Jim, what you noticed is exactly what smart companies are doing.
Instead of going to expensive hamfests, they are advertising in media which
specifically cater to potential users of the products they sell.
We are doing the same thing. We have reduced our budget for Europe's
biggest Hamfest in Friedrichshaven; smaller booth, booked a much cheaper
hotel, etc. Instead we are increasing our advertising in online forums such
as DX-World.net which cater specifically to the kind of people we target.
Reason: MORE BANGS FOR THE BUCK.
BTW, the German Ten-Tec distributor who usually shares the booth with us in
Friedrichshaven will not be attending this year. He is following the same
trend: FOCUSED ADVERTISING (elsewhere).
I just received an email from QRZ.com informing me that I can increase the
size of my ad for no additional cost. I think there is a hidden message
there too. Perhaps it is even becoming more difficult for the online forums
to secure advertising dollars. And that is a sign of the difficult economic
times we are in. But that's just my hunch.
Having the world at your fingertips has taken its toll on hamfests!
And so has the state of the economy.
73
Rick, DJ0IP
-----Original Message-----
From: TenTec [mailto:tentec-bounces@contesting.com] On Behalf Of Jim Lowman
Sent: Tuesday, February 19, 2013 12:06 AM
To: tentec@contesting.com
Subject: [TenTec] Hamfests in general
I changed the subject, since there have been several postings since "the
last word."
We could feel the impact of the Internet as far as attracting vendors to our
convention in 2001 - that long ago.
One doesn't have to be an accountant to know that the cost of attending a
hamfest or convention is expensive.
By the time transportation, lodging, meals, transportation of equipment and
materials for the booth, the cost of the booth rental, setup fees and
electricity is factored in, it adds up to quite a bit of money.
At the same time, attendance at these events is down; thus, fewer potential
customers to introduce to one's product.
From 1997 to 2001, attendance at the local venue of our ARRL convention
dropped from about 2,100 to about 1,400 - a 33% decrease in attendees.
When Scott Robbins was at Ten-Tec, I asked him about exhibiting at our
convention. Even in 2001, Ten-Tec was pretty much limiting their presence
to Dayton.
I don't know how many people normally attend the Orlando Hamcation, but I'd
guess that it's in second place, behind Dayton. Plus, it's not that far
from the Ten-Tec factory.
And a venue hosting the ARRL National Convention is no guarantee of
attendance, either. Last year it was in conjunction with Pacificon, and it
appeared to me that there were only a few more people in attendance that a
typical, annual Pacificon.
One of the vendors at the Yuma Hamfest corroborated this, saying that
attendance was only about 1,500. That's a pretty sad statement for an
national event.
As far as advertising, while not in QST or CQ, I did notice a full-page ad
for the new Argo VI in the winter issue of QRP Quarterly.
Until the availability for sale of the Argo VI and the companion 418
amplifier, Ten-Tec hasn't had a major new product to show off since the
Eagle, and that's been - what - a year ago?
That's a smart advertising decision in my estimation. The market for these
two new products is QRPers, and QQ is sort of our national journal. Plus,
I'm sure that advertising cost much less than QST or CQ.
On the other hand, Elecraft has had quite a few new products to get in front
of the buying public lately; the KX3 and KPA500, for example.
They have been in evidence at the major hamfests and conventions for easily
the past few years. And, they also have prominent advertisements in QST and
CQ, as well. Wayne and Eric have also been frequent speakers at the
presentations, talking about what's new and what's in the planning stage.
That also goes a long way toward sales.
While I'd like to see more vendors like Ten-Tec at the regional conventions
and hamfests, it seems to me that they're putting their advertising dollars
where they'll do the most good.
BTW, even companies that would be conspicuous by their absence were not
present at the Yuma Hamfest; HRO and the Big Three radio manufacturers, for
instance.
I have no idea what attendance was like, but I'd estimate it at a few
hundred. The XYL and I had a good time there, anyway.
73 de Jim - AD6CW
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