Pro Audio Sales

Re: Pro Audio Sales

JP Huff said:
I haven't figure out how to get them, so the "my customers" thing is loosely based. And I probably made it sound like I just want their money, but in reality another big part is the relationship part. The fact that they feel comfortable with me and can come to me about problems they have or what their needs are without me saying "Oh yeah you need a Clair rig and an XL8 for that." When they only need a Pro1 and a few EV XLD's.
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Your writing style and comments you have made suggest that you are a young person (which is great, by the way). The knowledge, experience, relationships, and capital required to become a partner that customers would find you worth doing business with, is a few years in your future; particularly for expensive and service-requiring equipment like mid to high-end consoles.

I purchased a new system earlier this year from a local production/sales company - mid $xx,xxx range. I know approximately the markup on the deal, and it's a few thousand dollars. At first glance, it sounds great:

1. take the customer's money
2. pick up the phone and order the stuff
3. customer picks up gear
4. profit

In reality, it's not quite that easy. My dealer/friend brought boxes in to do a demo for me, which took about 6 hours of time with himself and an employee, not including driving around the city collecting parts. He took probably a dozen long calls from me over 8 months of thinking, spec'ing, saving, and finally executing (and my executing wasn't guaranteed - he put forth the time just hoping for a sale). After the sale, he has loaned me spare parts from his rental inventory twice, and provided some technical support. His out of pocket costs were hundreds of dollars paying his employees to help me, and a couple thousand worth of his time and equipment rental that he gave me as a package deal. Unless you can give service that's just as good with a rental inventory to back me up, I'm not going to be buying gear from you anytime soon.

If you are truly interested in pursuing this, get a job at Metro Sound or one of the other pro-audio sales/service shops in the city here, and learn the business.
 
Re: Pro Audio Sales

TJ Cornish said:
Your writing style and comments you have made suggest that you are a young person (which is great, by the way). The knowledge, experience, relationships, and capital required to become a partner that customers would find you worth doing business with, is a few years in your future; particularly for expensive and service-requiring equipment like mid to high-end consoles.

I purchased a new system earlier this year from a local production/sales company - mid $xx,xxx range. I know approximately the markup on the deal, and it's a few thousand dollars. At first glance, it sounds great:

1. take the customer's money
2. pick up the phone and order the stuff
3. customer picks up gear
4. profit

In reality, it's not quite that easy. My dealer/friend brought boxes in to do a demo for me, which took about 6 hours of time with himself and an employee, not including driving around the city collecting parts. He took probably a dozen long calls from me over 8 months of thinking, spec'ing, saving, and finally executing (and my executing wasn't guaranteed - he put forth the time just hoping for a sale). After the sale, he has loaned me spare parts from his rental inventory twice, and provided some technical support. His out of pocket costs were hundreds of dollars paying his employees to help me, and a couple thousand worth of his time and equipment rental that he gave me as a package deal. Unless you can give service that's just as good with a rental inventory to back me up, I'm not going to be buying gear from you anytime soon.

If you are truly interested in pursuing this, get a job at Metro Sound or one of the other pro-audio sales/service shops in the city here, and learn the business.
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I've wanted to work at Metro for a while, but they keep saying they aren't hiring. What other places would be good to go try/heckle about a job? And sorry that my writing style gives away the fact that I'm young, I try to be as adult and professional as possible but sometimes it doesn't work out haha.
 
Re: Pro Audio Sales

JP Huff said:
The fact that they feel comfortable with me and can come to me about problems they have or what their needs are without me saying "Oh yeah you need a Clair rig and an XL8 for that." When they only need a Pro1 and a few EV XLD's.
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What is your experience in this industry that gives you the knowledge/experience to make decisions like this?

Have you been working in sales? Are you a system designer? Have you been in the install market? What sort of projects? How many years?

Do you truly understand the advantages/disadvantages of one product over another? Have you personally used them in different situations?
 
Re: Pro Audio Sales

Ivan Beaver said:
What is your experience in this industry that gives you the knowledge/experience to make decisions like this?

Have you been working in sales? Are you a system designer? Have you been in the install market? What sort of projects? How many years?

