Yes in most cases this is very true.
This is where the problem exists. What is cool looking?
Color wis: Johnie want the florescense in his coral to look like a cartoon picture, Jack wants his tank to look like the ocean looks when hi is diving at 50 meters deep, Carl wants his tank to show off the colors of his fish. Mark does not care about color as long as his corals grow huge.
Style wise Then you have the other thing where Mary wants tank that blends with her Victorian furnature, and Jack wants it to look like it is something from the 23rd century.
Blending Herman whats a lighting that accents his prize coral and everything else blends out in the background with spot lighting, Dennis wants everything evenly lighted so all sapects of the tank are shown equally.
3) The cost has to be low enough not to set off alarms with wife/girlfriend (or both)
This can be a real sore spot for many in different ways. I will say that probably 1/2 of my old regular customers from 10 years ago now longer have a tank today of any type. The economy is a big driving force here in my mind today yet.
But also many of higher spending customers were women in the past. Sure they were less likely to build a lighting system on there own but they were more ready to buy the $350 light for there 75 gallon tank than the $80 light.
4) The fixture has to involve the user in some way through building or programming
I don't think this is as important as the individual needs to be convinced that theis is the best he can get for his dolars. Regarless of some has a $200 budget for a light fixture or a $10,000 budget he wants to know that he is getting his oneys worth out of it.
Then you have the people that look at their time also being worth money. Some value an hour an hour at $10.00 others cvalue the hour at $100, and some look at it purely as enjoyment. The enjoyment guy will build someting for $500 that he could buy in the store for $250 but prides himself in the fact that he built it and that is priceless to him.
Fortunatly today we are not seeing the $500 do it yourself build that would only cost $250 in the store but would cost over $1,00 in the store. Provided he does not count his time. But will that change when LED technology hits it leveling off point?
5) For most consumers it has to have the nod of acceptance form the forum members and reef bloggers
Yes there is some truth here. But I would put the people that do come into my house at a much higher priority. Having been in the industry I see people still in the industry at times. The comments from them after seeing my tanks is more important to me than some stangers. The same goes for my other friends and relatives that see my tanks first hand. Many of them now have tanks because they were impressed with mine. Some now have better tanks than mine especialy lighting wise because they asked me to build them a light and technology has advanced since I built my lights.
