The Fadeaway Fitness brand continues to grow in both audience and influence.
That’s been founder Jeremy Hays’ goal since its inception back in 2017.
He’s grown from just conducting individual workouts and team camps to traveling around the country, hosting Fadeaway camps across the U.S.
Since March, Hays has hosted or participated in Fade camps in 23 different states.
That coupled with his ever-expanding social media presence on multiple platforms like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok, has greatly expanded his brand, and influence, and further cemented his credibility as a leading basketball skills trainer.
One month from today, Hays’ ability to reach an even greater audience will increase greatly as the FadeawayFit Virtual Academy app will be available on the App Store for Apple users.
It’s the natural next step in Hays’ progression—one he’s been thinking about developing all the back in 2017 when his brand was primarily limited to in-person individualized workouts at the Fade gym just outside St. Clairsville, along with the Our Lady of Peace gym in Mount Olivet.
“The direction of everything in today’s society is going digital,” Hays said. “I have notebooks from back in 2017 about doing an online program, how can I market this more online, but I never knew exactly how to go about it.
“I knew the basketball end, and the social media end, but never exactly how to market and sell the content online.”
The social media following is undoubtedly there—81,000 plus on TikTok and more than 102,000 on Instagram.
But the app can further Hays’ reach in ways not available, nor practical, with standard platforms.
App in Development
Hays obviously knows basketball. And skills training. His social media and people skills are, safe to say, also on par.
But app development and programming? It’s okay to admit when help is needed and Hays enlisted the experts at CoachIQ to assist in that department.
What transpired was a whirlwind near half a year of development.
Hays, for his part, managed to produce, film, and edit tons of content, finding time in between his already busy schedule.
“We filmed the content, edited it, shot it, and made sure I was confident in the (content) enough to put it out,” Hays said. “It was five months of long work and I did it outside of the workouts and camps.
“It’s something that I’ve always wanted to do, but to do so, I needed two things. One, is a massive social media audience, but also a way to create that passive income and be able to sell online.
“Getting that social media audience and doing these traveling camps has given me more access than to just the immediate people in our local area.”
Now Hays will quite literally be available in the palm of your hand.
At launch, the Virtual Academy will be accessible on the App Store and on the web at FadeawayFit.com. Android users fear not, as the Google Play Store too will soon be carrying the Virtual Academy.
Varied Content
The App is and will be free to download. But access to the content will require a subscription, with a number of options. There will be a month-to-month cost that requires only paying the first month up front, with a monthly renewal.
The second, and the one Hays promotes most heavily, is the annual subscription. When purchased up front, the actual “per month” cost will be heavily discounted compared to the monthly-basis subscription. Lastly, there will be a lifetime membership for anyone wanting permanent access to what will be a large content library at lunch that will be consistently updated and expanded as the months pass.
“I currently have close to 30 full programs written out and ready to put on the platform. When it first goes live, there will be eight full programs, from ball handling, attacking the basket, finishing, shooting, and form shooting—I wanted it to be a one-stop shop. I want to touch on everything basketball related.”
There will also be complementary content aimed at different areas of fitness. Hays is working with experts in different fields to help bolster the overall content on his platform.
One is dancer, instructor, and choreographer Carly DiCola.
Hays met DiCola when she became his dancing partner in the recent edition of Dancing With the Ohio Valley Stars.
DiCola will utilize her expertise and provide content geared toward yoga, stretching, and mobility exercises, all of which can provide positive benefits for basketball athletes.
“I’m looking forward to having people around the valley that work in different parts of the fitness world partner together and share their knowledge,” Hays said. “If I have access and a platform, I want others to get exposure too. That’s what I’m about. I’ll announce some people as it gets closer, but Carly DiCola, we’re shooting her programs tomorrow. She’s starting to find her niche and grow her own brand, and I want to get her involved because she can create some great content in yoga and stretching.”
Basketball is more than just dribbling and shooting, and Hays wants to help take aim at improving the entire body, and not just sport-specific skills.
Personal Touches
The Virtual Academy will be far more than a library of skills training videos. While that’s a great part of it, Hays wants each of his subscribers to grow in their love and ability to play the game that’s done so much for him.
It will also be interactive, enabling subscribers to receive feedback and communication from the Fade master himself.
“One of the main reasons I’m excited for the ability to have actual, constant communication,” Hays said. “They can message me in the app with questions. They can send me their own videos and I can assist and critique on the spot. It’s a very interactive platform.”
Hays will be able to break down film, and also in a similar fashion to a Zoom call, do a live walk-through and breakdown. Targeted group messages can be sent out, or individualized. The possibilities are endless.
“I feel this will be a lot more personable,” Hays said. “Instead of just going to Instagram or YouTube and checking out a video, and that’s it, this is interactive. I want it to be value driven. I want to provide as much value as I can because, ultimately, that’s how you keep people coming back.”
