The Lost Art of The High End Audio-Video Demo

  • By: HomeTheaterReview.com,

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In my career in ultra-high-end audiophile retail at Christopher Hansen Ltd. in Beverly Hills and Mark Levinson's Cello Music and Film Los Angeles I was blessed to work with some of the best audio-video demo artists of all time. Anybody who thinks a client can just plunk The Who "Live at Leeds" in the CD player on your Levinson/Transparent/Wilson audiophile system and thinks that he or she is getting the order has another think coming. Without question, there is a time and a place for the consumer to listen to his or her favorite music on a top-performing system. However when you go out for a test drive in, say a brand new Ferrari in California, the salesman always gives it a few runs through the gear box to give you an idea of what you are getting into on the test drive. Then the salesman turns over the wheel to you when you are all excited and at the perfect place on the road for you to get the most out of the car, leaving you a giddy mess and ready to do something downright silly with your money. And yes, I just drove one and it was amazing and no, I didn't buy the car but my very dear friend and former Christopher Hansen Ltd. client did, thus proving that the demo truly matters.

At Cello Los Angeles in the mid-1990s, Mark Levinson was normally in New York selling tons of high end gear to some of the most powerful and interesting people on the Upper East Side and beyond. When I got to work with him in person in both New York and L.A., I learned so much about the way he engages people into acoustical music. The Cello system at the time was the most expensive and exotic system in the audiophile world. It had powerful class-A operational amps, ultra-high-efficacy speakers (97 dB) and could really rock. Mark always had master recordings of music that were recorded using special mics and high end electronics. In Mark's arsenal, he had on DAT tape Indian tabla drums would snap and pop with live acoustical energy in ways that nothing on CD or anything you would hear at an audiophile shop would do. Forget vinyl - these dynamics don't come from LPs and they never did. Mark would play recordings of exotic and beautiful instruments that you likely have never heard in your life. They would shine musically with a three dimensionality that allowed me as a salesman to know that even if the client went to, say Ambrosia or LA Audio Video to hear other very high quality audiophile gear - that they wouldn't get that religious experience. We were selling audio religion as much as audio gear back in the day. We actually got our clients going out at night to hear more live music. We got them buying August Forster pianos and Martin guitars. We inspired them to play and record music with their kids. We were doing things that went beyond audiophila, that were both fun and profitable.

Roll the tape forward to today and the art of audio sales is gone for the most part. In fact, thanks to the likes of Circuit City and Best Buy, commissioned salespeople who make their living being excellent and expert at selling audio and video are now unemployed. The idea that top selling commissioned salespeople "made too much money" is the single best reason for Circuit City's Chapter 7 failure. Now the pressure is on the manufacturer to pre-sell the product so that a big box clerk or warehouse checkout girl can simply take an order, which to be clear is very different than actually making or earning a sale. This is one of the most important reasons to support independent AV stores that spend the money and effort to showcase high end audio-video gear. While it's possible to save money buying some products (used on Audiogon.com or at Costco), you lose the magic of learning and experiencing high end and high performing equipment which is as much of the part of the process as building a top performing AV system.

My direct boss at Cello in Los Angeles back in the 1990's is an actor named Joe Cali. He is best known for his work in Saturday Night Fever as one of Travolta's New York buddies in the movie. But Joe Cali's true calling is as a pure salesman. As the late Don Bouchard once said "Take all of you hot shit salesmen like Levinson, Del Colliano, Chris Hansen, Andy Singer, Mark Goldman, Frank Betz or any of you where the deal was you got a bullet in the head if you didn't close the deal - each and every one of them would pick Joe Cali to close the deal." In many ways Don was right as Cali's pitch was different than Mark Levinson's in that he could - like an actor - adapt like chameleon to the musical and theatrical tastes of a client and find what make them tick. He got them emotional. He taught the listener what to listen for like the slight hum of Stevie Ray Vaughn's Fender Twin Amp in the intro of his version of the Hendrix classic "Little Wing" or to look for the ants crawling on the edge of a basket of berries on Fried Green Tomatoes. He taught customers to be enthusiasts and in the process - he made himself a millionaire. What I struggle to forgive him for is making me as the college kid and music student at The University of Southern California is making me run down the street to the famous Tower Records on Sunset Boulevard in West Hollywood and buy every Kenny G record before Mr. G came into the showroom for a celebrity demo. This was a damaging experience for my young ego but you know what - Joe closed him. You could bet on that as he expected an above fifty percent close ratio for anyone selling in the store which meant Joe or myself.

Today's HDMI-based systems make doing a slick demo in a store or even for your friends at home much more difficult than in the past. HDMI is slow and glitchy to be polite and younger audiences are so used to the immediate action of a Blackberry or their laptop that they rarely have the patience to sit-down for an artful demo. My good friend at Paradigm was telling me that they actually bring four or five Blu-ray players to each tradeshow to do their active demos which are among the best in the AV business. They set the disc to play on a perfect loop for each track they want to play and simply switch from input to input to keep the cadence of the demo moving along. I think this is something that all "showing" retailers should consider with at least two players per system. For consumers, permanently recording some key shows on say a DVR or toggling from Apple TV to Xbox 360 to Blu-ray keeps the show moving when you are showing your neighbor the latest improvements in your home theater rig.

