Print

[SillyShilly]

I think the most important innovation is something Norb has eluded to, treat every piece of willow on an individual basis and get the most out of it this way.......would be difficult to do on a larger scale, but not impossible.

[Tom]

Only reason that won't be implemented by anyone huge is you'd find it tricky to sell/market any.

[SillyShilly]

If it works as well as Norb suggests the bats would sell themselves purely on being a better bat, no need to market.

[Tom]

A punter walks into a shop, looks across the wall at the bats. How will they know what bat has been pressed correctly and had the willow nurtured and looked after.  There needs to be something visual, something physical they can see as a change in the bat.

If it was all about the best bat selling the most, then Woodworm wouldn't have had such a huge market share.

[SillyShilly]

Why the need to physically change a bat Tom? Innovations can take place in parts of the process and high quality can come as standard, not at a premium. From what you say, you are copying exactly what woodworm did through the innovation of seeing something different when you walk into the shop.

I just guess we have different perspectives on this.

[Tom]

My view is that you need to market a product to sell it, it's very difficult to market something as a radical change if there's nothing physical they can see.

Ayrtek helmet is another good example, would the likes of Gavaskar mention it if it just looked like a regular Masuri/Albion?

[SillyShilly]

I mention no radical change, merely an innovation that impresses me and that i think will work for Norb and maybe others in the future.

Anyway, back on track...... can you imagine the shape of the MMi3 being refined in the future, or as a brand are you happy with it as it is?

[Tom]

Well ok as an innovation, why are they going to buy from a no name brand who just claims to be able to press bats individually and get better performance from it? I don't know if you see my point.

Very happy with the MMi, everyone has been incredibly positive who has used it in the 6 months we've been around. Will definitely keep the shorter blade and longer handle combo. As I said earlier the innovation you may see is a new weight saving technique and soft gear.

[SAF Bats]

Tom's right the more gimmicky, noticeable changes, sponsored players attract not claims or for that matter testing backed up with Science. I think I've said this before, testing is fine, Science is fine but who the heck understands it! Even if you put it on a bat you cant say it is better then the next bat just better the bat it was tested against.  Not like Asda, Tesco & Sainsbury who can categorically say my Tin of Beans are cheaper then yours based on blah blah on a weekly basis!

That said you can slowly build a reputation for yourself within the industry & customers for innovations, great performing bats but it depends which way you want to go about things

[Washington]

Norb, but do you think that if a gimmick is purely that, a gimmick, the novelty will eventually wear off i.e. Woorworm? It would obviously be better to have an innovation that is firstly gimmicky/eye catching and secondly and maybe more importantly that the innovation actually has some benefit e.g. concaving?

[SAF Bats]

A true gimmick yep the novelty will wear off...  but as you put it in the second part and using Tom as an example instead of concaving as concaving isn't really a gimmick, there is science behind the Mongoose as well based on Mass Moment of Inertia

My personal opinion is build a reputation but I don't have to sell loads to cover sponsorship deals, marketing / advertising budgets, employee costs etc etc

[cd0070]

Not sure how this would work.. But the holes instead of being filled with cork, is it legal to fill it with some kind of light weight molding clay which would also help with the weight and absorption of ball impact?? 

[SAF Bats]

read the thread you don't want to absorb the impact you want to transfer that energy back to the ball think of Netwons Balls!

[Ayrtek Cricket]

Great last line there..hands up who's thinkin of newtons balls??

Can see the argument here and Tom is correct when he says your marketing will become much easier if you have a physical/aesthetical difference in the look of the product your trying to sell. This was the view we took when designing the helmet as having the external shape appear the same as Masuri/Albion would have been fine but would have proved difficult to recognise as an innovation/new product from the boundary rope. Same goes for Tom and Mongoose, they have created a media frenzy by changing the physical appearance and therefore making it very easy to recognise as a Moongoose bat from 100 yards away.

Think of 30 blank bats lined up on a shelf what's going to draw Joe public over to it in order to part with his hard earned money if there are cheaper alternatives which appear the same as the product you are pitching? Unless you have a product someone goes in the shop and asks for sales on it when placed next to competing products would be difficult in my view if you don't know how good it will be until you get it into the nets etc.

Just my 2 pence worth

[leeroy_acko]

Agreed, agreed... BUT... it takes a brave player to be the first with something utterly new. As a bowler I remember slaughtering anyone using a Woodworm for the first few years, because they thought they were "Freddy", or if someone batted in shades. If someone used a Mongoose, no disrespect, but I would go nuts as soon as they mistimed one, or worse, got out to me! As if to agree ,Woodworm bats became more and more orthodox the longer they were in business.
Just see the previous threads around Canterbury pads and the stick people got for wearing them!
So i guess its a fine line between catching the eye and being innovative, and looking like a d*ck!!!