Open Letter To Tony Post, CEO, Vibram FiveFingers USA

Dear Mr. Post:
I've purchased two pairs of Vibram FiveFingers in recent weeks -- first the EOS, then EOS Trex. Sure, I've been told I look like everything from a monkey to a cat burglar but, from day one, I've felt myself transmogrifying into one of those wackos capable of saying things like, "these shoes have changed my life." To wit, I actually enjoy running.

Of course, you don't need me to tell you that your best, er, only marketing has been your customer's word of mouth. But why not make better use of it? I've been stopped by several dozen strangers who want to know 1. What are those things you're wearing? 2. Do you like them?; 3. Where did you get them? 4. How much do they cost?

How about equipping me, and everyone else who'd like to participate, with business cards that we could give to these people with that basic information along with the name and address (and website address, if applicable, as in the case of my source, Eastern Mountain Sports) of a nearby retailer. If the person hands in the card at purchase, they get a, say, 5% discount. And I get, say, 5% off my next pair of FiveFingers for the steer.

And for those times when we find ourselves communicating with someone who has the same mobile OS and fondness for every gimmicky app that's out there, how about something for our smartphones that would allow us to bump-and-run the information?

I know that you're having enough trouble as it is keeping up with demand, as CNNMoney reported in August, and that you've also got your hands full battling knock-offs, but how about making it easier for those who "have a sense of ownership about the brand" to get in and out of the grocery store without having to deliver the same testimonial time and again?

See you on the trail,

Thom

Sidebar: Christopher McDougall's Born to Run (Knopf, 2009) is widely credited with popularizing the barefoot-running craze in the U.S. With a lot of interesting diversions, it tells the tale of an formerly unheralded ultramarathon among elite runners in the desolate Copper Canyons of Mexico, where the reclusive Tarahumara Indians practice the lost art that allowed hominids to, for millions of years, run down their meals. The Tarahumara run in hand-crafted sandals that provide no "support."

Among the diversions are some entertaining marketing tales, including the sponsorship from hell. In 1994, a mercurial promoter named Rick Fisher brought a few Tarahumara to the U.S. to race in the grueling Leadville 100.

He arranged a sponsorship deal with Rockport for a new, banana yellow racer with thick soles it was introducing. But Fisher would not allow anyone, including Rockport executives led by then-marketing chief Tony Post, to photograph the winning Tarahumara without coughing up additional bucks. (Never mind that all the Tarahumara had quickly shed their thick-soled Rockports on the trail).

There's also a section about running coach Bill Bowerman inventing the heel-to-toe running stride and then, with runner-turned-entrepreneur Phil Knight, parleying that into the Nike brand. The whole premise of barefoot running is that we are not genetically engineered to land our heels, which do not absorb shock very well.

In calling the Nike marketing strategy brilliant, McDougall quotes a financial columnist who wrote: "The same man created a market for a product and then created the product itself. It's genius, the kind of stuff they study in business school."

So, who else has created the market and then the product? And who else is not utilizing an obvious marketing channel to its fullest?

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2 comments about "Open Letter To Tony Post, CEO, Vibram FiveFingers USA ".
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  1. Alec Beckett from Nail Communications, December 6, 2010 at 10:04 a.m.

    Nice article Thom. And next time someone asks about your FiveFingers, tell them to check out YouAreTheTechnology.com. The site is intended to explain the philosophy of natural running while giving you an excuse you ogle hot naked people.

  2. Jim Simpson, December 7, 2010 at 10:23 a.m.

    Hey Thom, great article. Thank you very much for your passion and support of the brand, we really appreciate it. We actually have that sort of card in place. If you contact our customer service department, any one of our reps will gladly send out a stack of Ambassador Cards for you to hand out to your new friends. These cards have no monetary value, but will spread the word of Vibram FiveFingers and give consumers our official website to visit for any information regarding our product.

    Please feel free to contact us at 978.318.0000
    Thank you.
    Jim Simpson
    Customer Service Manager

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