The Fresh Start Effect states that the motivation and ambition among people to achieve their goals is at its peak at the start of anything new, be it a new day, a new year, or a new project. Leveraging the power of new beginnings is psychologically known to boost productivity and drive desired changes by leaving behind past failures.
This phenomenon applies to all scenarios like marketing, business, and personal productivity.
In marketing, the Fresh Start Effect can help marketers guide their customers to take desired actions. This mostly happens by motivating customers to desire a change in their lives via their products or services.
In business, the Fresh Start Effect can help companies benefit by launching new products or implementing alternative strategies within their organizations. This happens by capitalizing on people’s mental preparedness, positivity, and natural acceptance of change while beginning anything new.
In personal productivity, the Fresh Start Effect can help individuals work towards positive life changes and achieve long-desired milestones. This happens by making the most of mental landmarks in their lives to become a different and better version of their present selves.
However, it is important to note that the Fresh Start Effect is more about when you mentally mark a shift from an experience in your life to be able to desire change, rather than mandatorily feel motivated at the start of a new time period like a new week, or a new year.
Fitbit is a wearable fitness technology company that offers activity trackers and smartwatches to help users monitor their physical activity and achieve their fitness goals. One way they leverage the fresh start effect is by promoting their products at the beginning of the year, during the “New Year, New You” season.
By doing so, Fitbit is tapping into the natural motivation and momentum that people feel at the start of a new year, when many are setting fitness goals as part of their New Year’s resolutions. This promotion also creates a sense of urgency for people to purchase a Fitbit device and start tracking their progress, which can help drive sales and customer engagement. It also establishes the Fitbit device as an essential tool that’s needed for personal transformation and progress during New Year’s.
In addition to their New Year’s promotions, Fitbit also uses the fresh start effect throughout the year by offering challenges and rewards for users who meet their fitness goals or maintain a streak of activity. These challenges and rewards thrive on the power of completing milestones and progressing to new ones and help create a sense of competition and community among users, which can help drive engagement and retention.
By leveraging the fresh start effect in these ways, Fitbit has been able to create new opportunities for customer engagement and drive sales, while also helping people achieve their fitness goals and maintain healthy habits.
Product managers can leverage the fresh start effect by strategically timing product updates, feature releases, or marketing campaigns to coincide with significant milestones or new beginnings for users.
