Yet another
tirade has arrived from the company that makes Joe Rocket motorcycle gear.
Earlier this year, I got a direct message on Twitter saying, in effect,
“We appreciate your disclosure (see my profile below) but you have to stop
using this Twitter name.” I replied with my own direct message, calling them
rude.
Here
is what my profile page looks like. How is it possible that anyone would
be confused?
Joe
Rocket
I'm twisted (it's all
in the wrist!) I AM NOT affiliated with the company that makes and sells Joe
Rocket motorcycle gear. I own a ton of it though.
They don't like the
fact that I have been tweeting for the past 4 or 5 years using the name @JoeRocket.
I think what really pisses them off is that I have over 7 times the followers
and I don't even really try to build my network. If I had resources and a
budget, perhaps some swag to give away or some contests, I think I could do a
lot better than 181 followers!
Here are their latest
offensive messages, in order:
"@JoeRocket
character popped up on my radar yesterday. I am taking steps to have him taken
off Twitter. Jumping through their hoops to get this done
today."
Yes, they sent that to ME. That was late in October and then today
I get this:
"Ahhhh now I
see. Seeing your Sturgis link it's safe to assume you are the
"character" I've been looking for behind @JoeRocket. What possibly
(sic) benefit is there to assuming the name of a brand you have no affiliation
with whatsoever?"
Character? Am I? Maybe I am a fan, or at least I was. Now, all that is soured. I won't ever buy
another piece of their gear and am giving thought to selling, discarding or
donating anything with their brand name on it. Sadly, ALL of my and my wife's gear is Joe Rocket brand. Let's see, it's been three jackets and three pairs of over pants, plus a set of leathers.
I'm sure
that their Marketing Director Steve Blakeney is thinking that all my Twitter friends
and fans are following me mistakenly,
thinking I am them, the company that owns that brand. I disagree. I
have never pretended to be anything other than just another rider. A
regular guy who gets on his bike as often, and for as far as he can go. Steve,
since you're monitoring my blog now, let me ask, do you even ride?
A dozen
years ago, I made the mistake of investing a big chunk of money in riding gear,
bags, etc. for my first trip to Nova Scotia. All of it was festooned with
the Joe Rocket name. At the time, I was astride my Kawasaki Ninja and all
it took was one look from a Harley rider for me to be christened "Joe
Rocket". Truth be told, it eventually got shortened to Rocket, for
the ease of use. Back in 2007 when
Twitter was relatively new, I thought why not? This is how my friends
know me. Soon, I was writing this blog and reaching people everywhere who share
a love of the open road with two wheels under them.
When
I search Twitter, I see about 25-30 people using some variation of the Joe
Rocket name. Why? Because we
are/were fans. We like the gear, we
strap it on when we go out for a ride or on a tour. And we advertise that company as we do
it. I have been brand loyal to Joe
Rocket since that first set of leathers.
Does Sullivan's, Inc. want to shut down all of those accounts or just mine,
so they can use it instead of the more descriptive @JoeRocketGear?
The real
issue here is my Twitter and blog network. If I cave in
and Sullivans, Inc (owners of the Joe Rocket and Power Trip brands) has my account
closed, then I lose all of my faithful followers, the people I follow and my online
connections. It was a year ago that I corresponded with Mr. Blakeney
TELLING HIM that I was tweeting as @JoeRocket. I guess he had his head up
his ass that day or, didn't bother to read my email or review my offer to
assist them grow their social media presence.
At this point, I'm not sure of the
resolution. I won’t give up my contacts so that they can be cadged by the
rude Marketing Director who is trying to breathe life into his social media
campaign. I’m sure you wouldn’t want me
to either.
Do me a favor, if you agree that I’m being
treated unfairly. Retweet this blog link
to your friends and ask them to read this and pass it along as well. It’s a cautionary tale for any fan of any
company or brand. If you disagree, I
welcome your opinion too, and would like to hear what you think is the best way
to resolve this.
One last thing…Maybe the folks at Sullivans owe an explanation about the origin of the Joe Rocket name. I wonder how they came up with that?
Thanks for listening and, as always…
A low, slow wave,
Joe Rocket
