The well being and health sector is extremely aggressive, with discounting and cost-cutting among the many widespread levers utilized by manufacturers.
Nevertheless, David Lloyd Golf equipment has taken a special strategy. As an alternative of racing to the underside, the enterprise set out in 2016 to “race to the highest,” its advertising director since 2017, Andrea Dearden, tells Advertising Week.
For nearly a decade, the enterprise underwent a marketing-led transformation to construct its model energy, enhance buyer numbers and obtain premiumisation – and place itself as not simply an “costly fitness center” however a “premium household wellbeing vacation spot”.
Its work to pursue premiumisation in a low-cost class contributed £137m to its incremental income between 2016 and 2023, and helped it clinch bronze on the 2024 IPA Effectiveness Awards.
Model reinvention
Whereas the model had sturdy consciousness early in its transformation journey – 80% in 2019 – the advertising workforce recognized a disconnect.
Whereas consciousness was excessive, understanding of the model lagged at 43%, whereas consideration was 31%. It suffered from being “well-known however misunderstood”.
The model was struggling to speak its broader way of life attraction and advantages to customers, as an alternative falling into the “limiting” fitness center class, says Dearden. That David Lloyd is a well being, health and wellbeing membership – not only a fitness center – was one thing the advertising workforce wanted to convey.
Confronted with these challenges, the management workforce, appointed in 2016 following the enterprise’s acquisition in 2013, determined to push additional into premiumisation, moderately than following the rulebook utilized by excessive avenue gyms within the UK.
It meant investing “vital” cash into membership renovations and the introduction of various membership tiers to persuade clients.
The worth equation for patrons “is expounded to dwell”, says Dearden, who says folks usually strategy health as one thing “they must do” after which end, whereas at David Lloyd “as a result of we’re bringing folks collectively” they will keep for longer on every go to, convey their households and buy foods and drinks.
Resetting model and efficiency
Entrepreneurs have lengthy debated the advantages and pitfalls of name advertising versus efficiency advertising.
For Dearden’s workforce, the target was to develop a powerful brand-response mannequin, however there was an acceptance that this takes time.
Subsequently, the enterprise determined to first up give attention to setting the foundations of “environment friendly” short-term acquisition exercise earlier than flexing on model.
Forward of tackling longer-term model challenges of understanding and consideration, the workforce set its knowledge and efficiency basis in 4 areas: linear attribution and a performance-driven media plan to construct confidence in mass-reach channels, knowledge planning at membership degree and viewers penetration to focus on efforts to decrease performing golf equipment, share of voice evaluation to tell budgeting, and econometrics for every particular person membership.
The advertising workforce has a “take a look at and be taught” strategy, says Dearden, drawing inspiration from the US and Canada moderately than the UK, as a result of well being and health manufacturers in these areas “are typically fairly progressive within the health area”.
Like many companies, David Lloyd “had quite a lot of knowledge”, says Dearden, “however quite a lot of the information wasn’t fairly as usable as possibly it needs to be”.
“We spent an terrible lot of time attempting to grasp [data] and that has manifested itself in constructing media combine modelling (MMM), which permits us to grasp, actually from an acquisition perspective, which channels are working for us,” explains Dearden. Concentrate on advertising effectiveness in decline, examine reveals
Every membership has its personal “mini MMM” which ladders as much as the general mannequin. It permits for simpler comparability between golf equipment, she explains. “You may go to Acton Park in West London, what sort of components of media drive that viewers, which could be very totally different from someplace like Hull, which is certainly one of our more cost effective golf equipment.” Plus, it permits the enterprise to optimise regional spend and nationwide media investments “dynamically”.
“The position of knowledge has elevated massively. As has the position of artistic as a result of we must be saying the correct factor to the correct individual on the proper time, and so we monitor all of that as properly,” she provides.
David Lloyd has been with the identical media company for seven years, she provides, that means there’s a “wealth of knowledge” her workforce can interrogate at any time. “It massively helps with forecasting,” she notes.
