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Going from a 0 to 300+ influencer marketing program in < 1 year
If 49% of people rely on influencer recs to make purchases, what’s stopping gyms from using wellness influencers to promote them? And since the wellness influencer repertoire goes way beyond hitting the weights—gyms can leverage their expertise to promote both physical and mental health while building a community of like-minded individuals around these inspirational creators.
So, start stretching! In this post, we’ll share the inside scoop on the best practices for working with wellness influencers to get your gym’s marketing game on point.
So, what’s a wellness influencer? Picture a hybrid of an expert personal trainer, a nutrition guru, and a lifestyle coach combined with the marketing chops of a seasoned expert. These fitness champions are all over our social media feeds, motivating us with selfies, workout routines, and health tips.
These creators shape how we exercise, eat, and care for ourselves; for the best wellness influencers out there, their main appeal is that they radiate authenticity, trustworthiness, and expertise. But they’re not one-size-fits-all. From yoga masters to powerlifters, weekend warriors to nutritionists, these wellness enthusiasts come in all shapes and sizes, each with a unique, dedicated following.
As you navigate the world of wellness influencers for your brand, diversity of voices is key.
Here, we highlight ten influencers who bring unique perspectives and embody diverse communities and body types. Let’s meet these figures who could be just the right fit for your brand’s wellness journey! Here are a few of our favorites:
As a renowned yoga instructor, author, and influencer, she has inspired countless individuals to embrace self-love and embark on self-acceptance and empowerment. Jessamyn shatters the boundaries surrounding traditional yoga practices and encourages people of all shapes, sizes, and backgrounds to participate. She exhibits vulnerability and authenticity by openly sharing her transformative experience, making her a truly relatable and powerful creator. Her unique approach and dedication to inclusivity position her as a trailblazer in promoting body positivity and diversifying the world of wellness.
He’s an influential figure in integrative medicine, combining conventional and alternative approaches. Born in Philadelphia in ‘42, he earned his degree from Harvard in ‘64 and his M.D. from Harvard Medical School in ‘68. As a prominent author, integrative medicine expert, and founder of the Andrew Weil Center for Integrative Medicine, Dr. Weil’s work has been recognized multiple times, including his appearances on TIME magazine’s cover. What sets him apart as a creator is his extensive knowledge and dedication to a holistic, patient-centered approach that encompasses the body, mind, and spirit, empowering people to attain a healthier, balanced lifestyle.
Dianne’s work encompasses social justice activism, writing, and accessible yoga instruction. She has founded the transformative Yoga For All movement, which promotes inclusivity, allowing individuals of all shapes, sizes, ethnicities, and capabilities to practice yoga. Born into a family where yogic practices were prevalent, Bondy was always on the move as a child, with a sense of restlessness that found solace in the grounding nature of yoga. As the author of “Yoga for Everyone: 50 Poses for Every Type of Body,” Dianne educates her readers on how they can adapt different yoga poses to their abilities, endeavoring to make the practice widely accessible.
“Tech exec” turned into yoga instructor and hotelier, Casey’s story is one many could only dream of—leaving your boring, unfulfilling nine-to-five to renovate and manage a hotel in Costa Rica. Her content, unlike some fellow wellness influencers on this list, is not so much about tutorials, recipes, how-tos, and such, but rather a diary-type TikTok where she exposes the good, the bad, and the ugly about actually having this “dream lifestyle.”
She strayed away from the classic promotion-type paradisiac content creator to one that feels much more approachable and real; her life’s still paradise, but she definitely will let you know that if you go to Costa Rica, you’ll have to make peace with not flushing paper down the toilet…ever. This grounded-type content is what we need to get that tidbit of inspiration without losing ourselves in a universe that only exists on TikTok. Cheers for reality!
As a licensed clinical psychologist, Dr. Smith uses social media to break down difficult psychological concepts into understandable, digestible content to make mental health information available and relatable to everyone—and what’s more massive than TikTok right now? What sets her apart as a creator is her ability to use social media to educate on mental health in a way anyone could understand.
She uses an engaging, approachable style to talk about important matters like trauma, relationships, depression, self-care, and many other topics that are both extremely common but also hard for anyone to tackle without the correct tools. She has also published a best-selling book (#2 in the UK in 2022,) “Why Has Nobody Told Me This Before?” Overall, Dr. Julie’s work has helped destigmatize mental health discussions and made therapy insights and resources more accessible to the general public.
This TikTok account is here to inspire! Their whole thing is about displaying insanely toned bodies alongside routines. Here, you won’t find any memes, no recipes, no mindfulness tips: it’s all about the body-ody-ody. Even though this one seems not very diverse at first glance, the truth is that they represent the whole country of Nigeria and give us tips on how to use everyday, non-workout-specific objects to incorporate them into our routines. And who doesn’t love that? A little bit of eye candy, a little bit of leg routine, and a little bit of resourcefulness. It’s a triple-win!
