Maybe instead of raising prices a little, they spiked the prices and then brought them down some to make people think they were getting a deal
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Fender Prices-Confirmation
- Thread starter Slackerprince
- Start date
Maybe instead of raising prices a little, they spiked the prices and then brought them down some to make people think they were getting a deal
I should publicly admit that I did not think this would happen and probably have posted as much here in the past.
However, I think people are fooling (that's putting it politely)themselves if they think Fender's markety "strategy" was to spike prices and then lower them to the real increase to make it look like a deal. Normally, I'd ask if this was even a serious theory, but I've been here long enough to know that it actually is.
Mike
However, I think people are fooling (that's putting it politely)themselves if they think Fender's markety "strategy" was to spike prices and then lower them to the real increase to make it look like a deal. Normally, I'd ask if this was even a serious theory, but I've been here long enough to know that it actually is.
Mike
Sure. Driving away customers with high prices is bad marketing. You're not going to bring enough back with the new "low" prices to make the alienation of the potential customer base worth the effort. Seriously, people believe that Fender would push away potential customers with the intention of bringing them back a few months later? The idea that any company would use this as a ploy to sell more instruments is assinine. Sorry to be blunt.Care to elaborate why?
Mike
+1
Sorry but there is no way they can justify the $1200 price tag for the CIJ Geddy Lee Jazz Bass or the MIM Road Worns.
I owned a Geddy for about 6 months and besides the BA bridge, it felt really cheap and fragile. Not to mention that I didn't care for the tone after 6 months of adjusting and dialing. I traded it for a MIM 50s P Bass and could not be happier, in fact I love that P so much I bought another one!
mike_v_s,
Thanks for elaborating. I'm not a marketing guy, but I find this kind of discussion fascinating.
Thanks for elaborating. I'm not a marketing guy, but I find this kind of discussion fascinating.
Never owned a Geddy but I have owned an MIM Deluxe Active Jazz V and currently own a 1999 MIA Jazz Deluxe V and I though I like both basses I have to agree with you the MIM Dlx Active doesn't justify its $879 price tag and the MIA Dlx certainly doesnt justify its $1779.99 one. They are good basses but they aren't that good to warrant those price tags.
Lakland 55-01's and 55-02's are a great bass to use as a comparison for both the Fender models I listed. They are every good if not better and are considerably less expensive.
Again, sorry to be blunt previously. I honestly think what happened was as simple as it appears. Fender has raised prices annually with no measurable backlash for years. This year they were forced to take a larger than normal leap in an effort to keep profit margins up. They weren't alone. Rickenbacker, Ernie Ball and G&L have all done the same within the last year. I believe the sales drop was more than they figured it would be and they are now trying to recover by reducing the increase.
Where the conspiracy theory doesn't make sense is that they absolutely lost the buyers who made a purchase between the increase and the decrease. In addition to that loss, they also drove people in the future market to look at other alternatives that they might not have prior to the bump. Lastly, they introduced their traditional customers to a price point they weren't normally considering. That exposure to what is available at that price point might cause a potential customer to stick in that range even after the drop, meaning the drop might not lure back everyone anyway.
Mike
The Fender American Standard Jazz Bass V went down a whole penny. It was $1,500 discounted, now it's $1,499.99. Whoopee!!
Used is definitely the way to go. I got my Fender American Standard Jazz Bass V for less than $900 and as far as I can tell it was in perfect condition.
As the demand drops for their instruments, so will their prices. Fender felt that the demand for their products would support a price increase. Look what Rickenbacker did a couple of years ago. A 4003 would cost you $1000 new in 2004. They darn near doubled the price through a series of increases. No one was biting, so they limited the supply to the point that people will pay the price because of scarcity. Ric is a small manufacturer, though. I can't see Fender tightening the supply because they are a huge manufacturer and have large factories that are costly to have sitting idle. Supply and demand. The more of you that hold out for a while, the lower those prices will go.
