I should first begin with a brief apology. A few weeks ago I posted my thoughts on the KCATA.org website. They weren’t the kindest, and I should have put myself in that designers shoes first. It’s tough designing and developing websites for large organizations; a lot of hands get in the pot and stir things up. I am sure that team did the best they could, and I shouldn’t have criticized the site. That being said, from here on out I shant criticize sites anymore. Flaws are often obvious and don’t need pointing out. If I don’t have something nice to write, I’ll keep it to myself.

Which brings me to the subject of this post: Electra Bikes. Holy moley are these bikes smooth and a complete joy to ride. As this posts headline states, though, it’s more than fantastic bikes that makes Electra great. They are an innovative company that seeks to restore the joy you had riding a bike as a kid.

I started riding my bike to work about three weeks ago. I don’t get to ride every week, but I ride most days. It’s a comfortable four miles each way, although mostly uphill from my office to my home. Before I got the bike in the picture I was riding a Trek 4500 – a great bike for riding trails and such. However, I wanted something more suited for commuting. Enter Jarrod Jarod McBride (twitter.com/concertman), he introduced me to Electra bikes (electrabike.com). The sleek design had me hooked immediately.

It wasn’t long on the site that I was looking for places in Kansas City that sold these bikes. I found a place near me and made my way there (Midwest Cyclery, on Broadway). Fortunately they had one in stock for me to test ride. I knew pretty quickly this was the bike I was looking for and it was in my price range. I still had some questions, though, and decided to ask them directly to Electra if I could.

This is also part of what makes them great, in my humble opinion: on Electra’s website, under the Contact heading you will not find a standard contact form. Instead you will find the names and actual email addresses of the people you may ask questions of. I emailed Elayne, in Marketing, because why not, right? Elayne replied to me within an hour and a half. Perfect. I was even more convinced this would be a company that would stand behind their bikes and offer exceptional service.

Naturally, the lack of contact form got me thinking about web usability. If you are a small business what does it hurt to put a name and email address on your contact page rather than a contact form? Chances are the contact form is just going to go straight to the person you would have the form direct to.

I can see if you need to get technical information from the user, such as browser and OS info, but if you are product oriented, or service oriented, small business like Electra adding a name and email address is a subtle way to build trust with your users and potential customers.

Anyway, I put my scooter up for sale on Craigslist since I had not been riding it and wouldn’t take the time to maintain it properly. Within a few days it sold and I ordered my Townie 21 original in black satin. I also ordered fenders for the tires and the rack on the back. Midwest assembled everything for me and called me yesterday to let me know it was all ready.

If you are looking for a new commuter bike I highly recommend Electra. Spend some time on their site. You will find it informative and full of pictures of their various bikes. Also, if you decide you want one, and you are in the KC area, talk to the guys at Midwest Cyclery, they are cool guys, one dude has a wicked moustache, and they will make sure you are happy with your bike before and after your first ride.