# Here is some of my ideas for marketing, tell me what you think.



## tskid (May 28, 2008)

I am still in the planning stages of my business but besides my designs I have had marketing on my mind from day one.

My target market is gym goers.
I think the great thing about having this as my target market is I know where they are going to be eventually. THE GYM! lol


-my first plan to market was to do a sweep of gyms in the area and leave like a flyer or business card on peoples cars.

-also i am a personal trainer at the gym so i can give out free shirts to my clients to get the word out.

-i was definitely considering appointing some of my friends as "promoters" for the product so everytime someone bought a shirt from my site they could say billy refered them and i would give billy 5 dollars everytime that occured as a way to get the word out. i think this would especially help get the word out as my friends are all going to different states for college next year.

-then obviously just advertising and participating on weightlifting forums.

-and eventually if my product caught on to some degree i would talking to gyms about wholesale buys.


you guys have any other ideas? and what do you guys think of my current ideas?


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## daveM (Mar 29, 2008)

tskid said:


> -my first plan to market was to do a sweep of gyms in the area and leave like a flyer or business card on peoples cars.


Everything sounds fine *except* the above. 

You leave unwanted trash on my car for me to throw away for you and I would *NEVER *consider using your biz now, or in the future. I would also immediately complain to the Gym owners that someone was leafleting cars on their lot w/o their permission. ( what gym/biz owner in their right mind would let a competitor -- you said youre a trainer, right-- peddle his wares in _their own_ parking lot? )

Im sure most "muscleheads" arent so much worried about you leaving them trash as they are about you touching their cars....

....But hey, that's just my experience from years spent as a "gym rat" myself and working directly above one. Your mileage will vary depending on the gym's client base.

d


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## COEDS (Oct 4, 2006)

I agree stay away from cars.I hate that.How about a slogan contest for a fee shirt and gym bag. This will attract interest and get you some added ideas for slogans. You could give a few samples and get people wearing them. I suggest a nice garment ,this will encourage them to wear more places. ....... JB


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## UglyCook (Apr 30, 2008)

Ok, you've been slammed enough about littering on cars (not to mention you can be fined in some cities), but giving out samples with your name on them might work. Are you going to just do shirts or will you do bags, towels, key chains and other accessories as well? I was just thinking that giving people something cheap but useful, like some sort of key holder or a small towel might work.


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## Shearslinger (Jun 4, 2008)

Give MySpace a shot. A lot of small businesses are using it to connect and network with customers and other businesses. I am sure that a lot of gyms have MySpace pages and so do most of their members. With MySpace you can even go national. The best part is that it is free. It has worked for me and my business. Did I mention it was free.


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## pokerman (Nov 7, 2007)

Giving away tees is great but much more expensive than some other promotional items. Granted tees will advertise for you....when they wear them. 

How about using a refrigerator memo board (less than $2.00 each)? Has small magnets to hold it and an erasable pen w/permanent calendar or any artwork you want to create. For a lot less than the investment in a tee which will wear out (no pun intended), you get something which reminds them of you and your service everytime they reach for the food!!!! And it stays for a lot longer than a tee. 
Just a thought if you're starting a new venture and need some guerilla marketing.
(I use them in my business and give them out with every order, catalog, and referral).
Good luck.


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## tskid (May 28, 2008)

yeh i was expecting that reaction about the flyers and i agree with it lol.

ii have been shopping around for shirts to get a good quality product and i like the hanes and gildan shirts but my only concern is the white shirts just seem like undershirts lol, all the colors stuff seem nicer looking. any suggestions?


right now i will be starting with just t's and branch out into other apparel and small items as the business grows. 


i really like the slogan contest idea but where would i do that?


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## badalou (Mar 19, 2006)

Whyn not talk the owners abouselling the shirts in the gym... People like to work out and having a nice new shirt on hand might be a welcome. share the profits.


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## tskid (May 28, 2008)

badalou said:


> Whyn not talk the owners abouselling the shirts in the gym... People like to work out and having a nice new shirt on hand might be a welcome. share the profits.


 
i was at first unsure about doing that and than today i found out that even though msot gyms are franchised they still have some room to do their own purchasing on the side. so once i get this thing rolling i will msot definitely be doing that.

do you think it is better to sell to them at a wholesale price? or use their gym as a "store front" and give them some of the profit?


and i cant wait to receive my tee square it lou! =P


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## Reckless Tees (Feb 24, 2007)

I know what you're saying about the white tees seeming like under shirts. If I buy a white tee for any of my work, i like to get the heavy 100% cotton ones so they seem more legit.


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## TORACHI (Mar 25, 2008)

Use your own car. PLace you logo and biz # on the back window. Word of mouth and quality work are the best advertisement. Good luck


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## jaycen29 (May 16, 2008)

Here's what i would do...order some workout towels and have your marketing message printed on them (company name, website, etc..) and then hand them out in front of gyms or get the gym to let you just leave a batch inside for people to take. They might be more open to letting you do this with towels rather than flyers since the towels are something that people may want and also helps the gym keep their equipment clean. Basically you would be handing out "flyers" that people can use and will keep using rather than throw away.

When I was having my volleyball teams uniforms printed I ordered some hand towels and had my teams logo that I designed screen printed on them at the same time, and I love them...my whole team uses them all the time. 

Word of warning...stay away from the "Rally Towels" you see on all the imprintables websites and catalogs. I ordered some of those and they were garbage. They were really small and paper thin, a waste of money.

I searched everywhere online and in stores for a good low cost quality towel and finally found this place - TheTowelOutlet.com and ordered their "*Color Premium-Lint Free China Towels*" in the "*Hand Towels*" section. I got several different colors and they were all very good quality. And at 9.99/dozen you cant really beat that. I also got some of the "White Premium" hand towels but these weren't as good quality and not as thick as the colored ones so I didn't end up printing on them and just used them around the house, so I would stick to the colored ones. There is a minimum order of $40 but for your purposes you shouldn't have any problem meeting that. 

Hope this helps and gives you some ideas...


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## badalou (Mar 19, 2006)

tskid said:


> i was at first unsure about doing that and than today i found out that even though msot gyms are franchised they still have some room to do their own purchasing on the side. so once i get this thing rolling i will msot definitely be doing that.
> 
> do you think it is better to sell to them at a wholesale price? or use their gym as a "store front" and give them some of the profit?
> 
> ...


Offer wholesale at one price and consignment at a higher price. If they are buying them outright they should pay higher price as it is not costing them anything. All orders up to Thusday went out. Order received Friday going out today.


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## elmattador (Mar 25, 2008)

tskid said:


> -also i am a personal trainer at the gym so i can give out free shirts to my clients to get the word out.


Do you work for a gym or independently? If for a gym, be sure to make sure that your supervisor(s)/manager are okay with that. I know of people who have lost their jobs for advertising their side business at their principle job. 

Also, don't underestimate the value of word of mouth and networking. If you're a personal trainer you probably know other personal trainers. You guys are kind of at the center of the fitness/gym scene. Maybe give some shirts out to other personal trainers who you know are well connected in return for them helping you to get the word out. Most successful trends start by ending up in the hands of well connected people or networkers.

I would also stay away from gimicks. Try and make sure that your marketing approaches are relevant to your business (i.e. no pens with your name on them if you're selling t-shirts). Some people may disagree, but I really think irrelevant marketing hurts your legitimacy.


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