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Shame on you

Paul's Posts — 08 January 2012

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Shame on you

My son Scott bought a really cool watch online for his girlfriend’s birthday.  He took it to a watch repair shop to have the band adjusted and got scolded for buying online.

“Shame on you”.  This admonishment despite the fact the watch repair shop didn’t carry the brand bought and had no access to it.  The shop owner just hated the idea of online shopping.

I see this sentiment a lot in our industry and while I understand the feelings I don’t get the logic.

There was a time when buying online meant getting a deal and undercutting the brick and mortar dealer.  Any yahoo with a computer could setup a website and sell gear without any overhead or responsibility for after sales service – worse he might suggest to potential customers they go to the retailer, try out the gear and then buy it from him.  Those days are mostly in the past – primarily because we manufacturers wised up and don’t support them – but the bitter taste remains.

Purchasing online is here to stay and can be a real benefit to consumers.  I routinely purchase products on Amazon – not because they’re cheaper but because I don’t have to leave the office to shop.  It takes less than a minute to search, select and one-click purchase the item.  In two days it’s here for me to start using.  Compare that with having to break into my busy day, drive to a store, shop, deal with waiting in line, parking, credit cards, traffic and so on.  Really?  There’s simply no contest.

I don’t think I’d buy a car online without driving it nor would I buy a pair of speakers without listening to them.

We live in a worldwide marketplace where goods from anywhere on the globe can be ours with the click of a mouse – but not all products lend themselves to online sales.

The challenge for those of us in the industry is to support retailers that make our products and services available and accessible to consumers in the way they really want, without stepping on each other’s toes – online or through a physical store.

We support a worldwide network of authorized dealers and distributors because they go the extra mile to make our customers happy – some online, some through retail outlets, some actually drive products to the customer’s homes.

There’s no shame in the way you purchase – only in those that seek to succeed on the backs of others.

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About Author

Paul McGowan

Paul McGowan is the CEO and co-founder of PS Audio Inc. a Boulder Colorado design and manufacturing company of high-end audio products and services. McGowan has been designing and building high-end products for nearly 40 years. Hobbies include skiing, music, hiking, artisan bread baking, kick boxing and cooking. He lives in Boulder Colorado with his wife Terri and his 4 sons.

(4) Readers Comments

  1. Adolf

    January 8, 2012 at 3:29 am

    You’re absolutely right. There is big mobility in the market. The time is over, when a seller waited for his clients, because he was the onliest in town. Times has changed and competition is a hard business.
    Today a seller has to focus on service. I know many local sellers who offer the same prive than online-shops. They tell me a small profit is better than no profit.
    On the other hand consumer should learn the service costs money. In former times, seller earned a lot of money by selling goods and he offered seemingly free service after sale. But that has been misleading.
    Today there is transparency and the prices are “naked” without service and the service has to be paid separately. Consumers have to learn such new conditons.

  2. emfoods

    January 8, 2012 at 6:09 am

    Paul, I can’t buy anything directly on your web site. So, I followed your lead and went to Amazon. Very little PS Audio on there as well. For me to find a brick and mortar shop carrying your products within 100 miles of my house would be a feat and yes I live in a major city that is just lame when it comes to quality audio. You just opened up a can of worms…

    • January 8, 2012 at 10:04 am

      The can of worms has been opened for a bit and many have crawled out. :)

      Our product, incidentally, are available online through three vendors: Music Direct, Audio Advisor and Crutchfield. I would like to include Amazon in the future.

  3. synergyav

    January 8, 2012 at 6:21 am

    I agree with Adolf that the new business model splits products and services. That business model opens doors for those who can embrace the service side of business. However I disagree a bit with Paul’s position.

    Just because we can get products cheaper from Amazon doesn’t make it “right”. As consumers we need to exert some pressure on 500lb. gorillas like Amazon and Wal-Mart to at least take some sort of reasonable care of their employees while offering their products at a lower price. The problem with the new business model is that the top tier of employees in these huge companies are the only ones who benefit from our cheap purchase, and that top tier is literally getting wealthy on “the backs of others”. The “others” are the employees who are treated like cattle. The new business model stinks of greed. When I purchase something from Amazon I feel like the drug addict who thinks he’s the only one who’s being hurt, while innocent people in the countries where those drugs come from are enslaved and killed so we can get high. And if you think that analogy is over the top, investigate the supply chain and what goes into getting these huge companies products at prices so low that many of us ask ourselves “How can they even make it for this cheap?”. How indeed. There are countless people working directly and indirectly for these huge companies that have no benefits, low wages, ridiculous working hours, and no hope of improvement.

    When we separate ourselves from how a product got into our hands, and from what the real cost is to the people involved in getting that product to us, we make ourselves feel better because we got a deal and wash our consciences clean by telling ourselves it’s the new business model. I expect more from myself and from all of us. As a business owner I understand that we all need to adapt to the changes the internet has brought to the world of business, but as a consumer I still feel that I need to exert pressure by voting with my wallet. I value and promote companies that “get it”. Companies that understand the concept of win-win-win, where the consumer, employees and corporations can all do well without stomping on anyone. Companies that dare to invest time and money in training, customer service, and personal attention, while taking care of their employees.

    A little bit of real research into the business practices of who we deal with can help us make more educated buying decisions. As for me, I’d much rather purchase from a company that traded its’ Christmas party for a shopping day to help needy families in the area. That’s a company that gets the real meaning of being a service-oriented company. Nice job to all at PS Audio.

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