I agree, it's initally confusing, and bothersome. |
They got you to look. From a pure marketing standpoint, it sounds like their strategy works. |
Unless you are a showcase dealer there is no other place to post ads on the site.
This is why there is now a choice to select "NEW" for the condition of the item being advertised rather than only the 1-10 rating.
Also, many mfr's have strict rules about what an item can be advertised for,
especially on the NET, and they are within their legal rights to do so. This also helps
the resale value of the used items and the products overall appeal; products that are blown out all over the place usually also have very poor resale value and poor appeal, or very short lived appeal since they are usually only being bought because they are cheap, not because they are necessarily what the person needs (high turn over on such items is very typical, hence the poor resale value for the same). What a dealer sells an item for vs what it is being advertised for is something else all together.
Now that you have mentioned this issue here people will no doubt search out this dealers ads.
You just increased the views his ads will get and increased his odds for a sale (this is as predictable as Old Faithful). Next time contact the party in question directly and they might take action, otherwise it just looks like a rant by someone that wants to be heard for any reason.
BTW, maybe he would agree with you and not post the ads in the same fashion
16 ads at $5 each that might be posted out of place is not a very good $80 good investment.
Lastly, if you are looking for used items and a dealer only sells them new why would he be interested in "building any good will" with parties that will not be his customer anyway?
Kind of a mute point. Think about it.
Good luck with your search. |
From a marketing standpoint "they did get you to look" is good, but very annoying nonetheless. As I get older "somewhat"; have come to the conclusion that it is my money they want. Have to wonder how much they make versus my negative comments about said company?; expressed this to a friend in regards to the "250 Rule". Annoyed also, but better listening, Charlie |
Brian,
You made a number of good points. Here are a few observations:
-a single ad per line, listing models carried would seem to suffice for a retailer.
-perhaps others find the new "new" designation useful, but personally I hope it does not lead to more ads of the type I described. Consider what a useless mess the classified section would be if every retailer listed an ad for every model of every line they carried.
-As you mention, Audiogon has a few other, albeit perhaps more expensive, avenues for retailers to advertise new equipment. I had always thought, perhaps wrongly, that the classifieds were primarily a section for advertising used gear.
-You are absolutely right: this was a rant! (I am not looking to become anyone's marketing consultant.)
-I purchased 80% of my equipment and cables new, including a Bel Canto Dac I bought from you, and with which I should mention I received great service. Whether or not other potential customers might also get a little annoyed at paging through these types of ads, and whether retailers are concerned, I cannot answer.
Thanks for the info.,
C. |
Audiogon is supposed to be a Public Form. Same rules for everyone. Maybe Audiogon would consider a section for "NEW" equipment. Or maybe thay could create some criteria that each member would fill out. Kinda like a dating service, but for audio. Then if a member only wants to read a certian type of add, only those would appear when you brouse. You could choose a Blonde or Redhead.
Kinda sounds like FUN!!! |
I'd like to weigh in on the "they got you to look" notion. This equates somewhat to the "how stupid can we make the ad" approach on television. If your attention is grabbed, it is considered a victory by many. In my case, at least, "getting me to look" and/or "grabbing my attention" only stells my resolve NOT to buy from that advertiser or patronize their product. In the case of the classifieds on 'Gon, it reduces the desire I have to "graze" there.
If this advertising spam doesn't bother others, fine. If it does, don't buy from them and let the "powers that be" at the 'Gon know of your distaste for the practice. |
Some dealers (and individuals) are posting ridiculously cheap prices for used equipment and then "or best offer" ($10.00 OBO). Turns out that what they are doing is running AN OPEN ENDED AUCTION (no ending date) and taking offers with a bidding-up process!!! This is a sleazy abuse of a "for sale ad" and should be posted correctly as AN AUCTION, NOT AS A FOR SALE AD! I wonder why Audiogon has not taken any action to prevent this abuse? |
Fatparrot makes a good point. Another is those ads similar to a currnet one under dealer demos for tube amps. "Someone's lucky day, special price, $1.00". Then following the links takes you to a $19,900 retail amp for the bargain price of $14,995.
All this brings up the possibility that ad postings might be better segmented on the 'Gon. On the other hand, I appreciate that things should be as open as possible and that people and dealers should act within a certain, self-enforced decorum, without resorting to the use of a "heavy hand". Most individuals and dealers here are as honest as the day is long (though my days seem to be short!) and "rogues", as always, ruin it for the rest. Guess the best we can all do is be careful, do our homework, and ignore those ads we don't like or are too good to be true. A pity that some of these ads ARE a total waste of everyone's time or are but a lure to "get your attention" and sell you SOMETHING. |
Sugarbrie, I don't think their marketing strategy is a very good one. Excuse me if I sound snobish, but I don't think Audiogoners are the cretinous types who fall for that obnoxious approach to advertising - I think it turns people away. I agree that advertisers should mind where they post. |
I sincerely hope that A'goN does something to remedy this. It's becoming increasingly prevalent and truly distracts from the "browsing" experience. While it may seem a good strategy for advertisers, it's a real slippery slope for AudiogoN. I don't believe that the AudiogoN constituency (card-carrying, discussion-forum-posting members such as ourselves) is interested in NEW products cluttering up the classified section.
I can handle the occasional mis-guided posting for Kenwood CD players, but this is getting ridiculous! |
Stealth93es: I chose the redhead and have been paying for it ever since! :) |
If you have bandwidth when viewing this site, then the annoyance would be lessened because of less hang time.
I certainly do not mind any of the ads. I am happy just to see a place to purchase and sell more and more product.
If I don't like the way the ad is presented for something I am interested in, I will not buy the product. Not every seller has good taste, but they are trying to sell to me and that is fine. |
I am always hearing people say the first time they met their future spouse they thought the person was annoying or weird. That "annoyance" got their attention. I was just stating what marketers do. I don't agree or disagree with the strategy. They want you to remember the product. People forget pretty quickly they were annoyed. Those Lexus ads are not very good, because the announcer mumbles Mark Levinson so badly, I can't even make it out. Secondly, 99.9% of the public don't know who/what Mark Levinson is, so how is it going to sell cars? They would be better off putting a Bose system in the Lexus if their goal is to sell more cars. I won't buy it, because I know Mark Levinson is not really a car stereo brand; and know Mark Levinson sold the company and left. So it is just a fake nameplate the new owner is using to sell it. It really does not matter how smooth the sale pitch is. Ironically, it may help sell more Levinson car stereos (without the Lexus). |
