Introduction
Health is a priority for millions worldwide; thus, businesses assisting people in maintaining their best physical and mental shape are in demand. Furthermore, the COVID-19 pandemic made well-being socially valuable, enabling tech, food, and consumer brands to switch toward promoting a healthy lifestyle (Mehta, Saxena and Purohit, 2020). Such devices as fitness trackers benefited from this situation, expanded their product lines and audiences, and enhanced their marketing strategies. For example, Fitbit, an American producer of wearables and software that helps its users monitor essential health rates such as heartbeat, activities, calories, and sleep quality, has become more innovative and popular worldwide (Leung et al., 2022). This paper aims to perform Fitbit’s UK market analysis, explore its organisational impact, and develop an evidence-based marketing strategy with SMART objectives and controlling approaches.
Market Analysis
Macro Environment
The wearable technology market with devices that track human health data is highly competitive; thus, Fitbit has to develop influential campaigns and remain innovative to keep a solid place among the best producers. PESTEL analysis identifies external factors influencing a company’s risks, marketing strategy priorities, and competitiveness (Wood, 2013). There is the little political impact on the market, and only the severest disagreements and protests might change consumers’ behavior or influence production and supply chains. The economic factor is the current inflation in the United States and the unstable situation in Europe: cutting expenses if a crisis emerges would drop the devices’ sales. Furthermore, issues with logistics and supply chains might force the company to raise prices.
Society popularises a healthy lifestyle in favor of the fitness trackers market, and this trend enables investors to provide the related companies with sufficient sources to innovate and improve monitoring technology. The environmental factor is a rapidly developing culture of corporate responsibility which forces the market to address climate change and other issues in their production and supply strategies. Legal considerations are significant for fitness trackers’ brands because they work with sensitive private data that must be protected from hacking and not shared with third parties (Fortune Business Insights, 2021). For instance, to comply with the European GDPR, companies must identify what information is collected and how it is stored, and users must agree with these Terms before signing up.
Micro Environment
In the UK, the wearable fitness devices market is expanding as the demand for health monitoring significantly increased during the COVID-19 pandemic and related lockdowns. Individuals were forced to stay at home instead of visiting a gym or getting sufficient activities, and tools such as Fitbit became a useful substitute. However, while the technology and tracking accuracy keep innovating, the ownership of fitness devices has declined by 3-5% each year since 2019 (Curry, 2022). This market paradox occurred because many UK consumers prefer smartwatches that include basic health monitoring rather than separate devices (Emmanuel, 2022). Furthermore, wearables producers continue improving their technologies, creating a threat to all fitness trackers.
Competition is high in the UK market of health monitoring wearables because devices of different brands vary by core features, software, design and price. Alongside Fitbit, brands such as Garmin, Coros, Wahoo, Withing, and Xiaomi have their best-selling fitness trackers and loyal customers (Leadham, Dedezade and Gough, 2022). Apple and Samsung smartwatches share the market because of their high-quality products and the most convenient synchronization with iOs and Android phones (Sawh, 2022). Fitbit risks decreasing its competitiveness because rivals such as Garmin and Withing are switching to a hybrid of classical watches and fitness wearables, which have become especially popular in the UK market.
Customers are divided into retailers and direct clients who can purchase a device online or in a physical shop, and it benefits the market along with the increasing interest in health monitoring. The largest retailers are Amazon and Currys, and they have the broadest range of products and models, the option to compare different devices and buy the most popular ones for a reasonable price (Amazon, n. d.). The direct buyers are more loyal to the selected brand, and Fitbit’s UK customers choose the company’s shops if they have already used a tracker or would like to personalize their experience.
Brand Impact
Macro and micro environments analyses displayed that although the fitness wearable devices market is expanding with consumers’ interest in a healthy lifestyle, several factors influence their choices. SWOT analysis was performed to summarise the key conditions and identify the brand impact for Fitbit. The main strength is a long history of wearable device technology development and the loyal international customer base. Fitbit also has a broad range of products for users of different ages, locations, and socioeconomic statuses. The company’s weakness is that Google acquired it in 2021 and now must comply with its regulations rather than innovate autonomously (The United States Securities and Exchange Commission [SEC], 2020). Moreover, legal considerations regarding data privacy and usage for advertisement severely impact the brand and overall market. An opportunity for Fitbit in the current situation is to offer community-based options to encourage more people to buy devices and join healthy lifestyle groups or challenges. The most significant threat to the brand is the rapidly increasing competitiveness caused by the smartwatch producers such as Apple and Samsung.
Marketing Objective
Fitbit has a wide range of products, software, and community in several countries; thus, narrowing it to the UK is necessary for developing a more precise marketing objective. The appropriate strategy to set a goal is to make it Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound [SMART] (McDonald, 2017). Based on the market analysis, Fitbit’s opportunity to expand the number of UK customers can be realized by offering current users to encourage their family, friends, and colleagues to purchase a device (Emmanuel, 2022). The SMART objective for the marketing plan is to increase Fitbit’s fitness trackers sales by 5% in the UK by June 2023 via promotion and by referring the existing user base to their communities.
