Leftovers

My Checklist for Checking In A Bike

Recently, I had someone ask me what I look for when checking in a bicycle for repair. A list so nothing would be missed and the opportunity to up-sell would arise. So, here it is, the master list of information I like to look through when taking a bike in.

THINGS TO ASK THE CUSTOMER:

Name?
Phone?
Email?
Best way to contact? Phone? Email? Text? Tweet?
Address?
When do you need the bike back?
Which of our menu items would you feel suits you best?
Any odd sounds? Clinks? Clanks? Rubbing?
Anything feel weird or uncomfortable?
Any pain in your body when riding?
Where have you ridden it since your last service?
How many miles since your last service (estimate)?
Do you have an event coming up?
What is most important to you: speed or comfort?

ITEMS TO CHECK ON THE BIKE:

F. Tire: tread wear, cracking
F. Rim: trueness, pad burn, cracking, swelling
F. Spokes: loose or snapped
F. Hub: lateral play, stickiness, QR loose
F. Rotor: wear, warped
F. Caliper: pad wear, cable fray
Fork: compression/rebound not responsive
HT: cracks at TT and DT junction
Headset: fore/aft play with fork
Stem: not straight, bolts loose/uneven
Handlebar: not center, odd rotation
Computer: Not working
F. Light: Not working
Bar tape/grips: wear
Shifters/brake levers: squishy, loose, difficult to move
DT: bottle cage loose, broken
BB: cracks at DT, CS, and ST junction
Crankset: lateral play, loose bolts
Chainring: loose/missing bolts, worn teeth
Chain: stretch, how many miles?
Pedals: sticky, rusted, bolts stripped
F. Derailleur: Not shifting properly, cable fray
ST: bottle cage loose, linkage sticky, cracks at TT/SS junction
Seatpost: over max height, scratched, not dropping
Saddle: sagging, rails loose, material wear
SS: Shock compression/rebound not responsive
R. Light: Not working
R. Caliper: pad wear, cable fray
R. Rotor: wear, warped
R. Hub: lateral play, stickiness, QR loose
R. Spokes: loose or snapped
R. Cassette: play, worn teeth
R. Derailleur: Not shifting properly, worn pulleys, cable fray
R. Rim: trueness, pad burn, cracking, swelling
R. Tire: tread wear, cracking

Want more? Take a look at Leading Out Retail. This book is a creative look at bicycle retail and teaches retailers simple strategies on how to increase profit through service, what the most important question to ask every customer is, and how to manage the dreaded Timmy Factor.

Best Bike Shop Business Cards

I'm always pleased when I see bike retailers rethinking the ordinary. For example, Broke Bike Alley in Fernie, BC, Canada has a couple of great new takes on the business card. Both of these cards achieve my two rules of great marketing:

1. Make a personal connection
2. Be very, very helpful.

The first business card doubles as a multi-tool, the second is a tire patch.

The Science of Service Menus

A question I challenge many bike retailers to answer is how to get their star services to produce as much revenue as possible while at the same time giving customers more options to buy and a customized service.

The most successful answer I’ve seen executed is to offer four tune-up services instead of one. A menu of one means the customer has no choices. The customer has no way to buy more and the technician has no clear way to upsell the package. Having four tune-up services will appeal to the price conscious shopper, the lost shopper, and the price-is-no-object shopper. Here is an example of a four tier tune-up menu.

Tune-up Menu:

Level 1 Service: $230
Level 2 Service: $100
Level 3 Service: $70
Level 4 Service: $30

First I will explain the psychology of the pricing structure and then I will present ideas for what can be included in each service.

Retailers who are using this pricing structure have shown the most popular selling items on the menu will be Level 2 and Level 3. With the scale tipping just slightly toward the Level 3 Service. Level 1 takes roughly 10% of the orders and Level 4 takes only 5%. When compared to an $80 tune-up, we can break down the potential growth:

$80 x 100 sales = $8000

$230 x 10 sales = $2300
$100 x 40 sales = $4000
$70 x 45 sales = $3150
$30 x 5 sales = $150

The second scenario brings in $9600; a 20% growth. So why does this work?

