The expanding uses of fitness tracking devices by consumers have not gone unnoticed by firms seeking to market to them. In response, firms such as Under Armour are looking for ways to provide not just fitness gear but also fitness coaching to consumers. By doing so, they seek further insights into consumers’ preferences and activities, which in turn may enhance their ability to sell related products to those active, athletic buyers.
In a new collaboration with IBM and its well-known Watson tool, Under Armour will introduce a personal fitness app that enables users to measure their activity and receive real-time instruction from coaches. They also can enter their information into the system and agree to participate in app-based competitions with other people of the same age or from the same city. Beyond activity levels, the app allows users to track and compare their sleep habits, meals, and nutrition levels.
Such options also suggest great promise for retailers that might link to the system (or develop their own) and leverage their own databases of customer information. For example, Dick’s Sporting Goods has created a unique fitness app, to which it adds the extensive customer loyalty program data it already maintains in its data warehouses. The resulting recommendations and encouragements thus reflect a broader range of data.
Discussion Questions:
- How will Under Armour’s new database work?
- Do you believe it will increase customer loyalty? Why?
Source: Dan Berthiaume, Retailing Today, January 8, 2016