Are leather sewing machine makers lazy

[chrisash]

Really not just leather machines but basically all except the Sailrite company

I admit I spend some time on YouTube and often come across Sailrite videos, if you look at their site you find a mass of information about both their machines and popular items on how to make items, plus full details of the parts and fault finding

My point is whilst others just advertise their machines with a few basic facts about them little is really done to build confidence that the companies really care for anything apart from money, They have the knowledge and keep it to themselves even Juki give you the basics and maybe a rating video but little else

The web is a fantastic way to sell, just like Sailrite shows, maybe time others followed suite you never know maybe including service manuals and strip down diagrams or say methods of setups for different materials. so much they could offer to make you buy from them instead of say another make or clone

Edited February 11, 2022 by chrisash

[MtlBiker]

That amazing customer support from Sailrite, both direct via email and phone, plus the incredible videos they post, is the main reason I bought my LSZ-1 Premium with WorkerB motor.  The machine is really good, but what puts this head and shoulders above most others is that support.

[Spyros]

Makers and sellers are often entirely different companies.   The maker is usually in China and has nothing to do with you as a customer, it's the seller/distributor in your country that you want to be more active.  

[chrisash]

OK change it to Seller/ Distributer or maker It's still poor marketing lost opportunity at little cost but great service. Yes there are YouTube video's done by others on the internet about for instance Upholstery or sewing leather but little or nothing on the sites selling machines

Edited February 11, 2022 by chrisash

[kgg]

1 hour ago, chrisash said:

It's still poor marketing lost opportunity at little cost but great service.

Finding reviews / video's / capabilities / specs of industrial sewing machines in general are pretty much left up to the individual dealers to provide whereas if you were looking for a domestic sewing machine there are many sites that do sort of side by side comparisons of different manufacturers machines. I guess the leather part of the industry is just too small / specialized area in the overall scheme of things. Also not every dealer / distributor has the expertise / want to provide the same level of information as the Sailrite site.

kgg

[DrmCa]

We the hobbyists and mom and pop shops may not be their main customer base. Could they be more active in the corporate segment from which they get most of their profits?

[Wizcrafts]

1 hour ago, chrisash said:

OK change it to Seller/ Distributor or maker It's still poor marketing lost opportunity at little cost but great service. Yes there are YouTube video's done by others on the internet about for instance Upholstery or sewing leather but little or nothing on the sites selling machines

The dealers I know are very small businesses, often with one or two people on the job. There isn't much time to do videos when your day involves taking orders, setting up, shipping, receiving, picking up, ordering, or repairing sewing machines, while also responding to email, phone and forum inquiries.

Larger companies, with numerous employees, have more time to setup a video room and learn to do it correctly.

[Matt S]

9 hours ago, chrisash said:

Really not just leather machines but basically all except the Sailrite company

I admit I spend some time on YouTube and often come across Sailrite videos, if you look at their site you find a mass of information about both their machines and popular items on how to make items, plus full details of the parts and fault finding

My point is whilst others just advertise their machines with a few basic facts about them little is really done to build confidence that the companies really care for anything apart from money, They have the knowledge and keep it to themselves even Juki give you the basics and maybe a rating video but little else

The web is a fantastic way to sell, just like Sailrite shows, maybe time others followed suite you never know maybe including service manuals and strip down diagrams or say methods of setups for different materials. so much they could offer to make you buy from them instead of say another make or clone

Sailrite are largely aimed at the amateur/hobby market, perhaps edging into the "sell enough to make a few bucks profit a month" level. Professionals don't tend to need to be advertised at -- if they're a small concern individual workers tend to have institutional knowledge from wherever they studied, and if they're larger concerns they either have an in-house technician to know these sorts of things or they go to a dealer and say "I need X number of machines that have Y capability. How fast do they go and what are your financing options?"

Amateur/hobby leatherwork is a vanishingly tiny market for sewing machine manufacturers. Some dealers (such as Weaver) spend considerable resources to cater to that market because they reckon it's worth it. Most don't, and I can't really blame them for that. Same for manufacturers -- I bet Juki sells 1,000 industrial machines to manufacturers for every one they sell for someone to use for a hobby or one-man-band craft business. Juki turned over $657 million last year, and I doubt if even one tenth of a percent of that was selling industrial sewing machines to amateurs or hobbyists. I certainly don't call it laziness if they think they have bigger fish to fry than spoon-feeding Bill from Thraxton on the nuances between a pendulum and parallel feed.

Edited February 11, 2022 by Matt S

[tsunkasapa]

If you buy a car/truck, do you expect the manufacturer to teach you how to drive? When you buy a sewing machine is it up to the company to teach you how to use it? That ball is in your court.

[Spyros]

10 hours ago, chrisash said:

OK change it to Seller/ Distributer or maker It's still poor marketing lost opportunity at little cost but great service. Yes there are YouTube video's done by others on the internet about for instance Upholstery or sewing leather but little or nothing on the sites selling machines

If you look at who those dealers are, you'll find in most countries it's like a dude and his wife sort of thing.  Sewing machines sales are so infrequent that this is all it takes, but it probably leaves no time for marketing activities.