Another key detail of doing an excellent music or movie demo is to keep it short. For music, there is a rule - never go past 1:30 and roll down the volume smoothly at the first chorus. Much like Thomas Keller at The French Laundry says - you want to leave the patron (or your buddy from college who likes movies) wanting just one bite more of each dish. Movies demos can go a little longer but be wary of losing the point of why you are showing the movie. Be sure to pre-sell the scene by alerting people to the shotgun blast in the bank robbery opening scene of The Dark Knight. People need something to focus on unless your goal is to let them fly blind into a scene or musical track.

The art of the demo doesn't have to die because of the rise of the warehouse store. The fact that flat HDTVs are something that nearly everybody can afford today only means that there are more people to teach about the high art of audio and video. Most have never heard what a really good surround sound system can do. Most have no idea what video calibration does. Perhaps you will show them and earn a new client for the specialty AV business?

  • Comment on this article

  • By James

So what you were selling is the idea of audio not the actual system itself. By telling some poor slob that did not know a tube from a diode that this is system is better is the oldest sales trick in the book. A good saleman always tries to upsell the client to something they maybe didn't want when they walked in the door but after the 'audtion' they believed they must have. This is not to mention the 'snob appeal' of having a Mark Levinson or a Krell or any other over priced piece of audio equipment.

I bought my first system in the U.K. while stationed at an Air Force base. The shop asked me what I wanted to spend and found me the components that fit my budget. We did several audtions with different speakers and amps and turntables until I found the combination that I liked. This shop had all the Hi-end brands like Niam, Quad, Linn, NAD and others, They did not try to sell me out of my comfort zone. They sold me what I could afford. Maybe this is why so many so-called Hi-end shops are no longer around.

  • By Jerry Del Colliano

I wonder how wealthy those guys are today as they are out of business?

Adding VALUE is sales. If a client has a $10,000 budget - you aren't trying if you don't show them something at both $8,000 and $12,000. Anybody who doesn't try the upsale might have worn his wife's panties to work that day. At Hansen's and Cello - the standard was higher than that. We taught. We pushed the envelope but NEVER took anyone out of their comfort zone.

  • By alice

I loved the article . The art of high end demo is actually just that. A display of art and education. A professional salesman does actually sell, he guides to to selling themselves on getting what they need instead what they want. Yet remaining with their comfort.

I have had the pleasure of a personal Mark Levison demo , Andy Singer and others of note and it was beautiful experience.

Circuit City & its breed deserve exactly what they deserved . Just being order taker selling price pointed equipment to Joe Pack is not worthy of worrying about.

  • By Tom

Some people do not get it and they never will! The "lost art" is a true thing! One lower end producer is one of the best, for the masses, demo provider. Whether you are in their store or in a Costco or Sam's Club they have demos set up and that is Bose. When Joe six-pack walks into a Best Buy to buy a sound system for his flat screen TV he has no idea what his price range is as opposed to quality and he is unlikely to find out he is lucky if he gets waited on.

  • By Steeojeff

Jerry:

Well done. I'd like to add two short and supporting ideas. When I'm training (or selling) I try to use a simple strategy: Predict, Prove, Confirm. Predict what the customer will hear/experience; convincingly demonstrate the prediction, then close the loop by getting confirmation that the customer/trainee heard what you predicted. And...Sell Aspiration.

Jeff Hipps

  • By deacongreg

Man, this brought back some memores for sure. You must sell value when you selling the best. That value word was huge for me in my 5 years at Xerox. Going up against the likes of Canon, Panasonic, Toshiiba, Mita, etc.But in todays marketplace, with high end audio salons dropping like flies, todays consumer probably does not know what a demo is!!!

And I don`t think products like surround bars help either.

  • By Trevor Orrick

We are custom AV company but have recently added 2 Channel Hifi into our showroom. We have a had a great response as many younger clients have never seen or experience big amps, big knobs, big speakers and awesome fidelity. Let not lose sight that it is the musical experience that sells the equipment or makes you crave it. ....

  • By virbing

People forget that all human interactions are communication. What you are talking about here is communicating - the salesperson not only trying to push product and (in this case, educate), but also to listen to the buyer so that you not only show the possibilities, but also what is appropriate for the customer.

Unfortunately, most sales in today's consumer market have absolutely no communication. The manufacturers spend lots of money in advertising to build a market and then work with retail outlets to advertise in circulars in stores and provide dealer incentives. The customer does his/her research and comes in with a predisposition for what he/she wants The salesperson tries to jam down whatever product the store is currently pushing with salesperson extra incentives, or simply lays down to write up the order of what the consumer wants, based on the demand built by manufacturers marketing. Everyone is looking out for themselves and few are predisposed to listen to each other.

As a kid who sold mid-level audio gear in a small town, I miss the days when there was a dialog between manufacturers, retailiers, and customers.

