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ONILINE BIKES & their website

3K views 29 replies 13 participants last post by  toydeluxe 
#1 · (Edited)
ONLINE BIKES & their websites

guys,

Im a comeback dad in MTB after a long time, after doing my research for my small budget, I end up on IBEX & MOTOBECANE bikes. I already bought one but I dont want to tell which brand coz I know the debate over this two brand is WAR! BIG TIME (as I read on the forums). My only observation is both these two bikes are big bang for the buck but both of their website is not so professional looking, thats why I love to use the term GENERIC BIKES when it comes to IBEX & MOTO.

I dont want to be flamed but as a consumers point of view, dont you have any plans of improving your websites? Some MOTOs pics (im referring to bikedirect.com vs ibexbikes.com) are better than IBEX, but the bike index on MOTOs are butt ugly

https://www.bikesdirect.com/products/mountain_bikes.htm

but this pic is a winner

https://www.bikesdirect.com/products/motobecane/images/fcp_07_1200.jpg

IBEX website is ok but bike pics are not that refined

https://www.ibexbikes.com/Bikes/ALP-550-Details.html

If you are selling stuffs online, two things are very important, nice website & good pictures. Just like selling on ebay.

Just my 2 cents, im a web based business owner too & I make sure my website is pleasing to customers.

MORE POWER to all ONLINE RETAILERS!!:thumbsup:
 
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#2 ·
zackde said:
Im a comeback dad in MTB after a long time, after doing my research for my small budget, I end up on IBEX & MOTOBECANE bikes. I already bought one but I dont want to tell which brand coz I know the debate over this two brand is WAR! BIG TIME
Enjoy your Motocane..:thumbsup:

>>>>:ihih:>>Jake
 
#3 ·
zackde said:
guys,

Im a comeback dad in MTB after a long time, after doing my research for my small budget, I end up on IBEX & MOTOBECANE bikes. I already bought one but I dont want to tell which brand coz I know the debate over this two brand is WAR! BIG TIME (as I read on the forums). My only observation is both these two bikes are big bang for the buck but both of their website is not so professional looking, thats why I love to use the term GENERIC BIKES when it comes to IBEX & MOTO.

I dont want to be flamed but as a consumers point of view, dont you have any plans of improving your websites? Some MOTOs pics (im referring to bikedirect.com vs ibexbikes.com) are better than IBEX, but the bike index on MOTOs are butt ugly

https://www.bikesdirect.com/products/mountain_bikes.htm

but this pic is a winner

https://www.bikesdirect.com/products/motobecane/images/fcp_07_1200.jpg

IBEX website is ok but bike pics are not that refined

https://www.ibexbikes.com/Bikes/ALP-550-Details.html

If you are selling stuffs online, two things are very important, nice website & good pictures. Just like selling on ebay.

Just my 2 cents, im a web based business owner too & I make sure my website is pleasing to customers.

MORE POWER to all ONLINE RETAILERS!!:thumbsup:
I agree that bikes direct individual pictures are better, but the general layout is HORRIBLE..it actually looks cheap and almost fake ( let me know if you need some redesign work:) ).

I think Ibex could benefit by adding customer photos( oh boy, I'd like to submit mine).

And yes, both are better bang for the $$$
 
#4 ·
I have thought the same thing. I think Ibex is more professional looking then Motobecane as a matter of fact. I think Bikes Directs site looks extremely low class. I'm not sure if they realize that they are not just selling bikes but an image as well.

I not saying this to bash them. I'm trying to help them out... Image Sells!!

Charge $10 more per bike and update that site. Get into mounting bike racing. Show people you make a good product... Get you name out there!! The rest will come to you.

Fred.
 
#5 · (Edited)
FUNNY but IBEX pics on the forum posted by users are better than the one posted on their website. After seeing the pics on the forum, IBEX ASTA is sweet!!

