[Leica] Advertising: Oh please stop

[John Collier <jbcollier@home.com>]

I say, do you not think that perhaps that this is getting a little bit
silly. My ex-wife , God rest her soul  (or at least I wish it was rested),
once said to me:" Look! For a little bit more we get something free." I
still have not stopped chuckling*. A friend of mine was a purveyor of fine
clothes and could not move some particularly stubborn blue jeans, so she
doubled the price and marked them at 40% off. The public quickly came to its
senses and the jeans sold in a few hours. Advertising is an Art unto itself
where the advertiser and the public engage in a dance very similar to (what
were once considered) primitive mating rituals. In all a thoroughly charming
spectacle to watch and somewhat alarming ritual to engage in. I feel that
the number of people that unknowingly rushed to the store to buy the
asterisked cameras could be safely described as less than a horde. Can we
not just marvel at the perception of Mr. Phineas Taylor Barnum and leave it
at that?

Cheers

John Collier

*Once, when describing the contents of some food stuff or other, she
included in the hallowed roll Stimulated Beef. A somewhat gruesome way to
prepare the unsuspecting steer.

> From: "B. D. Colen" <bdcolen@earthlink.net>
> Date: Tue, 8 Feb 2000 15:27:09 -0000
> Subject: RE: [Leica] Lyin' needs retractin'
> 
> The arrogance, and dissembling, in this response is yet another reason not
> to do business with these folks.
> 
> 
> 
> -----Original Message-----
> From: owner-leica-users@mejac.palo-alto.ca.us
> [mailto:owner-leica-users@mejac.palo-alto.ca.us]On Behalf Of Vahe
> Christianian
> Sent: Tuesday, February 08, 2000 8:00 PM
> To: leica-users-digest@mejac.palo-alto.ca.us
> Subject: [Leica] Lyin' needs retractin'
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Mr. Lawson:
> 
> Please allow me to reply to your posting about Mike's Camera advertising
> from someone that can actually do something about it.  My name is Vahe
> Christianian, and I am one of the owners of Mike's Camera, responsible for
> sales and marketing.  The ad that you are questioning was conceptually my
> doing, as well as its final proofing and approval of it.  As a Colorado
> family owned and operated business for the last 33 years, we have grown to
> be the largest Leica dealer in the state not by misleading people, but by
> offering genuine value in price, service, and selection.  As we sell over
> 200 different kinds of cameras in each of our stores, it would be very
> difficult to list every single one on a 5 column by 14 inch ad.  I feel
> excluding 5 camera models distinctly in the ad from our entire camera
> inventory is one heck of a promotion.  Of course, it has always been, and
> it will always be your prerogative to ever shop in our stores.  The people
> that did so over the last weekend received great values: 10% lower than our
> guaranteed lowest price in Colorado! However, It is not your right to use
> libelous accusations at the expense of people that are genuinely attempting
> to provide professional, competent, and valuable service and resources to
> the community.
> On Behalf of the over 130 people that work at Mike's Camera and provide
> quality alternatives in imaging and photography, please accept our
> sincerest
> apologies for not meeting your standards in advertising.  As an "adman"
> myself, I would challenge your advertising guidelines and morals with ours
> any day.
> Please feel free to call me personally at (303)443-1715 x112 to discuss
> further, or simply e-mail me back at your convenience.
> Sincerely,
> Vahe Christianian
> Vice President, Sales & Marketing
> 
> 
>>> 
>>> Date: Fri, 4 Feb 2000 12:25:12 EST
>>> From: LawsonCL@aol.com
>>> Subject: [Leica] Lyin' Mike's Camera
>>> 
>>> Denver, CO, USA area camera chain runs a full page ad that leads with the
>>> headline:
>>> 
>>> EXTRA 10% OFF
>>> ENTIRE STOCK WINTER CLEARANCE*
>>> 
>>> OUR GUARANTEED LOWEST PRICES - JUST IN TIME FOR VALENTINE'S DAY!
>>> 
>>> EVERY CAMERA, CAMCORDER, DIGITAL CAMERA, BINOCULAR, TELESCOPE AND LENS IN
>>> STOCK!
>>> 
>>> Near the bottom of the page, the asterisked copy informs of the following:
>>> 
>>> *SALE EXCLUDES NIKON F5, CANON EOS1n, NIKON N90s, LEICA M6, HASSLEBLAD
>> 501c,
>>> MEADE ETX-125EC MODELS
>>> 
>>> Excuse me? Doesn't ENTIRE STOCK mean just that, ENTIRE STOCK? Doesn't
> EVERY
>>> CAMERA...IN STOCK mean EVERY CAMERA...IN STOCK?
>>> 
>>> If a vendor wants to advertise a clearance sale with restrictions, he
>>> shouldn't claim that the ENTIRE STOCK is on sale.
>>> 
>>> I called the main store in Boulder to see if the noted Leica exclusion
>>> included M-Series lenses. As providence would have it, the call was routed
>>> to
>>> a branch store where it was answered by a representative who claimed to
> not
>>> know what was included in the ad. Further, he told me I should call the
>>> Boulder store for clarification, but their phone lines are down and that's
>>> why my call was routed to another store. Hmmm. Curious a chain would place
>> a
>>> full page ad in the paper and not inform the sales staff of the promotion.
>>> 
>>> As an adman who takes this sort of blatant, misleading advertising almost
>>> personally, I suggest we in the Denver-Boulder area not let Mike's off too
>>> easily on this. Call every store and tell them you resent this misleading
>>> ad.
>>> I realize Boulder area photographers have fewer choices, but a boycott of
>>> Mike's might drive home the point. In Denver it's a simple matter to visit
>> S
>>> & S Optika, Werner's, The Camera Trader and others for Leica gear. That
>>> said,
>>> I further realize few LUGGERs in the area would be tempted to buy a new M6
>>> from Mike's anyway. However, a lens at 10% off might be tempting. From now
>>> on, whenever I buy any photographic equipment or supplies, I'm going to
>> tell
>>> Mike's how much I spent, where it was spent and why it was not at Mike's.
>>> 
>>> BREAKING NEWS: According to a sales representative I just spoke with at
> the
>>> Park Meadows store, Leica lenses in stock will be selling at 10% off.
>>> 
>>> Chris Lawson
>>> 
>>> ---------------------------
>>> 
>>> 
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> 
> 
> 
> 
>