What is great
about social media is that anybody can use it and sue it how they like. Social
media allows for you to publish whatever your lifestyle is and what you enjoy
for all to see. Health and Fitness is something I take serious in my life and
that I am passionate about. In our current days social media is something that
surrounds our lives and what we decide to use these platforms for defines us as
individuals. The people you follow and what you tweet about. The pages you
follow on Instagram and the pictures you post and the same goes for Facebook as
well as the many other social media outlets. Over the last few months I have
really taken an interest and liking towards different exercise and fitness
pages on Instagram. The amount of information I have learned over the past few
months may be more than everything I have learned previously. Most people that
are not properly educated on working out and nutrition tend to look for the
quickest and east means of getting in shape as possible and the bottom line is
that is not necessary. People spend hundreds of dollars on the latest program
and end up quitting on it before they can finish it and receive the full
benefits of it. I see Instagram as a great platform for proper education of
fitness in the specifics of food, nutrition, recipes, exercises, pictures of
results (before and after) and motivation and positivity in life. People that
can’t afford these expensive programs should take a look at the free and easy
to access social media platforms that have everything and anything a person
needs to start and continue a healthy life with fitness as a part of it. I am
going to show how social media has grown over the past year and how the health
and fitness industry is benefitting and growing as well. I will also show you
the growth of certain businesses on other social networks as well.
Instagram is a
prime media outlet for exercise and fitness because of the ability to use
visuals. What better way to show the proper way to exercise and preform an
exercise properly by means of picture and video? The integrating of video is an
excellent advancement for people that promote their business and information on
Instagram. I believe this contributes to why I see many fitness pages having thousands
of followers. Instagram put this out in
June 2013 to compete with the new video app Vine. “Instagram also outpaced
Twitter, the No. 10 app that grew 36% to 30.7 million last year (Walsh 1).” The
success of these social networks is due to various numbers of things but I see
an increasing trend in the growth of fitness. I have seen this growth on spectrums,
the fitness industry and also social media. “Participation in these activities
has increased by 20 percent in the last three years, in part because they
provide an opportunity for socialization that young adults have come to crave
in the era of social media, according to the report by the Sporting Goods
Manufacturers Association (SGMA) and the Association of Fitness Industry Retailers
and Manufacturers (Club Industry Fitness 1)” An example of how the people that
work in the fitness industry benefit from social media is a page called
@muscleprodigy. They are two guys that sell a workout program to people and
they promote their business on Instagram, YouTube, twitter and Facebook. They
have 172,000 followers on Instagram which is a solid fan base. They post videos
and pictures of tips and lesson on how to exercises and eat. They also have a
link on their page that takes you directly to their website where you can
purchase teir program. This is an excellent example of a person taking advantage
of a great free way to advertise a business and grow.
With technology
advancing and social media as well, I see this growth of fitness in social
media only to continue. Older people are valuing health more and also using smartphones
more and same goes for the younger generations. “That desire for communication
may have helped popularize fitness electronics, another trend included in the
report. Small devices appeal to exercisers because they make it easy for users
to monitor their exercise, share workout information with friends and family
and even compete to see who can burn more calories or lose the most weight
(Club Industry’s Fitness 1).”
Works Cited
ReplyDeleteClub Industry Staff. "Social Media Influences Fitness Trendsff." Social Media Influences Fitness Trends (2011): n. pag. ProQuest Central. Web. 22 Feb. 2014. .
"The Fitstagrammies: 25 Best Instagram Accounts to Follow." Life by DailyBurn The Fitstagrammies 25 Best Instagram Accounts to Follow Comments. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 Feb. 2014. .
Vennare, Joe. "Social Media for the Fitness Professional." Hybrid Athlete. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 Feb. 2014. .
Walsh, Mark. "Instagram Fastest-Growing App Among Top 10 In 2013." Mediapost.com. N.p., 17 Jan. 2014. Web. .
