Connectivity
MobGroup case study: fit for digital
How digital mobility and scalability can change a company’s landscape forever.
September 28, 2020
4 minutes
Connectivity
MobGroup case study: fit for digital
How digital mobility and scalability can change a company’s landscape forever.
September 28, 2020
4 minutes
As more and more businesses turned to remote working, MobGroup realised it needed to switch from in-person to online fitness classes.
In just three days, MobGroup transformed its business model, going digital-first with online booking and live-streamed fitness classes.
Going digital has helped MobGroup to expand their offering from B2C to B2B clients, and gain new customers around the globe as a result.
MobGroup was founded in 2016 to offer workplace workouts at offices across London. Instructors ran on-site fitness classes for employees – from HIIT to guided meditation.
The business was doing well. They had big clients like Google and Deloitte, and they'd expanded their services to include nutrition and wellness services.
But with more and more people working from home these days, MobGroup needed to adapt to an online, digital model.
The challenge
The challenge was this: how can a fitness company, where all the classes and workshops were done in person, make such a dramatic change to their business?
When Rob and Mark spoke to their customers, they discovered there was a strong need for online fitness services.
Customers were worried about their employees’ health and wellbeing and wanted an online, work-from-home solution. Not only that, they felt it was a great way for people to keep the workplace culture thriving, even when they weren’t in the office.
“We had to work out how we could adapt to continue providing that service that our clients expect from us,” says Mark.
The answer was MobGroup Live.
The solution
In just three days, MobGroup reinvented how its business worked. They started live-streaming fitness classes instead.
“We’d never done any paid work over the internet before,” says Rob, “but we figured out, with modern technology, that we were able to completely adapt the business to go online”.
MobGroup used a cloud-based video conferencing app to host their video fitness sessions. With support for up to 10,000 participants for each video, the app could easily accommodate their clients’ largest teams.
MobGroup also brought in an online booking system, so they could keep track of who would be joining each session. They even used an automation tool to send out log-in details to every participant simultaneously, helping to streamline the process.
Like many small businesses, MobGroup doesn’t have a dedicated IT specialist. So, they had to work it all out for themselves.
“It was a very busy few days,” says Rob.
“We had to learn about e-commerce and marketing for membership sites, which was all completely new to us!”
They used whatever hardware they could to get up and running as fast as possible, using the cameras on their phones and laptops to live-stream classes.
“I transformed my living room into a fitness studio,” says Rob, "alongside also using it as a nursery and all the other things you need to do”.
We figured out, with modern technology, that we were able to completely adapt the business to go online.
The result
The gamble paid off.
“We’ve actually managed to retain the majority of our clients,” says Mark.
By switching to a digital business, MobGroup has shown that if you’re able to quickly adapt your model, your business can grow through any circumstances.
Mark and Rob have since expanded the online service to include live cook-a-longs and morning mindfulness sessions. They’ve also upped their production values, investing in higher-quality cameras and better lighting for their live-streams.
Going digital has helped them attract new customers, and not just businesses. They’ve now opened their classes up to individuals too.
“We’ve never gone into the B2C market before, so that’s a nice side benefit,” says Mark.
“We’ve actually made our business more scalable,” says Rob.
“Originally, we would do classesof up to 20 people or so. Today I ran a class that had 60. And these people are all over the globe. So you’ve got people in Sweden, Germany and Australia all joining in at the same time, which is really quite exciting.”
That’s all thanks to making the digital switch. Without moving their business online, MobGroup wouldn’t have picked up B2C clients, or gone global. Their business is a great example of what digital mobility and scalability can do to change a company’s landscape forever.
Learning new digital skills
Live streaming is just one of the ways to stay connected with your customers.
Whether you want to set up your business online for the first time or are looking for advanced tips for using data analytics to grow your business, we can help at BT.
To find out more about how we can help your business grow, get in touch today.
About
- Company
MobGroup is an online fitness and wellness business
- Industry
Wellness
Related products and solutions
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- Webex
