Pearl Izumi Ad: Working It.

Posted on April 4, 2011 by mikedudgeon

Pearl Izumi: Working It

Wow. Props to Pearl Izumi for flying the “freak flag” in their most recent campaign. If you missed May’s issue of Bicycling, you missed real porn versus bike porn. Trying to stand out in the sameness of cycling marketing, Pearl is flashing some skin. Where is the 60 second commercial on Versus and Universal Sports?

As entertaining as the print ad is, I couldn’t get past how it felt like if your mom sat down in the living room during the lesbian scene from Black Swan…out of place. I am no prude but the hyper-sex of the ad left me thinking “really?” in so many ways. I kept thinking about a quote from the “Father of Advertising” David Ogilvy:

A good advertisement is one which sells the product without drawing attention to itself. – David Ogilvy

First, sex should be left to cycling’s cousin the motorcycle. Being a cyclist will not get you game. I am sure all cyclists wish it would increase opportunities with the opposite sex but probably not happening in any cycling kit. Until bicyclists have saloons opened specifically for them, sex should be left out of the conversation.

Second,  making Pearl Izumi a sexy brand is similar to McLovin being an Irish R&B singer…not happening. Pearl makes quality clothing at a decent price. My Pearl Izumi winter tights have kept me warm during the cold Chicago months for the past 3 years. I have heard the annoying “Go, Lance” with them on but no one has ever said…”sweet tights”.

As brands communicate to cyclist they should focus on benifit without the fornication props…just the facts and a vision of how it will actually make my life better.

Love the attempt Pearl…keep it up.

About mikedudgeon

I am a recent convert (2008) to the cycling world and have taken a serious liking to everything cycling. It's a fascinating community to follow and be a member of. My day job is at LinkedIn where I collaborate and lead marketers and ad agencies to best communicate with our members. The purpose of this blog is to bring a subjective opinion around the business of cycling. No one seems to be covering the subject and I feel my background in "business" and curiosity in cycling can provide a unique perspective for consumers and leaders in the industry. The business of cycling is a broad topic and I hope narrow it down even further as I explore. My subjects will be brands, products, events, non-profits, athletes, media and the interesting. The focus will be on analyzing and providing an opinion on how these businesses go to market and how us the consumers interact with them...in hopefully a much more entertaining way than I just stated. My inspiration for this blog comes from my business coach Josh Kaufman and from All Things Digital (former employer when I worked for Dow Jones). I feel both bring integrity to their content and fresh perspective to their industries...and they're both damn fun and enriching reads. I hope my read for you will be equaling rewarding. Ethical Statement: I own no stock in any of these companies or related to anyone...unless it is a long lost cousin I do not know about. I have not accepted any free products unless through race swag. I think that covers it...except to say that I am a sucker for great marketing and design but feel the product always wins. #winner
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2 Responses to Pearl Izumi Ad: Working It.

  1. Pingback: The Spokesmen 65 – The Joke’s On Us « The Spokesmen Cycling Roundtable Podcast

  2. Kimberly Menozzi says:
    August 10, 2011 at 10:22 pm

    I have one comment to make in response to what you said in paragraph three. Trust me on this: plenty of cyclists will “get game” from women who find cyclists especially appealing.

    Just sayin’.

    Reply

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