I'm about to quit using Meguiar's Products...

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I found SEMA to be a little on the boring side - same old stuff over and over and over...you can only look at so many fake Xenon's, ricer exhausts, Hummers with 24's and Mini Coopers with stickers on them...



The AAPEX show, however, was extremely cool. Lot's of cool stuff there, great booths, lot's of info. I'm doing a write-up with pictures for Roadfly, I'll share the link when the article is done.
 
geekysteve said:
I guess the last thing that I'll say about this is that the guy that we spoke with was the President of Marketing and Advertising for the Americas; so, he was more than a salesman - he was one of the top brass from Meguiar's.... :(
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I work in our tech support department, and one of the things we hate the worst is some customer calling saying, well my sales rep said we could do this and this and this when we know good and well that it can't be done. Frigging sales people. They should really know their products, but don't. They don't work with it every hour of every day like we do. Please don't take his crap to heart and use independent judgment for the products you've found to be good.



I've not only heard different stories from Meguiar's, but 3M, P21S, CMA, Quaker State and Valvoline in the past year alone. Frankly consistency is a problem in any support situation. Depends on the experience and care of the tech. But usually you are better off with it than without it.
 
arcticwhite said:
Stop using Meguiar's products, you say? No great loss really. :down I've never been a Meguiar's fan myself, and quite bluntly my experience has been that the vast majority of their product line is garbage - marketed at the average consumer expecting average (to the consumer's eyes) results.



Don't feel bad for moving on, there are better choices out there. :wavey
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Absolutely:up
 
Not too sure I want to reveal his name publicly. His title was Director of Marketing for Meguiar's.



The info he gave us about Gold Class was the most disturbing thing I heard at the show. I was totally shocked, so much that I was stammering as I asked another question. I wanted to pull more info out of him by asking about sheeting vs. beading and why there is no published info stating that GC is supposed to sheet and not bead, etc., etc., but I stopped myself as I felt that would have been seen as argumentative.



Another thing I did notice about Meguiar's booth was all the different products they offer that are now targeted towards the mass market. It's almost like Meguiar's wants to compete with Turtle Wax and Blue Coral and is using their rep with pro detailers and body shops to do that. Not too sure I like that sign either.



As Steve mentioned, it was a conversation that did not go well for Guru Reports. I guess we were hoping that they would see the value in the magazine and look at it as an opportunity to be more open and communicative with serious enthusiasts. Based on the tone of our conversation I think Meguiar's are quite consumed with their own expertise and opinions.



On a much more positive note, we got to meet Forrest from Mother's and he's even a nicer guy in person than he is online. Turns out Mother's products are made in the same town I live in so I'm gonna apply for a job there; floor sweeper, bottle cap screwer-on'er, product sniffer....whatever I can do.



All in all, SEMA/AAPEX was a fantastic show. I prefer SEMA a bit more due to all the super-flashy cars and booths. AAPEX was more hard parts and while there was many more detailing-oriented displays at AAPEX, that part of the show wasn't as exciting for me. But both are great.
 
Agreed - Forrest was an absolute pleasure to hang out with. He has such a refreshing and positive outlook on business and the detailing world that I would have loved to have chatted with him for the entire week.



The Mothers booths were top notch - the cars that they had were incredible, and we also got a sneak peek at some new products.



And, apologies to paco...obviously I've struck a nerve with my candid look at the response that Meguiar's gave to us when we approached them in a friendly manner. When we tried to inform them about the conflicting info from their tech line, they shrugged it off as "hmm, oh well.." Barry 'himself' was at the show filming an episode of his Car Crazy show - looking all the part of a washed-up game show host.
 
Over the last couple of decades, the average household has far fewer "play" hours then in the past.



My girlfriend and I are actually thinking of hiring a maid so that the extra 1 hour of cleaning a day can be spent with each other. I never would have imagine needing a maid.



We both work long hours (Project Manager and Teacher) and hardly have a chance to speak with one another. I can't even imagine how a child would impact on the free time as well. Our awesome Pug takes up the rest of our hours.



Meguiar's probably realize that fewer and fewer people are detailing their car's themselves anymore and are not as interested in Top of the Line products as they use to be. Look at a highway someday, how many pre- 1995 vehicles do you see as a %. People are flipping cars today more so that a few years back (leasing, financing etc). So they don't generally care about the paint condition like they once did. Even the one's that do care, are not knowledgable enough to know what is available at Canadian Tire is generally lesser quality products. How would they know any better? There isn't a detailer's magazine that they could read. The higher quality product availablity is mainly on the internet. So unless you spend countless hours like us "Autopian's" - I doubt they would know to use S100, Zaino, Klasse, Pinnacle, Griots, EH, etc.



A company as large as Meguiar's, to continue to be profitable, they'll need to hit the largest consumer base and cater to that market. Why spend millions on R&D to only have thousands return on their investment? Look at the latest polisher they are coming out with - why, to hit the Lower Economic Status population that can not affard the Dual Action PC. Why are the newer products coming out with "Flashy" packaging, and poorer quality.



