic Planning and Storytelling:
- Maintain consistent messaging across all social platforms to reflect your brand voice and values. Strategic planning ensures every piece of content is aligned with your brand identity. Use storytelling to make your content relevant, share personal transformations, behind-the-scenes moments, and customer success stories to create an emotional connection with your audience.
Clear call to action:
- Make sure every piece of content has a clear call-to-action, such as purchasing a product, signing up for a course, downloading an app, or participating in a challenge. Guide your audience to take the next step in their fitness journey with your brand.
“Building meaningful connections and developing compelling digital strategies to drive engagement is core to our mission,” Topp said. “Our goal is to empower health, wellness and fitness brands to create impactful campaigns that not only engage customers but build lasting relationships.”
By using the fourth quarter for strategic preparation, aligning digital marketing (such as social media content) with New Year’s resolutions and trends, creating anticipation for purchasing products that lead to new initiatives, and analyzing successful initiatives, brands can maximize their Influence. Start planning now to ensure your brand is ready to take advantage of the new year’s surge in interest in health and wellness.
For more information on how ekhos Agency can help your fitness brand achieve your New Year’s goals, visit ekhosagency.com.
