Ok, I ride a bicycle, in fact I have a few different bikes. I ride on the road and the dirt. I’m not the type of cyclist though that lycra-hops with my latte talking about my bike bits. I think a lot about cycling though and the cycling industry. Cycling is much more fascinating than one might think and the lessons I’ve learned are transferrable across all areas of sales.
To prove that I’m no cycling imposter, I use Strava and usually rate in the top 10%, very occasionally in the top 10 and I drink macchiatos after I ride, they’re the little coffees in the über cool little cups. (I like little cups, it helps create the illusion that I’m much bigger).
Credentials aside, I love to ride, I love the feeling of the speed, I love the effort, the burn in my legs, the sweat and how it makes me feel to conquer a tough segment. I love the risk and because I can’t do it on my own (or I’d be calling myself a runner), I love my bike. Not in a weird way but perhaps more like a parasite loves a host (yes, I know, that was weird).
You see, I can’t ride without my bike and if my bike isn’t working well then I can’t enjoy my ride. When I get a new bike, which isn’t often enough, I love my riding more. A new bike promises to enable more, to do more, ride faster, for longer, over more challenging terrain. It enables me to enjoy the activity I love even more, it unleashes my sense of freedom and makes me feel strong and powerful, fit and alive.
But here’s the insight – I don’t buy bikes, I don’t buy bike parts, I don’t buy bike clothing, I don’t buy rides. I pay happily for the sense of freedom, to feel strong, to feel powerful, fit and alive, that’s what I want, I just choose to use bikes, bits and clothing to enable it. My experience though at bike shops is that they only sell bikes and bike bits, they don’t sell what I’m buying and I can buy all those bits and bikes through a faceless online portal for less. This is not just about bikes though, fashion retailers don’t sell clothes, hairdressers don’t sell haircuts and that smelly section of the department store doesn’t sell perfume… they sell confidence.
What we buy, the physical product or service, enables the feeling within us, the emotion.
Now I’ve got more to say on this subject which I’ll put in my next post but right now I’m off to ride my bike.
If you want to get ahead of the curve and get on the good gear – contact Troy directly on troy@experimenteur.com.au or phone +61 447 66 66 91.
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