Trek Relies on Mac to Get the Message Out

Apple has had a chat with the folks at Trek Bicycle Corporation to see why their business needs the Mac to move forwards and deliver. Trek high-ups have revealed that, first and foremost, the Mac helps them communicate their message.

The global leader in bicycle design, innovation, and manufacturing, produces and sells a wide range of bicycles to match the needs of every rider out there. Trek Bicycle Corporation creates bikes for professional bike racers (like 2008 Giro d'Italia Champion and Trek-athlete Alberto Contador), recreational riders, or even commuters, who use a bicycle as a daily mode of transportation. The company has over 1,700 retail locations throughout the U.S. and Canada, but also has subsidiary offices in Europe and Asia. Some other 90 distributors are scattered in countries around the globe.

The company is headquartered in Waterloo, Wisconsin. John Burke, President at Trek Bicycle, told Apple: "The Mac is really helping us on the communication front. Now we're using tools on video, we're using podcasting to take that message and really get it to our retailers, but also directly to the consumers, so you're building demand right with the consumers, so they're walking into the retailers, asking for the product."

Trek's marketing group is exclusively focused on Macs, said Derek Deubel, Director of Marketing Services at Trek Bicycle. The Mac has allowed Trek to make much better products, in a shorter time, the company's president added, but most importantly, it has really allowed them "to get the message out."

Basically, what Trek needs is to communicate technical features of new products to sales and dealer networks around the world. This, the company's president revealed, is best achieved with Macs. In conjunction with design agency Planet Propaganda, Trek Bicycle Corporation takes designs created in Adobe Photoshop and Adobe Illustrator, and combines them with video in Final Cut Studio to deliver video podcasts. Afterwards, the podcasts are made available to their sales teams and dealer networks around the world. They use a password protected extranet site, according to Apple Hot News. Video podcasts are ultimately viewable on devices ranging from a home computer, to the iPod and iPhone.