Economics / Marketing

- Boring dull beige packaging doesn't sell.

- Expense products don't sell well (look at the current situation for Autopians with S100 vs. P21S).

- Is it better to sell 1000 - $5 polishes or 10 - $20 polishes - Not a difficult one to figure out.



Then there'sZaino. Fools like us are willing to pay $30CDN for ZFX because we want the latest and greatest. I bet that little blue activator bottle doesn't cost Sal more than 10cents!!! But yet, we buy it up like there's no tomorrow. Fools yes, happy, yes.



Wouldn't it be funny if ZFX was IPA and blue food colouring!



Don't blame Meguiar's for targeting the mass market. It what's the population as a whole is asking for!!!!



Paco



"What gotten into me today????? Sleep deprivation perhaps"
 
What?



According to some industry figures, Mothers is growing their consumer line of products by 20% per annum, while Meguiar's was down by 30% last year...3M basically owns the professional arena, so I'm not too sure about what you're suggesting.



I'd argue just the opposite - I think more people are detailing their cars themselves...just look at the recent influx of new members here and at other car sites - people are finding time to enjoy the detailing process that was once considered 'painful' (and that we all seem to enjoy so much). :)



No flame, no harm intended, just trying to figure out your position and objectives.
 
"" Barry 'himself' was at the show filming an episode of his Car Crazy show - looking all the part of a washed-up game show host. ""



:D :D Awesome.



Barry for the next Fear Factor host! I was going to say "Dog Eat Dog" but no way would I want to see Barry replace of Brooke!
 
This really is incredible. For a "marketing" guy to take that attitude with you is pretty self destructive.



I use quite a few Meg's products because there is a local distributor for the BSP and Detailer line close by. However, all it takes is a phone call or a few clicks and any of us could just as easily replace the Meg's products in our cabinets with equivelant products from half a dozen other companies. The differences most of the time aren't that great.



Also, to shrug off a comment about their inconsistent customer service repsonses and lack of prodcut knowledge from their phone reps is even more troubling coming from a Marketing guy. You'd think he'd be all over that :nixweiss.



Lastly, the comments about Forrest don't surpsie me one bit. One of the things anyone who sticks around here for a while will conclude is that Forrest is a class act and a straight shooter.
 
Everone must understand as well the difference in margins the liquid guys make and the accessory guys make, it is quite staggering.
 
So far, I've used #9, #7, and #26. I use #7 every 4 weeks and # 26 every 2 weeks. I love the products and think they're very good for what I'm doing. Anyways; it sucks they were jerks but it's their loss that you're going to be leaving their products. Just send them all my way. I give ya 5 dolla ;)
 
bretfraz said:
Not too sure I want to reveal his name publicly. His title was Director of Marketing for Meguiar's.
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I wonder what B-school he went to. Marketing folks are supposed to make friends, not enemies. And, they are supposed to listen to everybody. Obviously, this guy didn't know how.
 
If you like the product use it. Don't let the ahole intimidate you.

If you stop using Meg's products they'll never know that you stopped.



Also in the next Guru reports give them honorable mention.
 
This discussion is moot. Regardless of the attitude of the senior marketing rep, Meguiar's is still at the top of the heap of detailing chemical manufacturers. Because Meguiar's produces chemicals for so many other companies, the marketing products under their own name to car enthusiasts has little or no impact on year-end sales figures.



In the traditional mass consumer market, everyone fights for shelf space at Target, WalMart, Kragen, Pep Boys, etc. Quite frankly, Turtle Wax and Meguiar's could'nt care much less what you and I think, let alone a publication like guru reports (no offense, Steve). To the mass market, Meguiar's Gold Class IS the premium product, and it IS easy to apply, and it DOES provide great results. That's because of Meguiar's marketing prowess and a huge mailing list. Your results may vary.



Let give credit here credit is due. Regardless of an individual, Meguiar's is a good company with a name that carries a lot of weight in the industry. Like many big companies, they spend more on marketing than new product development.



Let's face it, putting "V2.0" on the bottle of their SMR was brilliant. No change to the product, but it is the second version of the label on the bottle. Just brilliant! I'm sure the same person who gave you (Steve & Bret) the thoughtful comments at the SEMA show came up with that brilliant idea.



db
 
Forrest is active over on Corral.net and several other mustang enthusiast websites. The man doesnt slam Zaino or any other products and is a big help and very plausable. He had stated a few months ago he was heading to the east coast and had quite a few people who wanted to meet him. Im glad you got to meet him.
 
Who cares if Meguire's won't notice if they lose your business. Your only way to "vote" on a company, brand, or product is to either buy it or not buy it. What I am saying is that your vote counts, everyone's counts, and they all add up.

It's a defeatist attitude to say, "Well, they won't know I stopped being a loyal customer, so who cares."

You care!

Write them a letter, and let them know you are leaving the fold, and explain why. They will care. And if they don't, at least you were true to yourself. Isn't that most important? BANG! You had a bad experience with them- tell them, and then vote for another brand with your dollars. Shame on Megruire's.

Cheers,

John
 
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