Rant - Stupid Gun Manufacturers

[samualt]

Rant - Stupid Gun Manufacturers:
[Rant Mode]

Is it just me or does everyone here have trouble finding needed information about firearms you'd like to buy from the manufacturer's website? I go to the manufacturers website and all I find is a single picture with a few tidbits of information dispersed like it was costing them a thousand dollars a byte. Trying to get information from a gun manufacturer's website is like trying to find your way back to your hotel in a strange city full of oneway dead-end cul-de-sacs with no street signs or lighting. What is with these stupid gun manufacturers? Most don't sell that many products. And the products they have don't have more than a dozen features or so. It shouldn't be hard to provide a one page summary of a product and show a few pictures from different angles. I've seen better summaries offered at the official Chia Pet Homepage and better explanations and pictures given on the Dancing Hamster pages.
And don't even say that their primary business is to make good guns and not to build websites. If you have a brain at all then you understand that their primary business is to sell decent products and make money in doing so. A business website is nothing more than a sales brochure. But their salesmanship is so poor that they rely on meaningless soundbytes, catch-phrases, and hype, like they were selling pre-made pudding pops, Cheetos, or SUV's! Be honest, how many times have you had to go to multiple sites on the web looking for information about a gun because the manufacturer's site didn't give you the information you wanted?
Have we become such slaves to our corporate masters that they can show us anything bright-n-shiny and we will just start emptying our wallets like Pavlov's dog or some kind of crack-zombie? Or, are they very misguided and think we are not the educated consumers I suspect we are as a group?

Dear Gun Manufacturers:
For Gods sake start showing some information about your crappy products!!!
(Caliber, Capacity, Overall Length, Width, Height, Barrel Length, Weight, Trigger Pull in lbs, Type of Action: SA/DA/DAO, External Hammer?, External Safety?, Materials and Finish, Suggested Retail Price).

[/Rant Mode]

P.S. Just thought I'd share!

 

[jsalcedo]

yep,

I agree. Maybe gun companies try to create their own websites
and brochures independently.

If an industry insider was collaborating on a website he might take for granted what most of us want to see.

Taurus has done a pretty good job but all the rest are frustrating
and redundant.

Colt is the worst by far.

Years ago before the internet existed as we know it I mailed off
to every gun manufacturer and distributor I could find asking for
brocures, pamphlets, catalogs, anything.

About half responded and it was the same deal, lots of pretty pictures and cool sounding blurbs but not one bit of info.

Except for mossberg they have always had a real catalog.

 

[BogBabe]

Being in Web development myself, I have to say I'm appalled at most corporate and manufacturer sites, along with most of the retail sites where I actually want to send them money because I want to (gasp) buy something!

Commerce on the Web still has a long way to go. I don't think firearm sites are any better or worse, on average, than the rest.

 

[BHP9]

hooray for Samualt. You hit the nail right on the head. A 6 year old grade school kid if given the same adverstising job could do better than most manufacture web sights.

The problem today lies with the fact that factories making anything are corporate owned not privately owned as in the distant past. We cannot expect quality advertisement nor a quality product from such corporate owned companies. Its just a total impossibility.

Corporate owned companies are best compared to Government agencies, nothing can get done right even by the employees who try to do a good job because the red tape and the power structure simply do not allow it.

 

[Waitone]

The problem today lies with the fact that factories making anything are corporate owned not privately owned as in the distant past. We cannot expect quality advertisement nor a quality product from such corporate owned companies.

I must respectfully disagree. The problem, as I see it, is because the gun community (includes uses, distributors, dealers, and manufacturers) constitute one gigantic GHETTO. Members talk to one another. They work together. They work for each other. They fight common opponents together. They interact socially together. In other words the chance of cross pollination of ideas is greatly reduced.

The ability to bring new ideas into the community is difficult. Management at all levels of the distribution tends to come from within the ghetto. As such the changing demands and expectations of the general population seldom get translated into company strategy. Meanwhile, those same customers who purchase guns and collect information on partial kestered website can punch in a new URL and purchase a highly technical product such as a computer where the information is plentiful. So now the gun customer is puzzled.