Do you truly understand the advantages/disadvantages of one product over another? Have you personally used them in different situations?
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Research. I've helped set up and fly a few line arrays and make my own opinions and thoughts then research them. Haven't done sales. Haven't done installs. Haven't used things personally because I haven't had practical opportunities and money to do it. I'm looking for those opportunities and trying to expand my knowledge, but personal experience is something I lack. You can't make up personal experience, and you have to be honest about that. Thats why I would start with things I knew and have used. Not gonna try and sell some huge Meyers rig and BS my way through it, potentially giving them something terrible and not what they wanted at all. So that's a big part I lack right now. I could sell some powered Mackies and a Peavey board because I have run in to those a lot! But with a few exceptions, I haven't been able to use top notch stuff in real time on an actual gig to make me formulate a different opinion based off of research alone.
 
Re: Pro Audio Sales

JP Huff said:
I could sell some powered Mackies and a Peavey board because I have run in to those a lot! But with a few exceptions, I haven't been able to use top notch stuff in real time on an actual gig to make me formulate a different opinion based off of research alone.
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I don't know about Mackie-but I think Peavey only has stocking dealers (not counting contracting companies).

To me it appears as if we have gone form Midas consoles to Peavey consoles.

I think most people who buy "powered Mackies and Peavey consoles" are the type who walk into a store and want to walk out with product. Not the type who are willing to wait days or weeks for product.

When you get to the "upper level"- those people typically plan further in advance and are willing to wait a little bit for product.

Those are very different people.

Just sayin'
 
Re: Pro Audio Sales

Ivan Beaver said:
I don't know about Mackie-but I think Peavey only has stocking dealers (not counting contracting companies).

To me it appears as if we have gone form Midas consoles to Peavey consoles.

I think most people who buy "powered Mackies and Peavey consoles" are the type who walk into a store and want to walk out with product. Not the type who are willing to wait days or weeks for product.

When you get to the "upper level"- those people typically plan further in advance and are willing to wait a little bit for product.

Those are very different people.

Just sayin'
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I used Peavey as a basic thing...but I still want to work for or be a midas dealer! :)
 
Re: Pro Audio Sales

JP Huff said:
I used Peavey as a basic thing...but I still want to work for or be a midas dealer! :)
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So here is what to do....

Go to work at GC. Work your butt off, be the best you can. Treat your customers well and earn their respect. After a few years and learning a ton, apply for a position at GC Pro. That is their pro sales division. Here you will meet a bunch of new customers and will learn how to deal with commercial clients. After a year or two of that you might just like it or you may have impressed someone else in the industry and opened up doors for yourself.
 
Re: Pro Audio Sales

RYAN LOUDMUSIC JENKINS said:
So here is what to do....

Go to work at GC. Work your butt off, be the best you can. Treat your customers well and earn their respect. After a few years and learning a ton, apply for a position at GC Pro. That is their pro sales division. Here you will meet a bunch of new customers and will learn how to deal with commercial clients. After a year or two of that you might just like it or you may have impressed someone else in the industry and opened up doors for yourself.
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That sounds like a great plan to me!

If I was a customer-asking for advice-I would want advice NOT from somebody who did some "research" (However deep it might go) on the internet, but rather somebody who has used-been involved with or at least has interfaced with many different people in different usages of various equipment.

The REAL world experience goes a lot further than just sitting at a computer getting "data" that others in some form or fashion based on unknown sources.

And to JP-this "experience" does not come quick-so be willing to invest years and decades to it-not a couple of months.

Those of us who have been at it for a number of decades (going on 4 for me) still have A LOT to learn-as the technology is constantly changing.

The more a person knows-the better they be in helping others.

But you can't help people make the right decision if you don't really understand the differences between different products.
 
Re: Pro Audio Sales

Yeah I totally get that experience triumphs research in this industry. All of this is great stuff to know so I thank all of you for contributing! It means a lot being able to come on here with an idea, and have people go "Now I'll tell you why that won't work" or "Do this to get to that" or even things like "you've got a lot of ideas". Totally helps shape what's realistic with in the next 5 years or so and then being able to build from there.
 
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