Endorsements ... do you care?

ddlooping · October 2013

GavC said:

Excuse my ignorance but how do I attach a pic? It keeps asking for a URL?

The pic has to be online as there's no provision to upload one to the forum (yet).

OilCityPickups · October 2013

ChrisMusic said:

TheGuitarWeasel said:
Oh I also love these ... as an interesting take on the Firebird theme

Big +1 to that, on a theme but different, love the 3x P90 version too.

Shame about the "clueless 'suits' ", but they are in every walk of life and almost every business, just doing the day job without any passion or any real involvement I guess. I am generalising, but that prevalent attitude is an object lesson on how to kill a business from the inside, just look at Kodak !

Actually the musical instrument manufacture and distribution industry is a classic example of the best and worst of business practise and innovation. Something I said earlier in this thread ... before it became seriously derailed ... was that more of the big industry players would benefit from coming onto the forums, 'testing the water' and using this free resource to the benefit of their businesses and their customers. It's not rocket science.
And yes Gav C ... for me at least it's the Vintage ads that I find ham fisted and seriously wide of the mark. I recommend Vintage regularly, and have done several 'how to' articles devoted to improving the electrics and replacing the pickups on, what are essentially very reasonable instruments for the money. My own V100 demos boutique PAF style pickups and gets played by an awful lot of musos ... it has impressed a lot of them and got you some more sales ... and I'm not even asking for commission

GavC · October 2013

ICBM said:

GavC said:
Don't forget if you do own an LP you actively are loving a signature model...

Hardly, unless it's a Les Paul Personal. (Which is like a Recording only even further from what we think of as a 'Les Paul'.)

The last recognisably standard 'Les Paul' that Les Paul played was the '54-style Custom, and even then his was quite different from the production version.

ThePrettyDamned · October 2013

From a young players perspective (22 - but still a kid inside) I would say the vintage ads don't appeal to me. However, there is something really great the comes of them - I search for the artists. Granted, not my cuppa more often than not (I have quite unusual tastes), but if I do it I'm sure there are others. So supporting artists like that is very good - it helps them get coverage.

Just playing a bit of 666's advocate

timhulio · October 2013

Why brands use endorsees and the appeal of signature guitars is a mystery to me. Unless it's, say, Trini Lopez or Les Paul. The latter is ubiquitous and no-one would accuse you of trying to emulate him, and the former is probably more famous (to my demographic anyway) for the guitar than his music. I'd never use a guitar or piece of gear purely because someone else has endorsed it. So a Dave Grohl Gibson Trini Lopez (yikes!) just has too much baggage associated with it. Suppose it'd be okay if you were in a covers band.

On more than one occasion an endorsee will put me off an otherwise decent bit of gear. Squier Vista Venus - okay it's Courtney Love, but it was endorsed by Krispin Mills so nothanksverymuch. The recent Ibanez Roadcore - a smart twin humbucker offset, but it's endorsed by YouMeAtSix guy.

OilCityPickups · October 2013

ThePrettyDamned said:

... so supporting artists like that is very good ...

What a bit like Jobseeker's Allowance?

Well I suppose it does keep Midge Ure off of god awful 'talent shows' like 'Pop Star Opera Star.

JookyChap · October 2013

TheGuitarWeasel said:

ThePrettyDamned said:

... so supporting artists like that is very good ...

What a bit like Jobseeker's Allowance?

Or Viagra

OilCityPickups · October 2013

JookyChap said:

TheGuitarWeasel said:

ThePrettyDamned said:

... so supporting artists like that is very good ...

What a bit like Jobseeker's Allowance?

Or Viagra

'We got Zimmers ... Zimmers of steel.' Well aluminium actually ...
Or : 'This means nothing to me .... ahhhhh Viagra!'

GavC · October 2013

Thought no-one knew who our endorsers are? LOL

Seriously though I hope we don't have a bad winter.

FX_Munkee · October 2013

GavC said:

Thought no-one knew who our endorsers are? LOL

Seriously though I hope we don't have a bad winter.

Have a LOL, I think you'll get on just fine here....

JookyChap · October 2013

GavC said:

Thought no-one knew who our endorsers are? LOL

Seriously though I hope we don't have a bad winter.

