Just Riding Along

New book by Roy Wallack

Freelance writer extraordinaire Roy Wallack has just launched a new book, "Bike for Life: How to Ride to 100."

He sent me a copy and I haven't read the whole thing but I can tell you that the interviews alone are worth the price of the book.  Instead of some cheesy Q&A, he lets his subjects write an unedited memoir of their life in cycling.  I've read the Gary Fisher and Mike Sinyard interviews so far and they're quite interesting.  I'll post more about the book later.

We talked about his book and the idea of longevity and the effect of the baby boomers taking up cycling in growing numbers.  He cited a stat by the SGMA that 80% of sporting goods (of which bike stuff makes up a large portion) are sold to people 40 and up (*correction: it's 80% of the 4% increase from '03-'04).  He also speaks from experience.  As an endurance and adventure racing veteran he is seeing more and more 50+ year-old  participants than ever before.

I share Roy's enthusiasm that cycling is ripe to be the sport of choice for the baby boomers.  This huge demographic can really inject major growth into the industry and I hope we are able to capitalize on this trend.  The question is, how can the bike industry welcome these older enthusiasts with open arms?  Stay tuned for more thoughts on this subject.

...and, by the way, Roy's blog will be launching soon ;-).

Blogging in BRaIN

Blogging made the front page of the June 15 BRaIN Magazine.  The story, "Companies Learn to Blog the Bikeosphere" was written by Chris Lesser and featured a few bike bloggers including myself, Tim "Masi Guy" Jackson, Tram Line, and Surly.

It's great to see BRaIN spreading the word about blogs to more folks in the industry and Chris did a great job of explaining what they're all about. 

As for my quote, I think the first part came out sort of strange, so here's an explanation.
First, the quote:

"Think of how many sales guys love working in the industry and just love their jobs.  Right now, what's the avenue for them to convey their enthusiasm?  It's Interbike, it's meeting people at Sea Otter,  it's a couple days of the year."

The explanation:

This industry runs on passion.  Most people aren't in it to get rich, they just love bikes and they love what they're doing.  I think blogs are a great way to convey that passion to more people; whether you're a product manager, a brand manager, a shop owner, a CEO, garage innovator, whatever.  Blogs can be like a year-round trade show conversation; a virtual trade show booth for you to show your customers what you're all about, convey your brand's values, display your products, and most importantly, a place to connect.

 

NEMA catalog and copycats

Someone just sent me this:

From NEMA's 2005 online catalog describing the Tranz jersey.

"Yes, Pearl  Izumi ripped us off... but they haven't had an original idea since 1987."

Ouch.

I don't know anything about Pearl Izumi's designs and I'm not adding validity to NEMA's claim.  It does seems to me though, that the bike industry is full of copying and "ripping off."  However, there's a fine line between being inspired/influenced by someone and blatantly stealing an idea.  And sometimes that subtle difference is hard to distinguish.

I was in a situation recently where a client's product was copied by someone who I had tried to approach about distribution just a few years prior.  There are two feelings that came over us when the "new" product was recently launched.  First, we were happy that someone else (with deeper pockets) thought the product concept was worth copying because it adds credibility to the niche.  But after seeing how the "new" product is being marketed as "innovative" it seems kind of lame.  Of course the copying company dwarfs my client in size and marketing power so less knowledgable people might assume they were indeed the innovators, when, in reality my client has been making a similar product for nearly 10 years.

Bottom line is that it's very hard for small companies to protect their designs and ideas.  Even if they have a patent, they can't afford to defend it when necessary...so the copycatting will continue.

Specialized creates new superstars

I love Specialized's current ad campaign touting upcoming superstars, especially the one that features the National U-23 team.  With all the talk about how the industry will fare without Lance, and with the debacle surrounding Tyler, I'm glad to see someone with Specialized's clout, marketing panache, and ad budget thinking ahead.

Not only is it just good business to promote upcoming riders, but I think it's a smart campaign from a branding perspective because it gives Specialized that underdog, grassroots vibe that enthusiasts respect.

