Darwin … I applaud your tenacity … !!! Great idea it’s a winner, but " the proof is in the pudding " the marketing is a very complicated recipe … It’s like a souffle !!! We need to scour the cook books !!!

Hey @Chris i have be able find a display unit in the the garbage. it is quite similar to the one you use. ( might just be one model down i think) DT070-RP-P5v
I would love to use it to display my family videos.

i was able to get 6 videos on it but must have a button for each one.
is there any info on the screen that could help my with what i’m doing.

i know that

-5v+ = power of course
MS = Master swtich i think
PB1 – PB6 = playback 1 through 6
SP1 & SP2 = i don’t know Skip playback i think not sure

files need the be Named Video#.mpg up to six i’m guessing

maybe you could tell me the specs of the unit you have.
what playback formats it can play.
how to control the unit.
and does it have direct input??

i know this might be out of the blue, but i just happen to find the unit. and though it would be a good project
thnks for any help you can give

MrGatz

Thanks a bunch Chris. this is the best thread I have ever been a part of.

Hi Darwin,

The name of the brand is HannStar, the model # is DT070-BT-P. Hope this helps..

you guys are the best, as always

@ imajane, so well put,,,lol, and everybody was right, marketing it the toughest for me. I probably will start researching out side marketers as I try a few more of the in store display Ideas everybody has mentioned.

Today I am going to modify my newest stand with an information holder that has an 8 1/2 X 11 instruction sheet labeled “Take one” that shows how to use the brush, the same instruction sheet that Scooter saw with my ebay pictures. I am also going to ask my store if I can put my stand over by the grills, at least for a week to see if any response.

@chris, I love it, you know I build my own product display stand also… just to keep my research time to a minimum, could you tell me the brand and model of the video machine itself?

@Julie, I looked at your link a little last night and will check it out some more,,thanks.

or need a paycheck. or need health insurance.
I bet we see lots more of this all over the place.

At this stage, Darwin… I bet it feels like your baby has graduated from college and is trying to find a job.

Hi Darwin,

I work for a major Lawn Tractor Manufacturer as a manufacturer’s rep and we use video Kiosks in a major Home Improvement retailer ( THD) for showboating our product line. It is a great tool and it is battery operated, you load your video on SD Memory cards. You may be able to veiw one at your local store. It is free standing and it can show up to four seperate videos, all the videos are around thirty seconds. My company fabricated the stands to sit the video screens into. If interested I could send you pics of these in action on the sales floor.
Retailers are moving towards these kind of displays because they are the associates that never call in sick.

Darwin, I just saw an ad, on the FOOD channel, for a new show named “Best in Smoke”: maybe there is some link there that might help you.

http://www.tvrage.com/shows/id-28127

Scooter,,,great idea, I have already developed a second evolution to my sign,,,currently it says NEW, under this it says TRY ME. The letters are in white with a bright red back ground it is larger also, 8 1/2 X11 it is catchy and a lot less quaint. It looks like a big stop sign.
I can try your idea at a minimum of cost also, have the stand all I have to do is spend a little over a dollar for new covers…. will be doing that tonight (Kinko’s is open 24-7).

@Scott,, so as a “ready to distribute” type person, I need to have a 100K – 1mil inventory when I walk into the place? That was what I was thinking anyhow, Kind of like, we like you so now you are in trouble.

I can’t say I blame them. They need to come away with guaranteed high volume suppliers.

It is sort of like no body understanding the 100% mark up from wholesale to retail. I see the retail as doing a lot of work for me. I see the similar value in other levels of the marketing arena.

What are those little screens they are using all over grocery stores – someone talking and demonstrating a product – it goes in a loop so I think it is just a video machine – not a TV. If you have a department store which sells NYDJ (Not Your Daughter’s Jeans), they use something like that.

Don’t go to one of these types of shows if you’re interested, go if you’re ready to distribute. The closed loop TV thing is a nice idea, I’m sure every manufacturer would love to show off their products in action to generate a sale. But if that were the case, then it would loose it’s efffectiveness, so only those that can afford to get the opportunity.

The little tv’s are pretty affordable, you might try one for fun. See how effective it is and if it covers the expense, also see how long the stores will keep it playing, and how long it lasts before it burns up.

Hey Darwin, Have you given any thought to changing the top of your stands to hold a sign board that incorporates the pic views you have on ebay? Maybe with a short description of each pic and what problem it solves. Just a thought. That might be a simpler way to get the point across without a dvd and dvd player,tv and stand, extension chords and outlets.

Do you think I should go to one of these types of shows, since I am interested in distributing at this point?

Scott, great questions. I would be most comfortable having grown to a crew of 20 putting out 6,000 brushes a week. I have managed this size of crew in another business I owned. It is a fun bunch, big enough to cover for each other but still be personable.

I have my time and cost studies finished that show it will allow for a fair profit, at wholesale rates. I have the manufacturing facility currently capable (with additional labor) of up to 1,500 brushes a week without moving to a larger facility.

Where I am at is getting the product to sell in the stores I have and on ebay. I am having wonderful success selling at festivals and the like. If I am not on site doing the selling/closing, sales are just not happening.

I will figure it out,,, I am just whining… One of my stores mentioned me making a loop dvd so people could see how it works… My first thought was omg, I can’t afford to buy a bunch of tvs…. recently I wondered if he meant that he would supply the tv. Does anyone know how this works?

Darwin,

The marketing crowd has the best sales people, they will try sell you that they have what you want. But marketing is something that is continually changing. I have a call this afternoon coming in from a “certified marketer”… huh?

That’s what they said, and then asked what experience I have. I think more to find out just how gullible I might be. Anyhow, this is concerning a national launch. First thing I need to do is ask myself what I want and what I need. As far as sales go, profit margins, and operating expenses. then determine how hard am I willing to work, and how far I want to go, how much help do I need to get there.

After all that I determined that I today I work on the business about as much as I really want to, sales are averaging enough to cover expenses and provide a source of income, I have about everything I want, but not everything I need. If they (this caller this afternoon) wants a piece, then they need to find people that are willing to work harder than I am willing.

My suggestion is first identify what is needed to satisfy you before you delve too far into the marketing. Identify the role you will fulfill in a national launch. Are you going to have what you really want if it goes national, money should only play a small role in determining this decision. I marketed my products at the National Hardware Show in 2009, I had many major players interested if I distributed to them. That wasn’t what I really wanted to do, so that was wasted marketing dollars.