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December 26, 2013

Should CES Have an Exchange Program?

I’ve always have a love/hate relationship with CES. On the “love” side, it’s an amazing show with lots of new gadgets, themes and technologies that can be the fodder for things to write about for the year ahead. On the “hate” side, it comes right after the gifting season and makes the bright and shiny look dull and gray only two weeks after we received them.

One of the more interesting aspects of CES is that it’s a buyers’ show without much attention to the retailers themselves. Don’t get me wrong; they are there, but the keynotes and the manufacturers are the drivers of the content.

Maybe you will see a press release with a quote from a Walmart, Frye’s or Best Buy, but by in large they stay in the background.

Perhaps the big box dealers should run some adjunct services to support the general public’s interest in the new releases from CES.

 

Image via New Zealand Listener

Here are some ideas I think would make CES even more enjoyable for the general public.

  1. Early Adopter Dollars.  See something you like at CES, now Big Box dealer XYZ offers a kick-start program where it will ship to you direct as soon as the manufacturer delivers to its warehouse. 
    1. Benefits XYZ because it makes it so it now looks more Amazon-like
    2. Benefits the manufacturer with an early read on demand projections
    3. Benefits the consumers because they have the promise of bright shiny things that last past the holidays.
  2. Exchanger’s Remorse Insurance.  Have you had the experience of buying or being gifted a great present to only see its replacement come out at CES and blow away your new gadget or toy? Well retailer XYZ has just created a new replacement insurance strategy for you. Rather than dealing with the re-stocking fee and the wait for the new item, you can treat the existing item as a rental with a buy down on the price of the replacement.
    1. Benefits XYZ with a residual and also helps push buyers over the edge
    2. Benefits the manufacturer particularly if it’s a loyalty program.
    3. Benefits the consumers because it eases the pain of buyer’s remorse.
  3. The Thoughtful Gift Card.  Instead of buying those indefinite gift cards, that can have all sorts of bad breakage issues, or get lost after the holiday, how about a CES gift card?  You can put the holiday money in a gift that makes it like you are waiting for Santa to arrive for a second time (near the Greek Orthodox) Christmas day.  If CES wanted to, it could make this very exciting with a website and its own support of the member brands.
    1. Benefits the retailer with cash in hand before the end of year.
    2. Benefits the manufacturer particularly if CES posts popularity and analytics
    3. Benefits the consumers who know they cannot buy the right present, but don’t want to look like they just punted. Now they bought a thoughtful gift card.

How did I come up with these ideas? The answer is simple: I have needed all of these. Like the holidays themselves, I hope you gifts withstand the test of time.




Edited by Rachel Ramsey


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