As a bestselling author and nutrition coach, Tomlinson’s ethos centers around making nutrition simple and accessible for everyone. He combines evidence-based nutritional science with a clear and engaging—most of the time, hilarious—delivery to debunk common diet myths, explain the principles of caloric deficit for fat loss, highlight healthier alternatives to popular foods, and a whole lot more.
His focus on transparency and realism in describing nutritional concepts and his strong opposition to misinformation and diet fads in the wellness industry make him a unique and positive creator. With his uncomplicated approach to food education, he’s changing how people think about nutrition and fitness, one TikTok video at a time. This is what we need! Someone to educate us, not shame us.
Candace Cabrera Tavino shares diverse yoga and fitness classes through her channel, including gentle stretches, glute workouts, upper body strength exercises, hip mobility, and even arm balances for beginners. Drawing from her personal experiences and love for holistic well-being, she designs content catering to various skill levels, allowing her viewers to stay active despite busy schedules or during travel.
What sets her apart is the versatility of her content, along with her commitment to bringing enjoyable and easy-to-follow practices to her audience. Candace’s unique approach as a creator truly shines through by using her platform to encourage others in their journey to health and mindfulness. Even though she does have an IG profile, her main platform is YouTube, and she’s also a published author! We love to see creators expand their mediums and get their message across in multiple ways.
Dr. Berg is a renowned health educator and content creator on YouTube. As a chiropractor, he primarily focuses on 360 approaches to improve overall well-being. His channel sheds light on many topics, including essential body functions, weight loss, keto diet, intermittent fasting, nutritional information, and a strong emphasis on understanding the body’s complexities.
His ability to translate complex health concepts into easy-to-absorb, engaging content makes Dr. Berg stand out as a creator. He fosters a better understanding of wellness and health for a wider audience. He uses his scientific background and expertise to debunk popular misconceptions, providing followers with evidence-based facts and strategies. His passion for empowering others to take charge of their health makes him an important and revered voice in the community.
Yovana’s community is about walking you through your “transformation of body, mind, and spirit.” Her videos go from maternity health to homemade healthy smoothies and building your house from scratch. Her positivity, relatability, and charisma make her a great companion for anyone looking to start—or upgrade—their wellness journey. Having such diverse content, one can get into the nitty-gritty of what it really takes to be healthy all around, but with enough humanity where it doesn’t feel unattainable or reserved just for YouTubers. She makes us believe we can do it, too, and that’s why we love her energy.
They’re a prominent health and wellness channel on YouTube that offers yoga and fitness classes, guided meditations, and vegan food and health content. Through their extensive collection of online classes, they encourage viewers to embrace a balanced and mindful lifestyle. Their multifaceted approach to holistic well-being sets them apart from others, seamlessly integrating physical, mental, and nutritional aspects into their platform.
Here’s why gyms and fitness centers should tag-team with these wellness rockstars:
Ever heard of the Midas touch? Well, influencers come pretty close! Leveraging the reach of wellness influencers means your gym could (almost) turn posts into social media gold (aka higher engagement rates). Authentic interactions between fitness buffs are the name of the game, and influencer collaborations can amp up your digital marketing efforts and reach your target audience.
In modern-day marketing, specificity reigns supreme. You’ll want to speak directly to your target market for the best ROI. We’re talking about cutting out the noise and dialing up the focus. Partnering with an influencer whose appeal aligns perfectly with your gym’s offering is like discovering a perfectly curated workout playlist—it just fits.
The key is to choose a creator that aligns with your brand’s philosophy and values: recent studies show that consumers are judging influencers—especially what they decide to promote—for whether they are “genuine” or not. According to Jodie Shaw at Kadence, “Gymshark grew into a multi-million-dollar company in just a few years, largely thanks to its influencer marketing strategy.” She argues that influencer marketing’s popularity “leverages the psychology of social proof, trust, and authenticity to drive sales and brand loyalty.”
Attractive and engaging content, executed within a thought-out and flexible campaign, is a perfect way to get potential customers looking your way. Tapping into wellness influencers’ content creation abilities and their loyal audiences offers a smooth ride down the sales funnel for your gym. An impressive before-and-after photo, a well-made workout video, or an inspiring client journey could sweep potential members off their feet and into your gym.
So, whether you’re commanding a gym revolution or helping a fitness center pick up some free weight, collaborating with wellness influencers is the winning strategy you’ve been searching for.