Christopher,
ReplyDeleteFirst, fitness is a very important and enjoyable lifestyle for myself as well. I have always been one to be into body figure and nutrition. It is not an easy life to always live by everyday due to many different temptations and being a college student or just your lifestyle and work schedule. I agree with you that just in the past year or two as you have stated that fitness and all these gyms, programs, eating habit’s or nutrition programs, and all the other main themes of fitness are using social media as their main way to advertise and promote all the current, new and upcoming outcomes. It is growing so fast and so many different pages and accounts I cannot even believe how people don’t just want to eat healthy and workout everyday if they are seeing all the pictures on Instragram that are labeled “motivation!” When people see the visual results and really want to work at something that is PRACITCAL I feel that the social media has the number one in on making that a huge impact and will continue to move forward as well. It is almost a genius idea in the fact that it is free and that you can follow or join something for no fee.
Again, I would say that Instagram is the number one outlet for the fitness pages just because they are visual with still images and moving videos. There is also no character limit to make a quote or statement about that particular video or image. It is the fastest-growing app overall in 2013. (Top 10 Media Post News) Fitness would with no doubt in my mind is a big or decent percentage making that jump happen in 2013 to beat out Facebook. Facebook and Twitter are currently below Instagram, which surprises me due to the nonstop changes and advertising that this two sites do and poses almost everyday to begin with. On the other hand of things with Instagram growing so fast and adding new themes to their application, vine is still continuing to grown adding 27 million members since and despite the challenges from Instagram. (Small Business Trends)
Part 2
ReplyDeleteI find this hard to believe just because I have personally chosen to also abandon vine now just because Instagram has the videos as well. Vine does not show, or have near as many fitness pages if any and it is mainly for humor. It is only taking space up on my phone and ipad memory when I could have a different and new app like flappy bird.J
When you say that older people are valuing health more I truly believe this as well too. I follow so many different fitness pages on Instragram and there is one in particular for generation X era. This would be my mothers age and older. I remember when my parents did not even believe in social media let alone cell phones and now there is a page just for this generation’s fitness. My mother two summers ago lost 75 pounds through a program she received from the Internet and mainly social media. She continued to lose weight due to the luxury of small devices and electronics to keep her mind of other things and get through the workout. She still currently today works out and uses social media being Instagram the generation X page and electronics to get her to stay up on her program and lose weight.
Walsh, Mark. "Instagram Fastest-Growing App Among Top 10 In 2013." Media Post News. 17 Jan. 2014. Web.
O'Neill, Mark. "Vine Continues Growth Despite Challenge from Instagram." Small Business Trends 15 Jan. 2014. Web.
Christopher, I agree with what you wrote about in your blog posting. The fitness industry is indeed growing from social media and Instagram is leading the pack in my opinion. I do however see it on all social media sites including Facebook, and Twitter. The use of applying certain workouts to pictures makes it easy for the average American to understand and grasp a certain workout. I myself have seen something new or that I didn’t know and I can just snap a picture of it and follow it while working out. This has made learning about exercises incredibly easier because I can just look at the pictures and follow the simple steps. With social media I have the ability to choose what I want to save and what I don’t. Whether the workout itself comes in 1 picture, multiple pictures, or a written list it is easily understandable. They are now involving video with the growing fitness industry on social media sites. Having the ability to watch a video within seconds of coming upon it can greatly increase interest in that certain field. I can watch an exercise video that lasts 30 seconds and get the gist of the entire workout. Then when I apply what I’ve watched to the real life workout I can always go back and review the video again.
ReplyDeleteInstagram’s popularity continues to rise as proven in Mark Walsh’s article “Instagram Fastest-Growing App Among Top 10 in 2013.”
“With an average of 103.4 million unique visitors last year between January and October, Facebook had easily the largest U.S. audience of any app, with traffic up 27% from 2012. But that growth rate paled in comparison to Instagram -- acquired by the social network in 2012 for $1 billion -- which saw its app audience surge 66% to 32 million last year, according to Nielsen data (Media Post News).”
This is significantly important for all the fitness accounts on Instagram. They have been rapidly growing and with Instagram leading the charge the two have gone hand in hand.
Social Media sites as a whole are technologically improving. I myself don’t have a Pinterest account but I found this quote in Colton Delo’s article to be interesting.
“Available to any account that's gone through the automated verification process on its web site, Pinterest's new analytics tool lets accounts track how many people have pinned content from their sites, how many people have visited their sites from Pinterest, and how many Pinterest impressions their content has generated. It will also show a selection of the most recent pins captured from their site and the content that's been re-pinned and clicked on the most within Pinterest.
