Space-Saving Bicycle Rack
Fall 2014
Marketing Plan
Written by:
Daniel Biorn
Zachary Darling
Rory Hammerbeck
Mark Undseth
Luke VanGerpen
South Dakota School of Mines and Technology
IENG-354: Marketing Technology Innovations
Submitted to: Dr. Stuart Kellogg
Executive Summary
Product Description
Space-saving Bicycle Racks (SBR’s) fold away so they are not an obstruction when not
in use. They can be installed into sidewalks, parking lots, or walls. Green paint will mark the
bike parking spaces on the ground so that they match the color of most bike lanes.
Objectives
Space-saving bicycle racks will meet the needs of the growing cyclist population by creating a
convenient form of bike parking that minimizes pedestrian interference, encouraging the use of
alternative transportation.
Viability
Bicyclists often struggle to find parking that is near their destination, yet out of the way
of pedestrians. Bicycling has seen a large increase recently, especially in urban areas. Bikers
frequently park bikes against fences or by shop doors which has become a hindrance for shop
customers and frustrate shop owners. City councils want to encourage bike use, but must find a
solution to the bike parking problem, without obstructing pedestrians or shops.
Our primary competitors are companies that make other versions of ground-anchored
bike racks.
Target and Marketing Strategy
Our target market falls into three categories:
1.
2.
3.
Cities with urban areas that have a clear need to increase available bicycle parking
Schools or campuses that want more bike parking
Fitness centers
Since our product is similar to in-ground audiences, our market is also similar. Due to the ability
to fold into the ground, space-saving bike racks can also be installed into car parking lots as well.
Product Description
Space-saving Bicycle Racks (SBRs) would eliminate the space that normal bike racks
take up when they are not in use. When a regular bicycle rack is not full, the unused bike slots
and the rest of the rack still take up space. However, SBRs have the same capacity as a regular
bike rack of the same size, but will be able to fold into the ground or wall when not in use. This
solves the problem some cities have with the lack of sidewalk space. Some cities choose not to
install bike racks at certain locations (or minimize the amount they do install) because they do
not want to obstruct walkways with items that are only used for short intermittent periods, like
astandard bike rack.
When the bike racks are installed, they are cemented into the ground similar to current
ground-anchored bike racks. Street paint will be added to the ground around each SBR so that it
is easy to locate the bike racks when they are not in use. We chose green because many bike
lanes are green; green has become associated with bicycles (Figure 1). This element would be
especially helpful if the SBRs were installed into lot or street parking spots. Both bikers and
drivers alike would be aware that the parking spot has an SBR. Due to the space-saving function
of the bike rack, it would not interfere with car parking if there is not a bicycle present. If SBRs
are installed into a wall, a sign may be placed on the wall above the rack to notify bikers of their
location.
Figure 1 - Street Bike Lane in New York City
Positioning statement
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For cities
Who have a high population of cyclists, but do not want to overcrowd sidewalks
Product: Space saving bicycle racks are a bike storage product
That does not obstruct pedestrians.
Differentiation
-
Unlike Belson Outdoors
Our Product does not take up walking or parking space when it is not in use.
Design Considerations
-
-
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Notice where bicyclists tend to park now and locations where bike parking is clearly
inadequate. When analyzing the demographics of an area, this is the most obvious sign of
a need.
Be sure bike racks are in a visible location. It is recommended that bike racks are located
within 50 feet of a building entrance or at least as close as the nearest car parking spot.
Place bike racks in an area with a high population of pedestrians to discourage theft.
However, there should still be 6 feet (or more) of free walking space when a bike is
locked up.
Bike rack should not obstruct other objects such as street furniture, access doors, or right
of way.
Sidewalk bike racks should be at least 3 feet from the road so that parked bikes do not
risk being bumped by traffic.
A concept picture of the product is available in Appendix I. It is a close depiction of our product
except that it is too close to the road.
