Hey, how about some info, Rotel

[Mark_C.]

So what's the latest on the new products?

Digital amps; Sirius receiver, old-fashioned amps
I talked to my friendly neighborhood Rotel dealer today and he was playing dumb. The Rotel factory rep has indeed been by, he said, but no specific dates were given as to release. My sales guy, who I know quite well, said he assumed the new products wouldn't start hitting the shelves until fall or end of year. And he didn't even know about the Rotel Sirius receiver.

So, come on, Rotel. Your web site has cobwebs on it from neglect. I swear I hear crickets when I go to the site looking for new product news. Throw us a bone.

[chrispy35]

Hear hear! www.rotel.com is the last place I go for anything Rotel other than owner's manuals before considering something that is already on store shelves.

[alkalay]

Indeed!

Had I been in the market for, say a dedicated stereo amp, knowing something about Rotel's new arrivals would have affected my auditioning list greatly.

Itai.

[greve]

Indeed!

Had I been in the market for, say a dedicated stereo amp, knowing something about Rotel's new arrivals would have affected my auditioning list greatly.

Itai.

Yes, but it would also probably have made you buy the new one instead of the old one that their stock is full of. This kind of "new model information management" is basic business sense to keep a sales flow while new models are imminent. Rotel can't really afford to care too much about a few dedicated forum-members, who wants to know everything about what's going to happen in the next 3 years.

[Mark_C.]

I'm not asking about the next three years. I am asking about the products that were shown at the CES show in January, nearly six months ago. You'd think the company would be offering up even tidbits by now of a timetable for the new products. We're not talking about state secrets here. The company has already let the cat out of the bag.

[pbarata]

I think Marc is right, Rotel should do a bit more concerning transparency in their web site.
While after buying my RCD-1070 I was surprised by the launch of the RCD-1072, which took me really annoyed as no information was available in Rotel Web site about it. I wrote to Rotel but till now I never got an answer.

Here is the letter sent to Rotel:

"Subjet: Rotel Web Site misleading information

Dear Sir,

I’m the proud owner of a Rotel combo, build up with Rotel RSP-1066, RMB-1075 and RCD-1070. As many users I’m a frequent visitor to Rotel web site, looking for information on new products, firmware upgrades, FAQ, etc.

Nevertheless I’m quite mad with Rotel, because it’s web site is not reliable concerning the upcoming of new products. One month after buying Rotel RCD-1070 CD player and was surprised with the news about a new model the RCD-1072. If I had the information I would buy the new model.

Again, I’ve found recently in a Forum that Rotel is planning again new products: the RSP-1068, RDV-1050 and RSX-1056 and again no information can be found about them on Rotel’s web site. I’m sure that many users will be misleading about Rotel line of products and someone will try to sell them the old models.

Thus I ask you please, if at all possible, to change your policy concerning the launch of products on your web site.

Kind regards,

Pedro Barata


Lx, 7 January 2004" :M

[csuzor]

Most of the reasons we want to know what's coming next, is to decide if we should wait for it or buy the current models... that's exactly what every company wants to avoid, all the way down the sales channels.

Now, for some products for which there is no equivalent today (like SACD player), if Rotel don't tell us they will have one, we just assume they won't, and get another brand. In that example, I assume Rotel will never have one, so I will get a Sony.

Care to convince me otherwise anyone? Rotel?

[pbarata]

Nowadays in car industry we can know in advance which will be the next model, in many cases you even now how often they renew a certain model like Mercedes, BMW, Audi, etc. Don’t see why in audio industry such a policy is not used too?!

It’s up to the costumer to decide if he gets the current model, or if we wait for the next one. In some cases you can have a substantial rebate for the “old” model.

[greve]

Nowadays in car industry we can know in advance which will be the next model, in many cases you even now how often they renew a certain model like Mercedes, BMW, Audi, etc. Don’t see why in audio industry such a policy is not used too?!

It’s up to the costumer to decide if he gets the current model, or if we wait for the next one. In some cases you can have a substantial rebate for the “old” model.

Which is exactly why we have forums like this where people can add up all the bits of info that exists to form a more or less reliable view of the future. I can assure you, it is not in the car industry's interest that consumers know in advance about new products, but the market has seen a need for a forest of car-related magazines and forums etc. and spy-photos of new cars are big business, but only because some consumers will pay for this information to use it against the average car dealer to get discounts. And there are still many people who pay list-price for a car just 1 month before the new model hits the showroom - they are the uninformed... When was the last time you saw a new Audi on the official Audi website many months before it was due to hit the showroom?