I know the ibex people are here, so buy (or rent or steal) a DIGITAL SLR (rebel or d70), buy a white background on ebay ($50-$70), bring the bike outside and shoot. Ambient light outside is enough, no need for professional lighting, sure pix will be awesome. Dont use a flash its better. Ibex site is ok but could be better, pix are not good.

bikes direct???.......overhaul i think
 
#7 ·
txjohng said:
I agree that bikes direct individual pictures are better, but the general layout is HORRIBLE..it actually looks cheap and almost fake ( let me know if you need some redesign work:) ).

I think Ibex could benefit by adding customer photos( oh boy, I'd like to submit mine).

And yes, both are better bang for the $$$
Ibex does have customer photos on their site http://www.ibexbikes.com/gallery_index.html. I bet if you email Ibex some pics of your bike they will probably put them up on their site.

I agree with most people about the bikesdirect site, it looks awful. they would probably sell a lot more bikes if their site was better. The Ibex website might be a little boring but overall its not too bad, at least its not some stupid flash site like a lot of the big name companies use.
 
#10 ·
#11 ·
zackde said:
jake pay,

i havent got the chance to get a pic of my bike , ill try one of these days, im a photographer by trade thats why i know the basics, here are samples of product photos,using outdoor/ambient lights

https://k43.pbase.com/u42/isao/upload/34196345.p312_1292.jpg

https://k47.pbase.com/u45/isao/upload/34629279.p316_1635.jpg

https://k53.pbase.com/u45/isao/upload/34629284.p316_1690.jpg

BTW, how did you come to the conclusion that I got a FANTOM COMP instead of IBEX ALPINE??;)
Access to your photos is forbidden. I'd like to see them though, could you host them up somewhere else?
 
#12 ·
zackde said:
jake pay,
i havent got the chance to get a pic of my bike , ill try one of these days, im a photographer by trade thats why i know the basics, here are samples of product photos,using outdoor/ambient lights
https://k43.pbase.com/u42/isao/upload/34196345.p312_1292.jpg
https://k47.pbase.com/u45/isao/upload/34629279.p316_1635.jpg
https://k53.pbase.com/u45/isao/upload/34629284.p316_1690.jpg
BTW, how did you come to the conclusion that I got a FANTOM COMP instead of IBEX ALPINE??;)
My crystal ball tells all :lol:

Everything you've posted in this forum can be accessed in your profile..
We all leave a paper trail..

When attempting to view your pictures :madman:


Forbidden
You don't have permission to access /u42/isao/upload/34196345.p312_1292.jpg on this server.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Apache/2.0.46 (Red Hat) Server at k43.pbase.com Port 80
>>>>>>>>>>>>:ihih:>>Jake...
 
#13 · (Edited)
IBEX Website

todd_freeride said:
I tryed sending my pictures into ibex, but they didnt want them I guess? they never got posted and they only have very old pics on their website. I would love to submit them a pic of my Zone.
Todd,

Go ahead and email your photos in again. We probably still have them in the holding file, but it won't hurt to have them again (and some may have been lost in the shuffle). Unfortunately, there just hasn't been time to do update our Owner's Gallery (or customer feedback) for quite some time, but that work is certainly well past due. I will try to get to it this week or next. Please just send your best 2 or 3 pics and give us a brief description including location if possible.

As far as the website photos, it's a double edged sword. We want photos as far in advance of the bikes arriving as we can, so we have studio shots done overseas. These are usually done just before a shipment of bikes leaves the factory or shot from earlier samples when one exists. Sometimes we get very good results, and sometimes we do not. But, once the photos are made there is little recourse until the bikes arrive in the US.

The recent batch of Alpine photos we shot in China and did not come out particularly well. Those bikes are now in-stock in the US, but we've been swamped with filling orders on them. So, the prospect of building out samples and getting new photos shot is not high priority. We usually get better photo work on the Taiwan made bikes... which, BTW, will be all IBEX models from this point on. That recent batch of Alpines will be the last Chinese assembled IBEX's as we have expanded production capacity in Taiwan. Maybe we can also look forward to better photos!

