Crisis research informing brand & product reaction post-recall.
Activated a Crisis Research Protocol after the Tread+ recall that delivered consumer learnings in days instead of weeks. Shaped how Peloton talked to members and how the product came back.
In mid-2021, after a tragic incident, Peloton recalled its Tread+ products and began collaborating with the CPSC. Inside Peloton’s marketing organization, the question was no longer “how do we plan the next campaign,” it was “what do existing owners think now, what do leads think, what’s the right way for the product to come back, and what’s the halo effect on the brand and the rest of our portfolio of products?”
The work had to happen on a timeline the company’s standard research cycles weren’t built for. We activated a Crisis Research Protocol that produced consumer learnings on a timeline of days rather than the weeks a standard cycle would have required, fast enough that the research could inform marketing and product decisions while the situation was still unfolding rather than after the dust settled.
The work spanned five countries and three populations, reading the impact of the recall on the fitness equipment industry, on the Peloton brand specifically, and on consumer perception of Peloton on safety dimensions both before and after the event.
The findings informed critical decisions on a tight clock. Peloton adjusted sales forecasts based on what the research surfaced. The marketing organization pivoted toward safety-related messaging in advertising. On-platform, instructors began incorporating safety reminders into classes, reinforcing the same shift in tone the marketing was making in paid media.
This kind of work doesn’t usually show up in typical marketing planning. That’s since changed for Peloton. The Protocol we activated for the Tread+ situation became a reference point for how the team could move when speed mattered as much as rigor.