How would YOU market Heritage?

[Jim W]

Reading some of the comments in the "Gibson's Bastard Son" thread got me thinking.

 

If you were Heritage, how would you advertise? Would you draw on the Gibson past?

 

Where would you advertise? What would you say makes you unique?

 

I was thinking about it; and thought of all the different guitar magazines there are.

The only one I thought would be a good fit was "Vintage Guitar" as the readers are a bit older and more into "traditional" guitars.

 

Unique would be how much "Hand Built" there is in every one

 

Whats your .02?

[pushover]

I think everything from the name onwards (The Heritage) markets the fact that you're buying clones of the original guitars, built by hand the same way, on the very same equipment, by the very same people who built the guitars 25 years ago that everyone raves about today.

 

That's the message. I think it comes across to the the people who actually give a damn...  Unfortunately.. Many people just want the G-word label.. And others just view the Heritage models as Gibby copies Sigh!

 

That's ok.. they're idiots.. and we're not

[mars_hall]

Here's the crib sheet you can use to provoke thought

 

http://en.wikiversity.org/wiki/Principles_of_Marketing

[High Flying Bird]

Sure they have a piss poor web site and most folk have never heard of them.  They keep busy.  They are happy and we are happy so I guess every thing works out.  I think they are smart enough to do what they want to do. 

 

As for advertising, I think Randy's DVD showed what it is all about.  How many companies in the US would draw that kind support from their customers.  I treated the Heritage craftspeople like rock stars.  I was in Awe!  That nick in the trim of your new 575 might have been made by Curley's tooth when he was installing the binding.  That's hand made! 

[JohnCovach]

Wasn't Heritage for sale last year?  Thanks to Vince they are working again, but it was lights out there for a while.

[brentrocks]

I would use the marketing stratergy Bob and i were thinking of a few months back...."built the old fashioned way, at 225 Parsons Street, our house."

 

or something like that

 

they dont advertise in the big mags anymore either...but i know that is expensive.  if they were to finalize the deal w/ Skolnick, i would run a campaign in guitar world and guitar player w/ Skolnick.

[cod65]

maybe everything is fine. maybe the problem is with American Capitalism ? How many damn guitars do any of us really need? Maybe the guys just want to retire and play golf for their remaining years. Sheesh. I'm pretty burnt on politics, overconsumption, greed, debt, and fussiness-all of which I'm as guilty as anyone.

 

Let's stop talking about guitars and spend more time playing them!

 

 

(ok, its way over the top, I know.... must be election season- where's my axe?- ah here it is. whoah. its 4am. cant sleep because a stuffed chili popper and a mojito are road ragin' thru my gut, but ah, my sweet Heritage. My sweet, sweet Heritage. Bless the child who'se got his own..

:-*

 

 

To respond to yer question about marketing.... mebbe how it is is  kind of a dream come true.... sometimes growth is overrated :wink:

[Dick Seacup]

...ok, its way over the top, I know....

 

I don't think you were over the top, and I can name at least one other member (besides myself) here who has expressed the same sentiment.

 

To the original question...I wouldn't change a thing.

[big bob]

It seems we come to this topic every third month or so and I can't help but wonder why..

Why doe's Heritage need to grow, what good would come of thier expansion. Would the employees be happier churning out more guitars, maybe they could swich and use cnc machines, or hell just spin off a tribute brand made in China..

 

I think they are fine just the way they are ;D ;D

[mars_hall]

Not to bust any bubbles here, but their carving method for tops and bottoms, i.e. using the router to trace the pattern from below as they do, is not that far removed from CNC.  A CNC has the pattern in software.  They have the pattern in wood.  A router is still making the cuts.

 

It is not as though they are hand planing these using calipers.

 

Flame suit on  ;D

[golferwave]

  Brent's idea about the Skolnick connection would be a good one.  I just received my new Guitar Player magazine and they have an article about Skolnick and Testament in it with a big picture of Alex playing his guitar.  The bad thing is that in the picture they have most of the headstock out of frame so it looks like an LP.  The long arm of Henry strikes again!  In the article they make a brief quote by Alex that all of his guitars are Heritages.  HFB makes a good point as well in that the Heritage guys keep busy. The fact is that Heritage sells every guitar they can make - so until the time comes that they want to expand manufacturing the marketing thing is kind of pointless.

[shook494]

To answer the first question.  I like things the way they are right now.  That's just me.  The prices are better for us this way.  If they start a huge campaign the prices go up.  I think that's what would happen?  I'm not an expert.  Next. I wish Skolnick would finalize! he would be a great asset to Heritage for that genre.  I play mainly metal and my two 150's are great for that sound IMHO ;D

[JohnCovach]

Let's stop talking about guitars and spend more time playing them!

