YouTube Stars Train With Beachbody, Net 2 Million Views (Before and After Photos)

We recently covered the Top 10 Savviest Brands on YouTube in 2014 that all used the platform and its stars in interesting and innovative ways. We probably should’ve included Beachbody on the list.

The fitness-based media company knows YouTubers want and have to stay in shape just like the rest of us. So, Beachbody tapped several YouTube stars, including Jack Douglass (otherwise known as Jacksfilms to the online video masses) to train with the company’s famous P90 program and document their journeys via social media posts and YouTube videos, which have so far raked in a collective two million views.

To the uninitiated, Beachbody is home to many different popular exercise routines and channels, a few of which were conceived by and star fitness coach Tony Horton. He’s the creator of the popular P90X program. And Back in mid-2014, Horton developed a simpler version of the routine for those still interested in getting in shape, but less interested in extreme workouts. He called it P90.

The famous trainer became hip to the YouTube scene after noticing a tweet Douglass posted, saying how he loved the P90X routing. Horton made a video with Douglass, and when it came time to test the new P90 product, he asked Beachbody CEO Carl Daikeler if he could make YouTubers part of the initiative.

“It was a risky move for [Daikeler] to green light a bold new take on the classic fitness ‘test group’,” Beachbody’s YouTube producer John Fedorowicz told Tubefilter. “Carl and Tony knew they had a great product that would yield phenomenal results, and instead of producing their own content, they would tap YouTube creators to tell their own own stories and document their own journey in real time using Tony’s new product.”

So in July 2014, Beachbody and Horton again partnered with Douglass, as well as Douglass’ girlfriend Erin Breslin, YouTube’s parody king Bart Baker, performer Olga Kay, impression artist Brock Baker (aka McGoiter), and Shira Lazar of What’s Trending. Beachbody and Horton supplied the digital stars with meal plans, the workout routines, and whatever equipment the YouTubers wanted (such as yoga mats and weights). Then, the fitness MCN and Horton took a step back and let the video creators do their thing.

Beachbody asked the YouTubers to document their transformations, but intentionally took a hands-off approach to how that documentation would take shape. Fedorowicz said the fitness company wanted to give creative control of “the storytelling and messaging to the creators.” “No one knows their audience like the channel owner so we wanted a very native account of the process in a format that best fit the [creator’s] channel,” he explained. “We strived to get these content creators to document their journey’s outside of corporate control and tell their stories in a natural, unfiltered way that would resonate with their audience and inspire them to start their fitness journey.”

And Beachbody’s branded content strategy definitely seemed to be a success in terms of generating awareness of Horton’s P90 program. The six YouTube partners created videos which totalled over 50 minutes combined and garnered a collective two million views across all their channels.

“We found that there was a lot of discussion about the product in comments of the channels involved even when the video was about something completely off topic, and that’s the kind of engagement that is both organic and priceless for a brand,” Fedorowicz said.

The YouTubers also came out of the program with personal successes to gloat about. The group collectively dropped over 100 pounds and lost more than 86 inches. In a blog post from September 2014, Olga Kay wrote about her positive experience with the P90 program after just one week. “I felt more motivated which resulted in a generally happier mood,” she explained. “I was more alert and able to focus and complete tasks faster. You can expect to turn into an energized bunny.”

Check out the before-and-after photos of the YouTube stars below. You can visit Beachbody or Tony Horton’s YouTube channels if you want to try looking like these individuals do now. You can also imagine that after its initiative with YouTubers and the few million views it generated, the Beachbody brand has similarly enhanced its look within the marketplace and become a more attractive to potential consumers.