Data Beats used data from Orangetheory Fitness members’ hearts to compose personalized music tracks—a different song for every member’s average heartbeats per minute.

The songs were delivered to members in dynamically-populated, custom-edited music videos. Additional fitness data points such as the number of classes they completed, the calories they burned and the challenges they took in 2018, were also featured in each member’s music video.

Data Beats used numbers straight from the heart to write music straight from the heart and gave people a creative interpretation of their fitness achievements.

Fact: 1 out of 3 people cancel their gym memberships every year. New trends and competition are constantly emerging, challenging brands like Orangetheory Fitness to keep current members motivated to book more classes.

Fortunately, Orangetheory Fitness has a powerful edge over other brands in the industry—data. Through the OTbeat wearable, we are able to collect personal fitness information from member’s hearts and deliver daily reports of their progress.

So, how could Orangetheory Fitness use this massive archive of data to increase attendance and inspire people to reach new goals in 2019? The answer was music—Data Beats. Because nothing gets you out of your seat like a good song. Especially when it was written from your heartbeat.

Every member’s data from 2018 was mapped out into distinct categories and subsets. First, there was physiological data, including the heart’s average beats per minute, the number of calories burned and the levels of intensity reached during a workout. Then there was a more predictive data set that calculated the potential maximum number of afterburn hours a person experienced post workout. And finally, registration data such as the number of classes attended and challenges completed.

By grouping the information in this way, we were able to see a broader picture of each member’s experience and identify patterns that would lead to new, creative insights—one of which jumped out as our key insight: It’s all about the heart. At the core of Orangetheory Fitness’s afterburn concept and behind every piece of data we had collected was the heart. It sets the beat, pushes the body and keeps your blood pumping. Just like music.

We realized that members were essentially creating their own signature beats simply by showing up to class and pushing themselves to work harder. Data Beats was our opportunity to let them actually hear the beat they’d unknowingly been composing all year long.

Enter music producer Gazzo.

We gathered and categorized 2.2 million data points from both the Orangetheory Fitness OTbeat booking system and every individual member’s OTbeat wearable.

Then our team of data scientists and analysts teamed up with an unlikely colleague—music producer Gazzo. Together, their left and right brains worked to bring hundreds of thousands of different heartbeats to life through music, writing a unique track for every single BPM.

The average heartbeats per minute for Orangetheory Fitness members ranged from 104 all the way up to 174. So, the first step was to determine which music genre best suited each member’s average BPM. Lower BPMs worked best to write hip hop tracks while higher BPMs represented drum and bass. Ultimately, we covered everything from hip hop to trance to techno to drum and bass to trap.

Every Orangetheory Fitness member who had attended a minimum of 35 classes in 2018 received a personalized music video with a music track straight from their heart—totaling 343,472 custom music videos.

First, we broke down the video concept into customizable scenes. From choreography to length, each scene was carefully sequenced to match the tempo of every member’s BPM.

Once picture, tempo and music were set, the scenes were uploaded to a video personalization platform called Idomoo. Here, they were dynamically populated with visual graphs of the data we had gathered and categorized. Finally, Idomoo assembled and rendered the clips to create a completely unique music video for every member.

Along with their own song, members’ music videos featured the number of calories they burned, the number of classes they attended, the level of intensity they achieved and the challenges they had completed in 2018.

From the music track to the numbers to the edit, no two music videos were ever the same.

For a brand at the intersection of fitness and technology, Orangetheory Fitness delivered members’ data in a way they’d never experienced before. This hyper-personalized video celebrated their heart’s work in 2018 and gave them something exciting to use as a benchmark for their fitness goals in the year ahead.

The creative, shareable twist on data invoked excitement and pride among the Orangetheory Fitness community. Everyone wanted to see, hear and compare the differences in their 2018 workouts.

“I love when a company takes data and goes the extra mile. Pun intended. Thanks to @orangetheory for this fun surprise.” – OTF member

Data Beats had a strong impact on Orangetheory Fitness member behavior both online and in the studio.

- 45,000 additional classes booked during launch week alone

- 97% membership attendance—record high

- lowest attrition rate in 5 years

- highest email open rate

- 65% video completion rate

- 100% positive social mentions

By transforming personal data into bespoke music tracks, Orangetheory members didn’t just see, they heard the very reason why they keep coming back for more.