Fitness franchise Curves is flexing its muscles around its “Curves works” slogan, to reach out beyond its established client base with a new integrated marketing campaign that targets younger women with a promise of improved fitness.
The “I am Curves Smart” effort, created in conjunction with Publicis Dallas, is centered around the Curves Smart personal coaching system, which gives immediate feedback and progress reports to women while they are working out.
The creative promoting the newly launched tool will be distributed online, and through print, TV and radio.
“Curves wanted to expand its target to a more fit, younger woman, while still maintaining its current customer base,” said Ted Barton, chief creative officer at Publicis Dallas.
“In the past, the notion might have been that Curves doesn’t give as intense of a workout as another gym, but this new technology proves that wrong since it adjusts the workout intensity to the personal goals of the individual,” he added.
Gym goers using Curves Smart can create a personal profile that is keyed into their membership card. Then they can swipe the card when using different exercise machines to keep track of their progress and goals in real time — what results is a multifaceted view of a workout’s progress.
The program also lets users track progress over a period of time to measure how
close they are to attaining their goals. The campaign creative supports the idea that personal control of fitness goals and reliable measurement are available.
A total of eight banner ads, which read “CurvesSmart now has a whole new way to keep you motivated — so you can reach your fitness goals,” are running on EverydayHealth.com, Sparkpeople.com and Google, Yahoo, Microsoft and Live sponsored search.
TV ads also feature the concept of attaining one’s goals. One features a woman working out with the new system and looking satisfied.
The three versions of these ads are set to appear on women-oriented cable channels including Lifetime, Oxygen, HGTV and FitTV.
Newspaper ads around the same theme will circulate in major and secondary US markets between October 8 and October 10. These will be tied to radio spots
in a move to drive registrations for the program in Curves’ more than 10,000 locations throughout the world. Outside of the US, other Curves locations are in Canada, Europe, South America and South Africa.
“We wanted to expand the appeal so that we could reach more women,” Barton added. “If we could make Curves relevant for them, we would still get everyone else.”
The CurvesSmart campaigns will run through the holidays. The fitness brand expects that it will return with more promotions around the new year, when people are thinking about New Year’s resolutions that often involve new heath and fitness strategies.
“We’ve found that time of year to be big for gym signups,” remarked Burton. “Curves is a good place or women to feel comfortable exercising — there are no mirrors, and no men.
