Strava Posts – a new space for content

This Tuesday Strava rolled out its new ‘Athlete Posts’ feature to all its users. Not only for the original 36 or a premium tool, we all have the space to tell the ‘story of our athletic life’. Well that’s the CEO James Quarles idea around the developments, but what does this look like in reality? Along with an aesthetic update to the dashboard, the new post feature makes Strava more like a traditional social platform. Feeds will now contain recommendations, activity invites, gear reviews, traditional activity tracking and anything we want to share with other athletes.

Content Creation

Quarles explained how the feature changes are a natural extension of what was already happening on the platform. “We found that when Strava was just activities, people were asking questions in the comments and sharing links and things. That’s a horrible way to have that community content organised. We gave people the ability to make a post, share a photo, or embed information when they’re not active.”

There’s the buzzword: Content. Strava has shifted from an activity tracker to a place for content creation. So what does this mean for influencers? Sports influencers now have a new platform to create content for their audiences. This could open the door to greater brand engagement with influencers on Strava. Brands may consider working with Strava influencers as part of their content strategies. This could be great. We may start seeing the kind of passion driven content that influencers are producing on other platforms. Or it could be Strava’s downfall, as the dumping of seeded products into disingenuous posts could begin to clog our feeds.

So what does good Strava content look like?

We asked some of the original athletes who had the ability to create posts how they founding using the features, and if they had any tips.

1.  Don’t post just for the sake of it: ‘A good story or question come along occasionally, not every day. No one wants to read the same person going on and on about every run they do. The best posts I’ve read from fellow athletes so far have been the more considered ones. ‘ Kate Carter
2. Share the story beyond just the activity: ‘Athletes Posts has enabled me to share the experiences I have had alongside my activities. Sometimes there is more to a run than the miles and the pace, often there is a bit more to say. I have enjoyed putting some of my activities into context.’ Susie Chan
3. Use the social side of it: You can now organise activity asking followers if they want to join you on a cycle or run. Kate described it as ‘close to a running club social drinks as a virtual space can be!’
4. Be honest: ‘Brands will pick up on your passion and realness. Authenticity isn’t about being unique but being consistent’. Claudi Schroegel has used the posting tool to give some real raw insights into her athletic life, and we have loved her honesty! It has really engaged and resonated with her audience, as the best content does.

Our favourite post so far was a question posed by Kate to her followers resulting in some very funny answers!

It will be interesting to see how influencers, athletes, and content creator, will use the new feature over the coming months. As long as they are engaging authentic stories, having a relevant platform to tell them on sounds good to us.