In late November I was approached by a successful internet entrepreneur looking to disrupt the fitness market with an innovative approach to gym-centred fitness programmes. My portfolio of brand identity design was liked very much and I responded by demonstrating competencies beyond design to include name generation and strategic brand consulting.

Having developed, managed and sold a category-defining online start-up recently my new client was looking to create a high quality brand experience to be led by a high quality brand identity. I explained that I wasn't merely a design supplier and that my success is a measure of my clients' success, and that together we would build a brand identity based on the new brand experience.

After immersing myself in supplied documents and asking a range of questions about the audience, environment and capabilities of the business, I made a number of key observations and assessments.

Initially presented to me as a 'Fitness and Diet Comparison Website' I proposed that although a sophisticated website was the point around which the entire offer revolved, in reality, the website would be one of many important touch-points, including an innovative gym-lab where users would get free high-quality personal training in exchange for agreeing to post their fitness progress online. More significantly the relationship of fitness to diet in the supplied description wasn't clear as diet and exercise are on the same level of importance in determining fitness.

With these insights in mind I proposed that in creating a cohesive experience beyond a website the brand should exist independent of media and that the brand itself should be managed as the platform of the business. To this end I defined the positioning line 'Fitness Comparison Platform', which can be extended to include 'Evidence-based Fitness Comparison Platform' for further clarification. This evidence-based aspect of the business provides the 'self-evident' substance of the entire offer.

I wasn't commissioned to provide a positioning line as part of an unspecified brand consulting package but I used the positioning line as a way for me and my client to understand the core value of the business around which we would build a brand experience. This also placed me in a good position to consult on supplied brand names as well as recommend additional brand names.

This start-up looks set to revolutionise the way people access fitness programmes and has the potential to be another category-defining brand.

In a separate news post I'll describe the progress of the project as well as reveal my recommended brand-ideas and brand names.