[pbarata]

Which is exactly why we have forums like this where people can add up all the bits of info that exists to form a more or less reliable view of the future. I can assure you, it is not in the car industry's interest that consumers know in advance about new products, but the market has seen a need for a forest of car-related magazines and forums etc. and spy-photos of new cars are big business, but only because some consumers will pay for this information to use it against the average car dealer to get discounts. And there are still many people who pay list-price for a car just 1 month before the new model hits the showroom - they are the uninformed... When was the last time you saw a new Audi on the official Audi website many months before it was due to hit the showroom?

Maybe Audi is a bad example, that why I have a BMW.

[w6000]

The best place to get information is from your local sales rep because they are the ones who want to develop a relationship with you. It does not matter to them whether you buy the new model or the old one as long as you but something. My rep told me that the video switcher(HDMI) will not be out this year if ever.

[rnoble]

The best place to get information is from your local sales rep because they are the ones who want to develop a relationship with you. It does not matter to them whether you buy the new model or the old one as long as you but something. My rep told me that the video switcher(HDMI) will not be out this year if ever.

For this very reason many of our retailers are full of sh**.

[boe]

Info would be good

I think there are plenty of examples of advance knowledge being available. The video card manufacturers sure give out plenty of info in advance. Car manufacturers usually have a great deal of info on their web sites. Honda/Accura sometimes has the new models (months in advance) up in the main site where you'd be looking for info on any of their car models - no searching or having to know exactly where to look.

If Rotel shows off new models at CES, they should make the info available on their web site. If I went to their website for info, I'd be worried they were going out of business since it is so rarely updated. I update my companies website on a regular basis just so people know we're still kicking.

I'm not sure the dealer is the best place to get info though. It seems that just about any place I go (car dealer, audio/video dealer, computer dealer) the sales person is ignorant of their current products let alone future products. Can you tell me (how many horsepower, amps, watts, what resolution) this model is? "hold on let me go look that up".

While many buyers may not go to extreme efforts to find out new model info - do sellers actually think they are surprising us by releasing new models? Gee I though this preamp/laptop/car was the last version they would ever release... I didn't know the technology could ever get better... Let's stop playing games and get the info out there. By not releasing information, they are actually negatively impacting my view of the company. I don't expect info on models planned 5 years from now but if you are releasing something in a few months and you already have started manufacturing it - why not give us a few morsels about the product? I can live with a "prices, colors, features, etc may vary by the time of of release disclaimer"

[w6000]

For this very reason many of our retailers are full of sh**.

who is "our retailers"- do you work for rotel?

[w6000]

[QUOTE=boe]I


I'm not sure the dealer is the best place to get info though. It seems that just about any place I go (car dealer, audio/video dealer, computer dealer) the sales person is ignorant of their current products let alone future products. Can you tell me (how many horsepower, amps, watts, what resolution) this model is? "hold on let me go look that up".

Yes I agree that there is alot of ineptness out there. But I do think that there are dealers who are passionate about a/v, and have good relationships with rotel corporate, and can get information about new products. These are the same dealers that know the products better than the customers. In my area alone there are five rotel dealers, two know next to nothing, one is allright, and two are outstanding. I think that companies are always trying out new products and places like CES are ways for them to get feed back on those products. For what ever reason the company might decide not to produce the products. If they posted them on their website and then decided not to produce the product I think you would see alot more complaining. I think the public would see this as false advertising, hence the comparisons to the auto industry in this thread.

[boe]

[QUOTE=w6000]

I
For what ever reason the company might decide not to produce the products. If they posted them on their website and then decided not to produce the product I think you would see alot more complaining. I think the public would see this as false advertising, hence the comparisons to the auto industry in this thread.

I agree that some models are never sold but once they are in production they sure should put them up on the web site - they can put any disclaimer they want on the new model page. For many products there is at least a three month process between the product order being placed, an inventory being built up, distribution and final release.

[chrispy35]

Which is exactly why we have forums like this where people can add up all the bits of info that exists to form a more or less reliable view of the future. I can assure you, it is not in the car industry's interest that consumers know in advance about new products, but the market has seen a need for a forest of car-related magazines and forums etc. and spy-photos of new cars are big business, but only because some consumers will pay for this information to use it against the average car dealer to get discounts. And there are still many people who pay list-price for a car just 1 month before the new model hits the showroom - they are the uninformed... When was the last time you saw a new Audi on the official Audi website many months before it was due to hit the showroom?

What about Xbox 360 and PS3? They're rushing to get info out in advance in order to build up hype for the product releases. Even though they risk cannibalizing sales of their soon-to-be-legacy hardware, they put out info because neither can stand by and let the other spout off about how their next system will be the greatest without some sort of response. Is Rotel so confident in their products that they have no worry about some customers jumping ship?

