I think this needs re-saying on this thread.
I think we need to look into history to see how the present way to market was established and the reasons.
The origins of our industry go back to the 1950's and lots of men demobbed from the army but with electronic skills from the war, plus the availability of large amounts of government surplus ex war material in the way of components. A DIY hobby started based around companies who competed at the gov auction to buy this stuff like Lasky's, G W Smith, Henry's and Comet based in Hull, etc. This created a hobby that was then helped by the publishing business with the creation of Wireless World magazine and others. Some of these hobbyists like Walker with Quad and Leak etc started to sell their designs which they did through the established brown goods network then established with radio and TV shops. This meant they sold through wholesalers who marked it up and then sold it to the retailers.
This all changed with the end of retail price maintanance by law which brought in the discounters. The discounters were the hobbyist surplus shops that started to sell finished goods and because of their buying power they forced down prices from the wholesalers and a price war emerged between them with more and more advertising to say "my price is cheapest" which created a surge in Hi-Fi magazines to service this market and need for advertising. Also at that time the Japanese companies had invaded the market with cheap quality goods that put a lot of British product to shame. Everything was reviewed, sold and advertised still on specifications.
Some of the British companies along with the established and newer traditional brown goods shops wanted a way to counter this otherwise they would have died. So (illegal) agreements were taken out direct with manufacturers to protect their market, to keep product out of the discounters. But it was all still promoted purely on specs.
Things changed again with a certain Scottish business man who decided to market a concept that he thought the industry needed and saw a way to make lots of money. Very simple - decide what to buy by listening to a product and not just get the best spec. The established dealers like Grahams etc jumped at it, as it gave them an advantage in a market that they were losing. BUT for it to work a whole network of middle men and add ons had to be established to create the brainwash, plus the incentive of high profit margins was needed to pay for all this. Magazines, retailers, reveiwers, expert brainwashed salesmen - all the middle men or as I call them slurpers were created from this - and the flat earth was created. Other companies (such as nva) came in to compete in this market but the prime movers just created more bullshit by saying "now don't listen and choose, you must listen to what we tell you to listen for, and to" and the market was put into a state of control even to the forming of institutions like BADA that has lasted up to the recent past.
Smaller offshoot of this marketing method appeared such as the valve thing, until AV and then the market shifted a bit back to the discounters, who had suffered with many of them like Lasky's going bust and others like Comet down marketing in Hi-Fi terms.
OK what comes around goes around and the industry is now going back to its root enthusiasts again, Hi-Fi is no longer a "must have", many more thing compete for available dosh. The whole on line thing has opened up new possibilities and ways to market that make the old ways seem expensive and unnecessary.
This part of this thread is just exploring ways that the market will / could change. It has always changed as you can see and it is always the vested interests, the Luddites and the Dinosaurs that try to stop the changes, but it is natural and unstoppable.
