BikeBiz Bicycle and cycling retail news
Cyclescheme’s social media campaign – ‘getting a bike is contagious’ – is aimed at getting independent retailers talking to their customers.
According to the cycle to work provider, it is enjoying ‘meteoric success’ with increasing numbers of stores coming on board with the concept.
The 3-step social media programme aims to reach the estimated 24-million Brits who log onto Facebook everyday, the 15-million Twitter users and the growing number of Instagrammers (currently 150-million worldwide) who actively post and engage with content regularly.
Giant Store Sheffield, winner of Cyclescheme’s social media award in September, has been linking with Cyclescheme’s ‘getting a bike is contagious’ campaign.
“Social media is an important part of the foundations of our business," explained store manager Andy Liversidge. "Targeted audience, cost, tool variation and direct communication are the four key reasons why I’m passionate about integrating social media into the daily tasks of staff.”
The duo say that a successful social media strategy is down to creating a consistent, honest voice for your store, adding that it should be a reflection of who you are and the people you work with. The deeper social media becomes ingrained within your business, the more successful (and less time consuming) it becomes, explained Liversidge:
“We use an iPad in-store which is always connected up to our social media platforms and when an opportunity arises to share a customer photo, a new product snap, a race result or something of interest, the guys take it upon themselves to pick up the iPad and share it.
“We’ve seen a clear increase in sales having taken Cyclescheme up on their collaborative social media work.”
Cyclescheme is continuing to urge retailers to join in and reap the benefits. Cyclescheme marketing manager Laurence Boon added: “We would encourage as many retailers as possible to join in with the ‘getting a bike is contagious’ campaign and share images of customers and their new bikes with us. We will always celebrate your store as a result and make sure you get your time in the sun with our audiences.”
