Well... 2021 has started with a bang at AO Towers.

Amongst several new client services coming online in January, we're happy to be recommending and working alongside Sky TV's AdSmart platform as we give our SME clients a big push into a sphere previously unattainable for several reasons, namely - financial and logistical.

For those that do not know, AdSmart is Sky’s internet-style ad product that offers brands the chance to target specific audiences during live TV ad breaks.

The platform has been building up a head of steam recently and is now a tremendous opportunity for brands to reach potential customers during times where TV consumption is at the peak of its powers.

Stay tuned for more news on some of our other service launches later this month.

AO x

Amazing to think that during some of the toughest times we as a human race have experienced since WW2, some industries have been absolutely booming. Cycling continues to grow and grow around the World and that is great news for jobs and the environment heading into 2021.

​Australian bike shops are struggling to keep up with the boom in sales since coronavirus restrictions came into force last month reports the Guardian.

“We’re the new toilet paper and everyone wants a piece,” Grant Kaplan, manager of Giant Sydney, a bike store in Sydney’s CBD, tells Guardian Australia.

“We can’t keep up with sales. Literally the phone is ringing nonstop,” he laughs, as another call came through in the background.

The store has had to stop servicing bikes – typically a major source of revenue – because its mechanics are overrun with putting together customers’ new purchases.

Marshall, who has worked in bike sales for the last four years, told Guardian Australia he would expect to see $10,000 in sales on a Saturday, but for the past two weekends “have done $40,000 each Saturday, with similar sorts of levels during the week as well”.

South Melbourne’s bikeNOW is seeing similar figures. Co-manager Nathan Ziino says they sold between 40 and 45 bikes last weekend, many of which are entry-level models costing $700 to $1,200.
 
Nathan Ziino of bikeNOW typically sells $4,000-$15,000 bikes to high-end clientele. But Ziino says most of the shop’s recent customers have been families wanting to stay active while social distancing.

“Families are sick of walking everywhere as their form of exercise. The kids are home from school or being home-schooled. If you go to a football oval and there are lots of people already there, you can’t go on [due to social distancing measures],” he says.
“But on your bike you are exercising and practicing social distancing.”

For others, coronavirus restrictions have finally given them the time to take up a new hobby.

“They talk as though they have been thinking about it, and now the ideal scenario has come up: they have the time of their hands, gyms are shut, pools are shut, so why not get a bike?”

Ziino predicts they will see a second rush of customers once social distancing measures are eased, consisting of those who have to start commuting to work again but don’t want to risk catching public transport.

AO x

Ch-ch-ch-ch-changes as one our our idols David Bowie famously once sang here at ​ActivelyOutdoors as we head out the door of what has been a successful 2019.

As we head and into 2020 with energy and swagger it is nice to be able to release our new logo with iconic mark as we plan some expansion into new areas. Tell us what you think in the comments below...

AO x

ActivelyOutdoors client Bianchi UK has launched a brand new magazine for 2020 - and it's a beauty!

Packed full of interesting cycling stories from around the globe, amazing photographs, detailed overview of the Bianchi bike range and you'll be able to go closer than your riding buddy to a big race win with an exclusive behind-the-scenes look inside the Grand Tour winning Jumbo-Visma team! 

The new coffee-table magazine is available in all official Bianchi UK dealers from October - be sure to head in to your local dealership for a copy.

AO x

ActivelyOutdoors' daily in-house media content, which is consumed by affluent wildlife observers and photographers - reached over 150,000 UK screens in July, a new record for the business. 🙌 😲

With events like Birdfair and shows such as Springwatch proving ever popular with UK viewers and people who are active outdoors, the need for digital content to engage with these audiences has grown significantly.

ActivelyOutdoors' core audience of digitally aware consumers aged 45-54 has helped brands such as Kowa, Swarovski Optik and ZEISS reach new customers in a much shorter time frame with time sensitive releases as opposed to traditional media methods.

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Chicken Cyclekit have announced they will use specialist media company ActivelyOutdoors for digital advertising services after being impressed with the companies growing reputation and body of work for cycling and lifestyle brands.

ActivelyOutdoors works with leading cycle publishers such as TI Media, F-At and Dennis on behalf of its growing client roster to maximise ad efficiency, value and creativity with the use of cutting-edge ad technology.

Alex Rowling, Chicken CycleKit’s Marketing Manager commented: “We are excited to be working with ActivelyOutdoors for 2019. Partnering with ActivelyOutdoors was an easy choice, their ad technology is second to none and they have an excellent knowledge of the bicycle industry and truly understand the needs of distributors and brands”.

