contango 

That would be nice. If you had a lifetime frame warranty with no ifs and no buts, mere possession of the broken frame was all that was needed to qualify for a replacement frame, that would be a huge plus.

It really is silly when a warranty lapses because a six-month-old bike was sold, and a "lifetime" warranty is useless if it lapses as soon as an original sales receipt is lost/stolen/accidentally thrown away.

labatt

Good suggestions.. and I appreciate the thought put into them.

TexasT

First, I think it is a great idea for you to solicit opinions from your future customer base. I am brand new to biking and road biking as of less than two months ago. I ended up with a Fuji Roubaix 2.0 on sale and ended up there because of the value and what I believe to be decent components (Tiagra). While most everyone suggests to a new rider to test ride a lot of bikes, I think as someone brand new to the sport that is not all that helpful, as we really dont know how to ride, correct position, hard to find many models in my size to ride (61cm) etc. I will say I am very pleased with the bike, having put over 300 miles on it in the first 6 weeks I have owned it. I look forward to doing centuries, MS150, and maybe even longer rides as I gain more experience and fitness.

Now to your specific questions:
1. I am not sure the bike should come with anything more. While as a newbie, it might be nice to have it come with some of the "essentials" like cages, tools, tire levers, bag, etc., if they are offered, it should be, as others have suggested, be an optional pack. There are too many variables, as I may choose the smallest saddlebag, someone else may want a large. I went with a C02 inflator, others may want the pump. I think most newbies will need to buy acccessories anyway before they can ride the bike (pedals, shoes, water bottles, helmet at a minimum) and in most cases gloves and some additional clothing/accesories. Plus, I imagine these accessories represent a much higher margin to the LBS and they might be resistant to you packaging a lot of these items with your bike. Then there is the argument that many people who are buying your "entry level" bike may already have much of this and would not want to pay for something they already own. Many may have started with a used bike, hand-me-down, or other entry level bike and just have worn it out and not necessarily want to upgade to a higher level.

2. I cannot think of anything on my bike that is not convenient. You mentioned as a possiblity a way to do some maintenance without a stand. That would definitely be handy if you could pull that off.

3. The one thing I might suggest adding is grommets to attach a third water bottle. I think there are a number of riders that might make use of that if it could be done in an unobtrusive manner.
Another consideration might be a simplified, quick start maintenance guide. I am sure there is one in my large, tiny print owners manual, but honestly, I have not yet opened it.
4. Do not overly logo/decal the bike.
5. That will take time and effort. A good product, good value, and standing behind your product with great customer service will be the keys.
Best of luck to you,
Tom

RNAV

1. Water bottle cages -- who doesn't put water bottle cages on their bike? Their quality should be commensurate with the build level of the bike (i.e. top-of-the-line carbon bike should get super-light carbon cages).

2. Integrated ANT+ & Bluetooth speed/cadence sensor.

3. Integrated lighting. I hate that I've got to have fugly lights hanging off my bike in order to be seen on the road. I don't know that it'd be necessary to have an integrated front light (not everyone rides at night), but for sure an integrated rear light. And it needs to be bright as hell.

4. I think Trek had a great thing going with their Project One, but honestly it's a pretty steep premium. I don't think a full custom lineup would be wise for a start-up company, but I do think that having multiple color options and/or design options per model would be a great way to go. And keep the frame color choice/design choice separate from the component build. In other words, your red frame should be available with any group set, not Dura-Ace only.

5. Yes. Offer full group sets across your brand -- none of the ultra front derailleur w/105 rear derailleur crap. If you order Sram Red, you get the full Sram Red kit.

If you really want to revolutionize things, focus on the wireless integration of cycling. By that I mean include as standard equipment an ANT+/Bluetooth speed/cadence sensor (you could even include a HRM as standard equipment). You could even develop an app that automatically connects with the users' bike, tracks mileage, notifies the user of when maintenance should be performed, and could also serve as a legit cycling computer. With this in mind, work on integrated smartphone/cycling computer solutions. 3T's Garmin stem is a perfect example of this.

