CBRS: Independent Bike Dealer (IBD) - What Defines Brand

Courtesy of Flickr - zj

Finally it’s time to focus our energy on the Independent Bike Dealer (IBD) or as some call the Local Bike Shop (LBS). Now this is a crazy creature. The culture surrounding the IBD industry is one of passion, excitement, and has a cult-like following for the specific shop. There is a wide spectrum of customers which leads to more characteristics that could define the IBD brand. Let’s take a look at the characteristics that cyclists use to define their favorite IBD brand.

defining characteristics.

Service – First and foremost, the IBD needs to have a level of service that the cyclist finds acceptable. This level varies from cyclist to cyclist. The better the service the better the brand.

Culture / History –As mentioned in the previous cycling segments, cyclists are huge advocates of culture and history. To be a part of a great history or be involved in an exciting culture is a very big component in building the IBD brand.

Racers / Racing Teams / Affiliations – In the local cycling community, the IBD racing teams and racers become the celebrity endorsements. The racers, teams, and affiliations become a major defining characteristic for the IBD brand. The better these racers and team do the stronger the brand becomes.

Cyclist Generated Content – Communication between cyclists are happening everywhere. These conversations, whether online or offline, create a strong word of mouth and peer understanding for the different IBD brands. As we all know, this word of mouth is the strongest form of marketing. Being a part of these conversations is a necessary act for the IBD.

Bicycle Brands – The bike brands that the IBD carries become a great defining aspect of the IBD brand. Brand loyalty is spread throughout the entire cycling industry, so if one IBD carries a specific brand that a cyclist is loyal to, they will then become loyal to the IBD.

Component / Partner Brands – Just like the bike brands that an IBD carries, the components and product brands that an IBD carries helps define the IBD brand.

Community Involvement – Local cycling communities are a very passionate group. Having a loyalty for an IBD brand and seeing them participate in the cycling community helps strengthen brand. This is an essential offline part of the IBD brand.

Cyclist Engagement – Engaging cyclists on a personal level, both online and offline, by providing local cycling information such as routes, events, techniques, training, or maintenance. This personal engagement with strengthen the brand in the mind of each individual cyclist.

Mechanics – The mechanics an IBD employs is another major factor for some cyclists. As many of you probably agree, a well tuned bike is an essential tool for a great race or enjoyable ride. The mechanics that help you achieve that are a great defining characteristic or the IBD brand.

communication partners.

Independent Bike Dealers have a very integral communication duty in the local cycling community. Not only do they have to communicate to the cyclist about their shop, the brands they carry, and the components and products they stock, but they also have to communicate to the bike, component, and product manufacturers about the needs and voice of the cyclist. These groups need communicated in very different ways. The IBD needs to provide enough information so the user can define the brand in a way that integrates into their own personal lifestyle and fulfills their personal needs. Let’s take a look at these communication partners in more detail.

Cyclist – The main group to communicate to is the cyclist. The cyclists are the group that does the actual defining of the brand. Each cyclist is different. Therefore, the aforementioned characteristics are taken, dissected, and combined to create the brand for their individual personal lifestyle. The question for the cyclist becomes, “does this brand define me as a cyclist?”

Bicycle Manufacturer – Bikes are designed and built to fulfill cyclist needs and increase performance. A major influence on these design specs is the cyclist feedback. This feedback comes from the cyclist through the IBD to the bike manufacturer. The communication between the IBD and bike manufacturer also needs to portray the benefits of the partnership. After all, the IBD brand helps define the bicycle brand and the bicycle brand helps define the IBD brand. Having great communication is essential.

Component / Partner Brands – As with the bicycle brand, components and products are designed and built to fulfill cyclist needs and increase performance. The same level of communication is necessary for the component industry as well.

encouraged communication.

What are your thoughts? What are your favorite aspects of your IBD? What would make the brand experience better in your eyes?
up next…

Independent Bike Dealers:

• How can the brand communicate effectively with each customer
• How social media / branding could facilitate this communication

Cycling Brand Relationship Series: An Overview

Over the past few weeks, I have had some great conversations both online and offline about the Brand Hierarchy in the cycling industry. Who is in charge of brand loyalty to the end cyclist? Is it the OEM (bike manufacturer? The LBS (local bike shop)?  The component or part brands?

