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| Volume 3 Issue 4 August 1998 |
Features
Interviews
Columns |
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| HTINews Article - Aug98 - [HTI Home Page] |
DIY Marketing Program Promote Your Products and Services [Click Message To Learn More] |
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Joe is an Engineer working for a large corporation. He has 18 US patents related to HA products. The company Joe works for, which will remain unnamed, was into HA in a very big way for about five years. Because they did not have a strong consumer marketing person on staff, the product was marketed to builders and installers. This was obviously the wrong way to go, and they eventually had to shut down the division due to the minimal profits generated. This episode was unfortunate, however, it did not kill Joe's enthusiasm for this industry. It can and will be a winner. He will keep shouting to anyone who will listen, "TAKE YOUR PRODUCTS TO THE CONSUMER"! |
The positive messages are not reaching the consumer. The position of the average potential buyer of an HA product is still one of apathy at best. In the last year or so the only HA related item I have seen in the major media, was a piece on a "Date Line" broadcast which ridiculed the "Butler-in-a-Box" system. The story was filled with angry home owners who all had a severe case of buyer's remorse. The voice recognition system followed the instructions of household pets, but could not understand the commands of the home owner. The builder and the inventor were both interviewed, which just added insult to injury. When the builder was asked if he had the system installed in his own home he smiled, giggled and said no. The inventor, on the other hand, did have the system installed in his home, and his demonstration was impressive. However, the reporter made short work of that brief positive message when he inquired about the inventor's background. Apparently the inventor was a professional magician. The reporter conveniently used this information in the most negative fashion. Naturally the big joke was that you have to be a magician to operate this type of technology successfully.
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The entire industry must go on the offensive. The major media must be blanketed with the positive stories of which there are plenty. Good products, dealers, and manufacturers must be profiled, and happy customers must be displayed for all the world to see. We cannot quietly sit back and watch as various uninformed reporters continuously ridicule our products and services. A few more negative stories could kill the industry.
Where are the Marketeers? Where are the Salespeople? I see no billboards, TV ads, radio ads, or articles in major print media. Unfortunately we all have seen that the products do not sell themselves. Someone needs to step up and begin to promote their products in an effective way. The time for testing the water has long since past. We must jump in with both feet or get out altogether. The window of opportunity may be closing. Something must be done before HA is viewed as just another in a series of outdated experimental technologies that never really yielded anything of value. Remember "The Clapper"?
