Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!rpi!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!wuarchive!m.cs.uiuc.edu!vela!lmbailey
From: lmbailey@vela.acs.oakland.edu (Laurana Bailey)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga.advocacy
Subject: Re: Commodore Business Machines
Message-ID: <7515@vela.acs.oakland.edu>
Date: 25 Jun 91 22:04:32 GMT
References: <7471@vela.acs.oakland.edu> <1991Jun24.003834.4258@cunixf.cc.columbia.edu>
Organization: Lemming-Aid 1992 - Benefit Concert To Save The Lemmings
Lines: 65

In article <1991Jun24.003834.4258@cunixf.cc.columbia.edu> es1@cunixa.cc.columbia.edu (Ethan Solomita) writes:
| In article <7471@vela.acs.oakland.edu> lmbailey@vela.acs.oakland.edu (Laurana Bailey) writes:
| >
| >Every day, in every way, I see myself agreeing more and more with Marc
| >Barret on more and more things. Not so much the technical aspects of
| >the machines as much as the simple fact that Commodore keeps screwing
| >up. This bothers me because I really can't stand Marc that much and
| >yet I keep nodding my head when I read his posts. I don't know if he
| >has a clue as to what needs to be done to fix things, but he's right
| >on the money when he says CBM is screwing up.
| >
| 	"screwing up" is the wrong phrase. Most of Marc's
| complaints (at least the valid ones) are a LACK of action. It
| isn't that what they are doing is wrong, but that they aren't
| doing all the things we feel they should.

Inactivity is as much of a screwup in my mind as trying something and
doing it wrong.

| 	As to the dealer, you quote no Commodore policy that
| caused him problems except the idea of co-oping advertising
| costs. Inform your DEALER that he should wake up. You don't
| simply say to a computer company "HI! I wan't to sell your
| computer" and expect to have them pay all your costs. There is
| investment required. Commodore's policy is we'll help you
| advertise. If your dealer can't afford $1,000 to advertise, then
| he is in DEEP trouble and there is little Commodore can do.

First off, he wasn't expecting Commodore to pay all his bills and that
wasn't what I was implying. Commodore did promise more advertising and
greater dealer support at their dealer's conference and neither has
been forthcoming. 

Also, Commodore didn't tell Al that he only needed $1,000 to co-op an
ad, they wanted $10,000. Thats TEN-THOUSAND. A little bit MORE than a
THOUSAND. Al probably could have handled a thousand, but ten-thousand
is a different story.

| 
| 	But, to the subject of Commodore spending on marketing in
| the U.S.: Please tell me, whence the money? They don't have any.
| Commodore's profits for July 1, 1989 through June 30, 1990 were
| five million dollars. This year it looks like they will make
| about $40-50 million or so, back to their standard before last
| year. That's on sales of appr. one billion dollars. They simply
| don't have the money. There are STOCKHOLDERS who do kinda demand
| that profit.
| 	I'm not defending every action at CBM, but realism needs
| to creep into these discussions. It isn't that Commodore doesn't
| have any ideas of how to spend money, they simply don't have
| money.
| 	-- Ethan

They're going to have to find the money from someplace. Ever heard the
phrase: "You have to spend money to make money?"

Laurana




-- 
/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\
|Just another lemming...        | Yet another Amiga maniac set loose   | 
|                               | on the world...and you thought things| 
|lmbailey@vela.acs.oakland.edu  | couldn't get any worse.              |