The Circuit Bouldering Gym

    I chose my favorite business, The Circuit! The Circuit is a portland based chain of bouldering gyms that first started in 2005. They currently have four gyms; three in the Portland area and one in Bend. They communicate primarily through three different social media platforms; Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. On their website, they also post every event and the calendar date under the "News + Events" section. In this section, you can also subscribe to their news and updates through email. Because of the number of ways you can stay updated, I would claim that communication through their online presence is extremely effective.

    The first page of the website is somewhat minimalistic. They have their logo and company name spelled out in large uppercase letters in the middle of the screen with clips of people climbing and socializing in the background. Just under the logo and company name, there are two buttons. One gives you the option to sign and waiver and the other gives you an option to make a reservation. Because of the pandemic, reservations are required so this is a new implementation. This shows that they are keeping up to date with their website. I think the minimalistic design was a conscious choice to draw attention to either making a reservation or signing a waiver. On the upper right side of the first page, there's a list of different buttons including locations, COVID-19 news, instruction, rates, etc.

    The Circuit does have an online identity that is mainly present through Twitter, but their other social media platforms as well. Through Twitter, they'll post something nearly every day. They post memes, videos, and relevant articles, accentuating their online identity. On Facebook and Instagram, they'll sometimes have an employee make a video with tips on a range of topics including building a home wall, info for yoga instruction, and home workouts.

    Although there's a video for each location, it doesn't do a great job of showing the layout of each gym. The videos are flashy and cool, but it's somewhat disorientating for someone whos never visited. I think if they added pictures of each section of the gym, it would give visitors a better idea of the space.