Click to view our Accessibility Statement or contact us with accessibility-related questions
Showing 1 of 5 conversations about:
LukasM
1629
Studio Team
Nov 20, 2015
bookmark_border
Hey Purbles, So few of us, so far. If we only addressed the people that were already here, then there would be nothing new. Even Mechanical Keyboards and Audiophile started as a small group of dedicated users that eventually grew to what it is now. The community for car modding is immense and incredibly complex, but we have to begin somewhere and this is the starting line. When we’re considering a community, “How many of this type of enthusiast are already in our userbase” is an important question we ask in a variety of ways. It’s often something we optimize for (Photography, for example), but sometimes we have to make a riskier choice and decide to open a community that will expand the demographic of our user base and create a more diverse Massdrop community (thus Quilting and Corvette). So when you say “This applies to so little of us,” you are correct. There are fewer Corvette enthusiasts on Massdrop than knife, keyboard, headphone, or fabric enthusiasts. But there are lots of different enthusiasts out there and we want Massdrop to be a place where everyone respects each others interests, even if they don’t understand them. Thanks for your feedback, and feel free to reach out to me as I am glad to discuss this further.
(Edited)
Nov 20, 2015
ChrisAnderson
18
Nov 21, 2015
bookmark_border
LukasMHello Lucas,
Just out of curiosity, how did you decide to start with Corvette as a car modification enthusiast as a jumping off point?
Without knowing any metrics at all, I would be willing to bet that there is a significant overlap between Reddit and Massdrop audience/users.
When looking at /r/corvette there are 3,557 subscribers.
When looking at /r/subaru, for example, there are 48,494 subscribers.
I know there is a much bigger market for modifying subaru's, and that may make the market harder to enter, so I understand that, but I would also be willing to bet that the demographic of the subaru community closer matches that of massdrop than that of corvette owners.
~ Subaru targets sub 35yr old (I'd argue 25-40 male demographic, but I can't find any source) https://www.motorists.org/blog/2015-subaru-wrx-review/
~ Corvette owners average 59 years old (http://autoweek.com/article/detroit-auto-show/five-reasons-new-corvette-will-stay-old-mans-car-chevys-attempt-get-gen-x)
~ Subaru WRX and STi cost between ~$30-40k, while Corvette's cost north of $60k.
~Corvette's have 2 seats
~Subaru's have places for 5.
~ Subaru manufactured 25,492 WRX and STi models in 2014 (http://media.subaru.com/pressrelease/713//subaru-america-inc-reports-best-december-ever-sets)
~ Chevrolet manufactured 37,288 Corvettes (http://www.corvetteblogger.com/2014/08/25/official-2014-corvette-stingray-production-totals-37288/)
~Largest corvette forum has 396,221 users (http://www.corvetteforum.com/forums/)
~Largest Subaru forum has 424,776 users (http://forums.nasioc.com/forums/)
~ More Subaru demographics (https://teamsubaru.wikispaces.com/Marketing+Strategy)
Even though there are slightly more corvettes manufactured in 2014, the age of the users should make the Subaru market more desirable perspective customers.
Sorry this ended up being a wall of text. I just started researching and 1.5 hours later... whoops.
I sincerely wish you the best of luck attracting the corvette audience. I'm sure you employ people smarter than I that has this figured out. :)
Nov 21, 2015
LukasM
1629
Studio Team
Nov 24, 2015
bookmark_border
ChrisAndersonHey @ChrisAnderson,
Thanks for your post! Awesome to see your question being asked with supporting info. Checkout our jobs page when you have the chance : )
In the meantime, glad to address your questions. To get started, it’s important to know that Subaru, BMW, FRS, and Audi were all highly viable candidates for our first foray into car related communities since we left the Audi community three years ago. Subaru was especially close for a lot of the reasons you mention (demographic similarities to the existing Massdrop community, slightly larger forum, etc) but Corvettes won-out over Subarus on some specific and non-obvious points.
1. Forum ownership
When we start catering to a new community on Massdrop, one of the most important aspects is working with existing community leaders to ensure they understand Massdrop’s role in the industry and community. We’re considered by many to be a disruptive business given the structure that most car modification industries operate under, and independent forum owners aren’t sure what to do with us.
Generally that translates into being banned (because banning Massdrop is the easy answer), as we were from Audizine, Head-fi, and many other forums for a long time.
NASIOC is owned by an independent group, where CorvetteForums is owned by a holding company.
Much easier to work with holding companies, much higher probability of Massdrop remaining unbanned as long as we maintain alignment with their interests.
2. Demographic Desirability
We often joke around the office that Massdrop should really be called “blood from a stone.com” because of our demographic we mainly cater to. Males between the age of 18 and 35 spend less money than any other demographic on the planet. Any other age range of males is better, any age range of females is better. The corvette community being an older male audience offers more in terms of demographic expansion than Subaru, Audi, or BMW would. It’s a double edged sword in that we have fewer of them to start, but as the community grows, it makes for a more diverse Massdrop community which we value intrinsically.
Lemme know if that answers your questions, glad to expand where needed.
Nov 24, 2015
spinach4lyfe
Nov 30, 2015
bookmark_border
LukasMSo just because the mechanical keyboard community started small and got huge you honestly think that same logic will apply to corvettes? I'm pretty sure a lot more people can afford a $200 keyboard than a corvette.
It seems pretty dead over here. Glad you decided to replace vaporizers with an intake no one is buying.
Nov 30, 2015
Mv71
7
Dec 1, 2015
bookmark_border
spinach4lyfeThen go back to the mechanical keyboard community. I don't understand your logic. How is this community negatively affecting you in any way? Why is this such an issue for you? The reason you can pick and choose which communities you subscribe to and view is specifically so that if you don't want to associate with a certain community... You don't have to! Rather than questioning the decisions of people who've analyzed more logistics behind their decisions than how it affects YOUR day, go to a community where you can bring some positivity and progress.
Dec 1, 2015
View Full Discussion