From tonysounds@yahoo.com Fri Mar 07 07:44:11 2008
Subject:RE: Return Policies

Send one to me in Chicago...I play in Illinois, Indiana and Michigan.
T

David Jacques wrote: Good points. It will be interesting to see how Diversi solves this problem.

But I have an idea! Diversi should send me a free organ that I can play in
the Los Angeles area. and if anybody is interested in hearing it, they could
come to one of my gigs or to my house. I will gladly demo it for them.

They should find someone like me in all the major cities.

Problem solved!

_____

From: CloneWheel@yahoogroups.com [mailto:CloneWheel@yahoogroups.com] On
Behalf Of Bruce Wahler
Sent: Friday, March 07, 2008 6:37 AM
To: CloneWheel@yahoogroups.com
Subject: RE: [CWSG] Return Policies

Hi David,

>Well, I don't entirely agree with Speakeasy's lack of return policy either.
Considering how great their products are I doubt that there would be many
returns. I have a return policy for the samples I sell at
www.vintagekeyboardsounds.com . I have sold over 3000 sample sets and have
had maybe a half-dozen returns. If the product is good, then the customer
will keep the product.

Comparing your samples vs. Speakeasy vs. Diversi isn't completely
apples-to-apples. You are selling a 100%-software product, with minimal
manufacturing costs. If you get a copy back, you lose the sale, but there
are no "scratch and dent" issues to deal with. You product is also low cost.
Here's what I've noticed as a musical retailer:

- When a product costs say, $30 or less, the return rate is very low, even
if the product is not quite as expected. (If the product is essentially
"free," everyone keeps it.) The effort of returning it outweighs the
comparatively minor cost, and who knows? it might come in handy later on.

- As price goes up, the return rate increases. Musicians tend to have a lots
of wish-list items, and rarely do research up-front. The more something
costs, the greater the expectation that the buyer must be perfectly
satisfied. If you sold your samples as a complete set for say, $250, I'd bet
your return rate would go up accordingly.

- At a certain point, the concept of "buyer's remorse" arrives. If you buy a
$500 preamp -- or a $2500 keyboard -- and then your car breaks down, or your
spouse goes through the roof over the purchase, the return policy is a great
way to rewind the whole process. That benefits you, but it's not what the
return policy was intended to do. You're not really dissatisfied with the
product; you're dissatisfied with the money you had to spend to get it.

Companies like GC/Sweetwater find a return policy far more favorable than
niche manufacturers with direct sales. They have more alternative products
to offer -- i.e., if they don't get you for an Electro, you'll probably buy
an XK1 or a Motif -- and their huge sales channel can better handle B- and
C-stock products. I wonder if the return policies of GC and others are going
to work out in the long run. Like it or not, business isn't an altruistic
process. I sell things to you because I make a profit on it, not because I'm
a great guy. If you think I'm a great guy out of the process, that's
terrific, but it's not what keeps the wheels turning. A return policy is a
great answer for getting gear into customers' hands, in the hopes that once
that happens, GAS takes over. It only works, though, if the return rates --
and the costs of recycling the returns -- are favorable; i.e., if the profit
at the end of the day beats not making the extra sales in the first place.

I agree that Diversi has a problem to solve, if the only way to hear their
products before purchase is to travel to Philadelphia. I just don't think
that a return policy is the answer.

Regards,

-BW
--
Bruce Wahler
AshbySolutions.comT
978.386.7389 voice/fax
bruce@ashbysolution s.com

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"The meek shall inherit nothing." -FZ
"You don't get tone on a diet." -T
"Hitting 'play' does not constitute live performance." -T
www.myspace.com/tonyorant



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