2019 Fishing Shows - Where's Shimano?

[hoosierbass07]

So, the new fishing shows are back on cable TV for 2019.  I always look forward to watching them in January and February since it's probably freezing outside and spring is a few months away.  

 

Interesting thing I noticed, some fishing shows have lost their Shimano sponsorship's.  Hook and Look lost Shimano this season which was a surprise.  It seemed Hook and Look always enjoyed showing off their Shimano baitcasters.  Now I see Facts of Fishing lost Shimano.  That's another show that seemed to enjoy showing off their Shimano reels and rods. 

 

Hmm, what's going on with Shimano?  They pulling out from all the fishing shows or what?  

 

 

[Steveo-1969]

Yup, Shimano stopped all sponsorship of TV shows last year. That's why Zona is now using Daiwa instead of G. Loomis. I saw a video last year with Dave Mercer talking about losing the Shimano sponsorship, I'm sure it's on Youtube somewhere.

[12poundbass]

Yup Mercer didn't have a sponsor last year. I see he decided to join me on the dark side!

 

[Chance_Taker4]

I also read they are pulling away from anglers (assuming lesser known guys or field staffers). Zona was one of the first to get dropped and go to Daiwa and Dave Mercer announced around ICast he switched to Abu Garcia. All the money and reputation Shimano has they don't need to spend frivolously to get their products in people's hands. 

[soflabasser]

Shimano does not need to advertise itself much since they have plenty of happy customers that do free adversting for them. They are one of the best reel makers along with Penn.

[Bluebasser86]

The Linders aren't sponsored by them anymore either I don't believe. I think they might be underestimating the impact seeing the TV personalities use their products has on consumers. 

[Janderson45]

I don’t think it’s a good strategy for them long term as bass fishing gets more popularized in the US through televised tournaments and the social media/YouTube fishing explosion..  that said I think they can get away with it short term due to their quality products, years in the industry, and stellar reputation among hardcore fisherman.  

 

My biggest personal gripe with Shimano right now is that I can’t find a middle of the road or even expensively priced 5:1 gear ratio model in their current baitcaster lineup.. who decided it was necessary to get rid of the 5:1 gear ratio in the Curados?  Chronarch, metanium, alderbaran, nope....

[A-Jay]

5 minutes ago, Janderson45 said:

I don’t think it’s a good strategy for them long term as bass fishing gets more popularized in the US through televised tournaments and the social media/YouTube fishing explosion..  that said I think they can get away with it long term due to their quality products, years in the industry, and stellar reputation among hardcore fisherman.  

 

My biggest personal gripe with Shimano right now is that I can’t find a middle of the road or even expensively priced 5:1 gear ratio model in their current baitcaster lineup.. who decided it was necessary to get rid of the 5:1 gear ratio in the Curados?  Chronarch, metanium, alderbaran, nope....

 

Welcome to the 'Round' Side.

A-Jay

[Janderson45]

15 minutes ago, A-Jay said:

 

Welcome to the 'Round' Side.

A-Jay

I hear ya, and I own a couple Calcutta B’s already, it may be my remedy but I still wish they had a 5:1 ratio in a low-profile baitcaster.  I get why it’s not available in some of the higher end reels, but at least give me it on the Curado!  I’ve got a Curado I in the 5.4:1 ratio that I currently swap spools of line on for mid/deep cranking, 8, 10, 12lb fluorocarbon.  Might see if I can find another one in good shape as swapping reel spools on the water is far from ideal...

[A-Jay]

12 hours ago, Janderson45 said:

I hear ya, and I own a couple Calcutta B’s already, it may be my remedy but I still wish they had a 5:1 ratio in a low-profile baitcaster.  I get why it’s not available in some of the higher end reels, but at least give me it on the Curado!  I’ve got a Curado I in the 5.4:1 ratio that I currently swap spools of line on for mid/deep cranking, 8, 10, 12lb fluorocarbon.  Might see if I can find another one in good shape as swapping reel spools on the water is far from ideal...

The "B" is certainly a nice reel (I have a 400 & a 700) but the "D" is a Little Silver Beast ! 

Good Luck with which ever way you go.

A-Jay

[Stephen B]

4 hours ago, Bluebasser86 said:

The Linders aren't sponsored by them anymore either I don't believe. I think they might be underestimating the impact seeing the TV personalities use their products has on consumers. 

