Freeletics Shop and publicity

Good afternoon.
I am new in the forum but I’ve been user of Freeletics since 2 years or more.
I have seen a 180 degree turn in the Freeletics experience and it seems that now is everything about selling equipment and clothes.
I could totally understand that in a free app or during a trial period the publicity and the links to shop and full subscriptions exist. But as a user with a subscription for the coach, I find that the use of links and continuous references to shop and buying equipment is exaggerated.
There is a newsletter subscription that is optional but there is no option to reduce or delete all those links to the shop that are in the app. One tab for the shop should be enough.
I counted 5 different links to same shop today in different screens or tabs.
With today’s update, I even found a link to foam roller shopping in the workout resume.
I think that this is getting too much and enough.
I wish that the app experience would be improved instead of repetitive links to old topics and blog entries.
The new kettlebell journey is full of bugs and for being a “Kettlebell basics” it is very dangerous for new users.
Although the report to coach is that the weight is too much, the next workouts are the same. No changes. The after workout values from green to red, seems to not have any change in the coach and following weights and exercises.
I have been very happy with this app and experience most of the time but in the latest months, I am searching for another app before my subscription ends.
Sorry for introducing myself with a complaining post but this is how I feel nowadays.
For the rest, I wish all the best to the community and really hope that Freeletics changes its new way of forcing to shop equipments because apart from that, I find that this community and app is still the best out there. I love how it is, not the way it is done.
Thanks for listening (reading) and again, my apologies for complaining on my first post.
Regards.
Xiropillo

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Hey @Xiropillo :wave:t2:

Thanks for such a constructive post-feedback like this is hugely valuable to us. I would really be interested to hear other feedback on the topic, so please, if you are reading this and feel able to share your own thoughts, be they positive or not-so-positive, please do so!

:clapclapstatic:

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Regarding this part of your post, could you please report any possible bugs to us using the form below :point_down:t2:

Request Technical Assistance

Thank you!

:clapclapstatic:

To be honest: yeah, there is too much ad for the shop. I think it’s fine to post disclaimer in news section. And it’s fine to have the deep links in Explore Tab to specific sections of the shop.
But the tab in Coach view plus in Coach Resume View is a little too much. Since this I avoid posting screen shots of Coach (over)view.

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4 posts were split to a new topic: Concerns about the difficulty of exercises in Kettlebell Fundamentials

Thanks for the contribution Mel :+1:t2:

Can you share a screenshot here showing what you refer to below :point_down:t2: Just trying to understand this problem a bit more and will try to make sure this all gets discussed.

:clapclapstatic:

I proudly present … my screenshots :sunglasses:Screenshot_20210914-063623|230x500

I

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I can understand why this is done in the training overview for marketing reasons - these were gladly shared on social media. But on one hand, it annoys most of the people (everyone I talked about it) and on the other hand, I haven’t seen any screenshots of the overview since then, at least in my channels.

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Ooof…the first thought that came to mind was “That’s a lot of Burpess!” :rofl:

Ok, this is really helpful Mel. I have one quick follow-up question which is how often do you feel you are getting that ad in your workout summaries?

:clapclapstatic:

For me it’s like being in a gym during a promo week and the monitor or trainer comes to you to offer the subscription for the whole year. You will have these or those benefits and so on. You receive promo adds or discount offerings.
Ok, that is fair. We all need to work.
But then, you finally pay for the subscription and the trainer keeps on coming to you offering equipments and clothes.
During your workout instead of motivational videos or music, you are continuously asked to buy new things or you have videos with new offers.
Even when you go to the shower or sauna for relaxing the wall is full of publicity offering you products for recovering or supplements.
More than one would invite to the monitor to get lost or even canceling subscription.
In this case, for me is too much.
We all know where is the link to the shop and the offerings. We all have option to subscribe to newsletter. We don’t need intrusive staff.
Again, that is only my point of view.
Regards

Hello,

I have to agree with the previous posts and also think it is far too much and sometimes too intrusive advertising. I have already told the support as feedback, but would also like to say something about it here:

As it has already been mentioned by others, anyone who wants to buy something in the store will also find this easily and quickly. For this, you do not need a reference to it at every point. Overall, I could find advertising in the following places in the app and beyond:

  • Tab news in the app (here I actually see almost only advertising, real news about the app is not something I have discovered there yet).
  • Push notifications of the app (here I also would have actually hoped that you get push notification for the coach and the training itself. So far I have only received advertisements as push notifications).
  • Explore tab (here it is advertised very far up big, that should be put further down at the very end).
  • In a session from the coach “Shop for equipment now” button.
  • In the Journey settings for Equipment
  • After finishing a session very intrusive (advertising must be clicked away)
  • In all equipment workouts in the explore section a buy button
  • A short insertion after the selection of an equipment workout
  • The daily overview of a completed session

What I also find a little intrusive and annoying is that if I browse for something in the Freeletics Essential Store and possibly also put something in the shopping cart and yet do not buy, I always get an email about it. This even happens when I do not put it in the shopping cart, probably only when being logged in there. Maybe this can be disabled, I am not sure?

Unfortunately, all of this interferes drastically with actually a really great experience with the app. This can even lead people to the opposite, that you no longer want to use the app.

In my opinion, especially with the paid version with Coach, there should only be the reference in the Explore tab (and the optional newsletter with offers, etc.) to the Freeletics Essentials Store, everything else beyond that I consider too much and certainly not purposeful.

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I agree with the rest of the comments, if I’m already paying for the subscription I don’t expect to have ads on the app. Specially when I’m working out, I find ads in the Coach section the most intrusive. If I’m working out I don’t want to have ads in my screen.

Having ads while already paying for a subscription seems a bit much to me (for example occupying 20% of the screen in the notifications section for a shop ad that you can’t close nor doesn’t change either)
I understand for mentions of the Shop in the Newsletter and I’m ok with that but to mentions the shop in every section of the app looks intrusive to me.

Next level of “you just need more ad”.

I see this on every profile (screenshoted my husband’s profile).

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And the next step. There is now a whole tab for the store, how long will this go on? With each update comes something new, where advertising for the store is made.

Will we eventually have to see advertising even at a Coach Workout?

I only hope that this is a provisional step and all the links and mentions in the paid subscription will move to the Shop Tab.
Otherwise I will not renew my subscription as there are also several inputs in the coach workout referring to the shop.
Even when you finish your workout of the day on a training journey, the app recommends you to buy the foam roller. And I have already set it as my equipment…
So this is getting too much and some kind of desperate by them.

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Thanks for the input @avg_Santiago, @Xiropillo, @Pascal and @melaLetics :clapclapstatic:

Now Seriously Freeletics. With every new update you have to add links or intrusive adds to you shop?? It is not enough with a dedicated tab for it? Stop now please! I am getting bored to use it just to not being upset so I use other training routines, even YouTube videos.

It has been a long time but I am just wondering whether we will see any changes regarding this in the near future or what are the general future plans here?

Thank you!

Another week.
Another desperate link to make us, even already paid subscribers, to buy your expensive equipment.
No thanks.
This is not an app for taking care of our health anymore.
This is an intrusive way of publicity and marketing that sounds desperate.
At least Apple Fitness+ has arrived to my country to have another alternative.
It is expensive, yes. It is not for everyone, no. It is limited to buyers of their expensive products. Yes.
But at least, once you decide to pay. That is all. You won’t see more publicity and links to buy anymore.
Less updates for shopping and more for improving and finishing experimental and beta features.