The fitness industry is evolving. In the old days, people would get a gym membership, go a couple of times per week, and that was that. Now, being fit is no longer just about the state of your body. It’s a lifestyle.
Wearable technology companies such as Fitbit are capitalizing upon this heavily. In fact, over $10 billion is spent every year in the United States on fitness equipment alone.
This means there’s a market for people who believe they have something unique to offer the fitness community. Here’s how you can start developing a fitness brand.
Determine Your Niche
The first step in starting your fitness brand is to determine your niche. This basically means you have to decide on a specific product line or target audience. But wait, wouldn’t you want to appeal to as many consumers as possible?
While this idea might make sense in theory, it doesn’t always work. If your fitness brand is super broad, you’re going to be in competition with the likes of Amazon, Dick’s, and other major online retailers. Unless you have something to differentiate to offer, you will likely get buried in this competition.
For most people, it makes more sense to narrow your niche. Start with fitness as a whole and think about your specialties.
Maybe you’re an expert in calisthenics and want to supply premium body weight training tools. If yoga is your thing, you could develop a line of custom yoga mats. Think about a specific set of products that would satisfy a subset of the fitness world upon which you can concentrate your efforts.
Build a Professional Website
Many people are trying to enter the fitness industry right now. If you follow them closely, you’ve probably noticed that their websites are often visually appealing but also usable. Your website needs to match or exceed them.
There are a few factors that go into determining the best e-commerce website builder. Of course, design and user experience should be your top concerns. An e-commerce platform should also offer its users a variety of design templates. These should be easily navigable and provide high levels of customization.
Your e-commerce platform should also provide data analytics tools. These are going to be essential in increasing your sales over time. Referencing your real-time data will enable you to fine-tune your marketing and product strategies.
Figure Out a Social Media Strategy
Social media marketing is essential. You’ll need to generate online awareness to get noticed. Instagram, with its visual interface, is great for online stores. What’s more, consumers are almost always more trusting of individuals than brands.
You can use this to your advantage by working with social media influencers to boost your brand. Find fitness gurus within your specific niche and let them tell everyone how great you are.
See Also: Finding Out the Best Time for Posting on Social Media Sites
Build Your Inventory
Your inventory should be somewhat flexible. Stock more items that sell well and keep only a few of those that don’t move. It’s also important to consider ROI on all of your inventoried goods.
Products that take longer to sell can still be worthwhile if they provide a strong profit margin. Depending upon the nature of your product line, you can also consider using drop shipping as part of your inventory.
This is where you act as a middleman between the consumer and supplier. You don’t have to hold any inventory or make any wholesale purchases. You simply list the gear on your brand’s site. Shipping is all handled by the supplier or manufacturer. This can be a useful option for people who are just starting out and need to conserve capital.
Learning how to start your fitness brand is much easier with the steps above. These concepts will be of great assistance as you are putting together your business.