Marketers are keen to know what content is popular on Pinterest, since it gives them a window into consumers' ever-changing preferences (Advertising Age).”
The reason I found this interesting is because I really like the idea of them seeing what is popular. This could work for fitness junkies as well if they incorporated this idea into other Social Media sites. Someone who either is familiar with working out or someone who is looking to get started could see the more popular fitness pages and follow them. The reason I say this is because there a lot of scams out there and even workouts that are garbage.
Overall good post and I agree with you that Social Media and the Fitness industry are booming together.
Delo, Colton. “Pinterest Launches Web Analytics to Track Popular Content.” Advertising Age. 12 Mar. 2013. Web.
Walsh, Mark. "Instagram Fastest-Growing App Among Top 10 In 2013." Media Post News. 17 Jan. 2014. Web.
ReplyDeleteIke Azotam
Last summer, my friend and I wanted to work out while we were abroad in Paris. The only problem was that we didn’t have our own gym and didn’t want to spend money on something so natural to us. We solved our problem by going online and utilizing social media. Twitter and Instagram basically saved us because we were able to find the Insanity workout. The great thing about the workout is all we needed was an empty space to move around. That day, social media saved us money and a few pounds.
After reading your blog, Chris, I completely agree with your thoughts on social media’s effect on the fitness industry. In recent years, social media has revolutionized many different industries in positive ways. I also agree that social networks such as Twitter, Vine, and Instagram have become important to these fitness industries because they have the ability to add extra detail and reassurance. For example, a person can choose to follow a fitness company on Instagram or other social networks and use its videos instead of ordering a DVD or brochure. People waste money every year for workouts they end up quitting on early, but anyone who takes advantage of social media can eliminate this problem. I believe social media’s greatest effect on the fitness industry is that it saves consumers money, while simultaneously creating positive publicity for fitness stores.
Most people who want to lose weight don’t have the resources at home, so they use an outside source, which can sometimes be expensive. Twitter, Instagram, and Vine are all free apps that require just a smartphone. Instagram is essentially perfect for fitness industries because it can be used as a workout tutorial. The social medium started out as strictly an app for posting photos, but has added a 15 second video in the past year. This gives fitness companies the chance to post any material they want. This also gives them the chance to advertise their companies by gaining followers and support. Instagram’s versatility has allowed the social network to become the fastest growing application in 2013 (Walsh). Another social media outlet that has flourished despite competition from Instagram is Vine. Vine allows you to record six-second videos with relative ease. I personally believe Vine’s video service is easier to use than Instagram’s service. Despite being a relatively new company, the app has more than 27 million users. I see Vine and Instagram only becoming more popular over time if industries continue to use them.
In your blog you spoke about a specific fitness company that uses social media to promote their business online. This is an intelligent business move for them because they can use friends and other outlets to help them promote the company. It’s an excellent way to take advantage of a media outlet that requires just a smartphone. I believe more businesses have already begun to use social media to promote themselves, and the number will only continue to grow. Fitness industries would be smart to use social networks as the benefits are remarkable and endless.
Works Cited
1.) Walsh, Mark. "Instagram Fastest-Growing App Among Top 10 In 2013." Media Post News. 17 Jan. 2014. Web.
2.) O'Neill, Mark. "Vine Continues Growth Despite Challenge from Instagram." Small Business Trends 15 Jan. 2014. Web.
Chris,
ReplyDeleteI would have to agree with the entirety of your blog post. The fitness industry is on the rise and social media is sure helping it. I personally have seen fitness on Facebook, Twitter, Vine and Instagram, but I feel Instagram is by far ahead. We have seen over the past couple years the rise in the use of social media for fitness advertising. It has been growing so fast that there have been so many different pages and accounts that are now opening up. These accounts not only give you tips and facts about working out but they even give you a little motivation to actually work out as well.