Get the touch points of the bike right, and make it easy for the customer to get comfortable on the bike. If one particular saddle isn't comfy for me, I should be able to come into the shop and swap saddles on the spot until I find something that works for me. I shouldn't have to buy an additional saddle, try it out, return it for a refund, buy something else, etc.

Angry_Monkey

I'm not sure Apple is the right company to emulate. I'll hold my tongue on some of my reasons, but to your points:
Cord wrap - nice feature, but nothing that would be a go/no-go when making a purchase
Brightness of the logo - What value does this add to the product? It's a gimmick.
Packaging... designed to inspire, build confidence, and trust... etc. This is marketing, not product design requirements. Don't confuse the two, or you will fail.

1. Nothing. The accessories don't mean squat. Cages, computers, bells, whistles... what colour, weights, features, etc... the wrench monkeys and hard core geeks will all have very specific requirements for these things. Pre-defined accessory packages are more marketing then value added designed requirements. The people that buy accessory packages want an RTR, one-stop-shop experience. They have an idea of what cycling is, and want to walk out of the shop with what they think satisfies that archetype. I'm too much of a geek monkey to do that.
2. I'm going to skip the details, but some of them are so specific to me that I had to custom build them.
3. Chain hook - to hold the chain when I pull the rear wheel... and an all-girl pit crew.
4. Inspire me to do what? I ride because I like to, the bike is the tool, it does not "inspire". "Inspiration", "passion", etc... these are marketing terms that mean nothing in terms of design. Unless you can quantize these things, and design tests to determine if they are objectively satisfied in the final product, the mean nothing to me from a technical point of view.
5. Yes, Don't focus on the packaging, marketing, or how it is used. Concentrate on identifying your target market: age group, casual / hardcore rider? Do you want to create a "boutique" experience (like Apple) - where being seen with the product is just as important as the function to the end consumer? Instead of asking a broad spectrum of users, you can ask the same questions of a more refined target audience and get a much more applicable set of responses. (For example, based on the demo you identified above - I don't think my input would mean crap to you as I don't really fit that group)
Start by writing a DS (Design Specification), ERS (Engineering Requirements Specification, and / or User Requirements Specification (URS).

If you want to create a fanatical fan base... that is marketing, yet based on solid design and engineering. As some one mentioned, look at the Campy guys (I'm one of them). I will gladly share my thoughts on that later, as this post is already getting annoying long...

~Monkey~

contango 

Lots of good points here but also a few questions that would depend on where this company wants to aim its products.

Included/integrated speed/cadence/HRM etc is nice for people who use a bicycle for training but I suspect such people are a minority of cyclists. If it can be done cheaply that's great but if not it just pushes the price up for the entry level bikes whose riders don't care about their speed or cadence because they just want to go for a bimble around the park. I like the idea of having integrated speed/cadence/etc as an option, as long as it was sufficiently accessible to change the batteries without having to go back to the dealer (and, of course, it used standard batteries that are readily available)

Frame colour - for the low end rider it's good to be able to choose the frame colour you want, even if it is normally only available with the full Dura-Ace groupset and a price tag that practically requires a remortgage. For the high end rider it takes away some of the exclusivity of the bike. To use a simplistic analogy, you don't get a bike that says S-Works down the side of it unless you buy the top-end gear (yes, I know you could buy an S-Works frame and then build it with Claris parts but, you know...)

RNAV

I'm assuming that when the OP stated this would be a road bike company that they're making road bikes, not hybrids/commuters/cruisers. With that in mind, I would argue that the vast majority of road cyclists want the performance monitoring. Those who don't have it are typically first-time buyers who didn't factor the cost of a cycle computer/sensors into their purchase. Having it as standard equipment on the bike makes it available to them at a lower cost due to economies of scale. Plus, if this company goes the integrated route with a mobile app as I suggested, the speed/cadence sensor would need to be on all their bikes for maintenance notifications.

