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THE
APRIL 2019
NO FOOLING As another April Fools’ Day has passed by, we are once again reminded of the ancient proverb, “Don’t believe everything you read on the internet.” The age of Photoshop and social media has really brought this tricksters’ holiday to a whole new level. To the companies that fooled us with their hoaxes and fake announcements, well played. While we at O2 enjoy a good laugh, we’ve never really figured out how to pull off one of these pranks without the joke being on us. Old-school O2 fans will remember our attempts to have a little fun on April Fools’. Our graphic design wizards have occasionally whipped up what we thought were ridiculous products for us to announce on the great prankster’s holiday. A particular favorite fakeout of ours was “Formula MOO2” oxygenated milk. Sure, the branding was convincing, but come on. Oxygenated Milk?
a drink infused with the skin and connective tissues of animals, I’d immediately think it was a sick joke. But now Vital Proteins’ collagen powder is one of the hottest brands on the market! And it doesn’t stop with collagen. Think back to 2013 and ask yourself if you’d believe that two friends mixing dates with egg whites in their kitchen would be able to take on the entire protein bar industry. Hello, RXBAR. What about health trends? I know I wouldn’t have believed anyone telling me to put butter in my morning joe to lose weight, and yet here we are in the age of Bulletproof Coffee. Honestly, I don’t even have to look beyond my own company to make this point. People still get tripped up on the whole “How can you oxygenate H2O?” thing. The amount of time I’ve had to explain how molecules work should qualify me as a chemistry teacher. But speaking personally, if you jumped into a time machine and traveled back to O2’s launch with a can of our caffeine free Lemon Lime flavor, I’d flat out refuse to believe it was our product. O2 was born out of my desire to fuel my life with natural caffeine. A line of O2 products without that kick would seem unthinkable to me. Now I drink it every evening. And it’s all thanks to you, our fans. A caffeine free option for natural recovery wasn’t something we’d ever considered until your requests came in, and now Lemon Lime and Blackberry Currant are some of our most popular flavors. Now we want to know what other concoctions you want to see from us! In honor of our legacy of botched April Fools’ Day jokes, we’re flipping the script. Tell us the non-existent O2 products you’re thirsting for! Want O2 shots? O2 Vodka?? “42O-2” CBD oil infused recovery drinks?! Milk? There are no wrong answers here. Send your thoughts to info@drinko2.com and let us know what we should oxygenate next!
We underestimated the excitement of our fans — by a mile. Most of April 1 and 2, my team and I were scrolling
through social media pages in disbelief. People wanted this
product, and it was the hardest thing on earth to tell them, “Sorry, April Fools!” After the MOO2 incident, we decided to hang up our jester hats and play our product announcements straight. Thinking back on this incident with more experience under my
belt, I think I know what went wrong. The health
food industry has some truly unbelievable products that are actually completely real.
Many of the products I use in my own life would have seemed unthinkable 10 years ago. For example, if someone had offered me
Cheers,
–Dave Colina Founder, O2
O2 | PAGE 1 | DRINKO2.COM
3 GUERRILLA MARKETING TACTICS TO G Guerrilla marketing strategies, with their low-cost methods and innovative approaches to advertising, can be the key to growing both large and small businesses. Here are three examples of guerrilla advertising that, with enough creativity and boldness, you can use to maximize business growth.