 

I know, what's with this whole discussion board thing?  :wink:

[cosmikdebriis]

How would I market Heritage...  Hmmm...

 

I wouldn't... I'm too busy... And anyway, I don't think there's any money in it...

 

Okay... So that may have been a bit provocative... But I meant it and said it to highlight my point. There's no money in hand crafted guitars unless you can sell them for a hefty price. The alternative is to mass produce, in China probably.

 

These guys do their thing, in their own way and that's why we like them. Why change it. You may well end up with something you don't like instead.

 

On the other hand... Some things are almost criminally bad... I refer of course to the web site...

[High Flying Bird]

......... is not that far removed from CNC. 

 

True but the guy getting the pay check for doing the routing might differ.  Plus, the CNC couldn't make it to the farm and share a beer with you.  :wink:

[pushover]

I would use the marketing stratergy Bob and i were thinking of a few months back...."built the old fashioned way, at 225 Parsons Street, our house."

 

or something like that

 

Not sure whether "the old fashioned way" is necessarily the right catch phrase you'd want to push.

 

In many industries "old fashioned" is considered a detriment, and though that's obviously not what's meant here, part of good marketing is to at worst invoke only a neutral reaction, but certainly never a negative one. What do you think?

 

How about something more like: "quality hand crafted instruments made with tradition, at..."

 

or something like that..

[mars_hall]

Plus, the CNC couldn't make it to the farm and share a beer with you.   :wink:

 

True enough

[JohnCovach]

At some point in the future--we all hope it's not any time soon--the original Heritage guys will not be playing any active role in the making of these guitars.  The connection to the Gibson good ol' days will then be considerably weaker.  This was also a problem for G&L some years ago when Leo Fender passed away.  Many saw G&L as the real Fender, since Leo had been involved with that company most recently.  They've done a pretty good job of keeping the "Fender heritage" thing going post-Leo, while finding their own identity in the market.

 

As I've posted here before, I'm a big G&L fan.

[cod65]

the cnc thing is an interesting point. The investment in the machinery , and its maintenance everytime it goes offline and has to be rebooted requires a different kind of 'craftsman'.

 

I'm getting kind of 'neo-luddite' about certain American production methods, and the obsession with growth, and often the eventual being 'beholden to stockholders'.

 

I went to empty my trash this morning and the cans were blocked by two giant Ikea particle board cabinets that my neighbor was throwing out. I hate particleboard. It is a scourge and should be banned for several reasons. It represents everything that is wrong with consumerism. They had the placard 'free' taped on the front . I moved them aside with a heave and a crunch, as they began their journey back to dust. My neighbor poked his head out the window and apologized for the sprawl. I wished him good luck in his task of taking the 'short road' to disownership. I am sure I projected a bit of dissatisfaction, which he nicely recognized with a pledge to take them to the dump if they were not 'de-orphaned'. End of story. Nice guy. I've been in his shoes before myself. And it was an Ikea product .

 

 

I yield the floor and the balance of my time  to the Senator from Kalamazoo

[yoslate]

Bless the child who'se got his own..

:-*

 

Ever heard Burrell's version of this?  Yeah, I know; Creed Taylor overdoes the production.  Don't even pay any attention to that.  I listen to Burrell.  Marketing Heritage...?  I wouldn't change a thing.  Quirky..., ineffectual..., crummy website...?  I don't play a website.  If marketing mattered, I'd be buying Histerical Les Pauls....  I'm already conceiving my next Heritage custom order.  Gibson neither could nor would ever build it...!  God bless the child who's got his own.... 

[Gitfiddler]

How about a catchy phrase like:  [glow=red,2,300]Heritage Guitars.  Now THAT'S a True Historic![/glow]

[ThroBak]

There are two simple things Heritage should do. First of all do a logo redesign that drops "The" off Heritage. Just call it HERITAGE. If you call Heritage they say "Heritage", everyone calla them Heritage. Making this change is symbolic of a new approach at Heritage. If they are trying to get across higher quality, faster turn around... a simple change like this can get the message across in a under the radar way. HERITAGE by itself is bold. The Heritage sounds appropriate for the Jazz guitars and maybe could remain unchanged as a sort of retro look for the jazz boxes. But switching to one rock solid logo design that remains the same for every model would  visually let people know that they have their act together. Maybe even a slight headstock redesign that would widen it and shorten it just a bit to open up to some space for the logo would be a good idea. You could do this while keeping the same general design and look.

 

Secondly they need a short catch phrase that goes along with the new logo. A short catch phrase that plays up the vintage connection. I the name "The Heritage" is meant to do that but I think the better solution is to just go with HERITAGE and then a catch phrase that is printed on every ,ad guitar case....  that has the HERITAGE  logo on it.

 

One last thing is to pay the bucks to have it done right the first time. Done right Heritage could effectively reintroduce the brand to the guitar buying public and get across the message they make a great guitar that oozes vintage mojo and feel.