Objectives
Space-saving bicycle racks will create a convenient form of bike parking while minimizing
pedestrian interference, encourage use and growth of alternative transportation, specifically
bicycles, and meet the needs of the growing cyclist population.
Viability - Market Analysis
Many larger cities prohibit bikers from locking bikes to trees, signposts, or parking
meters unless otherwise noted by street signs in the area. In Philadelphia, limited bike parking
has lead area business owners to take drastic measures in posting “illegal bike parking” signs
around their area(s) of business. Bike parking is a common problem found in many metropolis
cities, particularly in historic or residential areas that have limited walking space. In a Post
article, a newly implemented program started in Charleston, SC seeks to 1) help pedestrians by
cleaning the sidewalk of any obstacles the parked bikes cause and 2) help cyclists by providing
space in the street to park their bikes (Knich, 2014). Both of these cases could be helped by
implementing the SBR. It would help both business owners and the city because they would be
able to easily show cyclist allowable parking spaces that are out of pedestrians’ path.
Competitive Analysis
Currently no bike rack companies produce bike racks that fold into the ground when not
in use. However, we still have to compete with other bike rack companies who produce other
kinds of bike racks. The two most common kinds of bicycle racks are portable and anchored.
People who purchase portable racks do so because they either do not have a way to install
a bike rack or they want to be able to move the rack among multiple locations if necessary.
Neither of these is a top priority for our space-saving bicycle racks since an in-ground bike rack
has to be installed, anchored, and is not mobile. It is unlikely that customers who are searching
for portable racks will be persuaded to instead purchase in-ground space-saving racks. Hence,
our largest competitor will be other in-ground bike rack companies.
Area Demographics
Sometimes cities chose not to install bike racks on the sidewalks because they are afraid that they
will not be used enough to justify the space that they take up.
Table 1
As shown in the Table 1, there has been an increase in both number of bikers and in miles
of bike lanes. The increase in bikers is largely due to the increase in facilities. People are more
willing to use bicycles as a mode of transportation when they feel safer and do not have to share
the same lane as a car. Although this is a graph of the city of Denver, other metropolitan areas
have experienced a similar increasing trend.
The increased number of bicycle lanes and bicyclists has prompted a need for more bike
parking. This is the need that we hope our space-saving bicycle racks will fill. If this trend
continues, our product will undoubtedly be utilized. Even if they are underused, they are a more
conservative option than standard bike racks because they do not always take up vertical space.
Portland, OR and Minneapolis, MN are two of the top five bicycling cities according to
Bicycling magazine, and both of these cities are still looking for a convenient way to
accommodate bicycle parking without interfering with pedestrians (City of Minneapolis, 2014).
Areas such as Rapid City solved the problem of impractical bike racks and pedestrian
interference by anchoring its benches and waste bins to the ground so they can also serve as bike
racks, but at the expense of the comfort of the city benches. Our product would be less successful
in these locations since a different solution has been used to solve the same problem. However,
the need for this solution supports our product because it fixes a relevant problem.
Target and Marketing Strategy
We will primarily market to cities with a high concentration of cyclists. Fitness centers,
schools, and college campuses are also common bike rack customers and are less dependent on
bicycle demographic of a particular area. However, isolating a certain demographic ensures that
there will be a high demand for the space to park bicycles, which will increase the potential need
for space-saving bike racks.
One of the most important qualities to consider is the ratio of the total population to carowners. Generally when there is a high population, but relatively few car-owners, it indicates
that a lot of people do not use a vehicle for transportation and seek other means of transport.
Other than personal vehicles, public transportation and bicycles are the next most common forms
of transportation. These two often go hand-in-hand since many people who use public
transportation can take their bicycle with them. The major area where these traits are obvious is
metropolitan areas, or very densely populated areas where bicycling is easier than driving on the
busy roads.