Marketing Strategy
The target consumer for the SMART objective is an individual aged 25-40, who lives in a large city such as London, Liverpool, or Manchester, represents a middle or high-income group and is well-educated. The potential client has little time to exercise regularly as they are involved in career or family building, yet still care about a healthy lifestyle and have people around who share their interests (Ringeval et al., 2020). Fitbit aims to sell its products to the targeted consumer by offering them to join a like-minded group and use high-quality measurements to impact their well-being positively.
The marketing strategy to increase Fitbit’s fitness trackers sales by 5% in the UK by June 2023 via promotion and referring the existing user base to their communities requires multiple simultaneous activities. The general direction is to emphasize the clients’ willingness to improve their health and share their achievements to encourage others to join or attract like-minded people. The market assessment suggested that the threat of competitiveness with smartwatches is significant for Fitbit’s product sales, and the measurement quality can be emphasized in campaigns. Impact analysis displayed that most fitness tracker users stay loyal to their selected brand; thus, an increase in sales is expected from the new adopters of devices (Lewis et al., 2020). The target audience’s behavior should be considered in the strategy: they tend to have no time for attending a gym and replace it with exercise at home, jogging, walking, or playing with children (Leung et al., 2022). Consequently, the marketing strategy should reveal how Fitbit products will help them keep their health and activity on track and mention that they can achieve their fitness goals without significant life changes.
The Ansoff matrix developed for Fitbit and attached in the Appendix revealed that expanding the product line is a workable strategy to increase sales. However, the competitiveness in the market must also be considered and addressed by technological innovation and tracking methods improvement (Fortune Business Insights, 2021). The lowest risk strategy is to perform product development and promotion without entering new markets and inviting more consumers to the existing ones.
Marketing Mix
Product
The combination of product and software is crucial for the marketing strategy realisation as the latter includes the option to share achievements and invite others to join the Fitbit community. Products are the most popular devices among the UK consumers: models Versa 3, Luxe, Inspire HD, Sense, and Charge 5, all can be purchased directly from Fitbit or via retailers such as Amazon (Sawh, 2022). Each product includes software, and the marketing strategy will benefit from encouraging clients to invite others or create fitness challenges.
Price
The marketing strategy to increase sales by 5% by June 2023 does not include any specific manipulations with the product prices. The normal price point for the devices in the UK is £169 for Versa 3, £109 for Luxe, £90 for Inspire HD, £219 for Sense, and £120 for Charge 5 (Fitbit UK, n. d.). The value will decrease during the seasonal discounts, which is sufficient for the objective’s achievement.
Place
Fitbit is convenient for its current and targeted consumers because the wearable devices are distributed via multiple channels: the company’s official website, online and physical retailers, and e-commerce platforms. The most popular Fitbit trackers, such as Charge 5 and Versa 3, can be purchased through Amazon and shipped to any location in the UK and abroad (Amazon, n. d.). New clients can select the place to buy the device they prefer: retailer stores allow them to test several models, and, if a buyer is sure about their choice, the online option is also available.
Promotion
Promotion to increase sales by 5% by June 2023 will be divided into three main aspects: social networks, community, and advertisement. The first includes enforcing Fitbit’s presence on Instagram and Facebook, interactions with existing customers, and collaborations with influencers. Community aspects addressed via software and application will offer special sharing options and challenge creation to unite users and build groups of interests, such as running a club of a certain firm or school hiking club (Ringeval et al., 2020). Advertisement is a combination of campaigns in socials addressed to the identified targeted audience with new products and feature releases.
People
Employees involved in the process of marketing strategy realization are the social media managers (SMM), sales team representatives, Fitbit application support, and overall customer service assistants who communicate with clients on various platforms. Indeed, the SMM and sales departments should develop effective campaigns to encourage existing customers to invite their peers to join the well-being community and purchase the device to achieve fitness goals (Lewis et al., 2020). Application and customer support teams are responsible for maintaining a functioning, checking if the sharing and challenges creation options work properly, and addressing customer feedback.
Process
The process aspect is not crucial for the identified marketing strategy because such factors as ordering and delivery are not related to the goal of joining the Fitbit community. The only detail that might be changed is the phone application installation: now, it is necessary to purchase the device to activate the software (Fitbit UK, n. d.). As a part of a marketing campaign, access to the software can be given if a current user shares a link. A new potential customer will get seven days of the free trial, and if they join some challenges or enjoy the options, they are more likely to buy a Fitbit device.
