A Pandemic Pivot: Transformative Lessons for a Digital Wellness Enterprise

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Without a doubt, the pandemic has transformed the wellness landscape. In the wake of the global lockdowns, many gyms and fitness centers closed. According to global health and fitness association IHRSA, 25% of all fitness facilities permanently closed since the pandemic began in March 2020 as compared to the facilities remaining in operation as of December 2021. And unfortunately, even more closures are expected to continue to climb in Q2 of 2022 due to the Omicron variant.

One company that quickly shifted gears to reimagine fitness and well-being was Exos. Headquartered in Phoenix with a multitude of performance institutes, Exos is a leader in human performance and athletic training. Using a scientific approach to drive positive outcomes, Exos works with top athletes across the globe, from the German Soccer team to Olympic medalists to special operations of the U.S. Military. 

For over two decades, Exos has pioneered the field of human performance. Today, Exos coaches hundreds of thousands of people on a monthly basis, from athletes to office workers, and everyone in between. However, Exos doesn’t consider itself a fitness center company, but more of a technology company that creates integrated and transformative experiences and environments.

With an unwavering attitude towards continuous improvement, Exos extolls that there’s always a better way—whether it’s regarding human performance or business strategies. True to form, the pandemic was a catalyst for Exos to develop a digital approach to delivering its corporate wellness programs.

In a recent webinar, Exos Executive Chairman Dan Burns joined Botco.ai Founder Rebecca Clyde to discuss how the pandemic has transformed the digital wellness landscape. Burns shared how Exos pivoted its traditional business model to an omni-channel approach, introduced revamped digital platforms to ensure the active engagement with more client employees and helped to transform lives in the new work-from-home world.

To have the most impact, Exos listened to what the market was telling them—bring an outcome-focused, wellness-engagement platform to corporations that are struggling with cutbacks during the downturn. Now more than ever, companies need to offer greater incentives to retain and recruit top talent. Exos is helping companies to do just that by providing an omni-channel solution for improved wellness and performance.

“The most meaningful accomplishments are never made alone.” A poignant Exos mantra, indeed. Adjusting its business model for the employer market, Exos formed deep partnerships with forward-thinking organizations centered around coaching and technology. While still continuing to train athletes and military operators, Exos simultaneously began to hone in on evolving its offerings to be more relevant to a corporate population for an employee-user experience, and technology is at the forefront.

“We knew we had to reach people at home,” said Exos Executive Chairman Dan Burns. “Not by becoming just another set of digital workouts, but as a platform that truly allows our coaches to personalize the programming and recommendations.”

Within a matter of months, Exos developed a functional digital platform that allows its coaches to meet with their clients virtually and provide personalized training. This platform became the basis of a consumer-grade platform that Exos launched 12 months into the pandemic. 

Recognizing that coaches had very unique relationships with their clients, Exos’ evolutionary approach to personalized engagement helps to provide an important connectivity and keeps people motivated even when face-to-face contact is not an option. The new delivery model is less tethered to a physical sight, and extends digitally, to focus on individualized coaching and support. And technology has enabled Exos to scale its innovative direct-to-consumer, human-performance approach. All of which has been a real breakthrough for how Exos can support employees, regardless of where they may physically work. 

“It’s a real breakthrough in how we can support employees, regardless of where they may physically work, and in all aspects of their life,” Burns said. “From a performance standpoint, this really helps people advance towards their health and performance goals in a meaningful way.”

More than ever, personalized wellness is important to the mental health and physical health of workers.

“Having an omni-channel ability to interact with clients provides the same level of programming, personalization and coaching,” Burns added. “In order for employers to attract and retain top performers, it’s really important for employees to feel invested in and supported by their employer.”

Using technology to deliver answers, coaching, content and motivation right when employees need it in a high-quality format has never been easier, and it’s through machine learning, artificial intelligence (AI) and intelligent conversation.

“Having access to coaches to help answer questions and support people on their wellness journey is important,” Burns said. “I think that’s where you start to see really high engagement and strong employee retention.”

As more people are making their physical and mental health a priority, Botco.ai’s intelligent chatbots are helping them to be healthier. Botco.ai’s AI-powered chatbots can make all the difference to improve wellness, drive motivation and increase employee retention.

How conversational AI can effectively support the health and wellness sector

• Customer support 24/7: The limitation of live agents is that they can only handle a limited number of customers at a time. Whatever the time of day or nights, chatbots are always active. Your business can provide customers, prospects or employees with 24/7 live support with intelligent chatbots. Users can quickly connect to get their questions and concerns addressed related to fitness tips, exercise, coaching support, wellness resources, nutrition and diets, and so much more. 

• Reduced wait times: A recent Botco.ai survey reports that 70% of respondents said that chatbots quickly answer all or most of their questions to their satisfaction. Users type in a question and they get an answer within seconds. Employing chatbots enables immediate responses and solutions. In today’s fast-paced digital world, it’s much better to quickly provide answers through chatbots than to subject people to wait for email replies or return phone calls.

• Improved communications and engagement: Conversational AI is the perfect tool to keep clients or patients engaged. Whether it’s scheduling appointments, providing results or setting reminders, Botco.ai’s intelligent chatbot can help health and wellness centers to check on the well-being of clients and track vitals at any stage of personal wellness. 

• Improved multilingual engagement: AI-powered chatbots can also provide immense support to ensure enhanced quality of service for all health and wellness businesses, organizations and facilities—no matter what their native language. The overall result is improved interaction, higher conversion and better retention.

Create your own health and wellness chatbot with Botco.ai

It’s already known that conversational AI can drive sales, boost customer retention and loyalty. Increasingly, AI-driven chatbots are transforming the health and wellness industry, and far beyond just making a doctor’s appointment. Chatbots are connecting people to the right services when needed through streamlining reminders, appointments and through automation of wellness programs.

With the ability to handle multiple inquiries at a time, chatbots take your business to the next level. So, if you’re a healthcare, fitness or wellness provider, consider implementing chatbots. They’re a great tool for enhancing your customer service at affordable costs without compromising on quality. Additionally, you can significantly reduce operational costs and boost customer engagement. So, if you’re planning to add an AI-driven chatbot to your business, schedule a demo with Botco.ai. We’ll help you learn more about chatbots, their functions and how chatbots can improve your bottom line.

To watch Botco.ai’s webinar replay of “A Pandemic Pivot: Transformative Lessons for a Digital Wellness Enterprise with Exos,” visit here.

If you like to learn how to integrate automation and AI technology into your recruitment and education process, or to see a product demo, schedule a call with our team or email us at [email protected].