[ratso]

do some of these companies have any? saw on 6moons that dared audio have a new amp out, so i clicked on it. i was taken to possibly the WORLD'S WORST website and saw a unit that i would actually like to purchase. no info was given on how/where to purchase, so i clicked on the email link for sales. the next day i got a response that the email link was dead. so i called the sales contact number, which happens to be up the street from me. "HELLO?" was the response i got. ummm, yes is this the dared sales office? "YES." well could i get info about buying an amp? "well, are you a dealer?". no i am not. "Well, we only sell to dealers." okay, who are your dealers? "Well, we will have dealers after march." okay, will you have this up on your website? "No, not on our website. we will announce them at the trade show in los vegas if you want to come to our booth." ok, goodby.

....

WTF?

this got me thinking of all the questionable business practices i've seen SOME (no, not all or even most) audio companies pull. websites are a great example. LAMM sells amps that cost, what literally 100K or so, and they spend like $12 putting there website together? vandersteen seems to use the same setup. how about websites like prima luna that makes you click on 20 different buttons just to look at an amp (and then you get to the end and it says something like 'no models'). or a million different manufacturer's websites i've gone to where half the links are broken? are we really supposed to purchase from these guys? i'm not a website designer or anything, but my friend is and it's not like it costs a ton of money to host a proper website. it smacks me as just a blatant lack of professionalism. i remember one manufacturer here at audiocircle that put out i believe it was a preamp that everyone raved about but a year or so after it's release the only way to get info on it was to call him, because he had never bothered to put it on his website.

what kind of business sense is this? i understand that these people are amp designers. but i've started my own business, and there is a lot more to it than just building a decent widget. you have to take the time and effort to do the other things (like marketing) that are required to run a business. if you are unwilling or unable, then get someone to do it for you. why is this so rampant in the audio world?

[AB]

Good rant. I agree.

What, exactly, do you have against capitalization?

 

[ratso]

capitalization is the opiate of the masses

[JohnR]

I suspect that part of it is their business model - if they have or are looking for a dealer network, they probably don't see spending a lot of money on their website as being a priority. The cost is not the hosting, it's getting it made. And then getting it updated.

[ratso]

so the local coffee store on my corner can have a nice clean updated website to keep their customers informed but the guys selling hundred thousand dollar amps can't?

[Gaara]

I wouldn't think their customer base would use the site.  I don't see some rich guy looking at a site and saying, "hey those look nice, I think I will drop $100k on some speakers this weekend".  Instead they have a dealer who gives them guidance on what to buy, and tells them what is good.

I can understand the rant when it comes to Dared, not so much on the really high end gear.

[wilsynet]

Can't speak for Dared, no idea why they can't sell you an amplifier.  If they can't provide a list of dealers to you, then they should sell it to you direct, because it's clearly the right thing to do.  This happens to companies that apparently don't actually want to sell things.

Red Wine Audio, run by Vinnie Rossi, is an example of an audio company with lots of business sense.  Here are some examples of smart things that Vinnie does:

1. He only announces pricing of product when he has availability of product.

2. He only announces availability of product when he can deliver product.  Sometimes it's a 3 day wait, and sometimes it's a 6 week wait, no doubt somewhat dependent on the current ebb and flow of orders and resources.

3. He doesn't have an endless series of upgrades, preferring to spend more time up front to deliver the final product.  If a product is going to be replaced, it's not a minor change, but a major one.  Some audio manufacturers have a new upgrade for the same product (new caps, new rectifier, new power supply) multiple times in a year, or within months after release of the first iteration.

4. Whenever it makes sense to do so, he provides an upgrade path, giving you full credit for the previous component.  This keeps used RWA components off Audiogon as much as possible, drives new customers in the door, and keeps old customers returning.

5. Discounts for returning customers.  For example, 10% off his preamplifier if you already own his amplifier.  Once again, he's trying to make it easy for old customers to keep coming back.

6. A professonal web site.  Clean design, very informative, provides links to additional resources, and you can check-out via a PayPal shopping cart.  No need to email Vinnie to request up to date pricing, no need to get his PayPal email address -- just click a button and be on your way.

7. Whenever he releases a new product, he's sure to line up at least a couple of reviewers.  More than a couple of audio manufacturers have said to me "I don't want my stuff reviewed as a bad review can ruin you."  Indeed it can, but avoiding reviewers altogether I think is not the answer either.

8. Emails from Vinnie are always short and to the point.  He doesn't waste your time with long emails and he doesn't try to be your friend.

9. Vinnie does his best to set the right expectations.  Under-promising and over-delivering is *much*, *much* preferable to over-promising and under-delivering.  He once told me it would take 6 weeks to deliver a unit to me, and indeed it did take 6 weeks.  I was hoping for 4, and he could have told me 4, but then he would have been wrong and I would have been disappointed.