Every now and then we like to shine the spotlight on a brand that we think is killing it with comedy on social media. This time around, we’re looking at fitness clothing brand Gymshark. It turns out you don’t have to be fit OR funny — you can be both!? Guess I need a new excuse to skip leg day.
The Gymshark social media team have recently hit their stride when it comes to branded comedy, and their engagement rates have gone through the roof!
Read on for a selection of comedy highlights from their fighting fit Twitter feed, and learn how your business can make massive gains on social media by embracing your silly side.
The Best Funny Tweets from Gymshark
1. Homeshark
What do you do when the gym is your whole brand, but all the gyms in the country are forced to close? Just like Gymshark’s audience, who are having to get acquainted with home workouts, the brand’s social media team have adapted to this unprecedented situation.
They’ve been posting topical comedy content throughout the 2020 coronavirus lockdown, primarily focusing on the theme of how much they miss going to gym — a topic that resonates with their followers. The highlight is this perfectly judged topical stunt, which saw Gymshark get their brand name in front of thousands of new potential customers — even if that brand name was ‘Homeshark’. Genius.
we changed our name to homeshark, cause some of you needed reminding to stay home
— Gymshark (@Gymshark) March 27, 2020
2. Menus
This one’s not going to make most people laugh out loud (no offence Gymshark, please don’t beat us up!). However, it’s a straightforward topical observation that their audience can relate to, and 12.9k people enjoyed it enough to smash that like button.
Topics that are tangentially related to your brand are fair game for jokes — we all know that training and diet are inherently linked — but more importantly, relatable lines like this reinforce the bond between the brand and their followers. We’re all in lockdown together, and we all miss eating out. Furthermore, we can all relate to the experience of sticking to our favourite foods — particularly if we’re the kind of person who’s heavily into fitness and watching what we eat.
Notice how the style of writing creates a sense of relatability, too. Like many other brands with ideal customers in the 18-30 age range, Gymshark’s tone of voice is snappy, super-casual, and lacking punctuation. This style of writing is all about conveying an amusing sentiment quickly and unobtrusively, giving us the impression that Gymshark isn’t a brand trying to be funny — Gymshark is your mate who sends you memes (and occasionally sells you a tracksuit).
i miss staring at the menu for ages and then ordering what i always get
— Gymshark (@Gymshark) May 14, 2020
3. The Fake Poll
This beautifully executed visual gag takes an overused gym joke from the locker and makes it fresh. The core idea is familiar — “people who don’t put their weights back are the worst” — and most Twitter users are familiar with Twitter Polls. By mocking up their own fake Twitter poll, Gymshark were able to control the ‘results’ to make their point (and we love the 1.2 million votes). This is a solid example of a brand demonstrating that they know the memes of a given social media platform well enough to subvert them for comic effect — something that always goes down well with the locals.
are people who don't put their weights back the worst kind of people?
Yes 100%
No 0%
1,237,386 votes • Final results.
— Gymshark (@Gymshark) February 25, 2020
Keep up the great work, Gymshark! And remember — any time you need a spot, we’ve got a hive-mind of highly trained comedy writers here, ready to help you out.
Everyone else — be sure to follow @Gymshark so you don’t miss out on their funny tweets! Want more social media inspiration? Check out the Funniest Brands on Social Media, and find out how you can follow in their footsteps with our Ultimate Guide to Comedy in Social Media Marketing.