While sponsored posts are great, you’ll want to work closely with the influencer to create innovative campaigns that resonate with their audience. This could be a “30-day Fitness Challenge” with your gym or wellness product at the core or a “Healthy Living Series” where the influencer shares wellness tips sponsored by your brand over several weeks.
Consider involving your chosen influencers in the creation process of a new product or service. This creates a stronger tie between the influencer and your brand from ideation to the final launch. It can be a potent promotional strategy because the influencer can genuinely champion the product, having been involved in its creation.
Promoting your brand using the influencer’s personal branding could help you fit seamlessly into their followers’ feeds. It involves creating promotional content styled and designed in the influencer’s aesthetic—even incorporating some of their catchphrases or taglines. This allows your brand promotions to appear less intrusive and offers their audience a more appealing and organic viewing experience.
Influencers are successful because they share aspects of their personal lives with which their audience connects. Collaborate with them to share the story about your brand—why it was started, the people behind it, and your mission and vision. This connection can build a more profound and meaningful relationship with the audience beyond just selling a product or service.
Rather than just working with one influencer, consider building an influencer community around your brand. You can get wider reach and visibility with multiple influencers championing your brand across different platforms. This also enables you to create more diverse and appealing content, as each influencer brings a unique style and personality.
Besides guiding influencers on content creation around your brand, stimulating user-generated content is also a great idea. This could be done by having creators you partner with encourage their followers to share their journeys using a unique hashtag associated with your brand. Because influencers know their audience well, they could provide fun, new ways to motivate that content creation, making your brand a part of their audience’s wellness journey.
It’s important to focus this user-generated content on them, making the final outcome not only much more special, authentic, and valuable but also a great way to gather insights and valuable voices that could inform your strategy. In a way, it’s almost a way of doing research! It gives you a real scope of who these people are and what they love, loathe, and struggle with the most.
Trust and listen to the creator’s ideas on this; they’ll know better than anyone else what their audience responds better to and how to sow your campaign into their regular content seamlessly. Listen, learn, apply, re-try!
The global fitness chain F45 Training is a shining example of effective collaboration with wellness influencers. F45’s masterstroke was partnering with actor and fitness icon Mark Wahlberg in early 2019. The result? A staggering 520 new fitness studios across the globe by the end of 2019.
Mark Wahlberg not only invested in F45 but also actively promoted it on his social media handles. His involvement brought invaluable attention to the brand, driving a significant increase in memberships. Through personal posts about his F45 workout routine and spreading the news about his investment, Mark gave F45 a golden ticket to becoming a worldwide phenomenon.
By harnessing the power of Wahlberg’s global appeal and his fitness enthusiast fan base, F45 expanded its presence and continuously opened new locations. Like a perfectly executed HIIT workout, their collaboration with Mark demonstrated how the right wellness influencer can give a fitness brand an undeniable boost.
PumpFit Club totally hit the jackpot by teaming up with fierce fitness powerhouse Hannah Eden. This action-packed combo created a fitness buzz that was hard to ignore. Thanks to Hannah’s jaw-dropping workouts and tenacious social media presence, PumpFit Club turned up the heat and reeled in a bunch of excited new members. Lesson here? Partnering with a celeb who’s truly vibing with your brand could be a game-changing move!
And let’s not forget Equinox’s genius side-project, Project by Equinox. They scored big time bringing in the fab and fit Kirsty Godso to help launch their exclusive, boutique-style classes. Kirsty shook things up with her cutting-edge workouts, stirring major interest in the fitness community. If you’re looking for that secret sauce, find an influencer who jams well with your gym’s vibe so you can share the spotlight and make some serious gains!
So, if there’s a lesson to take away from this swole success story, choose an influencer who shares your core values and vision. Who knows, your gym or fitness center may be the next to take the wellness world by storm!
A successful partnership with wellness influencers goes beyond simple sponsored posts. It requires innovative campaign ideas, offering products or services that resonate with the influencer and their followers, personalized branding, sharing deeper narratives about your brand, building a well-rounded influencer community, and encouraging them to generate unique content.
By incorporating these detailed strategies, you can go beyond generic partnerships and fully tap into the power of wellness influencers. As we emphasized, understanding and aligning your brand with the influencer’s personal brand pays dividends by seamlessly integrating into their followers’ feeds. Building an influencer community around your brand broadens your reach, deepens your audience relationships, and diversifies your content.
Ultimately, working with wellness influencers should be thoughtful, strategic, and tuned in to the specific dynamics of your brand and the influencer’s unique brand and audience. This approach will result in a meaningful and effective collaboration that advances your brand’s growth and visibility.
Our team keeps a finger on the pulse, so you’re always working with the latest information.