I understand your point. I would argue that the number of exclusivity buys is a fraction of the overall road bike marketplace. I would further argue that companies like Apple don't get a cult following from exclusivity -- rather, they get it from innovative design and functionality; hence, make the aesthetic design appealing to a broad range of people, and you sell more vs. exclusivity for limited sales.

practical

1. Determine who your customer is and what your bike's identity is. I will assume that the rider enjoys long rides and riding in traffic in town. Similar to the customer for high performance hybrids.

2. Redesign the handlebar - something between a flat bar and drop bar. This will instantly give your bike a signature and, if designed well, appeal to multiple audiences.

3. Include small, subtle fenders.

4. Integrated electronics. It will include a light, horn, directional lights on the rear, and bike computer or phone case. Create an elegant and reliable app that runs on a smartphone and integrates with the bike. The back rack will have a solar panel to re-charge the electronics.

5. Make the seat a little longer than the average bike seat. This will give it style and comfort.

6. Include a stylish saddlebag equipped with a multi-tool.

7. Use a touring or hybrid geometry (longer wheelbase, higher stem) rather than a road bike geometry. I assume your customers are not buying this bike for competitions.

Good luck

FrankHudson

From your other replies I doubt I'm your market. I ride bikes on all kinds of roads all year. Sounds like you're aiming at the person who rides them as exercise equipment. I'm apologetic that "exercise equipment" seems reductionist, but it's the best I can do. I bike for exercise too (just not at the level of folks on group rides, who are in much better shape than I am), but I'm usually doing something else with the bike other than only exercise. The "exercise equipment" folks are perfectly good folks, many of them do things other than riding for just exercise with their bikes too, but they aren't me.

I'd like a bike that's a pleasure to ride and is easy to maintain. I find no joy in the routine tasks of maintenance.

1. I'm not your market, but I need racks, fenders, bottle cages and lights. I almost always replace the seat and pedals with my preference. I don't know if that's going to help you. As others have said, folks have their own preferences in these areas, so you aren't likely to have a win here. A simple Bluetooth bike computer "brain" integrated in with apps for Andriod, IOS and Windows phone to provide the user interface might be a winner for you. You'd have long term needs to keep the apps updated however.

2. Racks, fenders, bottle cages and lights (grin). I once had a "10 speed" with a "flickstand" that held the front wheel steady when parked, and it also had those little spring loaded tire wipers that were supposed to scrape debris off the tire surface before it got a chance to penetrate. Neither of those things works with fenders, so I don't have them anymore. But I found them great little touches.

3. A chain hanger has already been mentioned. Those are great.

4. I like a good looking bike (shape, color, the hard to define "sense of style") as much as the next person. Folks have already mentioned that fewer, smaller logos are a style plus. It may just be me, but that stupid oversised Apple logo looks like a leisure suit and gold medalion on modern Apple laptops. Frankly, if one could work out the logistics, offering you bikes in a large number of colors selectable at purchase time would be a slick trick for anyone with a production bicycle line. I have no idea how you'd do that though.

5. Other than wishing you luck, I got little. "not your market" again. If you can really find a breakthrough in maintenance you might get traction on that: self or perpetual lube chain, high performance flat proof tires.

contango 

Fair point, I guess I read "road bike company" as catering for anyone who rides a bike on the road rather than specifically the people who train.

Up to a point I'd agree. When I see things like Specialized selling the limited edition S-Works Alberto Contador frame, or the S-Works Mark Cavendish frame, they never follow up with an entry level Allez with Claris parts but the same pretty colours. I don't know that I'd buy something top-end purely because it was exclusive but I can see at least some desire at that level in the market to have something that looks distinctive, rather than a bike with full Dura-Ace drivetrain that looks all but identical to the model with Claris parts.

I guess it's always a balance between any sales gained because the entry level bikes look more striking, and any sales lost because the top-end bikes no longer look exclusive. At the very top-end I'd reckon you need a degree of exclusivity, simply because you're looking for as much as you can find to justify the price tag.