First, Level 4 ($30) service will always be the worst seller. No one wants to purchase the worst option of anything. Level 4 Service is focused on serving the truly price conscious.

Level 1 ($230) will cater to those customers who have purchased high ticket items. If someone buys a $9000 bike they deserve the option to buy a more comparable service than someone who buys a $900 bike. Another way to think of it- when someone buys a Ferrari they understand that servicing the vehicle will cost more than the service on a Toyota. It is acceptable for many people that high ticket items equal high ticket service.

Level 2 and 3 ($100 and $70 respectively) are for customers who are not sure what they want. Notice the gap between these levels is the smallest price gap on the menu. The jump from Level 3 to Level 2 was $10 cheaper than the jump from Level 1 to Level 2. Since the majority of people buy in the middle, we want the middle to have options.

Below is a formula for creating a service menu using these pricing tactics. Start by taking the price of the most popular tune-up, usually between $50-$90 for US retailers, and replace that number with X in the formula below. From there multiply out each level and round out to the nearest 5 or 0.

Level 1: 3.25X
Level 2: 1.5X
Level 3: X
Level 4: 0.45X

Below is three example price structures using this formula.

In this example, if your most popular tune-up price is currently $70, your new menu would have a Level 1 service of $230.

Once the pricing structure is set, the next step is to define what is offered in each service. Here is a recommendation to start with.

Level 4 ($30)

Bike inspection
Bolt/torque check
Lube drivetrain
Inflate tires

In many ways Level 4 Service acts as a quote or estimate. The bike inspection is where the value of this purchase is. Many people who purchase this package will often walk away with an idea of what services need to be done the next time they return.

Level 3 ($70)

Everything in Level 4
Perfect braking
Perfect shifting
Wheel inspection and adjustment

The Level 3 Service is, as many bike retailers would define it, the standard tune-up. Notice that I stayed away from using technical terminology. Telling someone to purchase a “wheel true” can be confusing so I opted for “wheel inspection and adjustment”.

Level 2 ($100)

Everything in Level 3
Remove chain and cassette, clean with solvent
Complete wash, lust, and detailing

Since most people will be choosing between Level 2 and 3, the best carrot is kept in Level 2. Cleaning parts with solvent and offering a wash, lust, and detailing is a huge hook for people to make the jump. Many technicians have spent hours trying to get something to shift properly and when the customer saw the bike they were only excited by how clean it looked. A clean bike is something the customer can see, it makes sense to them. A perfect shifting bike is expected and can’t be enjoyed until after they leave the bike shop.

Level 1 ($230)

Everything in Level 2
New brake pads
New cables
New bar tape or grips
Remove brakes, crankset, and derailleurs- clean with solvent

In order to justify higher prices in the service area begin tying parts to the costs of service. New brake pads, cables, and bar tape or grips are key elements to making the bike work as if it were new off the floor. Someone buying in at this level expects a perfect machine in every way, and these are just the services that will achieve it. It is worth noting that the Level 1 buyer is also the buyer who is most susceptible to additional sales like a new saddle, new tires, or even a new wheelset. If a technician sees the opportunity, they should never be afraid to ask.

It's Crazy The Hours That Some Bike Retailers Keep

Should a retailer open their doors earlier or later? Open or closed on Sunday? Retailers are always testing their hours of operations but this may help end the trial and error.

Choosing hours of operations is based on a number of factors including the shopping preferences of customers, potential sales, and fixed costs of staying open. Managers also have to consider the willingness of their staff to work certain hours. Since cost of labor can range up to 20% of an IBR’s total revenue it is crucial that every hour a store is open, it is open for a reason. Either to manage customer purchases or provide a customer service which creates profit later.

To help bike retailers make a more informed decision, in May of 2012 I conducted a study that took a closer look at hours of operations for IBRs in the United States. I sampled hours from a hundred bike retailers from 17 cities in the continental United States and compared them to a hundred other sporting goods retailers in the same cities.

