Beacon Audio Seeks Specialty Prowess in Exchange For Marketing Muscle

Portable audio newcomer Beacon Audio, which recently joined the PRO Buying Group, is looking to bring to specialty audio retailers a kind of “street cred” that will bring in a younger demographic, Beacon Audio Vice President of Sales Dan Beggs told Consumer Electronics Daily. Beacon launched its colorful “value-oriented” Bluetooth speaker and headphone lineup last September with the plan to build its music products business off the live music events business of sister company Right Arm Entertainment.

"It’s always been our distribution philosophy to get the product in front of the customer most likely to purchase it,” Beggs said. The target customer Beacon identified from the get-to was the lifestyle consumer who’s into activities such as skateboarding and BMX, typically a younger consumer but not necessarily, Beggs said. “We want to deliver that music fan demographic to every retailer we get involved with,” he said. But Beacon’s initial brick-and-mortar distribution path that included nationwide retail chains Urban Outfitters and Tilly’s fell short of hopes, he said. Beacon did “okay” and the lifestyle positioning was “great for the brand,” Beggs said, “but I wouldn’t say audio is part of their core merchandising."

Now Beacon is turning to specialty audio dealers, the type that traditional audio companies have used since the early days of hi-fi to sell product because “they're in a position to provide a more consultative sales approach than an unguided floor,” Beggs said. Pro Group dealers can “explore and explain the attributes of products,” he said. The channel isn’t new to Beggs or to Beacon consultant Robert Heiblim, both former executives of Denon, which has long relied on specialty dealers to sell the “sound matters” message, Beggs said. Beggs said Beacon would work with other buying groups for the specialty audio channel as well.

The Beacon brand focuses on sound rather than features, Beggs said, but color is also a key aspect of the Beacon sell. The company sold a pink Bluetooth speaker for Valentine’s Day and a red one for Christmas, Beggs said. “When you walk into a typical retail store, you see black and white Bluetooth speakers,” he said, so Beacon chose to offer a “rainbow of colors."

On the dealer side, Beacon knew it had to bring something unique to retailers, Beggs said. “We understand there are a thousand headphone and Bluetooth speaker vendors in the marketplace,” he said. “If all we bring is product, we're done for.” The “something more” that Beacon brings is the opportunity for dealers to drive connected customers into stores with co-promotional social media and website opportunities through its relationship with Right Arm, he said. Its music industry and social media connections allow Beacon to “speak to that demographic with credibility,” he said.

Beacon worked with Bjorn’s in San Antonio, Texas, earlier this month, bringing in new customers Bjorn’s wouldn’t normally see, Beggs said. “We can offer unique event-oriented merchandising and promotional opportunities to our retail partners,” he said. For the Maverick Music Festival in San Antonio, the relationship produced promotional bang from blues guitarist Gary Clark Jr., who tweeted about the event and did “all kinds of PR,” Beggs said. Beacon will also hold a MMRBQ event with World Wide Stereo in the Philadelphia area in May, he said.

At the music events, Beacon offers a tent with co-branding for the retailer and the manufacturer. Retailers hold enter-to-win contests for concert tickets and backstage passes as “traffic builders,” provides a venue for Facebook and other social media interaction, and gives away co-branded items at shows including backpacks co-branded with the retailer. It also has listening stations at the events. Beggs wouldn’t disclose the companies’ marketing budgets, but leveraging the music events with the audio products gives Beacon a chance to do things that “a company ten times our size couldn’t do,” he said.

The music connection dovetailed nicely with a push by Bjorn’s to get back to its audio roots with live music events, Kris Dybdahl, IT and marketing manager, told us. Bjorn’s has been sponsoring small-venue “lounge” concerts in conjunction with Clear Channel Communications, with some concerts held at the store, he said. Bjorn’s is also working with Monster, which has provided displays and product giveaways, while Beacon provided “swag” for the Maverick event, Dybdahl said. Bjorn’s gets “name recognition” out of the events, Dybdahl said, and it gets access to customers it hasn’t seen before. The only way to see one of the intimate concerts is to win tickets through the promotions sponsored by Bjorn’s and Clear Channel, and people have to register on the Bjorn’s website, he said. It’s “hard to say” how much business the new customer base has generated, Dybdahl said, but the store was pleasantly surprised when an event with “250 screaming girls” yielded several pre-wire and custom installation projects from parents who came to the store. “Now that we have commitments from manufacturers, we'll be doing a lot more things to promote the events,” he said.

Beacon -- whose existing lineup includes $99.99 Bluetooth speakers in five colors, $99.99 headphones and $69.99 earbuds - will expand the product line as it broadens its audio retail base, Beggs said. New products will ship mid to late year, he said. The brand has been supported by strong reviews, Beggs said, reinforcing the company’s message that “we're all about sound quality."

On where Beacon will head beyond headphones and Bluetooth speakers, Beggs said the company is thinking niche and lifestyle. “I don’t see us coming out with a traditional audio product at all,” he said. “But I wouldn’t rule out a desktop system or computer speakers, and any type of portable speaker product is fair game,” he said.