Ramp Up Your Workout with Olympians, Athletes and Celebrities

Nike launched its Training Club (NTC) app in 2011, offering users access to leading fitness experts. Geared toward women, Nike’s leading audience according to recent articles, NTC quickly rose to the top among other fitness and health-focused apps. The secret to its success? Star power.

Once downloaded, exercisers pick a workout goal – get lean, toned, strong or focused – and ability level and then scroll through a database of workouts with fun and motivating names like “Fighter Fit” and “Gladiator.” Celebrity trainers, celebrities themselves, Olympians and professional athletes lead all of the workouts, essentially providing a personal training experience via a mobile device.

While the fitness industry is thriving, especially in the mobile space, the success of the app can arguably be attributed to the influencers Nike’s tapped. If users can get free access to the trainers responsible for shaping Hollywood’s hottest bodies, or complete an Olympians’ leg workout, why wouldn’t they download the app?

Brands have been leveraging household names for years to drive sales and increase awareness, but NTC’s voiceover directions, in-app videos and workouts custom designed for Nike’s female audience, help take the app to the next level. Exercisers not only get a unique interaction they likely can’t get anywhere else without paying a hefty price, but they also get content that’s been created with their goals in mind. The experience feels personal, even though Serena Williams isn’t in the gym or living room with them.

Using well-known names allows Nike to tap into each influencer’s existing audience, resulting in increased interest in the app and contributing to more than 17 million downloads. In fact, the app has done so well since launching that Nike has expanded to host live, in-person training sessions in retail locations and has updated NTC to include an in-app shopping component.

Capitalizing on the more than 600,000 visits NTC receives each week, a “shop” function was added allowing users to get the same gear featured in the workouts. It’s a strategy that’s paid off big time as the athleisure retail category gains momentum. Nike recently attributed its 15 percent gain in quarterly revenue to improved women’s sales, largely fueled by NTC.

The company hasn’t necessarily reinvented the wheel by introducing NTC; there are plenty of other apps that offer similar services. But, Nike has access to some of the most elite athletes and trainers in the world, and has expertly leveraged those relationships to excel in an otherwise saturated mobile market.