Cities sampled in hours of operation study: Los Angeles, San Francisco, Seattle, Salt Lake City, Tucson, Denver, Minneapolis, Des Moines, Kansas City, Oklahoma City, Austin, Chicago, Philadelphia, New York, Asheville, Atlanta, and Miami

Sporting goods retailers open earlier and close later than bike retailers in nearly all cases studied. The most common hours for a bike shop are 10-7 on weekdays, 10-6 on Saturday, and closed on Sunday. For sporting goods retailers the hours were longer in every instance: 10-9 on weekdays, 9-9 on Saturday, and 10-7 on Sunday. This begs the question, are sporting goods retailers providing a better service or taking potential customers from bike retailers?

With these results we learn that bike retailers are open 53 hours per week on average while sporting goods retailers are open 76 hours each week.

Opening earlier or closing later can prove fruitful though. Being the only bike retailer open in a city at 9pm might mean, over time, they will acquire new customers who would usually go to other stores but can’t. If an IBR has a ride that leaves from their store every Saturday at 7am, earlier hours on Saturday would allow them to provide pre-ride services and sell products needed for the ride. These small gestures of good will go a long way. Mellow Johnny’s in Austin, Texas opens their doors at 7am every day except Sunday when it opens at 8am. In a discussion with their manager I learned that business is generally slow in the morning. The customers that do stop by are generally dropping off their bike for repair before their workday begins and they are always grateful.

The study showed that Sunday was the most popular day for bike retailers to be closed with 32% locking the doors, compared to 11% of sporting goods retailers. If an IBR is choosing to close for moral or religious reasons, then by all means, I encourage them to do so. For other, smaller retailers closing down for one day a week may be helpful when attempting to save money. However, closing one day a week means being closed for 52 days a year, almost two months. Any retailer choosing to close one day each week will want to be absolutely sure they are making a smart financial decision.

According to the study the most effective, and possibly lucrative, hours of operation for bike retailers would be 11-8 on weekdays and 8-6 on the weekends. Of course this can vary from one location to another and whatever the hours of operation are retailers would be wise to prove the effectiveness by measuring traffic flow and sales.

Thank you for reading this far. If you found this content valuable, please share. Thanks - Donny

You can find more studies like this in my book! Leading Out Retail is a creative look at bicycle retail and teaches retailers simple strategies on how to increase profit through service, what the most important question to ask every customer is, and how to manage the dreaded Timmy Factor.

Just Because You Count It, Doesn't Mean It Counts

The greatest trick the internet ever pulled was convincing the world it would be easy to do.

If you want to know the ROI on your Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter feed, if you want to know the value of an impression, or if you want to constantly recreate your social campaigns, I hate to tell you that you're in for a lot of work There is a fallacy that says the internet is easy. That once you start tweeting fans, admiration, and money start rolling in.

It' all a lie. There is no easy button. No one-size-fits-all aggregation tool. There is only hard work combined with a clear vision.

There is an ROI on social, but first you have to understand your marketing strategy for the entire business. You show me the marketing strategy for the company, I will show you the ROI.

Social is not fast. It takes time, dedication, and a continued effort to connect to people you don't know. If you can't add value to someone's life then you're time on social is going to e painful (Hint: adding value is not selling you product. Not yet anyway.)

If you liked this, please consider sharing. Thanks- Donny

Building Staffs' Identity

In retail if you can increase engagement between staff and customers the owners will have two ideal results. First, improved customer service and second, an improved connection between the business and the employee. In bike retail, when this is done well, the person working in the store will be come known as the bike shop guy/gal, people will know where they can find them, they will seek them out to ask questions, and any thought they have that relates to bikes will default to them and, by association, to your business. If your staff known for where they works, if their role becomes part of their identity, they are motivated to stay and to do right by customers.

Here are some steps to take with staff to increase their relationship with customers and the cycling community.

Put them in charge of the local cycling club or team
Have them to attend or lead group rides, races, and other events.
Ask them to lead clinics on coaching, bike repair, or skills training.
Have them to donate their time for trail maintenance.
Ask them to speak about cycling at a nearby school.
Have them manage the sponsorship relationship for a local triathlon.
Set up a coffee station during Bike To Work Week and ask that they run it.