I don't think it will impact Shimano much. They make fabulous products, have a proven brand and reputation, and likely didn't see the benefit of sponsorship. I'm sure they did there homework in trying to quantify the cost-benefit to sponsoring a TV show/host. Likely the viewership of the shows didn't met there expectation thus they pulled there sponsorship. Just my guess. 

[Bluebasser86]

1 minute ago, Stephen B said:

I don't think it will impact Shimano much. They make fabulous products, have a proven brand and reputation, and likely didn't see the benefit of sponsorship. I'm sure they did there homework in trying to quantify the cost-benefit to sponsoring a TV show/host. Likely the viewership of the shows didn't met there expectation thus they pulled there sponsorship. Just my guess. 

I don't think they're seen as the front runner they use to be seen as. It use to be Shimano and then everyone else. Now everyone is either catching up or caught up, maybe even surpassed in quality and value in some folks opinions (which when it comes down to it, the consumers opinions are all that really matters right?) I use to be all Shimano, but in the last 10 years their products have failed to wow me (some downright disappointed), and I no longer own hardly any of their newer gear(1 E5 and 1 300E), just some of my now 2 decades old Curados, Calcuttas, and Chronarchs. 

 

I'm not saying Shimano is going to tank because they pulled their sponsorships, but I think the explosion of some new companies thanks to Youtubers and TV shows is a prime example of how big of an impact it really can have on consumers to see the product being used. I think the impact of not having sponsored at least a couple of the bigger names is going to have a lot bigger impact on their wallets than the drop in the bucket that outfitting a few guys cost them. 

[Sam]

12 hours ago, hoosierbass07 said:

So, the new fishing shows are back on cable TV for 2019.  I always look forward to watching them in January and February since it's probably freezing outside and spring is a few months away.  

 

Interesting thing I noticed, some fishing shows have lost their Shimano sponsorship's.  Hook and Look lost Shimano this season which was a surprise.  It seemed Hook and Look always enjoyed showing off their Shimano baitcasters.  Now I see Facts of Fishing lost Shimano.  That's another show that seemed to enjoy showing off their Shimano reels and rods. 

 

Hmm, what's going on with Shimano?  They pulling out from all the fishing shows or what?  

 

 

Hoosier, back in the early 1900's to around 1980 or so, Sears was the leading retailer in the country. And there was a soap manufacturer that I can't remember its name but it was the best selling soap in the nation. We studied it in our marketing class at LSU to note the power of advertising and marketing.

 

So what happened? Sears backed off their advertising and stopped sending out their catalogs in the 1990's. Instead of being the new "Amazon.com" that Sears could have been, they stopped a lot of their advertising and lost a lot of customers. And Sears had manufacturers produce a lot of goods with the Sears brand. I remember my Sears basketball was the best one I ever had when growing up in the 60's.

 

Sears had a fantastic sporting goods section and you could dress out for your games in everything Sears.

 

As you know, Sears has closed its doors only to have an investment group save about 80 stores throughout the country. For some reason, you never saw a Sears commercial or ad in the media. Sears just relied on its name to attract and retain customers. This did not work as there are too many competitors out there today that have the merchandise that attract and produce sales, taking Sears market share away from Sears.

 

I know the soap company did the same thing: they stopped their advertising. Sales were so good that management thought they would continue without the expense of advertising. They had advertised on anything they could paint, even boats and sides of buildings. After they stopped their advertising in the 20's they lost sales (a lot to other soap companies who started to advertise) and in the 1930's closed its factory and faded away.

 

I hope Shimano has not made a fatal mistake by pulling out of the advertising marketplace. Today, there are many outstanding rods and reels in the market that give Shimano a run for their money. Personally, I am still a Shimano guy but I must admit that I am liking the Lew's line of reels better and better each year.

 

Wayne Knabe who repairs rods and reels in Powhatan, Virginia, tells me that once upon a time the Shimano reels were the best made reels in the USA. Today, with new Shimano reel introductions and more plastic internal parts, Wayne has trouble locating old Shimano parts to make repairs.

 

Wayne has told me that he is liking Lew's and Abu more and more as their working parts are superior to all others being produced today and he can obtain the parts for repairs much easier.

 

Don't under estimatethe power of advertising.

 

Time will tell. Stay tuned.

 

 

[Catt]

Love how y'all blaming Shimano for not buying loyalty!

 

[Mobasser]

I'll still stick with Shimano. I don't care if their on TV or not. When I finally wear out my round ABUs, a Calcutta is my next reel.