3G Bikes in Playboy

3G Bikes' S-Rod is featured in the July issue of Playboy Magazine.  I thought the copy was pretty classic:

"Think of this woman's beautiful butt as a delicious piece of ripe fruit.  Put that little mango through an overly bumpy ride and it could bruise."

If that quote doesn't brighten your day, perhaps this will:  3G Bikes in Playboy (120KB jpg)

(disclaimer: Although not currently on the active roster, 3G Bikes was a client of Box and One.)

Business Week update and search

In case you missed it, BusinessWeek Online has now done two separate stories on their Blogspotting blog in response to my "Bike Shops Must Start Blogging" post from a few weeks ago.  Here's the first one.  And then the follow-up.

One of the results of this has been a whole new thread of comments and people linking to that story, expanding the conversation even further.

In the comments of the second Blogspotting mention, I noticed this post by "Fritz", who has a great blog about cycling in Longmont, CO.  He expands on the fact that blogs are search-engine friendly and he's starting to realize that his blog is ranked better for interested cyclists in the area than the local bike shop's websites. Here's an excerpt from his post:

"I don't know what kind of traffic Longmont bike shop websites see, but I get two to three hundred distinct visitors every day, with most of these visitors looking for bicycling in Longmont, Boulder or Denver. These people are looking for bike maps, bike routes, road riding partners, and bike shops."

I hope any shops reading this are beginning to realize that a blog is the cheapest, easiest, and most effective way to establish your online presence with your local market.

GPS: The next big thing?

Several months ago I saw a little story in BRaIN about how GPS units for bikes have really come a long way.  More recently, I've noticed that they're some of Mountain Bike Magazine's  "Favorite Things"  and Road Magazine did a little article about U.S. Pro Erik Saunders using one during the Sea Otter Road Race.

Imagine having someone walk into your shop and download all the local rides right into their handlebar-mounted GPS unit.  Or, maybe IMBA could make a select list of their Epic Rides available via GPS as a membership premium.  As these units become more common, consumers and shop owners will start figuring out all sorts of cool ways to use them.  Should be interesting.

Crooked Cog Network

Check out the just launched home base of the first bike blog network, Crooked Cog.

• Is this guy the future of bike media? 
• Will his network be a good place to put advertising dollars? 
• Will his ability to zero in on popular niches prove successful?

With the success of his Blue Collar MTB blog, I wouldn't bet against him.  Stay tuned for an interview with Crooked Cog's founder, Tim Grahl.

Yakima Road Warrior Tour needs a blog

Yakima is in the midst of a grassroots initiative to spread the word about their brand and connect with their customers.  The only thing missing is a blog.

A blog would be the perfect complement to their efforts. They could use it to promote upcoming stops on the tour, post pictures of events, share feedback from customers, and give people a behind-the-scenes look at what they're doing.

A blog would also allow Yakima's marketing department and PR company to show the higher ups what they're up to and justify the budget for this program in a tangible way.

(hat tip to BicycleRetailer.com)

An opportunity for Trek

(I have added explicit credit to Bicycle Retailer)

According to Bicycle Retailer, Trek has hired a new marketing guy.  I wonder if he's blog savvy? I'm sure he reads blogs, but does he really understand them? 

I hope he's at marketing meetings, pounding on the table, telling everyone how they should lead the way in the bike industry with a blogging plan. He should be telling his bosses that Trek could build some serious brand equity and momentum with bike enthusiasts by embracing the blogosphere and joining in a direct conversation with their dealers, reps, partners, customers, and prospects.

The "View from Waterloo" was a good try, but it's not a blog.

Will Trek take the lead and become the first mega-brand to jump into the blogosphere? And, if they do, will they do it right? Or will they miss the mark and cement even further their reputation as a big, corporate brand that's more concerned with taking over the world than connecting with their customers.   

Trek should identify 2 or 3 key employees and/or brand evangelists, get them up to speed on blogging and let them loose with a new Trek blog.

(Update: I just realized he's not their top marketing guy, so he doesn't yield a ton of influence...but he should still be advocating blogs).