Hwy6AandM0

1. What do you wish came with your bike when you bought it? (not components, but accessories). RESPONSE: Bottle cages and a seat bag would have been nice. Also, I just took a long trip and wish I had had cardboard box to put my bike in. I didn't, I had to do some (relatively simple) dis-assembly. Not a big deal, but the parts got scattered and grease gets on things when packed tightly. Note that the shipping boxes that bikes come in won't work for this use as they are way to long. Also note that boxes give you an additionally branding opportunity, so long as it's simple and not too pushy.

2. What little things are on your bike now that you find convenient? RESPONSE: I have nothing to add here. When I started riding the shifters were on the down tube, which was not really convenient. Now they're built into the brake levers, which is very convenient.

3. What little things are missing from your bike that you wish it had? RESPONSE: An easy adapter for a smartphone. There are lots of cycling-specific monitors/odometers/heart rate meters out there, but many of us are maxed out on gadgets, so having one highly versatile gadget is a great solution. I use the iPhone, and I've seen others with phones, too, so I think it's a fairly widespread issue.

4. Are there any aspects of bike design that truly inspire you? Shape (what kind of shape?), paint, logos, etc.? RESPONSE: Two-part paint schemes, like the ones Bianchi is currently using, are wonderful. They also allow you to brand your bikes by using a limited number of colors in different configurations. You can augment this with (limited edition?) paint schemes that use, for instance, a black or gray oval on the down tube with your company name in white (or the reverse). You might also think about using something other than basic black tires. I walk into bike shops and see rows of black tires. This requires buyers to get up close to differentiate between bikes. If you can visually differentiate earlier in the buyer's experience then you'll get the first look. Finally, a frame that looks both sturdy and sleek would be helpful. Going back to Bianchi, look at their XR.2 frame. Note the top tube/head tube/down tube joint. It's much thicker than what we had in pre-carbon days, but it improves sturdiness and improves the visual. It's complimented by similar design in the seat tube.

5. Would you have any constructive suggestions for a new company that could create a fanatical following? RESPONSE: 1] Don't try too hard to create a fanatical following quickly. If it happens quickly, let it happen. But if you try too hard then you'll come across as "sales pitchy" and people will be turned off. Try to connect, say, a week after the sale. If there's no response then follow up a month later. If there's still no response then do a soft inquiry a year later. If there's still no response then drop it. I would focus on making a top-quality product that looks interesting and unique (but not too much) so that it catches eyes and gets good reviews. 2] Target just certain shops and buyers at first. Let them into your company fold if they want. Let them talk to you, and respond to them in a timely fashion. 3] Augment certain purchases with cycling clothing sent from you to buyers after the sale. In other words, give them something they can't get at the bike shop. (Note that this would have to be good quality stuff designed to look top-tier/aspirational; if it looks cheap or is cheap it'll kill your brand.) 4] Where will you be located? Is it a place people might want to visit or ride? If so, invite your buyers. That would augment buyer's (and dealer's) connections to you. Again, build a core group first, then make others want to come to you. This could take a few years and would require some analysis to make it work, but it could be done.

skimaxpower

I love all of these suggestions!

OldZephyr

1) If appropriate, good fenders, a decent rack, and matching water bottle cages. But that's not hugely important.
2) Chain hanger, eyelets for fenders and racks, front lowrider mounts on fork.
3) Double eyelets, a little more clearance for larger tires, a good (non-kludgy) way to mount a rear light on the rear rack.
4) Classic diamond or mixte frame with simple, understated paint job (two tone is nice), and not a lot of logos. I hate flashy paint jobs.
5) Virtually every entry level road bike is the same. Flashy paint, compact double with 8 speed 12-25 cluster, no clearance for larger tires or fenders due to short caliper brakes, aluminum frame with 405-410 mm chain stays and sport geometry. Would love to see an entry level steel road bike with appropriate gearing for hills and for those of us with ordinary knees (think 26-36-48 crank with 12-34 gears, or 30-46 crank with a 12-34), and *not* the usual compact double with a 12-26), with long reach calipers to provide enough clearance for fenders and tires larger than a 28 (think up to 35), and light touring geometry (e.g 430mm chainstays), something like a Surly Cross Check or Surly Pacer perhaps. Look at how Surly has built up a following by putting together well thought out bikes that are a little different than the crowd.

