I’ve always been a runner. In high school, I found (somewhat ironically) that track was the only sport I could take part in that wouldn’t trigger asthma attacks. I ran the 400m dash outdoors, and the 600m indoors, and would regularly run 5+ miles during my practice runs.
Of course, after I got out of school and got into the “real world”, the frequency of my runs waned… as did the miles I could cover.
But over the last several months, I’ve become more serious about recommitting to running. I’m now setting goals for regular runs, and planning for gradual mileage increases as my overall fitness levels scale upwards.
I was using a variety of Android apps on my HTC MyTouch to begin tracking my progress, until I recently got my first iPhone. It’s a 16gb 3GS — a hand-me-down from Meg, who got a hand-me-down from a friend who upgraded to an iPhone 4. With this new possession, I gained access to a flood of run-tracking options.
Two that I’m (somewhat) familiar with are Nike+ and RunKeeper. I’ve heard good things about each, but wanted to hear from other runners what their preferences are. So I asked Twitter (of course.)
The response I got was overwhelming.
Over 30 people replied — many of whom don’t follow me — and the majority of them recommended RunKeeper. I was curious as to why, and after a bit of investigating, found I was retweeted by RunKeeper’s Twitter account. Clearly, RunKeeper’s doing something smart.
First, RunKeeper makes a great product. There’s no way they’d get that kind of response if it was anything less than fantastic.
Second, they’re using social media perfectly. Whether through Twitter or Facebook, RunKeeper manages their community beautifully: answering questions, accepting suggestions for improvement, and — most importantly — getting people excited about using RunKeeper on their next run/walk/bike ride/etc.
It was RunKeeper’s community that won me over. With such a dedicated online following, how could I not give them a shot?
So here’s my question for you: does your brand have a following like this? If someone asked about your product or service, would a small army of supporters come out of the woodwork to promote you?
And if not, how can you better use social media tools to interact with your customers?
