Photo Courtesy of www.PelotonCycle.com
I joined a cult. All right, not quite. But close!
It started at Christmas. I blame my best friend. We were in NYC, our annual tradition, with my two adorable goddaughters and my incredibly smart (and fit), best friend. She told me about her new obsession, a Peloton. No, not the Tour de France group of riders but the sexy spin bike that people are buying for their homes. (If you haven’t already – check out their crazy-hot ads on TV.)
So, I jumped in.
Bought myself one for Christmas without any real knowledge or experience. I thought hey, I used to spin! How hard could it be? (Answer: hard but ah-mazing!)
Here’s where the message gets crazy interesting though. First, I am not the fittest person I know. To my credit, I am addicted to barre3 in my local Doylestown studio. I do love to run – but outside! This winter treadmill training is revolting! But now, putting something else in the mix? Buying the Peloton on a whim? I wasn’t sure if I would even use it. But what I DID do? Was buy the matching shoes (of course) and all the accessories so I would look cute when riding my new obsession – even though I had never done it. What does THAT tell you?
It tells you they did some things very right. Look at me. I teach branding. Productivity. Marketing. Sales. And yet? I was hooked. Addicted even. Since hopping on the Peloton bandwagon, there is literally not a day that goes by when I am not riding my bike. In fact? Some days–I ride twice. Take that a step further. When I was away on vacation recently, I used the Peloton app at the hotel gym. Yep. That hooked.
And it’s not just me. It’s the Peloton brand. It’s their business model and how they are pay ATTENTION to their community. And you know me with ATTENTION!
Here are three lessons we can all learn from the Peloton bike (and brand):
Make it Sexy. The bike is sleek, the website is easy to navigate, don’t even get me started on the instructors and their insane bodies! (For the record, Jennifer Jacobs abs are to die for.) The packaging, the language, the people and they even have their own line of clothing! That’s brilliant when you want to makes sure that everything looks and feels consistent.
Make it Fun. My friend shared with me last night an interesting fact – that internet businesses and events very often find that people ‘come for the content but stay for the community’. RIGHT? That has been the most interesting component about my Peloton purchase. In my experience? The 20K+ riders on Facebook who are like a cult, obsessed with the rides, health and the instructors in the most positive way I have ever seen. They have created a fun tribe of strangers who hold each other accountable, cheer each other along and post their wins. I have seen people raise money for to help strangers afflicted with illness, share heartache and hurt, and one girl who rode eight times in one day! (Now that’s insanity). The whole brand and experience so far has been fun (while it absolutely kicks my butt and I am breathless and unglamorous).
Make it matter. Peloton instructors regularly recognize rides with shout outs of unique rider names who are on the live rides alongside them. You can track how you are progressing against other rides on the leaderboard just so you know. Hmmm, I might be a little competitive. People share their results and post their Personal Records (PR) and the company keeps surprising subscribers with new features, new workouts (on and off the bike). Regular software updates are shared on their Facebook page before they even occur. Truth be told? It might be like what Tesla owners experience when they wake up and their software has been updated, then all of a sudden, their car can drive itself!
So, here’s my question to you: How can you Peloton? In other words, what do you need to do to make your customer experience or your product line more sexy, fun and make your audience matter? How can you pay ATTENTION to these three things that can take your organization, your brand – your business to the next level? When you answer that? You can have customers like me! Who feel like becoming part of something – the Peloton experience – is the best thing that can happen to them? I love it. I hope your team can learn from that kind of customer buy-in. Oh, and now? I’m off for another ride! Want to join me?
I’d love to hear your thoughts! Share them here and let me know what sparked your interest! I’d also like to share some strategies that can take your brand to spectacular heights. Call me today to find out the inside scoop!
UPDATE: I discovered that the crazy rider was called Lisa Getty and she had actually ridden 13.. not 8 rides! Wow.
