Samsung: Turning Movement into Measurable Marketing

When Samsung launched the Galaxy Watch 7 and Watch Ultra, they weren’t just looking for reach – they were looking for meaningful engagement. That’s why they turned to Strava.

We sat down with Julia Smeulders and Anaïs Truong, Product Managers for wearables and accessories at Samsung Benelux, to dive deeper into their marketing strategy and activations on Strava.

“We’ve always wanted to engage more deeply with sports enthusiasts and active lifestyle consumers,” says Anaïs Truong, Product Manager for wearables and accessories at Samsung Benelux. “Strava was a natural fit.”

With its highly engaged and purpose-driven community, Strava gave Samsung the ideal platform to inspire action – and link that action directly to product sales.

Samsung’s marketing structure is centralized across all mobile devices, including wearables. The product management team recommends channels, with final decisions made by a central marketing team.

Strava stood out. “For us, Strava supports every stage of the funnel,” Anaïs explains. “We could raise awareness with a targeted audience, drive consideration by showcasing our products, and convert with in-platform rewards.”

That full-funnel value made Strava the perfect place to test Sponsored Challenges and Segments – and to prove they could do more than just get attention.

Samsung strategically launched its first Strava Challenge – ‘Be a Winner Not a Quitter with Samsung’ – in January, right when New Year’s fitness goals spike (and motivation sometimes dips).

“According to research, on the third Friday of January a lot of people quit their resolutions of the new year. We wanted to trigger and motivate them by joining and finishing the challenge, and as a reward earn a 25% discount voucher on the Galaxy Watch,’’ Julia explains.

“We saw it as the perfect moment to position the Galaxy Watch not just as a product, but as a tool for support and motivation.”

It worked. 20% of Galaxy Watch buyers redeemed the discount code they won through the Challenge – outperforming Samsung’s usual promotional channels.

In March–April, Samsung launched its second Strava Challenge, “Galaxy Ultra Power Through”, drawing 164,000+ participants. A parallel UK-based Sponsored Segment offered another incentive: a chance to win Samsung tech simply by staying active.

This was a first for Samsung: integrating with a platform’s community, not just its ad inventory. 

“Strava’s users aren’t just active – they’re motivated and want to feel supported,” Anaïs says. “That made it the perfect place for us.”

Unlike traditional fitness media, Strava users opt in to challenges, share progress with peers, and associate brand interactions with personal goals, making them more likely to act, not just scroll.

Another unexpected insight? In-feed promotions outperformed emails. “Being present when people are already thinking about movement is key,” Anaïs notes. “That context matters.”

Campaign Highlights

• 20% of total sales during the activation period were made through the discount code from the Strava Challenge

• 164,000+ participants in just one Challenge

• Effective across the entire funnel – from awareness to purchase

• High conversion from in-feed placements, outperforming email

Samsung’s move mirrors a larger shift in sports marketing: going beyond awareness to activation. In-platform challenges, community accountability, and reward mechanics are redefining how wearable and performance brands convert attention into action.

Based off its recent learnings, Samsung is evolving its Strava playbook with three key strategies.

Strava’s evolving and growing audience – now spanning well beyond hardcore athletes – is a key reason Samsung is staying invested. “It’s not just for performance-driven users anymore,” Julia says.

“It’s everyday people who want to move, so the platform reaches many people. That’s who we want to support, and Strava helps us reach them.”

For Samsung, Strava was more than just a media channel, it was a brand alignment and performance engine. Strava turned goals into actions, actions into sales, and sales into strategy.

 “It was about keeping people accountable and supported,” Julia reflects. “And that’s exactly what our Galaxy Watches, and Strava, are all about.”