James Hamilton, ActivelyOutdoors Owner said: “Delighted to be working with Chicken CycleKit - a progressive and forward-thinking distributor here in the UK. We look forward to helping them show off their range of products and brands through interesting ad creatives across the major cycle media and having an impact on these audience’ buying decisions.”

https://www.chickencyclekit.co.uk/
http://www.activelyoutdoors.co.uk

By James Hamilton, founder and director of ActivelyOutdoors.

Loyalty programmes are nothing new, from the punch cards at your local small business, the discount cards at your favourite supermarket and the vaunted success of Starbucks rewards.

Giving consumers an extra incentive to spend their money with you can not only get you a quick impulse sale, but also has the potential to gain lifelong loyalty with a growing base of consumers interacting with your brand.

As the way consumers pay for goods and services changes, so do the opportunities cycle marketers have to connect with them in a meaningful way. Yes, I’m talking about mobile wallets. Your smartphone is likely in your pocket (or in your hand) right now, but you probably haven’t fully leveraged its potential as either a consumer or a marketer.

The last five years have seen mobile payments launch in fits and starts, but digital wallets are finally gaining huge traction among consumers. According to a report by Zion Market Research, the global mobile wallet market value will reach $3.1 billion by 2022 with an annual growth rate of 32%, year over year. Last year, 54% of consumers used mobile wallets embedded in their smartphones through apps such as Apple Wallet, Android and Samsung Pay, and that number will only grow.

But what’s even more interesting is that more than half of those consumers expressed a desire to use their mobile wallets for functions other than payment. Things like digital loyalty cards, coupons, order delivery updates, boarding passes, ID cards, event tickets and even reminders about coupon expiration and loyalty card balances are all native elements of the mobile wallet ecosystem.

This means that in addition to building a lasting bond with your customers through a digital loyalty programme, you can now send them meaningful lock-screen reminders – say, before a discount coupon expires or if they are due a bike service, or even to just stop by the bike shop for a free coffee after a ride – while incentivising them to make a purchase decision. Think of it as mobile content marketing that’s always in the customer’s hand.

Because digital loyalty programmes can be stored within the mobile wallet and don’t require a physical card for consumers to lose or an account number to remember, they overcome the two biggest hurdles of loyalty programme longevity: consumers forgetting their cards or forgetting that they even signed up in the first place. Marketers can now remind consumers that they have a payment system embedded in the one item they never forget. With mobile payment technology, you’re a single push notification away from creating the next digital touchstone directly with consumers.

As mobile payments evolve and accelerate, so do the possibilities for marketing strategies and partnerships. Through location services, for example, retailers and brands/distributors are able to team up so that a purchase at a given shop location might generate a coupon for 10% the next time they pass by said shop.

As our everyday lives have become increasingly digitised and automated, mobile wallets and loyalty programmes
have become more relevant for cycle marketers and the consumers you’re trying to reach.

So if you haven’t yet, next time you reach to make a payment, check out the mobile wallet on your phone. Chances are, there’s a whole universe of opportunity waiting for you, and it’s sitting right there in your pocket.

Published in BikeBiz Magazine > https://www.bikebiz.com/the-evolution-of-mobile-wallets/

I-Ride have chosen ActivelyOutdoors to design, build and manage all the distributors digital advertising after being impressed with the companies portfolio of work for cycling and lifestyle brands.

Launched at the beginning of 2018 the creative business has overseen campaigns with leading publishers such as TI Media, F-At and Dennis for clients including Bianchi with the ambition of bringing premium brands to life through the use of cutting-edge ad technology and creativity.

With 24/7 digital engagement becoming more and more important to people who consume media researching their next purchase at any time of day or night, ActivelyOutdoors will use their know-how to better engage with I-Ride’s customers. Their work will see all brands from the distributor receive time and attention in order to deliver a great customer experience.

Adam Glew, I-Ride Marketing Manager commented: “We are excited to have ActivelyOutdoors on board, we really want to showcase our prestigious brands in the best way possible and this will help us achieve that. They have some great ideas already and we look forward to running some interesting and successful campaigns this year.”