Dearden has “all the time been an actual proponent of built-in campaigns” the place all components of the combination “work collectively”. It’s modified “lots” in seven years at David Lloyd, she says, with content material improvement in digital channels rising considerably, as buyer knowledge has developed too.
“The huge focuses are clearly data-driven choices primarily based on significantly better knowledge and making sense of what we’re truly seeing,” she provides.
Clear on viewers
None of this implies the model isn’t centered on model constructing and what Dearden describes as “richer” storytelling although.
David Lloyd’s storytelling seven years in the past was “fairly useful,” she says. Now, it’s extra “emotive”, notably for the shifting picture format, which “works higher” for the enterprise – partly as a result of its trade is movement-based so the merchandise could be highlighted higher.
“We’re very clear about who our audiences are and ensuring we give attention to the proper of individuals, however apparently, we use TV as a broad model message,” says Dearden. “Then we goal very particularly inside a drive time of every of the golf equipment.”Model constructing ‘most necessary’ consider attaining enterprise targets
Since present process its advertising transformation, acquisition prices have “fairly considerably” lowered, she says, as a result of its technique is “about driving model consideration”.
“We used to do much more gives,” says Dearden. Certainly, when she joined the enterprise, there have been “an terrible lot extra gives by way of the gross sales workforce”.
“At present, we avoid it,” she says. “We’ve managed to shift from being very offer-led, which the fitness center trade is, to whereas we would have restricted gives at very restricted instances, we’ve managed to wean ourselves off.”
Covid and price of dwelling
Present process a marketing-led enterprise transformation is tough at the most effective of time – not to mention when it encompasses the Covid pandemic and subsequent value of dwelling disaster.
Whereas its clients are typically extra prosperous, David Lloyd recognised all customers have been chopping again on discretionary spending. The enterprise subsequently wanted “to work even more durable to justify worth”.
In justifying its proposition, the enterprise led with a brand new model platform, ‘Elevate your On a regular basis’, to place the model as an integral a part of life moderately than a nice-to-have. Whereas its artistic strategy was centered on rising model metrics, the media technique “flipped” the main focus again to acquisition.
David Lloyd “recovered shortly” after the pandemic, says Dearden. It thought restoration would occur by the top of 2021, however the enterprise thought-about itself recovered by August. “That was as a result of we have been relentlessly centered on what the patron was going by way of,” she explains.
The enterprise additionally benefitted from the rise in wellness traits post-pandemic, she acknowledges, which have “massively exacerbated” since 2020.
Advertising-led development
David Lloyd just isn’t all the time “the early innovator”, says Dearden, however inside its general model proposition, there’s all the time “a component of innovation”.
The enterprise will take a look at rising traits and ask how they are often utilized to it.
“We’re not essentially all the time the primary to market – however this enterprise will go to market successfully,” she says.
Between 2016 and 2023 the enterprise achieved development by each quantity and worth by attaining its brief and long-term targets, in keeping with its IPA Effectiveness Awards Bronze-winning case examine. On this interval, the share of premium memberships (Diamond and Platinum) grew from 10% to 61%, contributing strongly to income development. ‘We’re starting to show some corners’: Is ROI nonetheless king in advertising?
Its complete annual enquiries grew 66%, whereas shopper understanding that it’s “extra of a membership than a fitness center” grew from 44% to 59%.
By way of consideration, the assumption that the golf equipment are “definitely worth the greater value”, elevated from 32% to 39%.
Whereas David Lloyd is “nonetheless perceived to be costly”, customers recognise its vary of providers with a way its price paying for, in keeping with the model’s analysis. Between December 2016 and December 2023, member rely grew from 430,000 to 609,000 – regardless of a big drop within the pandemic.
Placing advertising on the coronary heart of the enterprise helped it obtain development and transformation – and helped it to attain its perfect premiumisation.
“Whenever you stroll by way of the door, there’s a lot extra to it,” says Dearden, “and it’s a lot greater than only a fitness center.”
