Why Does AGD Barely Market Itself?

[Number13]

consumer oriented

[warbeak2099]

Exactly. That's exactly what I've been thinking. AGD needs PR really bad.

[mag88888]

were hiring you, now.

[Lohman446]

consumer oriented process that places the consumer first and seeks to satisfy the consumer, recognizing a business can only succeed if it satisfies its customers. People have wrongly assumed that unethical advertising and sales tactics stem from marketing. Unethical behavior stems from unethical people, not the systems the corrupt to their means.

I agree and disagree with you here. While marketting is very much about understanding what people want and moving towards it one can also lead the market. When people were playing tight setups we had the Z-grip and warp combination, resulting in waht could have been an almost square package with very little exposed profile. This was one way to respond. The other way was to make certain your "pro" teams did nto use drops, or used min-drops making it a longer setup and making sure "drops and height" went together (They logically do). Drops went from the thing to out because its "what the pros did". You can control, or at least lead market forces - but you have to understand them first.

There are two methods of marketing - the one you are discussing is responsive, you respond to the market. The other is a more preemptive style of marketing. As long as you are able to stay ahead of the curve but close enough that peopel aer not turned off, you are in a good position. I give you for instance ramping in the Shockers. SP made a brilliant move in letting the Nerve and SHocker have ramping - they were ahead of industry trends. This becomes less brilliant if you beleive, as I do, that SP was not in the least surprised when PSP allowed ramping.

[Glickman]

AGD also just went through a change in power, so mabe they wanted to settle in first?

[mag88888]

we need bling! kids at the field talk about spyders and all those shiny guns. slap on some bright colors on those pro classics. so all those newbs can say "whew thats hawt" or "bling bling", "pimp is what that is". we all know that those gray mainbodys on the proclassics arent too exciting. pimp it up. yaya. newbs dont want the dull colors, they want to be able to show their friends and others there "new" and "pimped out" colorfull guns. all i have to say, as of now.

[warbeak2099]

They should also do something electro oriented. We need a mainstream electro mag. RT customs are never going to enter the pro scene. Right now we just have ridiculously expensive mods such as the devilmag. Otherwise we have to do our own mods. AGD needs to put a nice electro mag out on the market, not just here on these boards.

[mag88888]

m gonna call AGD and ask "whats up". anything in the process? ya know. ill probably get nothing but oh well, its worth it.

[warbeak2099]

They shouldn't need to have people constantly heckling them. A business that knows how to run itself should know what to do without the consumer screaming it in their face. But they don't even listen then. Go ahead and call but I just don't see the point. I'm very dissapointed in AGD.

[mag88888]

warbreak: we have similar ideas with this. im just curious. i havent sen many companies go this long without new stuff. not to promising.

[Number13]

Thank you for your responses. I've responded to Lohman and Glickman in PMs with my counter arguments.

This thread is turning to design and engineering suggestions however. My primary goal in starting it was to provoke discussion on AGD's marketing decisions. Should they or should they not push for more marketing?

Also, I would like to see some insight from employees who have been involved with AGDs marketing decisions so that AO can arrive at a better understanding of the situation and perhaps provide some useful brainstorming for how to pull this company back into mainstream as it once was.

I firmly believe that AGD should abandon tournament scenes right now and gain a foothold with the true majority of the sport: the traditional woods players. If I'm not mistaken, AGD is already taking steps to do this. That way they can build capital with their proven product, well suited to that style play, before begining an expensive competition in the tournament player market place that would require a redesigning of the "classical" AGD image and heavy R&D combined with expensive market research. I will reiterate that I believe AGD would benefit more from creating a new brand name when they do take that step.

Further discussion?

[Lohman446]

Guys, you presume to know to much. Under current legal environments, and with the current ASTM standards it would be hard to adequately protect oneself from civil suit and compete in the tournament marketplace.

I'm not sure that AGD not making a new tournament marker is a lack of ideas, or a lack of desire. However, considering the legal environments on multiple sides producing one may be too risky.

I trust TK, he's a smart guy. I beleive there has been a risk to reward anylsis that he did not beleive favorable to produce a new tournament level marker due to the environment around paintball today.

Edit. To agree here. AGD needs to find a market where there is a good risk to reward decision. I beleive they have decided it is not the tournament scene. Aggressive marketting into the scenario market (takign lessons from Dye and others) may be the answer to AGDs future. Be the big dog in the scenario, rather than the puppy in tournament. Or be both.

[Miscue]

It's kinda too little, too late right now.

If SP has a $289 marker that is cheaper than the RTP, works with CO2, isn't a POS, has ramping, eyes, and for all practical purposes shoots as fast as the high end AGD marker with consistent velocity, along with having good marketing, including sponsorship of Dynasty, Strange, etc. - how do you combat this? Oh yeah, and patents, lawyers, paintball babes, etc. And this is just one company, there are others... market is saturated.

Any marketing attempt at this point in time would be pissing money away, except for maybe scenario ball.

[warbeak2099]

I know I'm suggesting engineering things, but it has to do with marketing. Marketing is listening to what the consumer wants and applying it in your advertisement. It's all about responding to the customer. Right now the customer wants eguns. And the way to market that is thru tourney. They've got to spend money to make it. Bite the bulet and get back in there. Field a good tourny team like pride again and get some coverage.

[Miscue]

I know I'm suggesting engineering things, but it has to do with marketing. Marketing is listening to what the consumer wants and applying it in your advertisement. It's all about responding to the customer. Right now the customer wants eguns. And the way to market that is thru tourney. They've got to spend money to make it. Bite the bulet and get back in there. Field a good tourny team like pride again and get some coverage.

Maybe after a few patents expire... and ASTM makes some changes...