This morning’s Bradley Rose Peloton bike ride came with a surprise at the end. About 60 seconds before the end of the ride, right as the cooldown was starting, a widget popped up on my screen.
While currently rudimentary, Peloton’s long-awaited in-screen advertising and commerce play has begun, just in time for the holidays.
While this is certainly not (yet) a huge retail play from Peloton, it could be the beginning of what many investors and customers have been clamoring for: monetizing the huge potential attention economy of Peloton bikes (and eventually other products).
I clicked the widget and it confirmed sending me an email. The email (below) was pretty simple, noting it was “instructor-approved,” but it is likely just the beginning. The link, noting “source=mandrill,” sends you to this Striving Muscle Tank.
Currently, this is a neat little trick that probably took less than a week to code, but it could turn into something a whole lot bigger.
Attention economy – Peloton screen storefront?
Millions of wealthy individuals spend 30-90 minutes/day looking at a Peloton screen, which until now has been free of any potential advertising or revenue. I think most users like it that way.
But the Peloton community also wants a healthy PTON.
We all know Peloton is having some financial issues of late, and the stock price is off 90% of where it was a year ago. An advertising option widget at the end of a ride doesn’t seem too intrusive if it puts the company on better footing.
I’m okay with it.
Shopping an instructor’s look could not only send you an email, but it could also send you to a storefront on the bike connected to a rider’s Peloton account, which already has your credit card for monthly billing.
Peloton could also sell third-party items. Maybe a better fan for the bike from Amazon? Or how about some new cleats from Nike? Or an outdoor bike from Trek?
The Peloton bike is just a big Android device and has a Chrome Browser built-in and hidden from users. It wouldn’t be rocket science to build a storefront connected to a user’s account. In fact, it is a bit crazy that the company hasn’t done so already.
How about a “shopping cooldown ride” or a storefront ride instead of a scenic ride? I would personally avoid this like the plague, but I know a number of people on my Peloton friends list that would probably partake. In a few years, I could even see a VR shopping experience.
The possibilities are pretty limitless for Peloton, a company that counts millions of high-net-worth individuals that spend hours a week looking at and paying attention to Peloton screens and Peloton instructors.
We’ve reached out to Peloton and will report back if we hear anything.
UPDATE:
Peloton has updated us with the following:
“Peloton is excited to pilot our new Shop the Class feature to Bike and Bike+ Members so we can test and learn about our community’s appetite for this type of product. Our Peloton Apparel collections are Member inspired and instructor approved, and Shop the Class makes it easier for Members to replicate the looks sported by our instructor team. We look forward to Member feedback, reactions and suggestions.”
And here are a few new details:
- On Friday November 4, Peloton soft launched its “Shop the Class” experience in 20 on-demand cycling classes
- This new feature, which is slated to be rolled out to all Peloton Bike/Bike + Members on November 14, presents an in class module at the end of an on-demand class that Members can tap if they would like to shop the styles that the instructor was wearing in class
- Tapping this automatically triggers an email with the product details, which Members can tap through to complete their Peloton Apparel purchase on their phone, tablet or laptop
- Following the official launch on November 14, Peloton will continue to add this feature to a selection of new on-demand classes
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