Re: smurfs guarding access to manager of our new Apple store.
Re: smurfs guarding access to manager of our new Apple store.
- Subject: Re: smurfs guarding access to manager of our new Apple store.
- From: Hank Harken <email@hidden>
- Date: Tue, 22 Nov 2005 18:24:09 -0700
John,
>Now to reality. User groups are notorious for being the folks that hang
>on to equipment past it's upgrade cycle. We're also notorious for
>approaching folks to simply give us stuff.
To be fair, I think there is a lot of variety in user groups including
some who feel compelled to be on the cutting/bleeding edge of every new
hardware and software wave and those who can't really afford to buy new
CPUs except every 3-5 years. My geographic area includes Mac user groups with
seniors on fixed incomes and, yes, many of them won't be buying the super
quadra-matic water-cooled Power Mac with the automotive radiator option
but they may be influencing which computer may be purchased for use
by their grandchildren. Heck, that little iPod shuffle holiday gift may
have a long term effect.
In my own case, my most recent Mac purchase was four years ago. That is,
until 10 days ago when my wife and I purchased two iMac G5 machines to
satiate our family's growing computing needs. That's a big investment in home
computing for us but teens can use a lot of computing cycles in today's
world.
I also remember the dark and lonely days when the press and darn near
everyone else was saying Apple was going under. I still have my
Mac Road Show t-shirt from my participation in that event as
a member of our local Mac user group. There wasn't a lot of public
support for Apple outside user groups at the time. Please don't get
me wrong - the user groups weren't responsible for turning Apple around
but I think they helped keep Apple from "flatlining".
I think user groups are an obvious marketing tool because they do
influence other buyers. If the user groups can't recommend Apple
products...well... The Apple stores (and Apple) have to make money to exist
but it wouldn't hurt to make a nice gesture to the local supporters. It would
be a good investment for future sales. Though I actually have a closer
non-Apple retailer, I always return to the local Apple store for even
3d party items because the staff is helpful, knowledgeable and friendly.
In contrast, the other store's staff is scarce, don't know much about
the platform, and the Mac software selection gets slimmer each time
I've stopped by.
(OK, Hank calm down)
Good points all around about calling ahead to the store manager.
Wow this went a lot longer than I meant it to.
RAH, RAH, USER GROUPS !
- Hank
(preaching to the choir)
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