With pictures and videos the average workout junkie can post anything they chose. You have videos of different workouts, pictures of before and after photos, or even photos of how many miles you ran on the treadmill. Honestly the possibility of videos and pictures are endless. Even though “Facebook was the No.1 app overall in 2013,” Mark Walsh tells us, “its photo-sharing subsidiary Instagram was the fastest-growing app among the top 10.” (Top 10 Media Post News)
You said it perfectly “Instagram is a prime media outlet for exercise and fitness because of the ability to use visuals. What better way to show the proper way to exercise and preform an exercise properly by means of picture and video?” That is spot on and you really covered it perfectly. With the integrations of videos and pictures you have advanced peoples way to promote their business. Instagram put out its “new” video app in June, which competed with another video social media, Vine. “Vine was also the fastest growing app of 2013, expanding its audience by an estimated 403 percent, Global Web Index reports. But since the introduction of video on Instagram about halfway through last year, its growth seems to have slowed.” (Small Business Trends) The big difference between Vine and Instagram though is, “Vine videos are only 6 seconds,” while “Instagram videos are 15 seconds”. (Small Business Trends)
Knowing these facts it is no wonder why fitness profiles are booming on Instagram. Personally I have a couple friends from high school who have now become personal trainers and use Instagram to promote and show their different workout and health tips. They will have videos of them showing you different workouts and then pictures of their protein shakes and meals they eat. They then also post pictures of themselves and clients that work out with them.
I have seen the growth of social media over the years and now I am seeing the growth of fitness within social media. There is not many times where there won’t be a tweet, a picture or a video about working out. I know that looking at all these people getting into shape and doing new workouts gets me excited to go to the gym. I have tried different things here and there that I have seen, but I mostly stick to my normal workout routine.
Work Cited
Walsh, Mark. "Instagram Fastest-Growing App Among Top 10 In 2013." Media Post News. 17 Jan. 2014. Web.
O'Neill, Mark. "Vine Continues Growth Despite Challenge from Instagram." Small Business Trends 15 Jan. 2014. Web.
Christopher,
ReplyDeleteIt is certainly true that there are many benefits from using social media. I believe that one of the greatest characteristics of social media is the fact that anybody can use it in the manner that they want to. Since social media is a fairly new movement, it allows an individual to publish certain aspects that they find important to their life, or overall definition as a person. Social media has been expanding so much over the course of the past few years, and its uses have certainly become more crucial to our every day routine as time has progressed.
As you stated in your blog, social media is something that surrounds us everywhere. Almost everything we do can somehow be tied back into the world of Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Vine, or any of the various other forms of social media. I know that you focused your attention on fitness, and how that is something that you truly value. For you, it is quite simple to learn about fitness or other things that are important to you by following certain pages, groups or individuals on social media.
In the article based on the expansion of Vine, there was some interesting information about the basis of social media and how we can use it to our advantage. “Businesses may see benefits in using both platforms to boost their brands and engage their online followers. But if you’re trying to choose one or the other, it’s still a little early to figure out which one will wind up on top” (O’Neill 1). O’Neil also discusses how Vine was the number one growing social media app last year amongst audiences of all different ages. Because Vine is a video based app, Instagram, one of the other leading social media apps, incorporated their own process of filming videos to compete with Vine.
Much of the public feedback found Vine’s video process to be better than that of Instagram, although I would not say that this means people prefer Vine over Instagram as an app in general. The majority of people I know have an Instagram account, and I cannot say the same thing about Vine. Sure, they are both platforms from different communities, but Instagram has been one of the most convenient ways for self or business promotions over the last couple of years.
Instagram outpaced Twitter last year in terms of growth. Although it is currently not as popular as Facebook worldwide, it is still continuously growing. “Instagram saw its app audience surge 66% to 32 million last year” (Walsh 1). But in comparison to Vine, I personally find Instagram to have a greater convenience. Take fitness as an example again. Six second long videos on Vine are harder to learn from or focus on, plus they move extremely fast. Photographs, which are the basis of Instagram, can be saved, viewed for longer periods of time, and reflected upon. Personally, I find Instagram to have a better chance at a more successful future in comparison to Vine.
Work Cited
Walsh, Mark. "Instagram Fastest-Growing App Among Top 10 In 2013." Media Post News. 17 Jan. 2014. Web.
O'Neill, Mark. "Vine Continues Growth Despite Challenge from Instagram." Small Business Trends 15 Jan. 2014. Web.
Work Cited
ReplyDeleteWalsh, Mark. "Instagram Fastest-Growing App Among Top 10 In 2013." Media Post News. 17 Jan. 2014. Web.
O'Neill, Mark. "Vine Continues Growth Despite Challenge from Instagram." Small Business Trends 15 Jan. 2014. Web.