The situation will change when managers of the gun ghetto realize change is needed. The fact that Taurus has remarkably improved its site will put pressure on, oh say, SIG to get busy. Management will have to determine satisfying the customer AND producing quality products is its job. In other words, the ghetto will have to let outsiders in.

 

[T.Stahl]

Maybe it's because I'm an engineer, but when I come to a manufacturer's homepage (doesn't matter whether they are making guns, cars or whatever) I am not interested in the latest taking-hours-to-download Java gadgets, animations and related rubbish, I am looking just for facts, info, data and clear images.

 

[blades67]

That's why we have gun shops.

 

[Nightcrawler]

That's why we have gun shops.

Maybe your local shop is better stocked than mine, but odds are they're not going to have each and every model you could possibly want to look at. Especially if you want something that's a little less common.

Especially if you're like me and live in an area with small shops that don't have a huge selection behind the counter. The least the companies could do would be to have big, clear pictures of their guns and detailed information. It's not too much to ask. Hell, that's Marketing 101 type stuff!

 

[Old Fuff]

I write for an industry trade publication. Most of you haven't had the opportuntity to do what I have - meet the top officers of many gun companies. The truth is, most of them in the larger corporations know far less about guns then you do, and sometimes they are proud of it! They have backgrounds in business administration and finance, but not firearms. They, and the advertising agencies they hire, often wouldn't know what a good website was if they tripped over it. If you can, download a catalog in .PDF format. You'll find more information then is on the site itself.

 

[hansolo]

Idiots creating Gun Webpages

You can get better information at the Chia Pet webpage and The Dancing Hamster(sic)

Samualt


LMAO!

----------------------------

But, seriously......HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHa! :banghead:

Sad, but oh so true! My two local "Gunshops" are opposite ends of the spectrum: "#1 Gunstore is like Las Vegas.....a lot of Glitz, the latest/greatest, everything is eye candy, big inventory of firearms, ammo and accessories, but...the management and employees attitude is, "Hi! Allow us to max-out your Platinum Card and then, Get The Hell Out !"

#2 Gunstore is, "Welcome to Mayberry! Have a seat and drink our free coffee! You don't have to buy a thing...just slide your big fat **s onto the comfy stools and swap "war stories! And, no, I never heard of a Tokarev...you must mean MAKAROV." I swear, I heard that last sentence and did a double take...I didn't embarass the employee by butting in.

Before someone comes to the defense of either Gunshop: I have bought one handgun in each shop...and lots of other "stuff". From now on, I deal with a friend with an FFL and avoid the Yin and the Yang of BOHICA!....If you don't know this acronym, ask someone who was in the Military!

 

[JohnKSa]

The difficulty in finding official information, IMO, is a primary reason there is so much BS floating around masquerading as official information.

In this day and age, a person should be able to spend a few minutes on the web and have all the specs for virtually any product currently on the market.

I'll give you a specific example--not a gun manufacturer, but an ammo maker/seller.

Georgia Arms, doesn't list a single cotton-picking velocity for any of their ammunition on their website. What a bunch of idiots! Given that they are not exactly one of the big three ammo makers, what's going to sell their products if not the specifications of those products...

 

[Tamara]

Georgia Arms, doesn't list a single cotton-picking velocity for any of their ammunition on their website.

Look again.

 

[Standing Wolf]

The firearms industry is miles behind the times in all its marketing, advertising, and public relations efforts.

 

[JohnKSa]

Well, shut my mouth--there's velocities on that there webpage...

dunno how I missed them the first time I looked

www.georgia-arms.com

 

[LawDog]

Hell, I'd just be happy if the gun makers kept their web-pages up-to-date.

Let me give you a fer-instance: It is my understanding that Glock debuted a new cartridge of some kind at the last SHOT Show.

I am mildly interested by this, so I go to Glocks Homepage to scratch the old curiosity bump.

http://www.glock.com/pistols.htm

Anybody out there see anything on the .45Glock on Glock's own damned homepage?!

Yeah. Me neither. :banghead:

LawDog

 

[Walther P99]

I agree totally.

What I hate most are gun manufacturers listing their compact guns but not listing such useful things as height, width, weight, etc. (or they'll omit one of them) - things quite important to someone interested in a compact pistol for concealment.