B a r r y wrote:
On Mon, 06 Sep 2004 11:14:29 GMT, Glen wrote:



As someone else mentioned earlier in this thread, few of the other
companies advertise at all to the mass media (Joe Howeowner doesn't read
FW, PW, AW or Wood Mag. to see the other ads).

Glen


All of those magazines are sold in supermarkets, not to mention Family
Handyman. There is no secret handshake required to flip through any
of them while Suzy picks out veggies. My local supermarket has padded
chairs in the magazine and book aisle! G

I don't disagree with you one bit, the info is out there, as are all the
mags, but I maintain that the average, non-serious wooddorker does not
see those ads or appreciate the difference between a quality tool and a
Sears tool.

Delta, Jet, Porter Cable, Dewalt, Bosch, etc... show up in many home
centers and warehouse stores, including SEARS! My local Sears and
Sears Hardware stores display the good brands side by side with
Craftsman and B&D. Home Depot and Lowes market directly at Harry
Homeowner, if he wasn't born yesterday, he's been there.

Again, I agree with you, they are there, but most Joe Homeowner types
remember Bob Vila's smiling face and assumes that the Sear's name
represents quality. After all, we all know that Bob Vila is a serious
professional. ;-)

Dewalt, Porter Cable, Bosch and Makita sponsor sports, including a ton
of auto racing. Many of them sponsor or have sponsored Norm, This Old
House, Warehouse Warriors, and home improvement / makeover shows that
attract more and more of an audience.

Nowadays, you'd really have to have just stepped off the UFO, with
your last Earth visit in the 60's, to not know of Bosch, PC, Dewalt,
Makita, etc... and believe B&D or Craftsman is top notch stuff.
Those companies are milking a reputation, and it may take a
generation, but the reputation will correct itself.

Here, sir, I must disagree, if only from anicdotal evidence. I can't
count the times I have talked tools with non-wooddorking friends and
co-workers who appear to have never heard of Delta (a faucet company?)
and Powermatic (don't they make the vegetable dicers that we see on the
infomercials?)

Glen

Barry