12.22.2010

Rick Vosper

"Numero Uno: Geese are stupid, but they still manage to fly in an aerodynamically optimal echelon. Turns out, the formation of bird flock behavior relies on simple, bird-level rules to produce very complex results. So it is with the overblown, chest-pounding too-cool-for-school stuff that’s used to sell bikes. It’s a longterm iterative behavior that only makes sense once you realize that its evolutionary “purpose” is not to sell bikes, but to seduce bike shop employees (and, almost incidentally, a small cross-section of harcore enthusiasts) into a frenzied stupor of cult-like devotion. And it works. Because, to paraphrase an ad I wrote for VeloNews about 15 years ago, they’re never going to buy a $500 bike. Just sell them. All day long."

Ricks blog is a great read. Jump over

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