LEAVE NO SURFACE UNTOUCHED AND NO MEDIUM UNUSED. Ambient marketing is one of the more common guerrilla marketing strategies, and it is a great way to raise local awareness for your brand. It involves advertising in unusual spaces with unusual methods. A recent example of this is how Taco Bell announced their presence in London in 2018. They created the illusion that Big Ben was ringing by mixing its sound with Taco Bell’s signature bell sound. They played it on speakers attached to rickshaws, which were driven around the city. While this is certainly a more elaborate example, ambient marketing can be as easy as using more unconventional surfaces, like sidewalks and drinking glasses, to market your product — so long as it is creative enough to make a potential customer take notice. ENGAGE INTERNET USERS WHERE THEY ARE. The marketing strategy that used to be known as “word-of-mouth,” “network marketing,” or “creating a buzz,” is now known as “viral marketing” on the internet. This is not a new concept but it can be
3 ESSENTIAL WAYS TO BOOST RETENTION LOVE THE ONE YOU’RE WITH
Many box owners make the mistake of taking their members’ loyalty for granted. While longtime members often provide a solid base of support, if you aren’t giving people a reason to be excited to show up to the gym every day, even old regulars may start to look elsewhere. The last thing you want is to pour time and money into attracting new people to your gym, only to lose just as many by year’s end. Here are a few great retention strategies you can use to show your loyal gym members some love. WORKSHOPS Most people get frustrated when they plateau. Sure, last year they were setting all sorts of PRs and put on more muscle than they’ve ever had in their life. But this year, victories are fewer and farther between, making the experience stagnant. Workshops on subjects beyond mere workouts offer opportunities to keep people from burning out and help them reach even higher levels of fitness. Offering courses on subjects like healthy meal prep, post-workout recovery, and proper supplement use can bring a ton of value to your box. These courses can double as an opportunity to educate members on related retail products! CHILD CARE This is a popular service at many boxes, so if you aren’t offering it already, you may be behind the curve. Even if you didn’t start out with many members who have kids, demographics can change quickly: Two longtime gym goers fall in love and start a family, and suddenly you’re out two memberships because you don’t offer
child care. When people have to choose between their favorite box and their kids, they’re going to
choose the kids. SAVE THE DATE
It’s incredible how much a handshake and a small gift can mean to someone on their special day. Keeping track of and recognizing important events in your members’ lives means the world to them. If you don’t already, consider doing something special for each individual member on their birthday and the anniversary of their membership. This recognition doesn’t have to be anything extravagant; a can of O2 and a pat on the back would be enough. Just giving people the personal reminder that you care about them beyond their status as a member will make their day and keep them coming back.
O2 | PAGE 2 | DRINKO2.COM
ROW YOUR BUSINESS made even more effective with some creativity. Major fast-food chain Wendy’s utilizes this strategy with their Twitter account. Their account takes on a personality, as opposed to just being a place to make announcements, which works well in their quest to get away from the cynical idea of the soulless, profit- mongering corporation. Having an online presence that engages people where they are, instead of making posts and waiting for potential customers to happen upon them, can help your business stand out online. FORM REAL RELATIONSHIPS WITH CUSTOMERS. This tactic, sometimes known as a grassroots movement, has many different facets. However, the goal is to ultimately win a customer’s business by engaging with them on a more personal level. This approach often involves using the internet to ask supporters of your business to repost or retweet material from your social media pages. You can also encourage your employees to engage with real people in places where your target demographic likes to spend their time. The goal is to foster genuine relationships with customers that make them feel cared for by your company and eager to keep coming back.
AFFILIATE SPOTLIGHT JAVIER ON BEING A FITNESS SPONGE
Javier Ferrer is a true fitness industry veteran. For the past 12 years, he’s been working and coaching at various gyms, all while practicing martial arts. From his experiences, he’s absorbed many different techniques and philosophies on how to help members grow. Now the owner of Submit 2 Fitness CrossFit, Javier is continuing to experiment and innovate the box management formula. Javier was first introduced to CrossFit in 2009 while preparing for a martial arts tournament. “I’d already started messing around with unorthodox equipment,” he remembers. “But when I was going for a third-degree black belt, I had to find a routine that would keep the tank going.” Facing the 6-hour trial required to earn his next rank, Javier turned to the high-intensity training of CrossFit to condition his body. “By the time the test was over, I felt like I could keep going,” he recalls with a laugh. But Javier’s approach as coach and gym owner doesn’t stop with CrossFit. “Fitness has always been my passion,” he explains. “As an owner, that means putting your people first.” When we asked if he had any advice for those new to the industry, Javier had a straightforward answer. “Be a sponge,” he says. In this experienced coach’s eyes, there’s always room to innovate and bring new workouts into the fold. As Javier puts it, “Learn from everyone; even Zumba.” More than being dedicated to a single workout philosophy, Javier knows it’s the coaches who really set gyms apart. Speaking about Rosie, his head coach and girlfriend of 18 years, Javier says, “She’s the heart and soul of our facility. Everyone loves her. In the past, I was doing 90 percent of the coaching, but her coming on full time and staying late has allowed me to focus on managing.” Javier clearly has a deep knowledge of what it takes to run a gym, so we couldn’t resist asking him if he had any retail advice. “We did a few contests to see who could burn the most calories,” he explained, “and the winners got free O2. Now, they like the taste, and the product is moving!”
