SP and the Paintball Market

[drewkroeker]

QUOTE: "You're an irresponsible jerk."

Point taken. I just think that there is a point where I really need to stop spending money on another gun. Continually buying new guns when what you already have works great is irresponsible, in my opinion. Something I feel is helpful in promoting the companies you support is letting other people try your gun. I loaned my mags to a couple of my co-workers who were shooting tippmann X-7s. They loved the mags. One of them said "Next year when I buy a paintball gun you're coming shopping with me cause you know your stuff when it comes to guns!"

Well, what do you guys think? Is there an effective way to support quality companies without buying their latest marker? I'm listening.


Drew

[Hilltop Customs]

I think he meant more with his whole mentality of how he doesn't care what happens to the market after he has what he wants, and he's right, he is irresponsible, because if the market goes down then we're all screwed as far as paintball.

why is it irresponsible as a consumer to get what they want, and if it works and keeps them happy, why should worry about the market? Its not the customers responsibility to worry about the market.....its the manufactures responsibility to follow and try to lead the market. Customers can support products by word of mouth advertising but expecting more is expecting too much. You cannot ask customers to buy 10 of the same thing, and you cant expect customers to push sales.

Sorry if this sounds harsh, but as a consumer I dont want to be forced to advertise a product....my life is too commercialized already, I dont want to be forced to sell products.

All that being said, I've influenced many of my friends to buy AGD products and aftermarket accessories......not because I was expected to, but because I love the products.....more than that cant be expected of customers.

drewkroeker hits the nail on its head...

constantly releasing yearly revisions has the effect of expanding the customer base, and expanding how many people see/feel/get to use the marker, and therefore have a greater influence of buying one in the future. Then theres also the "Pro" influence to consider, but the pros can only influence people who watch the pros, not the whole paintball market.

man, I should have wrote my report instead of this. lol
please dont take it as being harsh, I dont mean it to be

[WARPED1]

I been using SP products since 1990-91, when they were just a barrel company. Then they started growing. And from then on, they were considered one of this industrys leaders. Thet were used by a majority of people who loved then and swore by there accuracy. It wasn't until SP's legal department came up with the stupid idea to claim the patent on electro guns, driving out the "little man", it wasn't until this point that the majority here on AO suddenly said SP was crap, always have been.
So, I will continue to shoot SP and use thiere parts. I have been on sponsored SP teams, and even if I wasn't I still used lots of thier stuff. Having watched this game grow from when I started in 1988-89 or so, SP has always been there, and most likely, always will.

[snoopay700]

why is it irresponsible as a consumer to get what you want, and if it works and keeps them happy, why should worry about the market? Thats what a customer does. Its not the customers responsibility to worry about the market.....its the manufactures responsibility to follow and try to lead the market. This is how it works. Customers can support products by word of mouth advertising but expecting more is expecting too much. You cannot ask customers to buy 10 of the same thing, and you cant expect customers to push sales.

Sorry if this sounds harsh, but as a consumer I dont want to be forced to advertise a product....my life is too commercialized already, I dont want to be forced to sell products.

All that being said, I've influenced many of my friends to buy AGD products and aftermarket accessories......not because I was expected to, but because I love the products.....more than that cant be expected of customers.

drewkroeker hits the nail on its head...

constantly releasing yearly revisions has the effect of expanding the customer base, and expanding how many people see/feel/get to use the marker, and therefore have a greater influence of buying one in the future. Then theres also the "Pro" influence to consider, but the pros can only influence people who watch the pros, not the whole paintball market.

man, I should have wrote my report instead of this. lol
please dont take it as being harsh, I dont mean it to be

No, i get what you mean, and i'm not saying you should be expected to advertise the product, but to say you don't give a damn about the market when you playing depends on it, that is irresponsible and will get you screwed over in the end. Like i said, if teh market goes down, paintballs stop being produced, we all stop playing, i'm not saying that you should buy a lot of markers, but to say that you don't give a damn what happens to the market after you find the setup you like is fairly irresponsible to me. Again, not saying there is much he could do, but he made it sound like he didn't care what happened to the sport as long as he could play, and i hate people like that, maybe it stems from me hating business men that act the same way, and government officials and such...

Not saying i hate him actually, i hate the outlook he has, i don't know enough to actually hate him though.

[Hilltop Customs]

No, i get what you mean, and i'm not saying you should be expected to advertise the product, but to say you don't give a damn about the market when you playing depends on it, that is irresponsible and will get you screwed over in the end. Like i said, if teh market goes down, paintballs stop being produced, we all stop playing, i'm not saying that you should buy a lot of markers, but to say that you don't give a damn what happens to the market after you find the setup you like is fairly irresponsible to me. Again, not saying there is much he could do, but he made it sound like he didn't care what happened to the sport as long as he could play, and i hate people like that, maybe it stems from me hating business men that act the same way, and government officials and such...

