Here's something that hopefully will stimulate some interesting discussion: Suppose you could get anybody in the world that you want to serve as "spokesperson" for the R/C Warship Combat hobby/sport in a series of ads, personal appearances, etc. Who would be the ideal person, and why? It could be somebody famous, or not, specific or generic (i.e. age, gender, "look", etc.). JM
Off the top of my head I'd say Grant Imahara. He has an impressive resume of work in the R/C and electronics fields. Also while not a super star he is well known within the segment of the population that would be interested in our hobby in my opnion.
Heck Jamie!! Don't go for the bit player Grant is cool and all but imagine the hypnotic characteristics Jamie's moustache imagine the untapped potential for it to capture the attention of our prospects! Plus he has just as much a resume of work in the r/c field =D
How about Vince Shlomi, the Shamwow infomercial guy. I think he would do a great job, I dont know but it sells itself.
Maybe, but do we really want someone who beats up hookers as our spokesman? I mean dont get me wrong he is a grade A douchbag but can he sell the hobby to people that would be interested in it?
I think you're making a big mistake, apparently assuming (1) that there's only a segment of the population that would be interested, and (2) that a spokesperson needs to be well-known within that segment to be effective. Addressing #1: I think that limiting our scope has kept a lot of people who might be interested away. There's an implied assumption that everybody else who might be interested must be just like "us". That includes attributes such as being Mythbusters fans, etc. But by taking such a narrow focus, we eliminate a huge number of potentially interested people, who might be interested for a whole different set of reasons. Personally, I think this hobby (sport) has a lot to offer that's being overlooked. We've got the current demographic pretty well mined out. The diversity of people we already do have already within the hobby suggests, to me at least, that there's tremendous potential for widening the scope even further. As for the specific qualifications of a pitch-person: How about if we could latch onto somebody who is generally regarded as "cool" among the general population? Look for a "Pied Piper"-sort of personality, that people want to follow and emulate. Don't limit it to just people, either. Charmin replaced Mr. Whipple with cartoon bears to sell toilet paper. Maybe a mascot? Anyway, don't set limits where there don't necessarily have to be any. JM
Yes I assume there is only a segment of the population that is interested, because its true, not everyone in the population is interested in our hobby, I for instance know plenty of people that think its cool but arent interested in doing it, therefore and a valid assumption. No im not saying everyone that could be interested MUST be like "us" (cause we're all the same thats for sure). I was actually refering to Grant's experiences with RC in robot wars and working on the R2-D2 fleet for the star wars movies. He is widly known because of mythbusters but I think that what makes him a good spokesperson isnt his TV persona but actually what he has done and been involved with and his efforts to help further the RC/electronic/robotic field. He is a mentor for a FIRST team if I recall correctly. I dont think we have the "current demographic" mined pretty well out at all, granted most people in the "current demographic" dont know about the hobby but that doesnt mean its mined out. I dont think we need a huge ad campaign or pitch people or famous spokespeople or any of that. We need more active clubs and more battles, the MWCI guys in MN and FL have done a good job recruiting and having monthly builds/battles. To many people are content to work on thier boats a little and spend a lot of time blabbing online about "marketing strategeries" and if the Bismarck could have beaten an Iowa and whether the french are axis or allied and other bull shit like that. GO OUT AND BATTLE!!! Less talk more battle=Good for the hobby
Amen to that, I wondered how many people type rather than battle, but this list seems to set that straight.
One other thing you have to ask yourself: what audience do you really want to reach? If you pick Clay Aiken as your spokesperson, you have to be willing to accept the inevitable changes that his fans would demand. If Grant Imahara factors into your recruiting plan, expect some changes based on robotics nerds' thoughts and opinions. If your spokesperson is the creator of General Quarters IV and other tabletop war-games, be prepared for your rulebook to double or triple in thickness. Frankly, I think the guys from Mythbusters would be great spokespeople for our hobby. The audience they are popular with is the one that's 1) most likely to understand our hobby, 2) want to join our hobby, and 3) least likely to change our hobby in harmful ways or do stupid things that get our hobby shut down by the government.