Aside from the deserved criticism on some of the bike photos, I must say I really resent the comment that our website looks "unprofessional". We work very hard at making it look good without sacrificing functionality or user friendliness (such as the irritating Flash stuff mentioned). The fact is, most folks who go on our site are shopping for a bike and want to get right to the heart of the matter. We've engineered multiple navigation methods into the site so that virtually any approach to perusing our line-up is accomodated... whether you want to go top-down by category, direct to an individual model, by price, series or whatever. I think our site content is well organized and most any question you have about IBEX is addressed if you'll just take the time to look. The one thing we do not do with this is lay out models by drivetrain level because it becomes just so much BS. A Deore bike with an XT rear derailleur is NOT an XT bike. Internally, we would defer to the shifters as the default on a mixed drivetrain.

Admittedly, some sections are in need of updates like the Gallery or the Care & Repair section that is still a work-in-progress, but the active line-up info is updated almost daily. We're also working on adding a Buyer's Guide, rewriting the Sizing Help section, completing the Care & Repair section and adding PDF's of assembly instructions and links to component manuals. In other words, if the site seems "boring" it's because the focus is on info, not fluff.

Regards,
Jack A.
IBEX Bicycles
 
#14 ·
ibexbikes said:
Todd,

Go ahead and email your photos in again. We probably still have them in the holding file, but it won't hurt to have them again (and some may have been lost in the shuffle). Unfortunately, there just hasn't been time to do update our Owner's Gallery (or customer feedback) for quite some time, but that work is certainly well past due. I will try to get to it this week or next. Please just send your best 2 or 3 pics and give us a brief description including location if possible.

As far as the website photos, it's a double edged sword. We want photos as far in advance of the bikes arriving as we can, so we have studio shots done overseas. These are usually done just before a shipment of bikes leaves the factory or shot from earlier samples when one exists. Sometimes we get very good results, and sometimes we do not. But, once the photos are made there is little recourse until the bikes arrive in the US.

The recent batch of Alpine photos we shot in China and did not come out particularly well. Those bikes are now in-stock in the US, but we've been swamped with filling orders on them. So, the prospect of building out samples and getting new photos shot is not high priority. We usually get better photo work on the Taiwan made bikes... which, BTW, will be all IBEX models from this point on. That recent batch of Alpines will be the last Chinese assembled IBEX's as we have expanded production capacity in Taiwan. Maybe we can also look forward to better photos!

Aside from the deserved criticism on some of the bike photos, I must say I really resent the comment that our website looks "unprofessional". We work very hard at making it look good without sacrificing functionality or user friendliness (such as the irritating Flash stuff mentioned). The fact is, most folks who go on our site are shopping for a bike and want to get right to the heart of the matter. We've engineered multiple navigation methods into the site so that virtually any approach to perusing our line-up is accomodated... whether you want to go top-down by category, direct to an individual model, by price, series or whatever. I think our site content is well organized and most any question you have about IBEX is addressed if you'll just take the time to look. The one thing we do not do with this is lay out models by drivetrain level because it becomes just so much BS. A Deore bike with an XT rear derailleur is NOT and XT bike. Internally, we would defer to the shifters as the default on a mixed drivetrain.

Admittedly, some sections are in need of updates like the Gallery or the Care & Repair section that is still a work-in-progress, but the active line-up info is updated almost daily. We're also working on adding a Buyer's Guide, rewriting the Sizing Help section, completing the Care & Repair section and adding PDF's of assembly instructions and links to component manuals. In other words, if the site seems "boring" it's because the focus is on info, not fluff.

