The Edge - Headsets - Marketing

Building Experience - Marketing Influences Opinion

 

First, let's qualify...

 
Keep in mind that this post is not meant to serve as a completely fact checked article, it is meant to serve as an example of marketing. The source of this article comes from recollections of the story as told to me by associates of mine in the high end audio business in the mid eighties, in other words, memories of a few years ago. So, with this qualifying statement out of the way, and keep in mind that other views and comments on the body of the story are welcomed and encouraged. Read this as a story from memory based in truth and open to correction of the facts. Use it as a marketing story that illustrates how our opinions are shaped by marketers who understand human nature.
 

VHS, Beta, Video Disk

In the 1970's three video playback formats were developed by three different companies. VHS, Beta and Video Disk. VHS was developed by JVC, Beta by Sony, and the Video Disk format by RCA. All three formats were released and the respective companies had a look at the competition.
The RCA Video Disk format required that prerecorded disk were purchased to use the format as could be done with either of the other two formats. This format had a superior picture as compared to the other two formats but you couldn't use the format to record and playback. JVC and RCA were not threatened by the format and the market showed little interest. The format was used by a select number of customers and, as an aside, it could be argued that the Video Disk evolved into the Laser Disk format after an at first unforeseen rental market developed. Then the Laser Disk, which was an analog format that read the frequency of light return from a laser to recreate video and audio evolved into the CD and then the DVD formats which used light return but to read binary code rather than frequency. So, in the long run the better base idea won, at least for now. Back to the story at hand.
With the ability to record, we had two formats remaining. The folks a Sony must have had a party after seeing the VHS format compared to Beta, just as JVC must have gone into damage control mode. Beta was just undeniably superior. The tapes were smaller, the picture better, the recording times longer, and Sony was what all the pros were using worldwide.
JVC goes to Hitachi and other major manufacturers and offers the rights to product VHS at a deal with the understanding that they would not market Beta machines in the North American market. The story goes that JVC understood that the European and other markets would go for the Beta format in that they recognized Sony as a superior product manufacturer and would be more likely to devote more discretionary income to a better format.
The target consumer in the North American market was in college and recognized that Beta was a better format and reasoned that they would by the far more affordable VHS format for now and switch to Beta when they could. What they didn't anticipate was the amount of recorded hours that they would have making it impractical to switch formats. Beta did sell in the states to the more discriminating but held a virtually none of the market within five years.
There was never an affordable Beta format unit sold in the US. VHS dominated the market until the affordable recordable DVD format replaced it, almost three decades of dominance.
From this manufacturers took a cue and make sure that both the CD and DVD formats were made compatible one company to another. The other lesson learned by the manufacturers was by Sony. With the development of the high definition format, that is HD-DVD vs Blue Ray, Sony didn't let a competing, and possibly inferior product, win. Now, only a few years later it's hard to remember that there was a high definition format other than the Blue Ray disk.
 

Building Experience

The manufacturers, namely Sony, learned from their marketing mistakes how differing products competing for the same market can hurt their sales and equate to winners and losers, but what can we as consumers learn from the VHS vs Beta story.
The first point is that we should a little digging is needed to get behind the hype and that many manufacturers are looking to fill a price point rather than accomplish a sonic goal. Other manufacturers are building products to accomplish a sonic goal and then setting a price based on a balance between what market dictates and what their margins need to be to stay in business. The latter is the company type we want in that they like their jobs and income helps them do what they like, the former is in business to make money.
The other point is just the history itself. It helps to be aware that when backed into a corner with a product that could ruin a company, that company can turn to the marketing pros and its up to the marketing department to make lemonade...and they can. Its fine to buy lemonade, none of us want to by a lemon.
There are flaws if you take the story as an analogy for VHS vs Beta compared to binaural vs multi-driver. Indeed, when you buy a headset, driver configuration is only one consideration. The two are not competing formats in that one will win and one will lose. The reason to know the VHS vs Beta story as it pertains to headsets is to understand the marketing portion of the story not the competing format angle.
It is our intention to review the products based on their merit and not on their marketing. We want to keep in mind that the marketing of a product does not have a bearing on it's performance. Just because a product is well marketed does not make it a great product, it also does not make it a bad product; marketing just helps the product sell.