Strange Times – Mind Your Messaging

Right now, and for the next few weeks and perhaps months, we will be exposed to news and realities we have never seen before, and hopefully never will again. With that said, the bicycle retailer is finding itself in a unique position. We can continue to deliver services that allow people to get outside and forget the strangeness that is our current reality. Retailers may also be maintaining customers’ bikes that may be crucial to their transportation needs. We should try and be sensitive to the realities that some businesses and individuals may see as non-essential and empathetic to that reality.

Essential service

This designation is a very new term that has taken on critical significance to the bicycle retailer’s mission. It should not be taken lightly. Owners and employees of businesses that are located on the same block, such as barbers and beauty salons, massage therapists, and bars and restaurants, have had their companies either severely impacted or shuttered entirely. Bicycle retailers have, however, been able to continue operating in areas that have seen very strict business shutdowns because bicycles are used as a mode of transportation. Be aware that not all business owners are as fortunate as you.

Social Distancing Tool 

Bicycles have also been identified as a good social distancing tool. What a strange concept and term “social distancing” is. Usually reserved for the introverts amongst us, social distancing is perhaps the most exciting term that has emerged in this global pandemic. For many, social distancing is a very foreign concept. Bicycles and riding them is a very social activity. Group rides and vacations among friends to ride bikes is at the core of our favorite business. However, now being social is the antithesis of being healthy. Riding alone is considered okay and a healthy way to get out, exercise, and experience relief from the news and realities of our current world. But getting out and riding and pushing that message can have some negative implications. It is slowly gaining some volume that riding a bicycle, particularly in any remotely risky situation, is potentially a selfish decision. The idea that riding a bike, and possibly crashing, could strain medical resources is not just a whisper. Mike Sinyard from Specialized alluded to this in a letter to the public that can be found on Specialized’s Facebook page as of this writing, asking riders “to think seriously about the impact a crash could have on strained medical resources in your area.” 

Minding Your Messaging

The above points should be taken into consideration as you are marketing through social media, emails, and other avenues of reaching your customers. You do not want to appear tone-deaf to the realities of the moment, and your friends and neighbors. Be empathetic that not everyone is considered essential, and they may view your business as getting a pass. While riding is absolutely a form of transportation, be careful if you are a suburban retailer where the majority of your customers arrive via vehicle to pick up their recreational items. You are shouting that you are essential due to the transportation part of the equation. Additionally, if you are pushing people to get out and ride, be aware of the fact that riding can be considered riskier than sheltering in place and very well may put you into a more statistically significant chance of needing medical care over having stayed home. 

Employee Health  

Be very careful that your staff is feeling okay about the direction you are choosing if you stay open. “Guarded entry,” which many shops have implemented, basically includes keeping the doors locked and allowing customers to enter at staggered intervals and controlled numbers. Exposing your employees to needless risk while watching other businesses close and those employees being able to stay home can be tricky. While they are hearing they should be helping to “flatten to the curve’, you will need to help them understand their importance, while also doing everything you can to minimize the risk of being needlessly exposed. Displaced workers have their own sets of stressors. Still, the reality is that unemployment and proposed (as of this writing) federal financial deposits should cover some percentage of the lost payroll. Those who keep working are exposed to potentially infected people, but the psychological stresses that that brings. If your employees do not feel that the potential exposures are worth the perceived needs and risks, you may experience some issues with placing those employees in those situations. I spoke with a retailer that lost three employees this week due to fear and an abundance of caution they did want to be exposed unnecessarily.

Summary

These points are not raised to say one choice or the other is right or wrong. Staying open, marketing, and understanding your employees, potential stresses should be taken into consideration. There are no known right or wrong answers at this point. You will have to decide what is best by considering your own local market conditions and needs. Be very aware that other local businesses may not have the opportunity to stay open, and that some customers may view your decisions differently. Tough times, but times in which you can cement your place in your market as essential and relevant as a compassionate and incredibly valuable member of the community. Be well and please reach out if you would like to chat – David@nbda.com

Below are two examples of businesses taking two very different approaches to the current pandemic. I have noticed that other companies, such as book stores, gift stores, etc. use similar reasoning lines. 