Regards,
Jack A.
IBEX Bicycles
cool Jack... i think i'm gonna send in my pics too once i get them from the 2 photographers from the photo shoot the other day... :)
 
#15 ·
Here is a sample of a bike company that has decent pics, all pics are shot just outside their store, not a studio shot but decent enough to make the customers drool

http://www.smartcycles.com/intense_cycles.htm

IBEX peeps, sorry about any word that I used that dont seem right, as i say its a consumers point of view, of course the first time i googled mountain bikes, I saw, specialized, santa cruz, GT etc, and their website is unquestionable. Also you are right, running a business and updating the website for every new product is a total riot, but it should be along each other to attract more customers. Still your bikes are good bang for the buck.

just my 2 cents

PS. aside from IBEX & MOTO, is there any web-based bike company out there?
 
#16 ·
zackde said:
Here is a sample of a bike company that has decent pics, all pics are shot just outside their store, not a studio shot but decent enough to make the customers drool

thttp://www.smartcycles.com/intense_cycles.htm

IBEX peeps, sorry about any word that I used that dont seem right, as i say its a consumers point of view, of course the first time i googled mountain bikes, I saw, specialized, santa cruz, GT etc, and their website is unquestionable. Also you are right, running a business and updating the website for every new product is a total riot, but it should be along each other to attract more customers. Still your bikes are good bang for the buck.

just my 2 cents

PS. aside from IBEX & MOTO, is there any web-based bike company out there?
Intense bikes are nice... I'm not too sure about the Curnut shocks though but they have some really nice frames. the 6.6 would be a nice do it all bikel...

Aside from Ibex and Motobecane, Rscycle.com distributes Iron Horses for pretty cheap. Some of the stuff there i'd recommend like the 7points or the Sundays over the Ibex since Ibex had stop making their FR/DH bike... But imo, i think Ibex is still best bang for buck...
I'm glad i got one of the last Ibex Zones... :)
 
#17 ·
zackde said:
Here is a sample of a bike company that has decent pics, all pics are shot just outside their store, not a studio shot but decent enough to make the customers drool

http://www.smartcycles.com/intense_cycles.htm

IBEX peeps, sorry about any word that I used that dont seem right, as i say its a consumers point of view, of course the first time i googled mountain bikes, I saw, specialized, santa cruz, GT etc, and their website is unquestionable. Also you are right, running a business and updating the website for every new product is a total riot, but it should be along each other to attract more customers. Still your bikes are good bang for the buck.

just my 2 cents

PS. aside from IBEX & MOTO, is there any web-based bike company out there?
I think woodstock also sells online.

About the IBex site, it is very functional and not flashy(a good thing), but I think it is a pretty good site. Easy to navigate. Pictures can improve a bit, but all in all, user friendly.

What do you mean when you say their website is "unquestionable" -- I am sure they have an entire web team devoted to working on web pages.
 
#18 ·
Curnutt is Foes...not Intense

mrpercussive said:
Intense bikes are nice... I'm not too sure about the Curnut shocks though but they have some really nice frames. the 6.6 would be a nice do it all bike...
FYI-Curnutt is exclusive to Foes, not Intense

Otherwise...I think the Ibex website is intuitive and overall much easier to navigate than the Bikes Direct webpage that is cluttered, misleading, and busy.
 
#21 ·
mrpercussive said:
oooo darn i got the both of them mixed up... sigh... i've no idea why but it happens to me a lot... :madman: :madman: :madman:
Come on, you know damn well its because your a dummy..J/K..XD, I couldn't resist :lol:

I'm a little confused about Glenn the OP saying that a website needs to be like eye candy to attract potential customers, yet he bought a Fantom Comp from Bikes Direct website that he claims is "butt ugly"..
Go figure..:madman:
 
#22 ·
Jake Pay said:
I'm a little confused about Glenn the OP saying that a website needs to be like eye candy to attract potential customers, yet he bought a Fantom Comp from Bikes Direct website that he claims is "butt ugly"..
Go figure..:madman:
NOPE, MOTO's bike is ok, bidirects website is not good but after reading the forums & review, I decided to get a MOTO But for someone who doenst read reviews and only depends the decision on the website its kind hard to like the MOTOs. Yes image sells, as I post earlier, this is from a consumers point of view. :thumbsup:
 
#25 ·
Web Site Design

zackde said:
guys,

Im a comeback dad in MTB after a long time, after doing my research for my small budget, I end up on IBEX & MOTOBECANE bikes. I already bought one but I dont want to tell which brand coz I know the debate over this two brand is WAR! BIG TIME (as I read on the forums). My only observation is both these two bikes are big bang for the buck but both of their website is not so professional looking, thats why I love to use the term GENERIC BIKES when it comes to IBEX & MOTO.

