Some of you have probably heard of things like the “Colbert Bump”. It was essentially when Stephen Colbert mentioned something on his show, it would gain wide use due to the massive exposure when he featured something.
My question… is there such a thing as the “TrainerRoad Bump”?
I know I have bought a few books (Matt Fitzgerald might just owe TR some royalties ), Nature’s Bakery Fig Bars and a number of other products after hearing them discussed on the show. These are just a couple of examples of things I have chosen as a direct result of the show.
Think back to any of the episodes and whether you have bought a product, book, service or changed your use of something as a result of discussion on the AACC podcast.
So, when these mentions happen, I wonder if the sellers see an increase in sales from the exposure and effective endorsement (whether direct or implied)?
What made you choose to become a TrainerRoad subscriber?
@mcneese.chad Lasko Pro Performance Fan, The Endurance Diet, Nutrition Timing (all from Amazon), a DEXA scan and this is what I can remember off the top of my head. I’d also add I learned yesterday about The Black Bibs from a forum post and I’m going to be making a purchase in the near future. Why all these purchases? It’s all based on field testing / recommendations from like minded individuals.
There has to be a correlation between mentions and purchases.
More seriously, I was wondering myself recently if TR itself has seen a “TrainerRoad Bump”? For quite a while I was riding mostly outdoors and consuming all the cycling media I could. Books, youtube channels, etc and the TR Podcast was one that I started listening to. I became convinced from this that indoor structured training would make me a stronger cyclist and the return on (time) investment would be worth it. Then one day I took the plunge and tried it out for a while and I haven’t looked back. 100% I became a TR user as a result of the Ask A Cycling Coach Podcast.
For sure, I think the podcast helps drive people to join. I think the continued growth over the years must lead to people joining the service. I would love to see the listen/download/watch stats over time and see the growth charted on a graph.
The podcast is something that takes time and money (via salaries and related equipment to grow the cast to where they are now) to produce at the level they do every week. It is my favorite podcast ever, beyond just cycling because of the great interaction between the presenters. It often reminds me of the push and pull seen on the auto show “Top Gear”.
Nate = Jeremy Clarkson
Jonathan = Richard Hammond
Chad = James May
That great interaction and the solid content offers more in a broad reach and coverage when compared to similar podcasts. And their general openness to things beyond TR (even though they do focus on it as well) helps keep it as a resource that reaches far.
Same here. I was looking for a podcast for a road trip and wanted to learn more about nutrition but was looking for cycling specific podcast. The dynamic of @chad , @Nate_Pearson , and @Jonathan works really well. Plus they bring a very good analytical approach to their topics. I signed up the following week and haven’t regretted a moment. Except for those VO2 workouts maybe
My bump, beyond some books and some nutrition the crew discussses on the podcast, is really as a TR subscriber.
I found the podcast first, sometime in the fall of 2015. At the time I was coming back into cycling after about 4 years off the bike due to racing/training burnout. I was starting slowly but knew I’d eventually be back to training again. The podcast was my “gateway” back to cycling, training and everything that goes with it.
Skip ahead about a year and the TR podcast became one of my top 3 “must listen weekly” shows, definitely my favorite cycling podcast. The dynamic J/N/C (good cop/bad cop/wildcard?) have is spot on and their presentation of concepts, materials and Q/A is amazing. In turn I found myself subscribing to TR, with no intention of using the product (I thought I had training figured out elsewhere), but as a way of paying for the podcast I enjoyed so much weekly.
Then all the features hit this fall, fleshing out the TR platform and I knew it was time to use the product finally. As I sat down to plan 2019 a few weeks ago I decided to go all in with TR. 100% of my planning and analysis along with my structured training. The grandfathered pricing (effectively explained via the podcast) got me to pull the trigger from a monthly user to a yearly one.
Lastly…I’m the Head of Design in a product company, that is in a complex and analytical space (not training) and I really appreciate TR’s “Less, but better.” approach to product design. I find how @Nate_Pearson, @Jonathan and @chad use the podcast from a product update/marketing POV to be completely relevant, spot-on and amazing. All the above has become the model for what I’m trying to do with our product and pushing my team to think about how they market.
Definitely a few things I picked up over the years such as:
Air King fan (they have a new favorite fan now but the Air King is still really good).
28c tires…
Cuore bibs (Jonathan used to talk about these but hasn’t lately. Very solid bib).
Matt Fitzgerald books (I picked up on Audible)
Garmin Varia (Nate brought this up a few times)
Maurten
Prologo Dimension saddle (I was already a Prologo user)
POC helmets
Probably other stuff too. Jonathan also does the MTB podcast, and really gets into equipment on that one, and also guested on Fattie’s Leadville podcast and discussed some equipment there as well
The guys are also good about saying when they simply really like something and use it for those reasons. Jonathan also makes it clear he is a Yeti ambassador and hence rides their bikes and similar uses Maxxis tires.
Lately the new bikes are Specialized (Nates Epic, the Venge’s). Chad previously talked about his Trek Domane. It’s always the most interesting to hear when the guys use different brands so get some comparison and contrasting comments. A great example is Jonathan talking about the Aspen being his favorite XC mtn bike tire but Nate running Schwalbe’s - great to hear each perspective.
I’m another who joined because of the added value of the podcast. I found it quite a way in (100+ ?) but went back over them from the start. I was hoping the calendar dropped sooner rather than later and as soon as it did I pulled the trigger.
I now watch the podcast on you tube so I take more of it in. Also waiting for the looks when @Nate_Pearson starts with a “hey hey” rather than the usual “hullo”.
On the first poll… none of the above. I stumbled onto it while trying to develop my own training plan, started researching the different options, and ended up deciding TrainerRoad did the job I needed for both “developing a training plan” and “doing something while on the trainer.”
I’m not surprised. You know better than us, but I think your audience size and voracious nature of looking for gains in every avenue lead to rabid purchases at times
), Nature’s Bakery Fig Bars and a number of other products after hearing them discussed on the show. These are just a couple of examples of things I have chosen as a direct result of the show.
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