Has the internet changed the game?

Charlie Mike said:
I've been doing well the last 4 years. I doubt that I will ever "blow up" and I'm fine with that, I prefer it that way. I'll be making/selling knives with consistency as long as I want to.
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I think "blowing up" just has more negative than positive. It seems to go to some peoples heads, they end up getting more orders than they can fulfill, wait times get longer, there might be the lure of a quick cash grab, especially if they aren't necessarily as good as people make them out to be down the line. You just keep rabbit-ing along, be consistent with your stuff and just put out a good product with just enough exposure. And if I am a good enough boy I might even try to talk you into making a knife for me that has grinds on both sides for christmas, I wouldn't want you making two of those in a short period of time ;):D
 
Funny, this ties into a question I’ve been wondering. It almost seems like we are in some sort of knife golden age or rennaissance these days with more fantastic makers and company’s than ever. I’ve wondered if that is in fact the case, or does it just seem so because the internet and social media have allowed these makers and companies to reach a broader audience exposing us to more options than ever. And that’s why it seems like we are in some sort of golden age.
 
The internet combined with advances in manufacturing tech has drastically lowered barriers for entry, which means lots of previously unknown non-knife-knut folks playing designer and spinning a fancy sales pitch have been able to jump on social media and woo the masses into buying whatever flash-in-the-pan design they've whipped up. They usually make a bunch of money, then get bored with that venture, and move on. But it also has given established companies the chance to engage with their customers directly and float ideas to the public in a very conversational way that's been wonderful to see. The internet has slashed retail prices majorly, but also made it so that if companies want to be competitive, they have to find novel ways to differentiate themselves. It's not just enough to sell knives--what else do you do? How you answer that will greatly change what slice of that world-wide market you're serving and if you'll carve out a competitive space for yourself that's sustainable in the long-term. A lot of it boils down to how adaptable you're willing to be, and how willing to put up with the daily grind you are that's going to determine success or not.

Whole books could be written about this, but the short answer to the question is, yes it's changed the game. But it's still ultimately a variation on the same game, just a few new rules, and you can't afford to forget most of the old rules, either.
 
One downside I see, especially on places like Instagram, is that you got guys coming out of nowhere, making a couple of knives and then trying to charge established maker prices for them. Then, because (again mainly) Instagram is a place where blowing large amounts of discretionary income gets you likes and followers, these nobodies sell (or usually gift) a knife to these people, and their followers suddenly crowd new-guy with orders, and suddenly he's the hottest thing...and the knives either suck, are designed poorly, or just aren't worth what the guy is charging, which he's charging because he's a 15 second IG superstar.

However, this DOES lead to great amusement when you watch these people who blew thousands on work from a guy nobody knows (and who can't actually design a knife to save their lives) are trying to sell those knives for whatever absurd price, and no one buys them. Gives me a warm glow, really.
 
FSUwelder1212 said:
Funny, this ties into a question I’ve been wondering. It almost seems like we are in some sort of knife golden age or rennaissance these days with more fantastic makers and company’s than ever. I’ve wondered if that is in fact the case, or does it just seem so because the internet and social media have allowed these makers and companies to reach a broader audience exposing us to more options than ever. And that’s why it seems like we are in some sort of golden age.
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I'd say, realistically, we are in a golden age. The standards of quality have risen dramatically, the variety of offerings is staggering, the materials available in lower price points are much better than they used to be, new ridiculous god-tier steels roll out every few months, and designers and custom makers are getting production versions of their knives rolled out on a large scale.

This might seem inflammatory to some, but I attribute a lot of this to the influx of high-quality knives coming from China. By setting a higher bar of materials and craftsmanship for the $100-200 price point, I think they forced the hand of a lot of companies to step up their game. ZT seems to have kept their pricing structure in line with their overseas competitors - remember how the 0301 was $272, and was a Ti S30V folder? They’re now doing Sinkevich collaborations with Ti, colored carbon fiber, bearings, and 20CV for less. Cold Steel kept their same pricing structure but beefed up their materials and QC a bit, and now I have a S35VN Recon 1 that is absolutely flawless and I paid under $100 for that.

