New Motivational Social Features

Before the pandemic, I was a member of a local gym, and a big motivator for me to show up to class each week was knowing I would see my gym buddies. We would often send group texts or Facebook chats to each other: "Are you going to get your groove on with me Sunday morning?" Knowing I would see a familiar face or have a friend save me a spot in class near them was always a major draw, and a big reason to smile once I made it through the door.

While not everyone is socially motivated in a fitness sense, a good number of us are, especially group fitness lovers. That's a big reason why the founders of bande wanted to create a platform to facilitate the same social cohesion, bonding, and shared purpose that could extend beyond geographical limits. For me personally, there's something magical about being able to take Friday Cardio Dance with my sister, when she lives five hours away! I love feeling like I'm popping into her home, seeing her cuddly black kitty and my four-year old nephew popping in the background, and just being together doing something joyful and restorative.

Launching Monday, Jan. 18, you will be able to experience the motivational power of interpersonal connection with bande's social features. You can find and form "Connections" (think LinkedIn, but for fitness lovers), which will allow you to see their weekly schedule, discover what classes they might be taking (when you're evaluating your own workout plan), and — coming soon — chat with them both inside and out of class. Let's take a tour.

Find Connections

From your profile, you can find people on bande to connect with. Go to Connections, then click Find Connections. 

Type in their name, then click Request to send them a notification request.

Form Connections

Any connection requests you receive will show up in the new notification center (ring, ring!).  You will also get an email notification.

Clicking on the notification takes you to your Profile where you can accept or decline the connection request.  

Want to find out more details about the requestor? You can click their profile image to view a panel where more information on their activity, including classes they have taken with you, is visible.

Get Inspired by Connections

As I've mentioned, I'm much more motivated in class when a friend or relative is there with me. On the Live Schedule, you will be able to see which of your connections are signed up for classes. 

Clicking on the class details shows you who else has booked the class already.

Have a friend who's fitness schedule inspires you? Maybe you're looking to catch up with a friend in an upcoming class? You can see your connections' upcoming classes by clicking on their profile under Upcoming Sessions. Simply choose Add to Cart to book that class yourself, or click Invite to ask others to join the two of you.

Inspire Others  

Now that bande's getting social, be sure to flesh out your profile so people can get to know you better. Don't be that person with a sad empty circle and two initials. You can upload a photo in your profile by clicking the photo uploader on the top left. Square images look best; you can grab a photo download from Instagram or crop the image to show your face.

You can also add a few words about yourself to personalize your profile. A mantra or something descriptive. Have fun! As an early member of bande, you're playing an important role in helping us build our collective culture.

Grow Your Network  

If you haven't noticed yet, you can invite others to bande classes, whether they are existing bande users or new ones. Just choose any upcoming class and click Invite.

A modal will open and you'll be able to search for people on bande to invite to class, or send an email to someone who hasn't made an account yet. You can even customize the email. 

And during this month, bande has some amazing offers for new customers. Starting Monday, Jan. 18, first-time customers can get a 7-day free trial of Starter Plan.

And hey, if you're looking for a new connection, be sure to shoot me an invite. If you've got feedback or ideas on how we can build out our social features, please reach out to me and my team by email.  We would love to hear from you.