Costs

[Guest]

From one of th eblogs I read:

 

The other day a reader wrote and asked about the Harken Battcar system which got me thinking about how silly expensive some boat stuff is after I had priced out what the Battcar system would have cost for the reader's boat.

 

Thinking (always a dangerous pastime) about the cost of said Battcars made me realize I could come very close to building a fully rigged mast for a junk or balance lugged rig for less than the Harken mast jewelery alone. I point this out because the real way to save money on a boat is not to buy or build a cheap boat but instead build or buy a simple boat that does not need a lot of expensive stuff to make it work...

 

“A designer knows, he has achieved, perfection not when, not when there is nothing left to add, but when there is nothing left to take away”

― Antoine de Saint-Exupéry

 

 

I used this quote the other day but it really does bear repeating.

[Guest]

I think it was booboo who described the car system on Speedboat as a fleet of Ferraris driving up the mast. $150000 from memory. All good until they break.

[Guest]

The price of boat gear is related to the marketing. Those that heavily market 'the brand' can charge a lot more cause they have got you thinking you have to have that name. It is very obvious people are happier paying 100's of dollars for a brand name sticker than they are paying the same for the product it's attached to. We see it happen everyday.

 

because the real way to save money on a boat is not to buy or build a cheap boat but instead build or buy a simple boat that does not need a lot of expensive stuff to make it work....

The real and easiest way most boaters could save big bucks is to stop being so lazy, gullible and confusing 'want' with 'need'.

[Guest]

This rig is really interesting.....http://www.vgyd.com/Catrig.html

May have the simplicity of a chinese lug rig with windward ability.

[Guest]

Same as the Wylie cats, the owners love them.

[Guest]

I think they call people like you 'The dream punter' SB.

[Mothership 6]

I agree for the most part with SB.

 

Apple succeed not only because they build desirable products, but because their production and component supply chain is second-to-none. They get new technology first, and buy in such large quantities that their price can't be obtained by others in the marketplace.

 

Apple also attract the brightest talent in all areas of business, at a price that is reasonable, as the cachet of working for Apple overrides top range salary demands.

 

Getting back to the issue here - there is a research and development cost involved - if everyone takes issue with the cost of new products such as the Battcar system and doesn't buy, then development simply won't occur.

 

Did they get it wrong this time around with price/product? Maybe. Will that discourage Harken from even attempting anything? Hope not.

[Guest]

Rubbish. Apple were, for all intents and purposes even though technically they weren't, first to market and those who do that well gain a significant advantage. There are examples of that in the NZ marine market also. The key thing then is to hold that lead, something Apple has failed to do. But that's computer world and that often doesn't relate to reality or the marine market or other normal markets so it is a tricky one to use really. I say that because in computer land you can make your company worth billions without it making a profit or even looking like it. In the real world companies who don't make a profit die, they don't double in value with every poor result that publish.

 

In the marine game those who market the best sell the most, it's pretty much that simple, generally speaking. The quality of the product does have a limited input but it's far from the main driver usually. A good marketer can negate quality quite easily. There are numerous examples of that in the NZ marine market today, along with most others I'd expect.

 

We buy one item that is identical to anther with the only difference being the sticker on the side. Ours doesn't have one and the other does with a big well known brand name. They are both the same item from the same factory in china. We can buy the no name for 8.9% of the cost of the brand name version. We buy some fittings from a EU manufacturer. That same manufacture makes the exact same fittings for 2 other very large well known brand names. Buy the brand name version of one and pay around $65, buy the other and it's under 20. Pretty much applies to the other item as well. The only difference is the marketers of the 2 brand name companies have convinced you they are the ducks knuts.

 

Another item we all use. One on the market here ex china and it's easily the most expensive of it's product group. A NZ made version which is better in every regard costs 2/3rds of the price yet they still sell lots of the expensive one. Why? Marketing, there is not one other reason why you'd take this one over the other otherwise. It is a very simple case of one having great marketing and a average product against a great product that has only average marketing.

 

Yes there is a quality component most, but certainly knot all the time, but most don't realise that until it's too late and they have already fallen for the marketing.

 

Obviously I have knot named names as I'd get shot, run down in a carpark or worse, have my beer stolen.

 

As I said, people pay a lot more than they need to when shopping as they buy the brand knot the product and if you can start a fad. And that folks is exactly what you are taught to do these days, sell the brand knot the product. Apple is a good example of start a fad. Look at the iphone, how many buy them as they need all the features? How many buy them as they are just the cool toy to have?

 

Guess what? all that and this thread, to a point, is showing quite clearly the marketing companies know you a lot better than you know yourself.

[Guest]

Quick someone call a Ambo.

SB and me agree on something....... send help fast