Does trust trump DEMO/TechCrunch50 fame?

Lost in the hubbub about DEMO vs TechCrunch50 is another news item that is getting some press today but not nearly enough by my reckoning.  Basically the study asserts that web influencers don’t really mean that much in the grand scheme of things.  People instead get their recommendations from people they trust, namely their friends.  And this makes perfect sense to me.  Not to say that getting covered my Mike Arrington has no value for a startup but what is that value exactly?  Companies should be very deliberate in their thinking when they try to get fame/fortune from the DEMO/TechCrunch50 crowd because it may not translate into the business value they thought it would.  Jeremy has some good tactical advice here but I don’t think he addresses the relevance of these conferences head-on.

Ultimate Ears – Worst Warranty/Registration Policy

I just bought Ultimate Ears earphones (actually they are in-ear monitors). I have tried them a bit and like them. I will post more about how I like them later after more extending listening (flying for 16+ hours this weekend).

What I hate is the registration/warranty policy. They have a little piece of paper in the packaging that says “you must register to immediately for the 2 year warranty coverage”. This seems inane and archaic. The days of having to give up your personal info to have the warranty be valid should be long gone. Well, I still want my warranty so I go to their website. And it gets worse, because they then say “Please fill out the registration form below to register your ultimate ears product and receive product news and information”. So as a special present for registering I get spam from Ultimate Ears. Their is no opt-out option. And they want my phone number and address as well. I told them I would return their product unless they changed their policy. Is it just me or does this seem very backwards?

 Update: they say you don’t have to register to get your warranty coverage.   Less than 24 hour response via email which was nice to see.  They still have not clarified the paper slip in the packaging that seems to contradict what they are saying.  Will let you know.

Branding 2.0: Zune = Hyundai & Apple = BMW

Michael Gartenberg has a recap of what he thinks would be help Zune bemore successful. A lot of it (as usual) is good stuff, however, I take issue with one of his statements.

Let’s face it, Apple and iPod are strong premium brands for consumers. Zune is not. It’s hard to price yourself the same as a BMW when you’re an Hyundai.

Michael may be right about the pricing but I think branding is very different today than it was 10 years ago. A brand can be eroded and also built much quicker than in the past. With regards to Zune, I actually think Microsoft has done a decent job of getting the brand on the map (my teenage son’s friends know and talk about Zune even though they mostly have iPods). Of course they still have a lot of work to do and they may eventually lose their battle against iPod. However, brands can now be built very quickly (eg YouTube) and I think the internet and blogs in particular have an important role here.