OldZephyr

So do I.

scicc

I've recently been reading the debate between BikesDirect and LBS as I try to decide between the new for my next purchase. I'm sure you know the elements of the debate. I imagine just about all cyclists prefer to support their local business and understand the advantages of service, fit, adjustments, test rides etc from the LBS, but the value of BD is tempting.

Items that I had to buy - and may not need to make a choice among all the post-market options - include a seat bag, mountable pump, bottle cages.
Pedals - Riders want some choice with pedals but why not offer a few choices in the price range of the bike?
Features wanted - Braze-ons. Its hard to understand why a cyclocross bike, which so many use for commuting, would not come with them. (Fuji for example took them off their newer cross bikes).

findude

There's a story, possibly apocryphal, about Steve Jobs and the first Mac. The team presented him with two options, the cheaper 5 1/4" floppy disk drive, or the more expensive drive for the stiff 3" drive. Jobs looked at both disks, dropped the smaller one into his shirt pocket and insisted they use it despite the significant increase in cost. The point is to make design decisions around how people actually use objects in their daily life. The portability of data (and applications in those days) that the smaller disk enabled transformed the way people integrated computing into daily routine. The iPod toppled Walkman-style tape and CD players as much because it fit in a pocket as because of its other capabilities.

I want a bike that is easy to secure so I can leave it outside the grocery store or library without worrying about the bike or its components getting stolen. Seriously, an elegant solution to this problem WILL change the bicycle business. I can't offer specific advice, but get your designers on it.

Braze-ons for racks, water bottles, etc. add almost zero weight to a bike. Please, three sets for water bottles, two sets (one for rack and one for fenders) on both the fork and chain stays. While you're at it, allow for different types of brakes (as another poster pointed out). If I decide not to install disks, come up with a convenient way for me to attach lights to those mounts. Include a proper place to install a kick-stand as well--again, not much weight but very useful if you need it.

contango 

I like this. I'm in the process of looking for a new bike because I broke the frame of the old one.

I've got all the parts to build up a bike from a frameset, and at some point in the future I'd like to go with disc brakes. But most bikes I'm looking at are either set up for disc brakes and have nowhere to mount rim brakes, or they are set up for rim brakes with no facility to take discs. So far the only one I've found that could take both looks more like a hardcore touring machine that will take just about anything, is indestructible, but weighs about the same as a small elephant.

JamesEnglish111

1. Good USB Rechargable Lights. If you are marketing to bike commuters and other recreational users that may not ride during daylight hours this is important. I see a lot of people who ride, even on busy streets, with cheap lights probably from Walmart or somewhere that can barely be seen in the dark. I think it's really important for safety purposes and a lot of people ignore. Also for single speed or fixies-- chain tensioners are a must.
2. Quick release is amazing. But I also like bolt- on wheels, seatposts, etc... because they are harder to steal for people that lock their bikes outside. I think it's possible to find an Allen key skewer that doesn't require to carry around a huge wrench? That kind of skewer would be a good compromise.

4. A lot of new, flashy road/hybrid bikes have all sorts of weird decals and too many different colors, a nice solid bright paint job always looks good to me. The name has to be big and bold, then it will look like an expensive bike. I also think people really like retro-look bikes nowadays

Also, one last note: I hate it when bike companies cheap-out on wheels and tires. I weigh 220 lbs and found out that I need a really sturdy wheel. My Cannondale came with 16/20 spoke, cheaper Shimano wheels, which broke a rear spoke in under 500 miles. Maybe those wheels will be okay for lighter people but not for me. So maybe you could offer 2 wheel options per bike?