Merchandise Spotlight: Bose

Some companies are so effectively branded that to say their names is to speak of quality in the minds of many consumers. Mercedes, Armani, and Rolex are a few.

Bose is another. For buyers of audio equipment, the name virtually guarantees top sound quality. According to catalog consultant Tony Cox, Bose’s brand may be one reason so many catalogs are prominently featuring the audio-equipment manufacturer’s Wave CD player. Says Cox, “Catalogers ride on the fact that Bose is a branded product with a great reputation.”

Buying audio equipment without hearing it is similar to buying a car without driving it: You’d better have a good reason. Taking advantage of the Bose brand with ready acknowledgement of the company’s reputation for quality in sound enables catalogers to sidestep the hurdle of a silent sale of audio equipment.

Let’s look at what some catalogers are doing to present this product, as well as how Bose sells the player in its consumer ads.

Herrington

Their headline: At Last — Bose Adds CD to The Remarkable Wave Radio, Letting You Enjoy Your Favorite Recordings With Carnegie Hall Realism — All From a Small Enclosure That Fits Almost Anywhere! Their spin: The product is revolutionary.

Herrington’s extensive copy framed by two different shots of the product (in both available colors, one with CD player open) details how the Bose engineers added CD functionality to the original Bose Wave radio, while increasing its size by only a fraction. “I like their headlines, very benefit-oriented,” says Cox. “They devote a lot of space for copy to really sell the item. In the body copy, they first focus on the space-saving angle.”

The presence of props, such as a wrist watch, change and a drink, highlights the size of the item even more.

Aspirations/Good Catalog

Their headline: The Bose Wave Radio/CD with Dual Alarm

Their spin: Offer of $49.90 per month for 10 months, interest-free.

The copy in both of these catalogs (produced by the same company) was identical. The emphasis is clearly financial with the monthly payment plan emblazoned in all bold caps above the product picture and at the end of the copy.

“The first thing that jumps out at the reader is the $49.90 per month offer. This is a strong offer, and it is very compelling for a $500 item,” says Cox.

Even with such an offer, the importance of the descriptive copy shouldn’t be ignored. That’s where catalogers really get to sell their merchandise.

“When I read Herrington’s copy, I feel like I’m really missing out if I don’t have this stereo. When I read Aspirations or Good Catalog’s copy, I feel like it’s just another radio with some bells and whistles,” says Laurie Goodman, catalog consultant.

Cox says the catalog company may have had success with the Bose radio CD player in the past, because it’s featured as the only item on the front cover of Good Catalog (see page 18) and one of three products on the back of the Aspirations catalog (right).

The Sharper Image

Their headline: Legendary Bose Wave Radio now plays CDs

Their spin: An already “legendary” product is improved.

Says Goodman, “The simple use of the word ‘legendary’ in the headline elevates this copy from a laundry list of features to a cool Sharper Image item.”

In this presentation, The Sharper Image placed the copy to the upper right of the product picture—not the easiest jump for the eyes. The real focus, as the headline indicates, is that the item is an upgrade from an already popular product.

TV Guide (Bose)

Their headline: To think, all that time making it SMALL, and all anyone talks about is how it sounds.

Their spin: Plays up the engineering of the item as if Bose can’t escape its reputation for quality sound, no matter how hard it tries.

The persuasive copy briefly describes the company’s year-long effort to develop the product. It also refers to Bose as “the most respected name in sound,” as well as offering a quote from The Oregonian, which called the machine “one of those little unexplained miracles of acoustic physics.”

Goodman says this excerpt adds to the credibility of the copy, and lends to it an aura of confidence and approachability, all of which provides for powerful salesmanship in Bose’s direct-response advertising.