[Kuz]

Keep it "The Heritage" because that is what it is: the Heritage of guitar making at "The" original Gibson plant in K-zoo.

 

Every Joe Blow and his sister has a "Heritage" series (least of which is Gibby) so all web surfing for "Heritage" would end up with sites for your main competitor.

 

No very bad idea (sorry no I'll intent) but keep "The Heritage"

 

As for Alex Sloknick, F*** him! he wants more money so we don't need that jazz want-a-be prima donna!

 

"The Heritage Guitar company" wasn't founded paying guys off. It was built on integrity, trust, and loyalty. Roy Clark, Vince Lewis, and Kenny Burrell are REAL AUTHENTIC MUSICIANS that could have gotten paid off by some other company but because of  long term relationships and great guitar they have stayed with Heritage for peanuts.

 

Here's to The Heritage Company. Here's to ANOTHER thread on this subject. AND Here's to The Heritage company not changing a thing- that's keeping it real!

[ThroBak]

Keep it "The Heritage" because that is what it is: the Heritage of guitar making at "The" original Gibson plant in K-zoo.

 

Every Joe Blow and his sister has a "Heritage" series (least of which is Gibby) so all web surfing for "Heritage" would end up with sites for your main competitor.

 

No very bad idea (sorry no I'll intent) but keep "The Heritage"

 

As for Alex Sloknick, F*** him! he wants more money so we don't need that jazz want-a-be prima donna!

 

"The Heritage Guitar company" wasn't founded paying guys off. It was built on integrity, trust, and loyalty. Roy Clark, Vince Lewis, and Kenny Burrell are REAL AUTHENTIC MUSICIANS that could have gotten paid off by some other company but because of  long term relationships and great guitar they have stayed with Heritage for peanuts.

 

Here's to The Heritage Company. Here's to ANOTHER thread on this subject. AND Here's to The Heritage company not changing a thing- that's keeping it real!

 

Company's do this sort of of thing when they want to turn over a new leaf to present to the public. Dropping "The" is really mainly symbolic. It could stay but for practical purposes losing it helps with the entire message. Even if "The" was kept a logo redesign would help big time. A consistent logo and headstock gives a visual continuity that helps on multiple levels. Right now the logo changes radically from silk screen to the MOP inlay. The current logo is nicely done but it just does not fit with the era of an electric guitar. It does not even look like a logo you would see in the 40's or 50's. It's really more of a Victorian era look. A Heritage logo with a 40's or 50's retro look would help get across the idea of vintage right there. The Heritage headstock also varies widely in dimensions from run to run. I have a 2004 H-150 CM that is shorter and fatter than the current headstock and it looks quite nice. Keep the headstock size consistent and you can design a logo that uses the available space to best effect.

[Kuz]

Company's do this sort of of thing when they want to turn over a new leaf to present to the public. Dropping "The" is really mainly symbolic. It could stay but for practical purposes losing it helps with the entire message. Even if "The" was kept a logo redesign would help big time. A consistent logo and headstock gives a visual continuity that helps on multiple levels. Right now the logo changes radically from silk screen to the MOP inlay. The current logo is nicely done but it just does not fit with the era of an electric guitar. It does not even look like a logo you would see in the 40's or 50's. It's really more of a Victorian era look. A Heritage logo with a 40's or 50's retro look would help get across the idea of vintage right there. The Heritage headstock also varies widely in dimensions from run to run. I have a 2004 H-150 CM that is shorter and fatter than the current headstock and it looks quite nice. Keep the headstock size consistent and you can design a logo that uses the available space to best effect.

 

I think we will have to agree to disagree.

 

"want to turn over a new leaf to present to the public. Dropping "The" is really mainly symbolic. It could stay but for practical purposes losing it helps with the entire message. Even if "The" was kept a logo redesign would help big time. A consistent logo and headstock gives a visual continuity that helps on multiple levels."

 

I don't see how changing the  name from "The Heritage" to "Heritage" has any continuity. If anything it is more confusing, "are you guys The Heritage or Heritage?" would leave an identity issue.

 

Why do they need to turn over a new leaf? if it ain't broke, don't fix it.

 

As far as the headstocks- again I don't get it. PRS has a small headstock, New Orleans Guitar Company has smaller headstocks (see below) than THE Heritage guitar company.

Yea they vary ever so slightly from guitar to guitar, but that's the hand made thing again.

 

Honestly with all my Heritages right now, I couldn't tell you which of my 3 semi-hollows has larger or smaller H.S. or which of my 3 hollowbodies has a bigger/smaller one, same for the solidbodies. (I if I looked at them all out and displayed I MIGHT be able to see a difference)

 

What I could tell you about my Heritages' is how awesome they all sound in their own different ways!

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