  • By Glenn

I was fortunate to recently buy new speakers from a retailer of fine audio equipment. We spent most of the morning auditioning. I listened to my favorite pieces, in their entirety, not just 1:30. I also watched some home theater, since this is a dual-use system. In the end I bought speakers that I know are right for me. It was entirely enjoyable, and I have that retailer on my short list, now, for upgrade items that I might have bought on-line before.

Compare that to a big-box store experience, where you are lucky to even find a salesperson to show you where the pile of big boxes is located.

  • By Dave

I just spent the last 2 months trying to audition speakers for my home theater, I say trying because even the high end custom install dealers in my area looked at me like I was crazy!
What...you mean you actually want to listen to speakers instead of just buying what I say is the best?!?!?!

Most of the dealers here are now just design firms, they work with builders that give them a budget & install what ever gear they want & the end user never has any contact with them!

Out of all the dealers in my area 3 had no equipment at all for me to listen to, 2 of them had their theater rooms disassembled & the gear was out on loan (to builders), 1 dealer didn't have a sub woofer to hook up in the theater causing the B&W speakers to have terrible distortion trying to play the LFE audio, 1 dealer had a set up with several brands of speakers but we kept putting his Anthem receiver in protect mode, one dealer asked me to come back in a couple of days because he needed to recalibrate his system since they had changed the speakers in there & one dealer had several brands & models of speakers running on the same receiver I have & spent several hours swapping speakers & watching all the Blu-Ray movies I had brought.
Needless to say I bought my speakers from this dealer (Audio Advice in Tulsa, Ok).

Most of these so called dealers were not interested at all with dealing with the end user, only the builders, others told me I was the first person in nearly a year that came in with my own material wanting to audition speakers.

So it's not just the big box stores that don't know how to audition gear, the custom install dealers are moving away from retail & are just dealing with the builders.

For the record, I picked up a pair of Paradigm Studio 60's for the L&R & the Paradigm Studio CC590 center channel.

  • By John J. Gannon

Oh, the good old days when hifi was hifi...does anyone remember (and still have your copy) of Stan Adler's "The Magic Sell"? If I remember correctly, Denon put it back into print and passed them out to their dealers.

I still have my copy of the old Tech Hifi sales training manual from Jim Peak...those WERE the days.

I'm agreeing with Jerry on this...and I'll go one further. With the shotgun marriage of audio and video, many folks learned their 'Home Theater' demonstrations from the over-the-top deliveries at the Consumer Electronics and CEDIA Shows from companies who seemed trained by the Marquis de Sade...if their audience wasn't fazed beyond further comprehension, they didn't feel like they did a good job!


The art of the demo is NOT dead yet, as long as a few of us remember what it was like to meet, qualify, educate, and ENTERTAIN those daring folk who stepped into our intimidating stores. We remember how much money we made making people really happy, too...and for me that all happened in the middle of the 1980's recession in DETROIT!

I never noticed...


Cheers!
John

  • By John J. Gannon

Oh, the good old days when hifi was hifi...does anyone remember (and still have your copy) of Stan Adler's "The Magic Sell"? If I remember correctly, Denon put it back into print and passed them out to their dealers.

I still have my copy of the old Tech Hifi sales training manual from Jim Peak...those WERE the days.

I'm agreeing with Jerry on this...and I'll go one further. With the shotgun marriage of audio and video, many folks learned their 'Home Theater' demonstrations from the over-the-top deliveries at the Consumer Electronics and CEDIA Shows from companies who seemed trained by the Marquis de Sade...if their audience wasn't fazed beyond further comprehension, they didn't feel like they did a good job!


The art of the demo is NOT dead yet, as long as a few of us remember what it was like to meet, qualify, educate, and ENTERTAIN those daring folk who stepped into our intimidating stores. We remember how much money we made making people really happy, too...and for me that all happened in the middle of the 1980's recession in DETROIT!

I never noticed...


Cheers!
John

  • By John J. Gannon

Oh, the good old days when hifi was hifi...does anyone remember (and still have your copy) of Stan Adler's "The Magic Sell"? If I remember correctly, Denon put it back into print and passed them out to their dealers.

I still have my copy of the old Tech Hifi sales training manual from Jim Peak...those WERE the days.

I'm agreeing with Jerry on this...and I'll go one further. With the shotgun marriage of audio and video, many folks learned their 'Home Theater' demonstrations from the over-the-top deliveries at the Consumer Electronics and CEDIA Shows from companies who seemed trained by the Marquis de Sade...if their audience wasn't fazed beyond further comprehension, they didn't feel like they did a good job!


The art of the demo is NOT dead yet, as long as a few of us remember what it was like to meet, qualify, educate, and ENTERTAIN those daring folk who stepped into our intimidating stores. We remember how much money we made making people really happy, too...and for me that all happened in the middle of the 1980's recession in DETROIT!

I never noticed...


Cheers!
John

  • By Jim Kellinger

Would love to get a copy of Jim Peak's book, since I didn't get a copy when I worked for him.

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