Social Listening ~ Inaka Power

 

The brand I chose to follow is Inaka Power -  a gym apparel / equipment company powered by nothing by community and raw strength. Inaka Power goes by one word and one word only, it's in the name, and that is power. The brand itself brings more than just the gym, weightlifting, and grit. It also brings fun, style, and comfort to its consumers. When I first started seriously getting into lifting back in the Summer of 2019, I felt awkward and was not comfortable and where I was in the gym. I have very basic understanding of certain workouts but I didn't feel confident in the way I was doing these workouts. I would always feel like people were staring at me and judging me. It wasn't just me having these problems though as I found out that a lot of people on social media also struggled with the same issues as me, too. I learned how to educate myself on the gym culture on how I can personally succeed in the gym both mentally and physically and it has grown on me ever since I started during that Summer.

Inaka Power was established in 2016 and ever since then, it has grown into a very popular and highly respected brand for gym goers of which are both casual and even hardcore. Gym equipment such as belts, knee and elbow sleeves, and wrist wraps was their staple back when they first started. Since then, they have expanded heavily to a clothing line representing absolute style in the gym community. Oversized shirts, well-fitted shorts, to a nice pair of socks - this has been their statement. I have numerous friends who spend a lot more time in the gym than me who even compete in powerlifting meets, and they are all about investing in the best lifting gear and clothes possible. This is what brings them to being strong consumers of Inaka Power. This brand sticks to trends and makes sure they're never behind on knowing what their customers want from them, because they will bring it every time. My first ever piece of Inaka Power gear was a pair of knee sleeves that my friend gave me since he bought new ones. They fit me perfectly and I have been satisfied with them ever since. They create perfect stability and comfort in my knees while doing back squats. I have been prioritizing squats a lot more into my workouts since these knee sleeves create comfort while squatting and takes a lot off of my already not-so-great knees and helps me to enjoy something I used to dread so often. The Inaka Power website has everything and anything you could ever want. They continue to stay very active on Instagram with daily uploads, even up to many posts twice a day. Their value proposition for its buyers goes by just three simple words and one inspiring quote. "Get Better Today." It's message is clear, for people to get better as soon as they possibly can. It reminds them during their workout to get better right now and during that workout, that set, that singular repetiton. A quote like this is more than just brand exclusivity, but it inspires those who may struggle such as me back in the day to better themselves immediately.

Inaka Power targets those who are wanting to get involved in the gym. It is a very beginner friendly brand that wants nothing more than to inspire those who come across it. It sure as hell inspired me! Inaka Power can clearly see when people need to be lifted up and inspired to better themselves during their workout. They are willing to transmit their message not more and not less, but greater than it was transmitted to them when they were discovering they were meant for and what that message was that they want their buyers to understand.

The website is where all of the purchases are made as there are no in-person stores. Although, Instagram comment sections is where all of the feedback for the brand comes through. Real people with real and honest responses on the products; whether that would be wanting something restocked, ideas for a new design, or just overall feedback on a purchase they made. I looked over multiple different posts and took a look at the comment sections for all of them. All of the comments are very identical as they have an enthusiastic use of emojis to them and simple words such as "Let's go!" Comments like this make it clear as day on someones thoughts of a product and the overall brand. A lot of the time, you will see people tagging their friends and/or family in the comment sections to get them to take a look at what they want them to look at, creating more traction and awareness for the brand.

Inaka Power has been on a rapid growth of popularity throughout the gym community as they have recently hit 341,000 followers on Instagram with their primary competitors being companies such as Gymshark, Alphalete, and YoungLA just to name a few. Samuel Adegboyega, the founder of Inaka Power, has nothing to do with weightlifting as his background. He was an accountant for many different companies where he decided to start his own brand. The thing that separates Inaka Power from the rest of the competition is that as a former accounted, Samuel understands numbers and what's going to work best for his own good. This is why he needs to expand out from just the gym and go into everyday fashion with the clothing that Inaka Power releases.

If I were the brand manager, I think I would want to incorporate more options on ways to purchase my products through social media. Instagram and Facebook, to name a few, have ways to buy products through their platform. Facebook has the Facebook Marketplace and Instagram has the Instagram Shop. These allow people to buy things straight off of the social media platform they choose to use. Inaka Power would be able to promote and gain a sponsorship off of these platforms to widely expand their audience to individuals that may have never heard of them before and expanding their following. On these sites, I would allow it to keep a "sold out" sign next to every single product that goes sold out to show how popular these items are. It brings in awareness of what items are the most popular and to keep an eye out for which items to buy next when a restock happens. This would surely bring in more customers and to keep them coming back for bigger updates on the brand and what it has to offer.

During this project, I learned many different things that can even help me for my future career. The biggest thing that I learned from this project was the correct ways to expand to your target audience. Releasing things that they want to see is the main thing - new designs, colors, etc. Satisfying to your audience is what will make them happy and what will keep them coming back for more products from your company. The most important thing that I learned from Inaka Power was they quote they live by which is "Get Better Today." It is nothing less than inspiring to those who understand it the most. They will get what they want and if they truly do want something, they will get it while bettering themselves along the way. Blogging about something I am passionate about such as the gym allows me to have fun while doing my assignments and learn something new about a hobby that I have been around for quite some time now.