[TOXIC]

Funny thing about marketing, there is a lag time between all the work you put in to market a product and it pays off in sales.  My wife owned a title company and he partner used to look down her noes at all of the functions and networking events she would do.  She had an aggressive marketing campain going.  3 years into the business, the work started rolling in and her partner couldn't keep up and decided she didn't really want to work that hard or expand.  3 years wasted.  On the other hand, I owned a Pest Control franchise and the home office didn't believe in advertising.  The only thing they paid for was yellow page listings.  They wanted word of mouth to be their advertising. It worked and I was very successful in that little endevour.     IMHO with Shimano, it only takes 1 generation of fisherman to lose the positive market they have taken years to build.  Sure, the old users that are loyal will stay but the new customers have many more options and the quality differences have been narrowed.  IF they do lose new market share, it will take time to get it back.  Shimano is into so many other business lines like bicycle gears, guitars and many other things you would never think of, that they could probably survive without their reel line.   

[Deleted account]

Shimano will be fine. They are the 800 lb gorilla. bass tackle makes a small part of their business. Salt water and bike parts is where they make their $.  

[12poundbass]

6 hours ago, Bluebasser86 said:

I don't think they're seen as the front runner they use to be seen as. It use to be Shimano and then everyone else. Now everyone is either catching up or caught up, maybe even surpassed in quality and value

I'm pretty sure you made some heads explode with that comment. ?

[A-Jay]

1 minute ago, 12poundbass said:

I'm pretty sure you made some heads explode with that comment. ?

A-Jay

[12poundbass]

11 hours ago, Bluebasser86 said:

I think they might be underestimating the impact seeing the TV personalities use their products has on consumers. 

I think you're right on that. I think the TV shows reach a lot more and get more exposure that 99% of the pros.

1 hour ago, Mobasser said:

When I finally wear out my round ABUs, a Calcutta is my next reel.

Do you plan on living another 100 years? ?

[Catt]

Y'all wanna find out who has the #1 product?

 

Take away all the loyalty buying & pay for your own stuff!

 

Best marketing tool out there is a quality product ?

[Mobasser]

4 hours ago, Catt said:

Y'all wanna find out who has the #1 product?

 

Take away all the loyalty buying & pay for your own stuff!

 

Best marketing tool out there is a quality product ?

100% correct Catt. Who cares what their using on TV! When your talking high end casting reels, theirs lots of good ones out there. Pick one and go!

[Log Catcher]

15 hours ago, Janderson45 said:

I don’t think it’s a good strategy for them long term as bass fishing gets more popularized in the US through televised tournaments and the social media/YouTube fishing explosion..  that said I think they can get away with it short term due to their quality products, years in the industry, and stellar reputation among hardcore fisherman.  

 

My biggest personal gripe with Shimano right now is that I can’t find a middle of the road or even expensively priced 5:1 gear ratio model in their current baitcaster lineup.. who decided it was necessary to get rid of the 5:1 gear ratio in the Curados?  Chronarch, metanium, alderbaran, nope....

I thought I was the last one left that had not gone high speed crazy with fishing reels. I quit buying Shimano due to them raising prices and gear ratio speed at the same time. I do just fine with the slower speeds for many applications. 

[soflabasser]

6 hours ago, Catt said:

Y'all wanna find out who has the #1 product?

 

Take away all the loyalty buying & pay for your own stuff!

 

Best marketing tool out there is a quality product ?

You got that right! That is one of the reasons I don't pay much attention to what advertisers have to say about fishing gear. They get paid to advertise the gear so of course they are going to give it favorable reviews. I rather get reviews from talented fishermen I meet in person than get a ''reel review'' from somebody who is getting paid to give reviews. With that said experience is the best teacher and my personal experience has showed me that both Shimano and Penn make great reels. Ugly Stik rods is another fishing product that do not need much advertising since they have so many happy customers that give them plenty of free advertising.

[Glaucus]

The thing you're all forgetting is that a record number of people don't even use cable or satellite TV anymore. More people use streaming services now more than ever. The only use for cable and satellite TV is live sports and news. However, even that use is dwindling with the sports streaming services online and through providers like Hulu. Streaming, social media, and internet in general is where most people are getting their entertainment and information. There's also definitely an age factor in who is using streaming services and social media. Younger people are not using traditional methods, while older people still are - and overpaying for what they're getting because it's what they've known for so many years. Shimano is exactly right to stop trying to reach people via traiditonal television: it's dying the same way newspapers and magazines are. The internet is and has been the future - been that way for awhile now, only continues to grow while other methods rapidly shrink.