I dont want to be flamed but as a consumers point of view, dont you have any plans of improving your websites? Some MOTOs pics (im referring to bikedirect.com vs ibexbikes.com) are better than IBEX, but the bike index on MOTOs are butt ugly

https://www.bikesdirect.com/products/mountain_bikes.htm

but this pic is a winner

https://www.bikesdirect.com/products/motobecane/images/fcp_07_1200.jpg

IBEX website is ok but bike pics are not that refined

https://www.ibexbikes.com/Bikes/ALP-550-Details.html

If you are selling stuffs online, two things are very important, nice website & good pictures. Just like selling on ebay.

Just my 2 cents, im a web based business owner too & I make sure my website is pleasing to customers.

MORE POWER to all ONLINE RETAILERS!!:thumbsup:
Hi

Thanks for your comments; I have read things like this before and it is very interesting.

Randell Scott also has an interesting site.

It is hard to know what design to use. The cost of a site is rather low; so it is easy to make it look however you want.

We find we have all kinds of customers and different types expect different things; including in web design.

There are technical types who buy specs; these customers generally are not driven by 'slick' sales pitches. They want to figure out the spec / price value ratio. These guys generally do not like our site; but buy if they think we have the best deal. These customers do not want to think of themselves as effected by web design but by bike design.

There are casual shoppers who just want to get a nice bike and move on to their next consumer product. Some of these shoppers like our easy to read, lively to look at feel -- and that our checkout is easy and straight forward. Some do not like our over the top use of colors and such. Casual shoppers either find something they want and click and buy OR move one to another site OR decide to go a shop.

We have a lot of brand driven purchasers also. There are way over a million Motobecanes on the road in the USA, some people just want one. Mercier, Bottecchia, Windsor, and even Dawes all also have a following. These customers are not too effected by our web design, they just want the brand that they want.

I have been thinking about re-designing our site for years. The truth is however; for the last 5 years we have always run out of bikes quicker than I can get more. Most of the time at least half our models are out of stock or have 'holes' in the size runs. {right now the bike pointed out above - Fantom Comp - we are out of most sizes}

In addition, we are starting to focus on mountain bikes even more than before. I will add 3 brands to what we stock and sell in mountain bikes by this time next year. And there are so many different types to add or expand with SS, XC, AM, FR, DH, 29er, DJ, -- It just goes on and on.

So with the current situation on bikes turning quicker than they can be replaced and with extra mountain brands to add and with our road stuff still selling faster than we can replace it -- it is hard to focus on web design.

The good news is: more customers realize how bikes are made.
Now everyone knows about components.
Frames people are staring to learn the truth about.
Many understand there are just a few quality frame factories that make most bikes you see. Now a few are starting to understand that these factories do not have different quality levels for different brands. In other words no one can go to Kinesis or Sunrise and say; give me grade A build on this frame and grade C on this one at lower price. Frame factories would think that was insane; as no factory has any option like that. The only way to cut frame cost is move its production from Taiwan to China OR to buy more per production run. And the frames from China are good and getting better {heck, top CF frames used by Cannondale, Specialized, Scott, Fuji are from Topkey in China}

If we ever catch up on inventory; I may get time to direct more attention to web design.
But I saw someone post about web work; if you are interested in some free lance give me a PM.

thanks again for the input

mike
 
#26 ·
Well, at least the folks at Bikes Direct took the constructive criticism a little better.


Ole Jack from Ibex can't take it apparently.

Oh, by the way Jack, your site looks unprofessional. ;)
 
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