PROBIKE pulls out of Argus expo

[AndreZA]

PROBIKE PULLS OUT OF 2008 CYCLE TOUR EXPO

New-style marketing methods favoured to take Raleigh brand to the next level

Probike, South Africa?s largest bicycle and cycling accessories distributor, has withdrawn from the 2008 Cape Argus Pick ?n Pay Cycle Tour Expo.
 
Probike is largely focused on its Raleigh brand, which it successfully revived over the past six years and which is currently one of South Africa?s most powerful and popular bicycle brands.
 
A regular exhibitor at the annual Cycle Tour Expo with its award-winning stands, Probike has decided to rather use new, less traditional methods to reach its target market. The Cycle Tour Expo, which attracts over 70000 visitors in four days each March is South Africa?s largest cycling exhibition.
 
?We have identified alternative methods to touch consumers on a daily basis,? said Probike Managing Director, Brandon Els. ?New media such as blogs, social networking, e-mail newsletters and chat forum websites are extremely effective and we?ll be actively pursuing those.?
 
Recently, Porsche, one of the world?s most successful motor brands, announced it was pulling out of the Detroit Motor Show, the largest motor show in the United States, which caused quite a stir in motor industry circles. But Porsche justified the decision saying it was looking for better ways to interact with its potential buyers.
 
Similarly, Probike feels that the Cycle Tour Expo has little to offer in terms of innovation and will focus rather on more modern marketing methods, which will also include increased leveraging off the company?s sponsored road team, MTN Microsoft, and mountain bike team, Raleigh MTN Energade, which travel the country to race almost every week of the year.
 
?At an expo, you only have limited staff and limited time to interact with customers or potential customers, who in turn also have limited time. By shifting our focus to online marketing as well as having a year-round brand presence at all the country?s most important races, we?re eliminating the time and logistical constraints that come with expos,? said Els.
 
For starters, Probike will launch it?s 2008 range online at www.raleigh.co.za on 6 August 2007 and then publish it two days later on www.thehubsa.co.za, an influential cycling-forum based site that has over 2200 registered users, but more than three times that in regular guest visitors.
            
According to a recent report by JupiterResearch, a leading international marketing research company, as many as 48 percent of brand marketers will deploy marketing on social networking channels in 2007. This is up on about 38 percent that were messaging on the channel last year. Adoption of social marketing tactics stems from the discovery ?30 percent of frequent social networkers trust their peers? opinions when making a major purchase decision, but only 10 percent trust an advertisement,? said Emily Riley, JupiterResearch analyst and lead author of the report.
 
Social media marketing (SMM) generally involves some form of viral marketing to build brand awareness, increase visibility, and possibly sell a product or service. SMM may also include online reputation management, which is something that Els has already embraced by answering all online queries about the Raleigh brand as well as publishing his personal cell phone number online, inviting further interaction with Probike?s target market.
 
?At Probike we?ve always prided ourselves on being at the leading edge when it comes to product quality and service,? says Els. ?Well, brand marketing has also been one of our strengths and we?re simply embracing the changing media landscape in an effort to retain our top-of-mind relevance and innovative character.?

 

From Brandon's blog 

 

[Sammajoor]

Ons gaan julle mis!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

Regtig gaan dit so 'n groot verskil maak aan die argus????

[shaunh]

Watch this space next month!!!!

 

We have another great prize on offer!!!

[Kranswurm]

Watch this space next month!!!!

 

We have another great prize on offer!!!

 

Is this something being offered by Probike?

[FanieFiets]

Mag niemand nou meer Raleigh opo die hub badmouth nie? 

[Kranswurm]

I wonder about their pulling out of the expo.

I was under the impression that the expo was growing and afforded good marketing opportunities for the manufacturers and their distributors.

I am not so sure how successful it is for the outlets.

 

[Hendrik Petoors]

Also posted by Brandon at Chit Chat below.

[Hendrik Petoors]

The last good Expo was in 2002........ or maybe because it was my first and I had stars in my eyes!!!!!!!!

[javadude]

Welcome to the future guys.;

[linnega]

Great news.  Nice to see Probike take a stand (scuse the pun).  It is about time that the expo's around the country wise up to the fact that mediocre displays of 6 month old products is not an appropriate way to reach the consumer.  Probike are introducing their 2008 products now - by March they will be old news.

[shaunh]

Watch this space next month!!!!

 

We have another great prize on offer!!!

 

Is this something being offered by Probike?

 

As I said, watch this space!

[EdoardoBianchi]

I don't think the point is Expo = Bad. I think it is that Probike perceives it as not being effective for them. The expo is also not only about lauching new products, but creating awareness of existing products, potentially at competitive prices.

 

For me the vibe of the race starts with a decent expo. Especially if that includes dances by Virgin Active girls...

[GoLefty!!]

Not a surprising decision in the least.

A few years ago Shimano introduced M965 XTR. A pretty controversial groupset, or at least thats the way the journo's perceived it.

 

Thanks to negative press, the journo's managed to leverage more advertorial space out of Shimano globally to counteract the negative press (of a very very good groupset) especially in the American Market.

 

But a few consumers saw the wood for the fire and started countering the negative press with positive reviews of the products in use.

Shimano took notice, so did other companies.

 

In about 3 yrs the Forum media has grown to a point where it is a primary media to gauge opinion on product to assist a buyer with making good choices. Of course garbage in = gargabe out but still, consumers are more likely to beleive someone who has used a product than someone who is paid to say its great.

The world moves nad changes and so does the marketing media.

 

Through the channel they identify I think they will be able to be more proactive about creating the latest spin on their products.

 

The ryder to this is that consumer hate being confronted with in your face marketing, which will probably spell the end of this media as an effective marketing tool.

 

shame really..

victims of our own success..

[Willehond]

"Social networking" and "word-of-mouth advertising" are the new marketing buzzwords.  The Hub is of course a prime example of social networking.  Admin, there is money to be made here....

On the word-of-mouth side the idea is to plant 'excited customers' amongst ordinary consumers and that they then infuse their excitement and get other people excited.  I think I have spotted some of this hapening already (Revolution is one suce hubber).  maybe I am just cynical.

 

Anyway, I think Raleigh being the most committed sponsor of top cyclists in this country does more for my opinion of the brand than seeing their stand at the expo.  I want to see NEW stuff there!!!

[homer]

 Om die harwar in die expo te vermy gaan ons net soontoe om te registreer.  Daar is in elk geval so n samedromming dat  daar nie behoorlik na produkte behalwe die girls gekyk word nie Probike  se besluit maak sin. Dalk sien die organiseerders ook nou nuwe maniere om die expo behoorlik te bemark.

[Hendrik Petoors]

Die organiseerders sal seker bly wees want Probike het so groot area beslaan elke jaar en nou kan hulle nog dertig van die plakker hawkers daar indruk wat tubes en helmets verkoop teen baie hoer pryse as in die winkels. Nou moet net Cape Union Mart ook uittrek dan is daar tjorts.