Physical Evidence
Physical evidence of a brand’s presence and image is a device on a customer’s hand, various designs, and existing users’ testimonies on websites and online shops. Website, packaging, campaign design and wording should be about lifestyle rather than athletics (Fitbit UK, n. d.). Fitbit needs to display that physical fitness and well-being can be achieved without an obsession with sports and diets.
Control: Monitoring and Measurement
Controlling how the marketing strategy is managed is essential to maintain the processes’ efficiency and timely address the inevitable challenges. As the goal to increase Fitbit’s sales by 5% in the UK market by enabling the existing customer to invite their peers includes three main courses of action – social networks, community, and advertising, monitoring and measurement should be performed for each aspect separately (McDonald, 2017). Controlling events should be organized every two weeks to identify if the strategy is on track and implement the necessary adjustments.
Monitoring
General monitoring is the marketing team’s manager’s responsibility; they should gather statistical data from colleagues and collect it to the chart with key aspects and milestones. The social media campaign performance can be tracked through the use of Facebook, Instagram, and Google Analytics and, combined with the website and online store metrics, will suggest if the publications and communication are effective (Katsikeas, Leonidou and Zeriti, 2019). Community activity monitoring requires the Fitbit application team to register traffic increases and report the number of created invitations and the new accounts created via the shared links. An advertisement should be measured with the tools offered by the platforms where it is distributed; the rate of leads turned into buyers is also a crucial metric for marketing strategy. Sales metrics must be monitored to understand if the goal is achieved; however, tracking the increase in purchases from, for instance, physical retailer stores are complicated. Consequently, a separate meeting will be conducted monthly, prior to which the sales representatives will contact the main distributors to receive information about buying activity.
Measurement
SMART objectives are measurable, and maximizing the value created from the marketing strategy’s activities should enable the team to calculate several statistics on sales and efficiency. As the goal is to increase the number of sales by 5% by June 2023, the progress should be tracked by checking both the quantity and percentage of purchases monthly. Details such as refunds or incorrect calculations from retailers should also be considered as an error rate (Katsikeas, Leonidou and Zeriti, 2019). The crucial aspect for achieving the objective is that the number of sales is prioritized instead of the new users’ quantity: individuals may purchase Fitbit several gadgets or use them without becoming a customer with the application and tracking software installation.
The effectiveness of campaigns and advertisements will be measured separately; therefore, each activity must include its goal and controlling approach. An example is a campaign to encourage existing customers to invite their peers through the Fitbit software links. It can be claimed as effective if this source’s sales increase the overall rate by at least 0,2% monthly. Social media engagement rates should also be measured based on the milestones, such as the end of the campaign, collaboration with an influencer, and seasonal discounts. Another vital measurement is customer satisfaction, which needs to be tracked at least every 90 days by short surveys, One-to-ten ratings, or direct feedback requests (Kapferer, 2008). This statistical information is necessary to avoid missing the issues that would prevent customers from recommending Fitbit or even stopping using devices and going to competitors.
Conclusion
Fitbit’s marketing strategy to increase the number of sales by 5% by June 2023 is an achievable objective; however, external risks such as economic instability and consumer behavior changes might impact its realization. Market analysis revealed that the social value of healthy lifestyle support products is increasing, and technology is developing rapidly to expand fitness wearable devices’ features. Fitbit can benefit from the increasing demand by launching campaigns encouraging its current users to invite others to join well-being communities and challenges, enabling them to buy trackers.
Critical Reflection of Marketing Planning in Theory and Practice
Marketing planning theory reflects the key strategies for increasing a company’s sales, customer number, revenue, and international expansion. The discipline enables the involved individuals to critically evaluate their aspirations, goals, risks, and opportunities before taking precise actions. Planning theory applies the marketing process with value understanding, determination, delivery, and monitoring; thus, it aims to develop the optimal approach for succeeding in a specific industry (Asseraf, Lages and Shoham, 2018). Consequently, knowledge about the company’s financial options and growth objectives must be combined with an understanding of the market’s operations, main competitors, and possible turnarounds. Marketing planning theory reveals that all the processes are interconnected, and strategy development requires detailed internal audit and values revision.
Marketing planning practice is built on theory-based tools that allow companies to create strategies that address all aspects, such as risks, competitiveness, internal issues, and opportunities. Indeed, such approaches as market overview, SWOT analysis, Ansoff Matrix, and Porter Five Forces assessment include various aspects to consider while developing a long-term course of action (Kotler et al., 2017). Practical marketing planning should consist of comprehensive market research and compliance with the company’s mission statement, values, and objectives (Hoekstra and Leeflang, 2022). The strategy with specific activities allows to calculate of possible outcomes, identifies the minimal budget, and prepares a business to address challenges, such as competitiveness and other external threats. While theory suggests relatively generalized approaches and reveals the systems of how economics and markets operate, the practical experience of successful companies demonstrates that unique adjustments and unexpected turnarounds are inevitable.
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Appendices
