• by Tricia Despres , October 28, 2005

Step on the scale at your health club, and chances are the only thing you'll be reading is the scary three-digit number underneath you, not the blank wall in front of you. Yet nearly 1,800 health clubs in 70 markets are filling those blank walls with advertising through an exclusive partnership with California-based Health Club Panel Network (HCPN).

Besides traditional ad panels, California-based HCPN has now brought advertising to exercise balls, floor mats, and yoga cushions in u.s. health clubs. The company is even branding the weight stacks.

"Companies want to reach consumers in venues that are unique and personal to them," explains former Mad Dogs & Englishmen Media Director Kurt Carstensen. "My client realized that these consumers were in an opportune mindset to take in their message."

Targeting active, upscale, and influential 25- to 54-year-olds, HCPN claims to reach 6 million consumers every month and deliver more than 170 million impressions. Some studies show that these consumers have a high intent to purchase after seeing this advertising, and can even recall the exact copy of the ads in many cases. For ad buyers, that kind of data is likely to have some weight.