:P :P
It's OK, most of them are also modelling in the Damart catalogue..

probably

OilCityPickups · October 2013

Cheap guitars and winter fuel allowance as well ... lucky bastards!

ToneControl · October 2013

GavC said:

Thank you for all your kind comments and feedback. Can I just check is it specifically the Vintage endorser ads we are talking about here? Because we have a similar theme for the Fret-King Black Label Artist models?

Excuse my ignorance but how do I attach a pic? It keeps asking for a URL?

the Fretking ones have the same problem

you have to have the URL of a picture stored elsewhere (e.g. photobucket)

JayGee · October 2013

TheGuitarWeasel said:

Cheap guitars and winter fuel allowance as well ... lucky bastards!

Best keep an eye on how quickly they're getting through guitars in case they're getting the two confused :-)

OilCityPickups · October 2013

Never paid much attention to Fretking, apart from the one Firebird inspired model. Had them pegged down as a tad overpriced and ugly. Will probably take more notice now

JayGee said:

TheGuitarWeasel said:

Cheap guitars and winter fuel allowance as well ... lucky bastards!

Best keep an eye on how quickly they're getting through guitars in case they're getting the two confused :-)

'Eeeee it's gettin a bit taters Biff ... chuck another Vintage on-t-fire ...'

PolarityMan · October 2013

Really interesting to hear small manufacturers views here. Personally although I find it interesting what big names are playing what I think what would really benefit me most is having more demo's available of products, whether that's performed by endorsees or not.

They need to be good, high quality recordings as well, some guy noodling in isolation really doesn't cut it. I love Ola Englund's demo's for an example of how it should be done.

I would have thought that for this kind of thing you dont need to give stuff away, just make it available to people for them to return. Im wondering if any of you have looked at anything like that. You could potentially get 4/5 good you tube demos out of one set of pickup for example and still be left with a set you could sell as B-stock.

Would offset the cost normally associated with endorseees somewhat?

Alternatively have you though about requiring endorsees to post demo material?

ThePrettyDamned · October 2013

TheGuitarWeasel;64366" said:

JayGee said:

TheGuitarWeasel said:

Cheap guitars and winter fuel allowance as well ... lucky bastards!

Best keep an eye on how quickly they're getting through guitars in case they're getting the two confused :-)

'Eeeee it's gettin a bit taters Biff ... chuck another Vintage on-t-fire ...'

ICBM will tell you all about that....

Re demos, ola is excellent, as is the Duncan pedals range. They use a full live band!

IanSavage · October 2013

GavC said:

Yes Ian Savage was already playing a Vintage bass.

I was/am, and genuinely prefer it to anything else I've had (otherwise it wouldn't be my main bass), hence approaching Gav about the endorsement (cheers mate!). I've since aquired (paid for ) a V880 electro-acoustic as well, which I'd also take above anything else I've played in that price range, and should one of the bands I'm working with start nudging their way up the rankings again I'll be rocking the Vintageseseses with them. Unless it's the one I'm drumming in

I think the difference is that I didn't go looking for freebies (or even reduced stuff), and if Gav had said 'thanks but no thanks' I'd likely still be using the V96. If he'd told me to go fuck myself I might have switched brands

GuitarMonkey · October 2013

ThePrettyDamned said:

From a young players perspective (22 - but still a kid inside) I would say the vintage ads don't appeal to me.

I'm in my mid-50s and same here on both counts.

But then the guitars don't really appeal either. Doing twists on classic designs just unbalances the whole thing. I realise why it's done of course but they end up looking awkward, like the Japanese cars of the 1970s (Datsun 240Z excepted).

digitalscream · October 2013

IanSavage said:
I think the difference is that I didn't go looking for freebies (or even reduced stuff), and if Gav had said 'thanks but no thanks' I'd likely still be using the V96. If he'd told me to go fuck myself I might have switched brands

Exactly...that's how I ended up being endorsed by a couple of companies. If you want an endorsement, you have to show that you would've chosen their products anyway...otherwise, you're plainly not going to be a great ambassador for the brand.

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Endorsements ... do you care?

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