We measured what Dutch people think of six different cycling-related commercials and whether the commercials aroused the desire to go cycling. The various commercials were from Fietsenwinkel.nl, Decathlon, Stella Fietsen, Giant, Bike Totaal and Batavus, with the Bike Totaal commercial receiving the best rating: an average score of 8, while the lowest scoring commercial received a 5.9. The Bike Totaal commercial also ensures the highest “enthusiasm for cycling” of all commercials: an average score of 7.8.

We further asked for the first thoughts of viewers who had just watched the commercials. At Bike Totaal there were many interesting thoughts that were often in line. For example, one of the viewers indicated that it evoked this feeling in him: “Wonderful on the bike, towards freedom, sun and a terrace.” It was also indicated several times that it is clearly aimed at all types of cyclists: “It shows the diversity of customer groups and therefore directly the diversity of bicycle products. ”

An area for improvement that was mentioned several times was that the music was old-fashioned and did not fit the commercial. This is a point of advice: keep the images, sounds, and music in harmony so that it creates a consistent image.

After the competition, we spoke with Sharon Jeths, communications coordinator at Bike Totaal, about how this commercial came about and what the thinking behind this commercial is. Sharon indicated: “Bike Totaal sells cycling fun, not just cycling. In 2017 we wanted to convey this pay-off to consumers through a new strategy. Edwin Hop and Arjan Leest from Giesbers Communicatie Groep subsequently translated this into 'We love cycling'. Of the three concepts they came up with for a new communication strategy, everyone was immediately enthusiastic about this one, which makes it clear that Bike Totaal is for everyone. It now appears that this was the right choice, because 3 years later the slogan 'We are for it' is still relevant.”

In addition, Sharon indicates that it is clear that most viewers clearly understood what Bike Totaal wanted to convey with this commercial: “With the advertisement we try to convey that the various target groups know that they can go to Bike Totaal's 150 stores for all types of bicycles, bicycle parts and bicycle accessories. When consumers think of Bike Totaal, they mainly think of bicycles for daily use, but 80% of the stores also have a sporty range. For example, we wanted to indicate this with this advertisement by adding images of sporty cyclists. Bike Totaal loves cycling, in the broadest sense of the word.”

We congratulate Bike Totaal on the first place and also thank the many reviewers for giving their opinion.

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