[JCPentax]

Hello all. I wanted to remind everyone of the K-7 tour stops on the East coast over the next several days:

Friday, August 14
New York City
Hilton Times Square (Bijou Room)
11:30 AM to 1:00 PM
5:30 PM to 7:00 PM

Saturday, August 15
New York City
Hilton Times Square (Empire Room)
11:30 AM to 1:00 PM
5:30 PM to 7:00 PM

Sunday, August 16
Miami, FL
Marriott Southbeach
6:00 PM - 7:30 PM

Monday, August 17
Orlando, FL
Hyatt Regency Grand Cypress
5:30 PM - 7:00 PM

Tuesday, August 18
Orlando, FL
Hyatt Regency Grand Cypress
11:30 AM - 1:00 PM

[MRRiley]

I'll ask again.... Why 3 stops in FL and nothing in the mid-atlantic? What are we... chopped liver? Why nothing in VA/DC/MD/NC/SC?

Mike

[Ari]

Will be going to the 11:30 event in NYC. Any other Philly Pentaxians making the trek?
I feel your pain mrriley; Philly is a big hole on the map for most companies, too.........

[EsBee]

I'll ask again.... Why 3 stops in FL and nothing in the mid-atlantic? What are we... chopped liver? Why nothing in VA/DC/MD/NC/SC?

Mike

Its just disappointing that the tour bus is not going to pull over somewhere near DC on its way south.

[MRRiley]

Its just disappointing that the tour bus is not going to pull over somewhere near DC on its way south.

The least JCPentax could do is reply to the question (which I asked more politely in the other thread about the tour...

Deafening Silence there too!!!

I can't speak for them of course, but I'm confident Ace Photo in Ashburn, VA would be more than happy to host a stop. Mo (the owner) is a Pentax fan.

Mike

[EsBee]

They must have given up on the Mid-Atlantic region because of sales...

I accompanied a workmate just last week to Penn Camera in Fair Lakes, VA to try out 50D, D300 and K-7 as he was looking for his first, advanced prosumer dSLR. Of course they didn't have K-7, nor did they have many nice things to say about Pentax. The only K20D they had, a display item, was for sale in a corner and the sales guy said they had effectively stopped carrying Pentax brand in their store.

Looking at the general trend of people buying, selling and commenting on Pentax gear, it seems Pentax is having difficulty keeping their existing customers, much less get new ones.

[MRRiley]

I give up...

---

Last edited by MRRiley; 08-15-2009 at 08:39 AM. Reason: frustration

[monochrome]

I give up...

<rant>

I love Pentax and our local chain of 9 Creve Couer Camera stores features Pentax in-store and on their website - they even run co-op radio ads on the local classical FM station - but geez, this is what happens when you raise your minimum annual wholesale purchase to $100,000, raise your prices to the premium-brand level, and at the same time fire all your sales reps.

Local store owners have no incentive to take a risk and no one to demonstrate product TO THEM!! On-line shoppers have no incetive to "pay up" for a premium brand they don't know and can't touch. I NEVER go to WalMart for ANYTHING - can't stand the atmosphere.

If I hadn't known Pentax and had I not already traded dozens of bodies and lenses through eBay since 2000 (having kept just a few of the best bodies and a few lenses, and recently sold even those) I never would have started down this dSLR path.

Pentax has been well-known for years to be marketing boneheads, at least in the USA sense of marketing, but this is just plain suicidal. Niche marketing won't work if there's no one to tell the world the niche even exists.

JCPentax, I hope you are reading this. I am really getting worried now.

</rant>

[slappy76]

The turn out for NYC was pretty small. Considering it was New York F'in city the turn outs for each of the events was only around 10-25 people for each event. The viral marketing campaign somehow failed. It's nice of them to give away the K7 at every gathering. But I think for everyone who attended, spent almost 2 hours and didn't win the k7 at the event they should've gotten a booby prize to entice K7 sales. Like $50 off this or $100 off the camera or their new WR lens. Or have something worked out with a local camera shop.

Look. Let's be honest. Pentax just needs to get out there at this point. It's nice that the K7 has afforded them some media spotlight. But the Canon and Nikon juggernauts will steamroll them when their new D300s (and whatever the canon's new latest and greatest).

Pentax mainstream advertising doesn't exist AFAIK. I'm not a marketing person but I imagine the point of viral marketing (which is what the called Hotel billboard said) is to promote your product by word of mouth to create buzz. You only do that when people on the street carry around and use your product. We are your loyal foot soldiers talking up people on the street, telling P&S converts why they should choose the Pentax product over the sonys, nikons and canons. Advertising in some magazine alone will only get you so far.

It also was kinda weird there was no real demo of the video capabilities on the first day and they were showing off the in-camera digital filters like watercolor effects and stuff.

[mel]

I give up...

Marketing excuses aside, it's just plain rude to not even bother with a response, especially to people that are constantly handing over their hard earned money to them helping to keep them going.

[MRRiley]

Marketing excuses aside, it's just plain rude to not even bother with a response, especially to people that are constantly handing over their hard earned money to them helping to keep them going.

I was gonna say something but I almost forgot... I already said "I give up!" and I do...

[BrendanPK]

Marketing excuses aside, it's just plain rude to not even bother with a response, especially to people that are constantly handing over their hard earned money to them helping to keep them going.

Maybe they go by the "If nothing nice to say... Don't say anything at all approach?

However Monochrome has some very good points. At the last NYC show their marketing firm who replaced sales reps had to practically where hats to the BR to know which end to wipe. Half had no clue how to even dis-mount and re-mount the lenses! Maybe they should go 100% viral and have us do all their trade-show staffing, sales repping etc and pay us in gear.

All said... I am about to Mikes point of just shutting my mouth and going back to plain old shutter clicking

[mel]

Maybe they go by the "If nothing nice to say... Don't say anything at all approach?

However Monochrome has some very good points. At the last NYC show their marketing firm who replaced sales reps had to practically where hats to the BR to know which end to wipe. Half had no clue how to even dis-mount and re-mount the lenses! Maybe they should go 100% viral and have us do all their trade-show staffing, sales repping etc and pay us in gear.

All said... I am about to Mikes point of just shutting my mouth and going back to plain old shutter clicking

i'd be the first one with my hand raised to volunteer to work a show if the pay was gear. dang. i wouldn't even think twice about it. but maybe i'm not young and pretty enough. knowledge counts for nothing these days.

[BrendanPK]

i'd be the first one with my hand raised to volunteer to work a show if the pay was gear. dang. i wouldn't even think twice about it. but maybe i'm not young and pretty enough. knowledge counts for nothing these days.

Oh come on mel, you would be great!