[DrJRapp]

I'm not sure the dealer is the best place to get info though.

I've found through experience that the dealer is perhaps the worst place to get info. Two years ago I purchase my first HT Rotel gear ( I had owned other Rotel gear before) the 1098 had just been introduced and I was in the decision process on what to buy, go for the RSP 1066 immediatly or pay more for the 1098 and have to wait for one. I questioned my dealer at the time about PLIIx, and the possibilities of the 1066 being replaced in the near future with a newer model. They assured me that there wasn't anything on the horizon and besides, "since the 1066 is software upgradeable, you will receive upgrades to any upcoming format ." History now shows how off target that dealer was just for the sake of a sale. The 1068 was introduced 4 months later and the 1066 was abandoned in terms of upgrades.

[Mark_C.]

My whole point about this is that Rotel has already announced the new products along with working prototypes. That was six months ago. Yet when you talk to dealers, they say they are in the dark and that Rotel won't tell even them when the new products will become available. Rotel could use its web site to promote the new products as well as existing products. Instead, we get a web site that's a dreary example of true neglect.

[jim777]

Instead, we get a web site that's a dreary example of true neglect.

Yeah, they still show off the "2004 Product Catalog", come on Rotel... why not a few previews like McIntosh and others do on their website?

[alkalay]

Yes, but it would also probably have made you buy the new one instead of the old one that their stock is full of. This kind of "new model information management" is basic business sense to keep a sales flow while new models are imminent.

Not if I were the "up to date" kind of a buyer.

Itai.

[pbarata]

Overall I think that all of us are looking for a little more transparency from Rotel on their web site.

If Rotel is quite fast publishing favourable reviews in their web site, why not to do the same concerning the release of new products?

At least they should have News and Events section where they could have some info about what was presented at fairs like CES, which would help many of us to get a better knowledge on what we could expect in the near future.

Most likely, the general Internet user will visit Rotel web site for information and mostly will end with the feeling that nothing is happening at Rotel, concerning the launch of new products !!!

Lately many of us are trying to guess if Rotel will embrace HDMI support in their products. The consequence is that I, as many others, are seriously thinking to buy a DVD player from other brand, specially those upgrading their CRT TV’s for LCD/Plasma TV’s, where such a connection really makes a difference.

[greve]

Not if I were the "up to date" kind of a buyer.

Itai.

I agree, but how big a percentage of Rotel's customers do you honestly believe belong to this category of "up to date" buyers, e.g. how many Rotel customers actually participate in a forum like this? Less than 1%? Less than 0.1%? Less than 0.01%? I think you get the picture - people like us are not THAT important for a consumer electronics manufacturer...

As always, this is IMHO... ;-)

[csuzor]

how big a percentage of Rotel's customers do you honestly believe belong to this category of "up to date" buyers, e.g. how many Rotel customers actually participate in a forum like this? Less than 1%? Less than 0.1%? Less than 0.01%?

Let's put the question another way.
How many people have internet web access USA/W.Europe? 30%
How many Rotel customers have internet web access? 80% (at least, we're the richer half of the population)
How many Rotel customers have looked at the Rotel web site, either before or after their purchase? 50% (at least 2/3 of Rotel customers with web access)

Now, how many Rotel customers are disappointed with the lack of up-to-date new product information on the Rotel web site? My guess is 25%

That's a significant % of customers asking for better marketing.

Now the crucial question: How many Rotel customers return for more Rotel products? at least 50%
So, keeping your existing customers up-to-date on upcoming products, ensures they wait and purchase your products, and not someone else's because they were not sufficiently informed.

You can play with the numbers, but keeping existing customers informed is the minimum marketing requirement, and these days, keeping a web site up-to-date is crucial for success. To be fair, Rotel web-site is quite good, and reasonably up to date with released equipment... it just doesnt tell us what's coming next.

On competitor's web sites, they have pre-release information, or "coming soon" information, which keeps everyone excited and coming back for more, or even start saving to make the purchase as soon as it hits the stores (even pre-ordering!).

[rnoble]

They're protecting their retailers. If you we hold off on existing stock because something new is just around the corner they'll have to discount it all and find it hard to sell. Existing equipment that has been superceded is hard enough to flog off without people waiting.

I don't agree with this tactic but that's partly the reason of why they do it.

[alkalay]

Hey greve, s' up?

I think you're taking us, Rotel's forum members, waaaaaaaay too lightly.

Itai.