Anyone with ~$200 to spend on a knife right now is absolutely spoiled for choice. There are so many amazing knives out there to suit basically any tastes, all with excellent build quality and materials. It's a good time to be into knives.
 
Before the internet, you were mostly limited to what your local stores carried, at the prices they charged. New lines, new products, new manufacturers might completely miss your area. Or you might have to criss-cross your city to see what was available. If it was sold out, you were SOL. You only knew things by word of mouth or magazine reviews.
Now when a company like Kizer decides to go beyond manufacturing for others, anybody can find out about the new company and product line. Somebody will buy one out of curiosity or the company itself will take the initiative to get product out and into the hands of reviewers. And if somebody out there somewhere is carrying something, I can buy it. I certainly wouldn't have a pile of Moki made knives - or known about Moki in all likelihood - in the pre-internet days.
This has meant the death of the local store in many cities, outside of the big box stores. The general increase in quality and the greater amount of middle and upper tier knives is balanced by the inability to feel things in hand and iffy products lines cannot be inspected.
And buying through the internet is far better than buying from magazine adds and mail order catalogs.

This has led to a faster rate of new models released, but I think a lot of those are change for the sake of change. Certainly the modern knife-nut is a sucker for different and it probably helps store sales too.
I think this has grown the hobby, not only in terms of sales, but general knowledge. Unfortunately local businesses generally haven't been helped by this.

But I still can't get my hands on a Shilin Cutter.
 
The internet has changed the world, both for the better and the worse. You take the good with the bad.

It has definitely made it easier for craftsmen and artisans to market themselves. Not just knives either. I used to work with someone who did well selling quilts online. Unfortunately it has made it easier for anybody to do so including scammers and people who aren’t really that good at what they do.

Knowledge and information are accessible like never before but unfortunately so is misinformation which is extremely dangerous. Lots of misinformation around knives.
 
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Then there is instagram...

To quote Tyler Durden, “We buy things we don’t need with money we don’t have to impress people we don’t like.”
 
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b00n said:
I think "blowing up" just has more negative than positive. It seems to go to some peoples heads, they end up getting more orders than they can fulfill, wait times get longer, there might be the lure of a quick cash grab, especially if they aren't necessarily as good as people make them out to be down the line. You just keep rabbit-ing along, be consistent with your stuff and just put out a good product with just enough exposure. And if I am a good enough boy I might even try to talk you into making a knife for me that has grinds on both sides for christmas, I wouldn't want you making two of those in a short period of time ;):D
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This is what I'm dealing with now.
I've recently gotten a website running which helped. Then a somewhat well know knife tester made a few vids of my knives. Both performed very well.
My books have literally doubled in the past week.

If I was full time it likely wouldnt be a problem. But I am only part time currently. My goal is full time. And at this rate, I may be able to reach my goal of that.

It is a bit scary though. My lead time is now at 2-3 months. And there is a rush order that will be taking up my next 3-4 days.
 
ShannonSteelLabs said:
This is what I'm dealing with now.
I've recently gotten a website running which helped. Then a somewhat well know knife tester made a few vids of my knives. Both performed very well.
My books have literally doubled in the past week.

If I was full time it likely wouldnt be a problem. But I am only part time currently. My goal is full time. And at this rate, I may be able to reach my goal of that.

It is a bit scary though. My lead time is now at 2-3 months. And there is a rush order that will be taking up my next 3-4 days.
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As long as you keep a clear idea of what you can REALISTICALLY DO, and simply communicate that to the customer, you're going to be fine. Your work speaks for itself. Now, I would recommend against doing something like, say, telling people their knife will be ready in three months, and then 18 months later they still don't have it. I mean, that'd just be poor business.