First one from one of my local bike stores here in Fruita Colorado, Over The Edge Sports –

“As of March 17, Over The Edge, Fruita is going to play its part in helping humanity not spread COVID 19, so we will be closed until April 1. We are SO sad not to help all our mountain bike friends during this amazing time of the year. (and our 25th anniversary season😂) We honestly love you all, and we’ll miss you terribly. Your Friends at Over The Edge, FRUITA”

Social media responses seem positive for Over The Edge’s announcement.

Here’s another angle, this from James Moore, former NBDA president, and board member’s Moore’s Bicycle Shop in Hattiesburg, MS. James noted he had had lots of positive feedback on the post below.

“Moore’s Bicycle Shop is open for business though we’re doing business with several precautions for employees and customers. This week I sent a letter to the mayor’s office explaining how other states have listed bicycle shops as “essential businesses” and why so.

Next week, you’ll see billboards suggesting that cycling can be useful for getting through this crisis. Those billboards combined with the fact that we’re still open may seem opportunistic on the surface – I’d like to explain our reasoning.

In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, I told my staff to be prepared for a 40-50% drop in business as folks would be focused on rebuilding rather than cycling. Precisely the opposite was our reality. For the next nine months, we experienced a 40% increase in business. It took me a while to understand why – then it made perfect sense.

After Katrina, we had an influx of folks from other areas that came here with no job to go to, and their kids were often not enrolled in school. Folks were cooped up in apartments with little to do as other recreation venues were still shut down. People realized that riding a bicycle was one thing they could even do to combat the cabin fever they were experiencing and to get out and look for work or places to help out.

I remember taking a chance using our limited gasoline and driving the family to Letha’s Bar-b-que on a rumor that they had opened and had food. I walked in and was told they only had one quart of baked beans left. I asked how much and John Neal, who worked there at the time, pointed to his bicycle in the corner and said, “the beans are yours for free – that bicycle I got from you is how I’ve been able to get to work.”

This crisis is similar to Katrina, but at least with Katrina, we knew what had to be done to get back to normal. With kids and parents at home now and every other recreational venue, including city parks, theaters, the zoo, sporting events, and concerts no longer option folks need an outlet.

We’re here to help meet that need. I firmly believe should we move into a lockdown mode that compliance with even more confining demands. It will be easier to comply with if families still have one outdoor experience they can do safely, do together, and is affordable—cycling checks all those boxes.

President John Kennedy said it best when he said, “Nothing compares to the simple pleasure of a bicycle ride.” While the bicycle offers proven physical health benefits, I’ve always believed that the mental benefits outweigh the physical benefits. I often get asked, “What’s the best bicycle?” My answer is still “any bicycle that takes your head to a place it’s never been before.” We all need to be transported to the place now.

Finally, to be sure this does not appear self-promoting, know that there are three great locally owned bicycle shops in town. In addition to Moore’s, there are Infinity Bicycles in the Arbor next to Cowboy Maloney’s and Jed’s Perfect Endurance on King Road. Then there’s 3 Wal Mart Supercenters and Target.

If your budget does not allow a bike shop level bike, get the best bike at one of our discount stores. Or check out one of our reconditioned bicycles. You can get down those bikes that have been hanging upside down in the storage room since the ’70s and bring them into one of the local bike shops for service.

As long as we are healthy, we’ll do our best to help you escape the stresses that will be with us for a while. Please be patient should you visit us and respect the social distancing protocol we’ve put in place. Thanks, James Moore, Jenny, Amber, and Matt.”

Words By David DeKeyser

David DeKeyser and his wife Rebecca Cleveland owned and operated The Bike Hub in De Pere, Wisconsin, for nearly 18 years. In 2018, they sold the business and real estate to another retailer based in a nearby community. David now writes the Positive Spin series on Bicycle Retailer and Industry News and he writes articles for the NBDA’s blog, Outspokin’. David also provides business consulting through the NBDA’s P2 Consult Program.

The NBDA has been here since 1946, representing and empowering specialty bicycle dealers in the United States through education, communications, research, advocacy, member discount programs, and promotional opportunities. As shops are facing never-before-seen circumstances, these resources offer a lifeline. Together, we will weather this. We at the NBDA will not waver in our commitment to serving our members even during this challenging time—but we need your support.

Now is the time to become a member as we join together to make one another stronger. Whether you’re a retailer or an industry partner, your membership in the NBDA is one of the best investments you’ll make this year. 

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