James Hamilton, ActivelyOutdoors Owner commented: “I-Ride commit to huge sums of advertising activity each year with all the right publishing brands and we hope to just enhance these relationships by maximising the potential of advertising space for their brand portfolio and giving their customers the best experience and choice. Our work is hugely satisfying and bringing a brand and products to life via digital advertising is something we love doing.”
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https://www.i-ride.co.uk/

ActivelyOutdoors will launch two new competitions in January 2019. The ‘Wall Of Fame Bird Photography Competition’ and the ‘Wall Of Fame Wildlife Photography Competition’ will be open for entries from 10th January 2019 and will be hosted on Birding247.co.uk and Wildlife247.co.uk respectively.
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The innovative bird and wildlife competitions will be sponsored by leading optical instruments manufacturer, SWAROVSKI OPTIK and will be open to all UK residents, aged 18 years and above.
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Entrants will submit images featuring birds and wildlife in their natural habitats via social media with the aim of encouraging others to engage with the natural world around them. The winners will receive new binoculars from SWAROVSKI OPTIK and the Wall Of Fame awards 2019.
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James Hamilton, Founder of ActivelyOutdoors, said: ‘What a great way for everyone to start 2019! Taking part in a competition that encourages a healthy lifestyle, to walk outside in the fresh-air and to enjoy and observe all that nature has to offer. Photo sharing on popular social media platforms is inspiring young and old to get more active outdoors and to enjoy the natural world around them, that is why we wanted to create something that people of all amateur photographic abilities could partake in. We will be displaying the best images on our websites for all to see - in the Wall of Fame. I must say a BIG thank you to SWAROVSKI OPTIK for tagging along for the ride and providing some tremendous prizes worth nearly £3,000 - wow!’

Peter Antoniou, Country Manager UK & Rep of Ireland, SWAROVSKI OPTIK said: “I am really pleased to announce the sponsorship of the Wall of fame on Birding247.co.uk and Wildlife247.co.uk. This competition I hope will encourage people of all abilities to pick up their camera and be inspired by the wonderful British countryside. We sometimes take for granted the diversity of the wildlife we have in the UK, so I am really looking forward to seeing the variety of the images submitted. I would like to take this opportunity to wish you all the best of luck, but more importantly to encourage you to get out and enjoy the British Countryside.”

bit.ly/WOF2019_Birding247
bit.ly/WOF2019_Wildlife247

Oculus - Facebooks VR hardwear and software - is gearing up for the festive season by debuting a new ad campaign starring Jonah Hill, Wiz Khalifa, Adam Levine, Behati Prinsloo, Leslie Jones, and Awkwafina.

Dubbed “See It in VR”, the series of TV spots shows how each entertainer prefers to experience VR as they’re taking in their favourite movies, shows, concerts, and live sporting events.

We see Jonah Hill and Adam Levine court-side at an NBA game, Wiz Khalifa watching himself in concert, Awkwafina diving into The Handmaid’s Tale, and Leslie Jones enjoying a love scene from The Shape of Water.

In addition, the new Oculus Go campaign delves into the co-watching feature which allows viewers/friends/loved ones to experience VR together like never before, even when they’re not in the same room! Begging the question, how quickly will features like this spread to other forms of hobbies and interests, such as watching wildlife or cycling in a grand tour?

As Bianchi UK's exclusive digital ad agency - we recently made and launched a new rich media ad campaign using AO's MarTech to raise new product awareness, promote social accounts and drive test ride requests of Bianchi's astonishing new disc bike range across desktop and mobile devices.

Using rich ad media has enabled Bianchi UK to promote four new bikes in the same ad unit - each with their own unique URL embedded into the creative while allowing potential customers to watch and enjoy a teaser video with leading pro rider Primož Roglič. Very cool stuff. We suppose this is the equivalent to an inside front cover, back cover and fancy pullout thing in paper form, all in the same issue - but without all that cost!

If you would like to discuss how AO can help your brand, feel free to drop us a line.

AO can confirm we will be at the Cycle Show 2018 and look forward to meeting old and new friends on the trade day (Thursday 27th). 

If your brand are attending and would like to hear more about our growing reputation in the MarTech space for premium advertising experiences alongside high quality content from publishing partners - please feel free to drop us a line for a meeting slot.

Ciao! 👌 

Last friday (17 August 2018), we saddled the horses (packed the car up, basically) and made the trip to England's smallest historic county of Rutland for Birdfair 2018.

We where there to help our various customers with their marketing strategies and produce more branded content for their respected product blogs and web pages.

A well run and enjoyable show it was too, and along the way we met some great people/staff from leading brands, fellow publishers and tour operators. We even managed to consume one of the largest and best full-english breakfasts known to man at Hungry Birds cafe in Oakham. If you haven't been to either, we would highly recommend!

Until next year Birdfair - adieu.

It was nice to be asked by our friends at trade cycle mag, Cy​cling Industry News to contribute to their myth busting feature on affiliate marketing this week. ?? Along with industry leading figures in consumer special interest mags / publishers such as Immediate Media, daily deals and Singletrack, ActivelyOutdoors was asked to contribute: How to succeed in affiliate marketing if you’re an IBD: 6 tips ?

Follow the link below to read the full feature... oooh yes!