:D
 
Quiet said:
As long as you keep a clear idea of what you can REALISTICALLY DO, and simply communicate that to the customer, you're going to be fine. Your work speaks for itself. Now, I would recommend against doing something like, say, telling people their knife will be ready in three months, and then 18 months later they still don't have it. I mean, that'd just be poor business.

:D
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I completely agree with that. I cant imagine taking 18 months for 1 knife!!!!! Yikes.

I have a rough idea of what I can handle. If it hits that limit, I close books till I catch up again. (Usually a short close, about a month)
 
ShannonSteelLabs said:
This is what I'm dealing with now.
I've recently gotten a website running which helped. Then a somewhat well know knife tester made a few vids of my knives. Both performed very well.
My books have literally doubled in the past week.

If I was full time it likely wouldnt be a problem. But I am only part time currently. My goal is full time. And at this rate, I may be able to reach my goal of that.

It is a bit scary though. My lead time is now at 2-3 months. And there is a rush order that will be taking up my next 3-4 days.
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The important thing to keep in mind, in my opinion at least, is keeping long term in mind. It's all great to be in demand but keeping a good management and communication in place.
You're wise to keep an eye on everything. Maybe do something quarterly? Have an order window every 3 months, keep books closed until next quarter. That way people know when your books open (at least within a ~7 day time frame) but at the same time you have made it clear you don't take orders for 12 weeks or so.
Since part of the frustration for people seems to stem from "books randomly open on short notice and missing the window".
Food for thought at least. :)
 
Only 15yrs ago, you saw a 1/4 width panel ad in a sporting or knife magazine, 10yrs prior to that, hardly a knife magazine at all existed.
You called, or wrote a letter. Waited for reply. Mailed a check, waited standard 6-8wks for delivery if already a built knife, and then found out if any good.

Today, you can get on the internet, hear all manner of bad reviews made by folk who are clueless fad fiends, have a knife within the week, and find out if any good, while reading more bad reviews of knives taking 6 days instead of promised 5 to deliver.

Shopping formerly was fun. The internet has made it a mandatory visit to a home for runaway backstabbing whining rich kids.
 
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Definitely go for the long haul Colin. The internet has changed things drastically. We use to spend $1,000 to $2,000 a month on print advertising. Don't do that anymore at all. Quit our last magazine ad this year. When you spend $600 plus a month (discount rate for multiple ads throughout the year) and you get a phone call or two wanting a brochure from that $600, well that doesn't pencil out.

Facebook for us hasn't been all that great for us but Instagram has. It does take time and a maker has to set aside some time every day to nurture these avenues but it can pay off. Its free and you will reach way more folks than printed avenues.

The down sides have been mentioned already. Lots of charlatans and fly by nighters that hurt all of us.
 
Interesting world we live in. I love the discussion and I think the internet changed everything in terms of marketing, sales, quality, how quickly you ship a product, customer satisfaction..... it is really amazing as compared to 50 years ago.

Now you buy a computer, it gets built in China and shipped with communication. Tracking (shipping) has its limitation, but it is pretty amazing as well.
 
The youth of today have little appreciation for how things have evolved. Hell, a lot of them don't even know what the Korean war or Vietnam was and that historically speaking wasn't that long ago. They take things as they are today as normal. It is today, but it wasn't even 20 years ago.

This may sound stupid, but sometimes I marvel at just being able to turn the hot water on and actually have hot water in a very short time. Not the case in many countries.
 
b00n said:
The important thing to keep in mind, in my opinion at least, is keeping long term in mind. It's all great to be in demand but keeping a good management and communication in place.
You're wise to keep an eye on everything. Maybe do something quarterly? Have an order window every 3 months, keep books closed until next quarter. That way people know when your books open (at least within a ~7 day time frame) but at the same time you have made it clear you don't take orders for 12 weeks or so.
Since part of the frustration for people seems to stem from "books randomly open on short notice and missing the window".
Food for thought at least. :)
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That's an awesome idea man.

I may have to implement that in the near future!
 
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