As a manager you want to support anything outside of the bike shop that will support the growth of the cycling community. This is how you will develop social wealth in your staff and earn their dedication and hard work.

Can Bike Mechanic's Afford Anything?

From the outside looking in, being a bike mechanic seems like a pretty plush job. Loose uniform standards, get to work on cool bikes, no one is judging that neck tattoo, and you've got a discount on all the best stuff.

This all assumes thought that you have enough money to live comfortably outside of the bike shop. If not, then it can seem to be a thankless job. I have written about bike technician salaries before- but recently converted some of the research into a quick slide deck. Check it out.

Bike Mechanic Salaries from Donny Perry

If you share this slide deck with your favorite bike mechanic they will love you and think you're cool. No, really, they will. Better share it now! Thanks - Donny

Where Loyalty Programs Go Wrong

One of the oldest sales strategies is to reward repeat purchases. An old school example would be your neighborhood coffee shop that had a punch card telling you that after you buy nine lattes you’ll get the 10th for free. A more recent example would be when checking out at Petsmart or Petco (or thousands of other retailers) they will ask for your phone number, pull up your profile, and offer the lowest price possible on every bag of dog food.

If you're thinking of running a loyalty program I've put together some quick tips.

Do not call it a loyalty program.
These programs are not the definition of loyalty. These programs are about bribery. You are paying your customers to be repeat buyers. Treat them as such. Don’t paint a happy picture over it. People are smarter than that.

Instead I would brand the program after the business. Donny's Bike Shop Carbon Club or Donny's Bike Shop Deals.

Make it digital.
Having your customers carry a punch card is silly. Put their purchases in your POS system and track it digitally. When it is time for them to receive their tenth inner tube free, just tell them. Customers will thank you for tracking the little things and will recognize the value of giving you repeat business.

Don’t ignore the data.
The primary value for Petsmart and Petco is not in having a repeat customer, that is a byproduct. The big value is in having thorough data of their customers’ shopping habits. By recording their customers purchases they will have a detailed understanding of what inventory to carry, when people or more likely to buy dog toys, when people are likely to test a new brand of food, and so. No reason why the same data can't work for bike shops.

Consider having the customer buy in.
Rather than discounting for loyalty, Amazon sells loyalty through their Amazon Prime membership. For $79/year (soon t be more) membership gets you access to all sorts of rewards including free or discount shipping, free streaming of movies, and other discounts.

In a bike shop you could sell a quarterly or monthly membership package that gets people buying now for value given later.

What are some loyalty program you run? If you have a moment to comment or share it would great to hear from you. -Donny

Check out the book. Leading Out Retail is a creative look at bicycle retail and teaches retailers simple strategies on how to increase profit through service, what the most important question to ask every customer is, and how to manage the dreaded Timmy Factor.

Why 99% of People Are Using Twitter Incorrectly

What is better? People who send a ton of email or people who thoughtfully respond to email? The latter of course. Adding insight and value is fare better than broadcasting. 99% of the people on Twitter use it as a broadcast channel. Shouting about their products, services, or whatever. This tutorial shows how to become one of the rare 1% that use Twitter to add value.

9 Twitter Ideas. A How-To for Bike Retailers from Donny Perry

If you found this valuable, I would mean a lot if you shared it. Thanks - Donny

What Happens Before We Buy?

Have you ever visited a store and saw something awesome, then went home and checked it out online, then asked your friends about it, and then went back to the store to buy it?

I like to call these points in time, micro conversions. Nearly every purchase we make is preempted by a micro conversion or a series of micro conversions. When someone is overwhelmed by micro conversions it can become too much to handle. The desire to purchase is like an enormous weight on their shoulders. These are the people that walk into the store, throw down a credit card, point to a bike and say, “That one. Now!”

In bike retail it’s easy to focus on the macro conversion (when someone makes a purchase). That’s where we find the glory of the sale, that’s where the commission is, and that’s when we feel the satisfaction of a job well done.

However, I like to remind retailers- without a healthy strategy around acquiring micro conversions, we will never see macro conversions.

If you found this post valuable. It would be amazing if you shared it. Thanks - Donny