During a conversation with @GStech yesterday, we realized that the dynamics of the relationships throughout the cycling industry supply chain varies from company to company, relationship to relationship, cyclist to cyclist. Over the next week or so, I will be going into detail about each level of the cycling industry supply chain to unfold what part of the cyclist experience each company is in charge of. During the series, I will discuss:

• What characteristics define the brand
• Who are the different customers that need to be communicated with
• How can the brand communicate effectively with each customer
• How social media / branding could facilitate this communication

With the increase in cyclist communication and the rise of cycling communities, cycling brands need to know where they fit into the lifestyle of these cyclists to build loyalty, advocacy, and evangelism. Hopefully this series will shed some light on this topic and begin to open eyes as to what needs to be done and what is possible.

encouraged communication.

This being such a dynamic topic, I encourage you to interact with me and one another on the coming posts. Agree, disagree, raise questions, dream big… Be sure to subscribe to the feed and invite your friends to follow along too. The weather is perfect; It should be a great ride!

Cycling Loyalty Hierarchy – Where is the Core Loyalty?

Courtesy of Flickr - Sam.Anslow

There were a few comments left on my recent post, LBS vs Manufacturer – Who’s Brand is it? that really got me thinking. There is a brand hierarchy in the cycling industry that is rarely discussed and not so easily identifiable as to the beginning or the flow of loyalty throughout the cyclist communities. Each cyclist has their own cycling loyalty hierarchy. John Doherty, illustrated this dynamic phenomena with his comment:

“I go to the store that carries my bike brand and, then within that selection of bikes, am quickly into analysis of components — and for me that’s largely a comparison of Shimano lines. Would I switch my preferred brand if it dumped Shimano? Hmmmm.”

As you can see, this simple statement discusses the loyalty hierarchy through LBS, bike brand, and components. But where does the core loyalty lie? Let’s dissect John’s loyalty in his comment…
local bike shop.

John goes to a particular local bike ship because they carry his favorite bike brand. So we can argue, as Dan Larkin points out in his comment, “The bikes an LBS carries are part of the LBS brand…” So the core loyalty does not lie with the local bike shop.

bicycle brand.

Being such a huge factor in LBS loyalty, the bicycle brand is becoming a badge that cyclists proudly wear to define them as a rider. This relationship between bicycle brand and cyclist is as intimate as I’ve ever seen in any other industry. But does the core loyalty lie within the bicycle brand? Not necessarily.

components.

John ends his statement with, “Would I switch my preferred brand if it dumped Shimano? Hmmmm.” This leads me to believe that if his favorite bike brand, at his favorite LBS happened to switch component brands from Shimano, he may never repurchase from that bike brand, which would force him to another LBS that carried a different bike brand that used Shimano component groups.

the point.

As you can see, John’s core brand loyalty lies within the components of this dynamic brand loyalty hierarchy. Cyclists are the most individual consumer’s I have ever come across. It’s a tremendous culture with no certainties as to where the core loyalty lies. As a brand in the cycling industry (lbs, bicycle brand, components, clothing, gear, etc), you need to understand this individuality and build an intimate, personal relationship with your riders. To become successful, you need to build a level of loyalty that makes your brand the core loyalty in their personal cycling hierarchy.

thoughts.

What are your thoughts? Where does your core loyalty lie in your own personal cycling hierarchy?

LBS vs Manufacturer – Who’s Brand is it?

Courtesy of katachthonios on Flickr.com - LBS

During a conversation about a previous post and from talking with other riders about branding in the cycling industry, I keep seeing the same debate rise.

Who is in charge of brand satisfaction and loyalty in the cycling industry?

I have heard some pretty persuasive arguments for both Local Bike Shops (LBS) and for the Cycling Manufacturer. But how do we really discern who is in fact, in charge of building loyalty for a particular brand?

The Cycling Manufacturer

My thoughts are that the company with the brand is in charge of the rider’s satisfaction and loyalty. For example, in The Orbea Chronicles, I mention that since Toni purchased the Orbea, it was Orbea’s duty to ensure brand satisfaction, build brand loyalty, and engage her into a level of brand advocacy and evangelism. And the LBS is in charge of their own brand building loyalty on a completely different cyclist need level.

The LBS

The debate to my thoughts on the discussion was that the LBS had the control to “touch” the rider more, so they were ultimately in charge of all brand satisfaction and loyalty that was sold in their shop.  Each and every encounter with the cyclist at the LBS would help enhance the relationship with both the LBS and the Manufacturer’s brand.

Your Thoughts

Both are extremely valid arguments and it is a debate that will most likely continue far longer than the life of this post…What are your thoughts?