Last week I talked, ok, ranted about poor buggy design. This week I want to discuss a little bit about marketing. I've worked with many new designers, and I myself fell into a trap that seems to open on all of us. When I was new, I wanted to design low cost buggies for people who couldn't afford the offerings from some of the popular designers of those days. I figured if I did a fairly decent buggy and priced it low, all I'd have to do is wait for the tbux to start flowing. It didn't work out that way. It rarely does. 

I still hear the same from many new designers. The problem is that nothing ever... EVER wears out in There. So, unless someone leaves the world and takes their inventory with them, every buggy that's ever been sold is still in perfect running condition. My point is, no one NEEDS a new buggy. If someone joins There, we have auctions full to bursting with resale buggies. Some are priced high, the collectables, some are priced in the middle, and vast numbers are priced near rock bottom. No designer can compete with that market, our wholesale is too high. What I'm saying, and what I tell the new designers I work with, is that there really is no such market as the one I was looking for when I started. It didn't exist then, and it doesn't now. The only way to be a successful designer is to work hard at learning how to be the best you possibly can, and never stop learning. Quality and good, innovative designs are what sells. 

So now  you have some great designs, but nothing is selling. Don't blame established designers and complain that the only reason your buggies don't sell and theirs do is name recognition. There are new designers who become successful. Look at lJordanl for instance. He's very new, yet his buggies are selling well. Exposure is key. Like I noted above, no one needs a buggy, so why would they be going through literally hundreds of pages of them and just happen to stumble on yours? Simple answer, they probably won't. What to do? Well there's always front page, but that gets very pricey. Something that seems to be catching on in popularity is setting up buggy displays. . What you have to do is get those buggies out there where they can be seen. Neighborhood lots are perfect for this. Before we had them, you could set up a display in a paz, but you couldn't lock down the buggies. That just doesn't work well. With a lot, you can which means you can set them up, and leave for people to drop by at their convenience. Tire kicking is something lots of people do with no intention of buying. BUT... if they see something they like, you may have a sale.  

The rental on a ½ acre lot is 15k a month. For that money you can display dozens of buggies, or rotate inventory to keep the display fresh. That's a lot more cost effective than front pages. Here are a few examples of displays set up in hood lots. 

First we have Wikkedeva's showroom at The Village Marketplace. She has many of her bikes on display there. Next is lJordanl's lot at Hurricane Bay and right down the street is the ZMW lot. Finally there's the Khale Design showroom. There are many more out there, and the concept really seems to work. It works best when several designers cluster together. It draws traffic, and that's what you want. But remember, if you're displaying poor quality buggies, all the display in There won't improve your sales. 

 

The one drawback to setting up a showroom is that anytime the servers are reset, like on Wednesdays or Fridays (push days) all your buggies will sink to the ground. If they're on decks or floors, they'll look and maybe even sound pretty weird. If you have a showroom setup you'd like to show off, let me know. I'll drop in and take a few pics for the column. 

OK, now what you're all waiting for. What did I find this week to review. Well I was really happy when I found the Kooper Golden  Sunset. The buggy is by Ledzep, and let me say he's cleaned up any technical difficulties he's had in the past with this one. He's got the shine down too. Priced at 15,300t this is one to check out. I have a feeling we're gonna be seeing more from Ledzep! 

The next buggy up is the Silver_Racer by PennfieldBoy. It's an interesting design and no real technical problems. Nicely done and priced at only 9,000t I can say that anyone looking for a bargain should be looking at this one. 

 

The Eagle Buggy by Lead comes up next. My only problem with this buggy is that it uses the There treads. Other than that, it's so well done for the price, 12,850t, I felt it warranted inclusion here. The color is interesting, and the eagle is awesome. 

 

The final buggy today is the NovaEgypt by Nova_1. Since I was doing my screen shots at the Moroccan village it seemed appropriate to close our reviews using a buggy with a middle eastern flair. The buggy is well done with some interesting textures. The fenders and hood use papyrus, and the king Tutankhamen mask on the hood is so well done you're hard pressed to find that pesky square in the hood. It looked great in Morocco.  

My heartfelt thanks to the designers whose work is displayed here. After last week, this trek through the auctions was actually fun!