Gabbi Tuft, Coach Gabbi

Project Overview

Gabbi Tuft is a forerunner and pioneer in the transgender community, as well as a renowned professional athlete, keynote speaker, and fitness coach. She has over 30 years of experience in the fitness industry and has successfully coached over 1,500 clients to help them meet their personal health and fitness goals since 2010. 

With 99% of her clients being cisgender women, Gabbi’s mission is to empower women to break free from cyclical behaviors and embrace sustainable fitness and nutrition habits, all while fostering positive neuro-associations for success. 

Gabbi aims to inspire women to embrace change and love themselves as the queens they are. Her goal is to create a ripple effect of empowered women who lead fulfilling lives, unlocking their true potential and celebrating their individuality.

The Problem

Gabbi had been in the spotlight for many years prior to publicly announcing her transition. After her announcement hit media headlines, she decided it would be best to take a small step back from the limelight and focus her attention on revamping her personal coaching platform. 

However, to rebuild her platform, Gabbi needed to secure media coverage and press engagements to reintroduce both herself and her brand to the general public. Moreover, while many people were familiar with her prior career as a professional WWE wrestler, she wanted to ensure they knew of her coaching platform by offering a deeper glimpse into her personal life.

The Strategy

To get Gabbi’s coaching business back in the spotlight, Otter PR leveraged her existing media presence on TikTok, Instagram, and her connections to the WWE team as the first wrestler to transition after leaving the organization. Utilizing Gabbi’s openness regarding her personal life allowed our team to lead with LGBTQIA+ topics to include the “Coach Gabbi” brand name in key media placements. 

This approach allowed us to build media awareness about Gabbi’s current life, both personally and as a personal fitness coach. Additionally, our team also pitched numerous topics on nutrition, health, and personal fitness to showcase Gabbi’s accomplishments as a professional in these realms outside of her personal transition. 

Using this multi-pronged approach, our team was able to easily grab the attention of dozens of reporters both in and outside of Otter PR’s media network. Whenever Gabbi went viral on social media, we quickly pitched reporters the topics she spoke on, ensuring to include links to her personal social media platforms so journalists could immediately notice her extensive following and digital presence. This strategy allowed reporters to easily see how covering her in media for a wide variety of topics would consistently be in high demand due to her relatability and authenticity. 

Business Impact (results)

As a result of our comprehensive PR strategy, Otter PR was able to generate a wealth of press coverage for Gabbi and her “Coach Gabbi” brand, including multiple pieces of written media coverage in top-tier publications such as Business Insider, Yahoo! Entertainment, the San Francisco Chronicle, and more. 

Our team was also able to land Gabbi several interviews and TV spots with national news outlets and popular talk shows, including The Tamron Hall Show. Since partnering with Otter PR, she and her team have not only reached but exceeded their goal of obtaining 900 new clients across the US.