Is the time ripe for HealthifyMe’s maiden ad campaign?

The health and fitness app’s first celeb-led campaign aims to target home-bound Indians and help them to embark on their fitness journey.

People usually come up with a slew of New Year’s resolutions in the month of January. Sticking to, or achieving, them or not is a different story altogether, and it’s better to not get into it.

One of the most popular resolutions is to “get fit” - be it achieving the ideal body weight or staying away from junk food. As the New Year kicks in, people get motivated to make certain lifestyle changes.

Tapping into this audience sentiment, HealthifyMe, the Bengaluru-based health and fitness app, has rolled out an ad campaign. It captures the real-life stories of HealthifyMe users to convey the benefits of the app.

Tushar Vashisht, CEO and co-founder, HealthifyMe, tells afaqs! that in the past, the brand gained traction organically, through word of mouth. But recently, the health-tech brand decided to take it beyond that and launched a celebrity-led 360-degree marketing campaign.

Tushar Vashisht, HealthifyMe

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The campaign includes real-life experiences of four individuals that are conveyed through brand ambassador and actress Sara Ali Khan.

Each of these individuals had their own reasons to begin their fitness journey and achieve ideal body weight. Some of these reasons highlighted in the ad films include losing post-pregnancy weight, keeping diabetes or polycystic ovary syndrome-related (PCOS) weight gain under control, or simply achieving a fitter body for a healthier lifestyle.

The films also attempt to convey the brand’s philosophy that crash diets and hyper-workout routines aren’t sustainable. In fact, they’re damaging in the long run. On the other hand, a well-planned routine, some modifications in diet and consistency can prove to be helpful.

A major insight that the campaign is based on is that every user has a different reason to embark on their fitness journey. The campaign wanted to explore some of these reasons and encourage other individuals to use the app. The reasons can be anything, ranging from COVID or fighting a lifestyle condition like diabetes, thyroid or PCOS.

According to Vashisht, Khan helps in maintaining the authenticity of the brand’s communication as she herself has undergone quite a body transformation - from being obese to being fit. She has not just dealt with obesity issues due to PCOS, but has also been very vocal about it.

Conceptualised by WondrLabs and HealthifyMe’s in-house creative team, the campaign will use television, print, outdoor, radio, OTT and social media platforms as a part of its media mix.

The app claims to have more than 30 million active downloads and about a million paid subscribers. HealthifyMe’s primary target users come from the 20-50 age group and include those who’re unable to get back on track because of some health or lifestyle issue.

The COVID pandemic has been a critical factor behind adding to these numbers. “Being the largest by scale health-tech app in India, it has built trust among its customers. The pandemic created a need for accessible health and fitness solutions from within the safety of users’ homes. HealthifyMe has helped people to eat better and workout at home, especially during the pandemic,” mentions Vashisht.

"What has changed during the third wave is that people have now realised the importance of being immune to not just the Coronavirus, but also other infectious diseases. This can be acheived by making some lifestyle changes like eating better, exercising regularly and keeping track of ones health, not just when one is unwell but at all times."

When compared to the pre-pandemic numbers, the brand has doubled its growth, in terms of (app) downloads. The fact that it provides nutritional fitness at home has allowed the brand to grow during the pandemic.

Vashisht asserts, “Healthier individuals are in a better position to deal with COVID and other infectious diseases than overweight and obese ones.”

He says that health is a very sensitive subject and has to be conveyed to the audiences in a motivational way. “Getting the message across is simple, but can be tricky if not done correctly. Another challenge for a brand marketer is that consumer habits are changing fast and are extremely dynamic. Digital media is playing a bigger role than ever before, and getting digital marketing right has become critical now.”

iOS and Android users can download the app free of cost. For certain services, it works on a freemium model, where the users have to pay a fee. Services like ‘Healthify Smart’ (an AI-led service) and ‘Healthify Coach’ (to consult a nutritionist or health professional) can be accessed by paying a minimum fee.

The brand’s team informs that to motivate more users to start their fitness journey, HealthifyMe is currently offering one month of HealthifyStudio access for free. HealthifyStudio is HealthifyMe’s online fitness studio. Along with this, the users can also explore fitness plans on the app, and connect with a network of nutritionists and coaches. These fitness experts also share byte-sized content on diet and fitness on the app daily.

As far as its future marketing initiatives go, the brand will continue to feature the achievements of its users who have undergone fitness transformations. And also, the stories of HealthifyMe coaches and their impact on the users ever since the pandemic struck almost two years back.

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