We chose Atleta for a complete rebranding of our events.
Internation Cycling Events
An interview with Carlo van Nistelrooy. Director of International Cycling events, chairman of the Bikewriters, old rocker and a good cyclist.
Carlo is a marketer at heart, having gained much experience as a publisher in the Netherlands and beyond. As a participant with the Bikewriters in the Tour for Life, he thought: great event, but cyclists who do not ride for a good cause want this too.
Not much later, he got in touch with Bert Cocu from Emolife, and the first event, 'The Ride', became a reality. Carlo and Bert together established the International Cycling foundation, under which events such as The Ride, The Ride Pyrenees, The Ride Dolomites, The Ride Gravel, Gravel Fest, LtD Gravel Raid, Flanders Gravel and Meewind Koers fall. An impressive list, and what stands out is the share of gravel events.
“We quickly realized that gravel is the future in cycling. We came into contact with Laurens ten Dam and came up with LtD Gravel Raid’
“Yes, that's right, we quickly realized that gravel biking is the future of cycling. We got in touch with Laurens ten Dam and came up with LtD Gravel Raid. A weekend full of gravel fun, good food, drinks, and entertainment. A completely different experience of cycling. Not the serious attitude that road cyclists can have, but just having fun. It really took off straight away. Besides early adapters, road cyclists also joined in who were looking for more freedom, nature, and less traffic. And my role is different there as well. At The Rides, I am primarily the 'Course Director' and quite visible to the participants on the road and during the evening program.
My daily task leading up to the events mainly consists of driving and supporting the various events. I am responsible for the marketing strategy together with the marketers from Emolife and also for recruitment and engagement with sponsors. Because without sponsors, it's not possible to organize our beautiful events.’
The start
It all starts with passion. Carlo is a gifted cyclist who also occasionally participates in races. After a long career as an (international) publisher, he decided that a change was needed. He took the plunge, started International Cycling Events, and turned his biggest hobby into his work.
“I decided to collaborate with Emolife who already had a lot of experience with the organization and marketing of multi-day cycling events for good causes including KiKa. We had no need for staff nor to reinvent the wheel. To this day, that choice works well, and we work alongside a number of hired professionals with many passionate volunteers.’
Online
Coming up with a cycling event is one thing, getting participants is another. You mainly find them online with targeted marketing campaigns aimed at the right audiences. For this, Stichting ICE collaborates with online marketers from Emolife and ICE uses the tools One Community (CRM) and Atleta for support.
“Right from the start, we chose a good CRM system and a user-friendly online registration tool. It's super important to manage your leads and convert them into participants. Initially, we worked with One Community in combination with online forms, later we switched to Atleta for the registration. Also a product from the makers of One Community. Never regretted it because we could segment, analyze, and make better choices about what works and what doesn't to our heart's content. Moreover, we offer our participants many upgrade possibilities, which should be easy to handle and also friendly for our administration. And honestly, it is quite tough to establish a good cycling event sustainably in the market. After all, you do want the event to be a keeper and grow. Usually, we succeed, but sometimes it does go wrong, of course. It’s part of it.’
The Ride
A bike ride from the Stelvio to Valkenburg in 8 days is the big attraction of Stichting ICE. In 2022, the peloton will first ride from the Ventoux to the Cauberg, and due to all the Corona troubles, the 2020/2021 edition takes place from the French Alps. The Ride has by now built quite a reputation in the cycling world. As a cyclist, you really must have done this ride at least once.
“Looking back, I am most proud of this event and what we have achieved together with the main sponsor Shimano and the other sponsors. A well-oiled organization that primarily lets the participants cycle along the most beautiful routes and takes care of everything else for the participants. You just need to cycle and enjoy.’
Kim Cocu senior event manager of all ICE events, former top athlete, previously event manager of charity events such as Tour for Life and Run for KiKa Marathon. Has a nice racing bike but doesn't ride it much anymore due to busyness.
Atleta
“Recently I also started working with Atleta. I started later due to my pregnancy with our twins. The user-friendliness compared to the registration options of One Community immediately stands out. You have a great overview of all events and editions. Not unimportant because we have many repeaters. The new feature of Atleta, which enhances the integration with your event site, took some getting used to but is great. You simply stay in the environment of your site and Atleta beautifully adapts its style and colour scheme to our sites.
What I also find important is that Atleta has arranged everything concerning privacy well. Atleta works with large parties such as the Amsterdam Marathon and Dam tot Damloop. Gives peace of mind, so we can focus on the marketing and organisation of our various events.’
Upgrades and products
Organizing events is no longer just about arranging the registration well. It is also about offering upgrades, products, and possibilities, such as transferring your ticket to another person or cancelling under certain conditions.
“We offer countless combinations of ticket options and upgrades for our events. That took an incredible amount of time, research and administration before using Atleta. With Atleta, this is set up perfectly and saves us so much time!“
Partners and sponsors
Not unimportant at ICE events are the partners and sponsors. They often receive tickets and VIP packages as part of the sponsorship package.
“What our partners and sponsors are happy with is the ability for them to directly manage the tickets for their relationships in Atleta. Think also of discount codes etc.
And what makes me very happy are the features like down payments, convenient because we sell tickets with a value of €1500. Not everyone can or wants to pay that all at once. Participants automatically receive the payment requests spread over several periods. We work a lot with Earlybird periods, Atleta automatically adjusts the price, I don’t have to quickly adjust a price at midnight...
For us, it is also important that we are heard by the people behind Atleta when requesting new features. And if it adds something for other customers, they develop that feature. Without any extra costs incidentally. Atleta is super easy to budget. You only pay a percentage over the financial transactions.
Lastly, I mention the refunding of tickets, which can happen, especially in Corona times. That is also a breeze, with one press of the button it is quickly done. Administration happy, we happy, and the participant happy. What more could you want.”
