Thanks for sharing your perspectives, scout. When
Post# of 11899
Posted On: 09/02/2013 12:27:57 PM
Thanks for sharing your perspectives, scout.
When vinhaler.com was up and running there was a kind of list on the site which showed all the physical store locations selling the cannacig/cumulus, however, now that domain is parked and it looks like some other small private company named Intersolved LLC owns the domain.
So much for the "V.I." (Vapor Inhaler) brand name line of products, I guess.
Perhaps this new alleged dry herb vaporizer is going to stand on it's own in the marketplace.
It's all just a bit confusing because I was under the impression that the business plan was to build shareholder value by building up a line of products under the "V.I." umbrella (CannaCig, Cumulus, Pocket puffer, dry herb vaporizer, etc). But it seems now the plan is to hinge the company's fate on this new dry herb vaporizer coming "soon".
I think it's actually a good idea to outsource the order filling system so that multiple distributors can just use one supply chain and the company has an easier time monitoring and tracking orders, etc. So having the "fulfillment company" in LA is actually a good approach to this business process, however, it does not mean much if there are only about 20 orders per month (that level of orders could be handled by one person in their pajamas from their garage), no need for a large "fulfillment company" in LA. Perhaps they foresee a larger consumer base going forward but for that to happen certain actions on the marketing front need to be attained.
In my opinion, Cheryl Shuman has done a fabulous job within her role as a social media expert/guru. Whatever exposure this company and brand has in the public domain, it's obviously the case that she, Cheryl Shuman, made it happen, and shareholders and the company should be very greatful for her efforts. She is a star and has shown herself to be a huge asset to any firm who wishes to use her business savvy to break into the social media space and raise "awareness". However, besides all that, any company needs to realize that the social media aspect is just one part of a broad marketing and sales strategy. Just trying to drum up online sales (not to mention sales at real physical stores) using ONLY social media campaigns is wishful thinking. In order to make huge online sales happen, massive email marketing campaigns, online ad campaigns and a host of other marketing devices are needed. The brave MyKayla campaign was a good idea but as with most marketing campaigns they have a shelf life, they don't last forever and constant diligence is needed to maintain it. That means buying huge email marketing lists to be used to send out ads and also buying high quality traffic for online ads (redirects, pop-ups, etc). This is all online marketing 101 and it is disappointing to say the least that this CEO does not seem to understand that. If what we have witnessed is all part of the plan and there are huge things to come then great, I would be the first to quit complaining but as a shareholder advocate I must say that so far, the performance on the corporate side has been rather disappointing IMO.
The other primary issue is that the ecig market itself is highly competitive and not as large as one would think. The number of smokers is no longer growing within the population and of that group, only a small subset have turned to vaporizers. Whatever marketing campaign is used would need to be very targeted, attempting to reach all of the consumers who would possibly want to use a vaporizer. This kind of targeting is easier said than done in the real world. The company can devise all the space-age technological vaporizer devices they wish and all that is a great endeavor but in the end what will build shareholder value is a growing loyal base of consumers providing sales and REVENUE to the company. In order for that to happen, they need to be subject to successful advertising (which costs money); advertising is not free, even if social media is. In order for all that to happen we must have a real product to advertise. So far, months have gone by and no word on when this alleged new product is going to launch, but the promises of it to come "soon" abound.
Do or do not, there is no try.
$RFMK
When vinhaler.com was up and running there was a kind of list on the site which showed all the physical store locations selling the cannacig/cumulus, however, now that domain is parked and it looks like some other small private company named Intersolved LLC owns the domain.
So much for the "V.I." (Vapor Inhaler) brand name line of products, I guess.
Perhaps this new alleged dry herb vaporizer is going to stand on it's own in the marketplace.
It's all just a bit confusing because I was under the impression that the business plan was to build shareholder value by building up a line of products under the "V.I." umbrella (CannaCig, Cumulus, Pocket puffer, dry herb vaporizer, etc). But it seems now the plan is to hinge the company's fate on this new dry herb vaporizer coming "soon".
I think it's actually a good idea to outsource the order filling system so that multiple distributors can just use one supply chain and the company has an easier time monitoring and tracking orders, etc. So having the "fulfillment company" in LA is actually a good approach to this business process, however, it does not mean much if there are only about 20 orders per month (that level of orders could be handled by one person in their pajamas from their garage), no need for a large "fulfillment company" in LA. Perhaps they foresee a larger consumer base going forward but for that to happen certain actions on the marketing front need to be attained.
In my opinion, Cheryl Shuman has done a fabulous job within her role as a social media expert/guru. Whatever exposure this company and brand has in the public domain, it's obviously the case that she, Cheryl Shuman, made it happen, and shareholders and the company should be very greatful for her efforts. She is a star and has shown herself to be a huge asset to any firm who wishes to use her business savvy to break into the social media space and raise "awareness". However, besides all that, any company needs to realize that the social media aspect is just one part of a broad marketing and sales strategy. Just trying to drum up online sales (not to mention sales at real physical stores) using ONLY social media campaigns is wishful thinking. In order to make huge online sales happen, massive email marketing campaigns, online ad campaigns and a host of other marketing devices are needed. The brave MyKayla campaign was a good idea but as with most marketing campaigns they have a shelf life, they don't last forever and constant diligence is needed to maintain it. That means buying huge email marketing lists to be used to send out ads and also buying high quality traffic for online ads (redirects, pop-ups, etc). This is all online marketing 101 and it is disappointing to say the least that this CEO does not seem to understand that. If what we have witnessed is all part of the plan and there are huge things to come then great, I would be the first to quit complaining but as a shareholder advocate I must say that so far, the performance on the corporate side has been rather disappointing IMO.
The other primary issue is that the ecig market itself is highly competitive and not as large as one would think. The number of smokers is no longer growing within the population and of that group, only a small subset have turned to vaporizers. Whatever marketing campaign is used would need to be very targeted, attempting to reach all of the consumers who would possibly want to use a vaporizer. This kind of targeting is easier said than done in the real world. The company can devise all the space-age technological vaporizer devices they wish and all that is a great endeavor but in the end what will build shareholder value is a growing loyal base of consumers providing sales and REVENUE to the company. In order for that to happen, they need to be subject to successful advertising (which costs money); advertising is not free, even if social media is. In order for all that to happen we must have a real product to advertise. So far, months have gone by and no word on when this alleged new product is going to launch, but the promises of it to come "soon" abound.
Do or do not, there is no try.
$RFMK
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