Not saying i hate him actually, i hate the outlook he has, i don't know enough to actually hate him though.

I see where your coming from, but he no matter how much he doesnt care about the market; as long as he is playing paintball, he is part of the market....and as long as joe blow is in the market, paintball isnt going down....no matter how much he doesnt care.

Also, just because joe blow is satisfied by what he has now, doesnt mean that something coming out in the future might not better satisfy his demands. Something like that will has a high chance of be purchased by joe, so he is still a large part of the market, even if he doesnt think so.

[snoopay700]

I see where your coming from, but he no matter how much he doesnt care about the market; as long as he is playing paintball, he is part of the market....and as long as joe blow is in the market, paintball isnt going down....no matter how much he doesnt care.

Also, just because joe blow is satisfied by what he has now, doesnt mean that something coming out in the future might not better satisfy his demands. Something like that will has a high chance of be purchased by joe, so he is still a large part of the market, even if he doesnt think so.

But the main thing is his attitude about the whole thing is irresponsible, i can understand not wanting to buy another marker (well not me personally, as i plan on having a collection of markers) but his whole attitude of not even caring about the market is irresponsible, even if he does support the paint suppliers he still has a horrible attitude, and that's mainly what i had a problem with.

[Hilltop Customs]

But the main thing is his attitude about the whole thing is irresponsible, i can understand not wanting to buy another marker (well not me personally, as i plan on having a collection of markers) but his whole attitude of not even caring about the market is irresponsible, even if he does support the paint suppliers he still has a horrible attitude, and that's mainly what i had a problem with.

Dont worry about it man, everyone has different attitudes. You have an interest in where paintball is going, he might just want to play paintball. Theres not really that big of a difference, as we will all end up wherever paintball is going as long as we keep playing. :)

[snoopay700]

Dont worry about it man, everyone has different attitudes. You have an interest in where paintball is going, he might just want to play paintball. Theres not really that big of a difference, as we will all end up wherever paintball is going as long as we keep playing. :)

I know, just saying it's how he expressed himself that got to me, because i'm not supporting the market any more than him right now, but i am still buying paint and supporting it and i do care what happens to the market. I just found his whole outlook of "i don't care what happens to this sport i like to play" to be rather irresponsible. I did overreact a tad though, one of the essays i was writing at the time got me in a sort of mood about stuff like that.

[Konigballer]

I agree with Hilltop, its not my responsibility, or any other consumer, to worry about the paintball market.

I play paintball, and I own a minimum of markers necessary for me to continue doing that. I don't buy, trade and sell the things like baseball cards. So the paintball market enters into a slump for a period of time, like everything else is in our present economy. That means little to me continuing to play paintball really. I don't have the latest and greatest, and it's not like my local field will shut down because a few people don't feel like buying the latest shocker or ego. Its not like we won't be able to buy paintballs. The sport of paintball isn't suddenly going to de-invent.. Every market, every sport, has highs and lows, ebs and flows. That doesn't mean I have to put on a costume and start crusading for the sport of paintball at the local grocery store, town hall or paintball field..

Also, for the love of God can people just drop the crying about the whole SP thing? It happened, deal with it, and move on. I officially joined here in '03 and people were constantly complaining about SP, and now here it is '08 and more of the same. For better or for worse SP chose to do what they did IN THE NAME OF BUSINESS! The name of business is making money, and busisness isn't always fair. Any close scrutiny of the actions of major companies in other markets will show you the same thing.

AGD is now a niche company, and has been for some time, instead of one of the top players in the industry. Thats just how things panned out, what more can be said? It doesn't diminish what they did in the past, or the quality of what they still make. They just command a much smaller market share now. Theirs nothing wrong with that really, paintball supports niche companys. AGD, and the Automag, are a LEGACY in this sport, and always will be. Something like that doesn't die, there will always be ways to get parts for your classic mag or x-mag, because of people who care about the legacy of AGD and the products they made. This forum itself is proof of that. I'm 27 and only now about to get my first mag, but I've wanted one since I saw my first APG in '92 as a kid! Its similar to the way that, on a larger scale, hot rodders will always be able to buy parts for, or build from scratch, a '32 Ford highboy, or a '70 Plymouth Cuda decades after those cars ceased production or their respective makers went out of business. Legacy's never die.

Also, as a member of the 'A5 Operators' forum, another great bunch of guys, I can say that AGD's reputation of quality and performance is well known among many of the members of that forum also. So what if the paintball market hits a slump, or all the agg kids collectively fall off a cliff, or AGD remains a niche company in the greater market forever. At the end of the day, 'Quality Always Shoots Straight' and people will not forget that no matter what the market does. My two cents.

[WARPED1]

I agree with Hilltop, its not my responsibility, or any other consumer, to worry about the paintball market.

.

Agreed whole heartedly.