Some of the major marketplaces that we could benefit heavily from the space-saving bike
racks, include New York City, Minneapolis, Portland, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Boston, and
other U.S. urban areas. (If the product became very successful it could expand internationally,
but that is beyond our initial marketing scope.) All of the cities mentioned above have a few
things in common:
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They are densely populated.
They seek to optimize the space available.
They have bike lanes.
They do not have many spaces with excessive sidewalk space.
As mentioned above, one of the biggest advantages to this product would be the conservation of
space. These ideas make clear indicators for potential customers.
Another important idea to consider when looking at our marketing demographic is the
typical activity level of the area. The activity level of an area is a huge indicator of how common
bicycles are. Metropolitan areas such as San Francisco, Boston, New York City are generally
more active places, but some areas that are active are not necessarily big-cities. Hence, there are
other markets that could potentially benefit from our product. For example, Colorado is the fittest
state in the country and have tens of thousands of bicycle enthusiasts. Generally the more fit an
area is the more common a need for a bike rack becomes. Fitness centers and gymnasiums are
another common customer for bike racks. Also, Oregon has a high population of bikers and
runners and was one of the first states to regularly include bike lanes in its cities and paths
connecting the suburbs, so Portland, OR is not the only city in Oregon that could benefit from
space-saving bike racks.
Another advantage of these large marketplaces is how the government (DOT) can
influence the product. The government at all levels is usually tasked with transportation needs
for the area, by giving them a product that optimizes their public space it allows a clear market
pathway for government funding. One other advantage to reaching out to the government is
schools. Almost all schools have bike rack space available to their students. With our product we
could help alleviate the issue of confined space and create a safer environment with fewer
obstacles for the students.
After considering our major marketplaces we want to also include our potential minor
marketplaces. They are private businesses, clubs, and public or private universities. Universities
could potentially be a large customer base since bikes are very common on large campuses and
most universities also have fitness centers or bike parking near classrooms. The popularity of
alternative transportation such as bicycles may also help give businesses a more aesthetically
appealing and user friendly business front to their clients.
One limiting factor for a bike rack that folds into the ground is areas with high vegetation
or lots of snow. During the winter, it may be difficult to find the space saving bike racks, or even
if they are visible, they may be frozen down or too buried to encourage use. Trees could have
leaves or seeds get jammed into the rack ground-slot so that it cannot close all the way. To
accommodate for these issues, the wall install will be made available. Rather than folding into
the ground, like a “normal” space-saving bike rack, it is anchored to a wall and pulls out from the
wall when in use.
References
Bicycling Magazine. (2014). Bicycling’s Top 50. Bicycling Magazine. Retrieved from
www.bicycling.com/news/featured-stories/bicyclings-top-50
Bike Parking Guide. Dero Bike Racks. Retrieved from http://www.dero.com/brochures/bikeparking-guide.pdf
Briggs, R. (2014). No bike parking signs are fake and illegal. Philadelphia CityPaper. Retrieved
from http://citypaper.net/Blogs/No-bike-parking-signs-are-fake-and-illegal/
City of Minneapolis. (2014). Bicycle parking rules and regulations. (City of Minneapolis,
Minnesota). Retrieved from
http://www.minneapolismn.gov/bicycles/bicycling101/bicycles_bicycle-parking-rules
Diane Knich. (June 8, 2014).186 illegally parked bikes confiscated in campaign to keep
downtown sidewalks clear. The Post and Courier. Retrieved from
http://www.postandcourier.com/article/20140608/PC16/140609469
Hayden, J. (2013). Denver’s bicycle commuter mode share increases 20% in 2012.
DenverUrbanism. Retrieved from http://denverurbanism.com/2013/09/denvers-bicyclecommuter-mode-share-increases-20-in-2012.html
New York Bicycling Coalition. (2014). Safety. New York Bicycling Coalition. Retrieved from
http://nybc.net/safety/
Appendix I
http://www.awesomeinventions.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/space-saving-bike-racks.jpg