Jerome Hiquet of Tough Mudder on rejecting the masses
Q: Tough Mudder attracts droves of fans around a very specific passion point. When the company was first founded, was there any concern that the Tough Mudder offering might be too narrow?
A: Tough Mudder was founded out of the desire to not only build an event where teamwork sits above all else, but to build a community that echoed those values. At the time of its inception there was nothing out there like Tough Mudder, in which people came together to complete a challenge where camaraderie and working together trumped finisher times and a ‘winner's’ first mentality.
Our first event series - Tough Mudder - was a 10-12 mile obstacle course challenge designed by British Special Forces to challenge participants both physically and mentally. Before our very first event in 2010 we expected about 500 people to attend, but in the end over 5,000 people attended. I think we knew that our events would tap into a very specific set of values, but we underestimated just how successful we would from the start. We’ve attracted millions of people around the globe through Tough Mudder alone, so I don’t think it’s about being too narrow, but moreso about being able to evolve from a singular brand into a lifestyle brand that speaks to many different people.
It’s important when you set out to create a lifestyle brand, to build something that all kinds of consumers want to be part of, not just your early adopters or existing customers. As the landscape evolves, you need to evolve with it, and so at Tough Mudder we’ve sought to create brands that attract many different people, not just those interested in Tough Mudder. For example, we launched Tough Mudder Half, our five-mile version that’s designed to require less training, from the insight that many people were interested in shorter-distance format events. It would be easy for us to continue only offering Tough Mudder, but that wouldn’t have allowed us to evolve into where we are today.
As we continue to define ourselves more and more as a lifestyle brand, it’s not just about our events; that would be too narrow of an approach to take. We reach people across several touch points, whether it’s through social media, pre-event training opportunities, community happy hours, Facebook Livestream so you can tune in from wherever you are, and more.
Q: The social currency linked to Tough Mudder is undeniably strong. What makes your brand so shareable?
A: We set out six years ago to build a lifestyle brand and not solely an events company. Because of the nature of what we’re doing, we give people a chance to be part of a story and a community of shared experiences. Today’s customers seek experiences over luxury goods, and Tough Mudder is an experience that can unite people across the globe. For that reason, word-of-mouth may have been much easier for us than some other brands. Our participants are certainly entitled to bragging rights; that’s simply part of what you earn by saying you’ve done a Tough Mudder and you’re part of that tribe, and shareability comes naturally with that.
We nailed the word-of-mouth marketing fairly easy and early on, but it’s a lot more work to grow the company into a lifestyle brand. We have to adopt new strategies, become fluent in all types of marketing channels, get smarter with data and consumer insights, and become more sophisticated with our product offerings in order to truly shift from a startup to an evolved corporation, a lifestyle brand that people want to engage with every day.
The aspects of teamwork and camaraderie and the extreme mental and physical challenges that participants experience at our events are what make Tough Mudder truly unique, so we have something that people genuinely want to talk about with their friends or share on social media. For example, we make sure that all campaigns, no matter how big or small, express Tough Mudder core values and never put those values at risk. Across all of our marketing channels we always look to highlight our core values, some of which are, teamwork, camaraderie and triumph.
We are in the business of making memories at first class events with signature obstacles. No matter what the platform, the key is conveying the message that Tough Mudder is more than an athletic challenge—it’s a lifestyle. For those people who truly have made Tough Mudder a part of their lives, they want to share the experience with others.
Q: The Arctic Enema. The Firewalker. Electroshock Therapy. These names are not for the feint of heart. What is the core human need that these obstacles satiate?
A: Always irreverent in our approach, being able to push the needle or ‘surprise and delight’ customers is a part of what we do. We’ve always taken on a unique perspective and voice as a brand, and it’s worked in our favor because it’s authentic and genuine to who we are.
More than 2.5 million people around the world know and love these obstacles and can say they’ve done something called Arctic Enema and Electroshock Therapy. It’s not just about diving into ice cold water or being shocked with 10,000 volts of electricity; it’s about being part of something truly greater than yourself and overcoming obstacles as a team -- and having an epic story to tell. People will always want experiences that push their physical or mental boundaries, and that core value will never go away. We are building a global tribe and starting a movement which unites people through the shared Tough Mudder experiences and live courage, personal accomplishment and teamwork in their everyday lives.
Q: From a marketing perspective, if Tough Mudder could have a “do-over” what would it be?
A: When we launched the new event series, Tough Mudder Half, in 2010, I think we were a bit surprised by the reaction from some of our most loyal fans. Tough Mudder Half is a 5-mile version of Tough Mudder that is designed to require less training and provide an accessible, yet rewarding challenge. It does not include more daunting obstacles the full Tough Mudder is known for (like ones with ice and electricity). We launched it as a way to continue growing a global tribe and create an ‘entry point’ into Tough Mudder. Some of the reactions told us that some fans thought Tough Mudder Half meant we were creating an ‘easier’ or ‘watered-down’ version.
In hindsight, I think we could have launched the event with a clearer understanding that Tough Mudder Half was intended for an entirely new audience and to bring more people into the global tribe. Our existing community is always asking for tougher challenges and more extreme obstacles, which we deliver by designing new events and obstacles for them. We knew that many people were interested in the full event, but for various reasons preferred a shorter-distance format, which is why we developed Tough Mudder Half. Looking back, we should have been more clear that Tough Mudder Half was an addition to the Tough Mudder family of brands, not a replacement. From a marketing perspective, the strategy, vision and consumer insights we used to develop Tough Mudder Half was very strong. When you have a community of very vocal and passionate fans, you have to be prepared for their reaction to anything you do. It’s not a bad problem to have, but it certainly requires you to always take a customer-first approach as a marketer and a brand.