EASY BACON AND SPINACH STIR-FRY
This super easy stir-fry is the perfect weekday dinner. It manages to pack a ton of flavor using just a handful of ingredients.
INGREDIENTS
• 3 slices bacon • 3 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped • 2 bunches spinach • 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper • Salt and black pepper, to taste
DIRECTIONS
1. Heat a large skillet to medium. 2. While skillet is warming, cut bacon into squares.
3. Cook bacon until fat is rendered and bacon is almost to your desired doneness. If desired, you can remove bacon fat from skillet and replace with 1 tablespoon oil. However, keeping the fat is recommended for flavor. 4. Add garlic and cook for 1–2 minutes. 5. Add spinach and crushed red pepper and stir-fry for 10 minutes. 6. Season with salt and pepper, and serve.
Thanks, Javier!
O2 | PAGE 3 | DRINKO2.COM
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Pitch Us Your Dream O2 Product Page 1 3 Guerrilla Marketing Tactics to Grow Your Business 3 Essential Ways to Boost Retention Page 2 Easy Bacon and Spinach Stir-Fry Tips From a Veteran Box Owner Page 3 How Being Open to Growth Leads to Success Page 4
THE POWER OF ‘MINDSET’ For decades, Dr. Carol S. Dweck studied the phenomena of success. How is it that some people are able to grow their business, stay fit, or achieve their personal goals while others in similar situations stall out? “Mindset” is Dr. Dweck’s answer to this question. Subtitled “The New Psychology of Success,” this book chronicles the Stanford psychologist’s findings, which suggest an inseparable link between belief and achievement. According to Dr. Dweck, people tend to think about the challenges in front of them in one of two ways. They either have a “fixed” mindset — believing that their talents and abilities are static, intrinsic properties of who they are — or a “growth” mindset — believing they can improve every aspect of themselves with practice and perseverance. Those who approach life’s hurdles as an opportunity for growth are the ones who find long-term success. If you’ve ever said “I’m just not good at math” or “I’m not a natural leader,” you’ve fallen into the fixed mindset trap. If you believe there’s nothing you can do to change your circumstances, you’ll never strive to improve them. The same is true of positive fixed opinions of yourself. Dr. Dweck points out that those who believe themselves to be “a great boss” or “an amazing athlete” are also doing themselves a disservice. Once you think your skills are tied to who you are as a person, you’ll avoid challenging them for fear they might be found
HOW BEING OPEN TO GROWTH LEADS TO SUCCESS
wanting. This leads your talents to atrophy as you seek detours rather than facing challenges head-on. Dr. Dweck argues that, instead of falling victim to the pessimism and self- delusion that defines fixed mindset thinking, we need to recognize that the path to success lies in open- minded perseverance. “A person’s true potential is unknown (and unknowable),” she says. “It’s impossible to foresee what can be accomplished with years of passion, toil, and training.” Not only does “Mindset” drive this
point home with well-documented experiments and studies, but it also provides a workshop to help people break free of their fixed mindset and find success.
O2 | PAGE 4 | DRINKO2.COM
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