BRS is basically QVC for Reefs Sometimes?

[JCOLE]

Meleve has his store too. But he seems to stock whatever he's using on his DT.

That sounds like a guy standing behind his products. If it isnt worth going on his DT then he won't sell it. I respect that.

 

[Bam327]

I sell commercial equipment for a living. I have a limited customer base and I build relationships with my customers based on trust. A lot of people think salesman are just about making the sale and doing so with the greatest gross profit margin. That is certainly the case with some salesman but shouldn’t be used as a broad stereotype.
I build trust with my customers by offering them the best solution for their needs, whether it’s a cheaper option than what I COULD sell them, or even something different from what I sell at all. The last thing I want to do is sell something that a customer is not going to be happy with. If they trust me they will come to me for all of their needs and I make a living that way rather than price gouging.
I think BRS adopts this mentality. They have been incredibly helpful to me in the times that I’ve had warranty issues or needed questions answered.
Also, they put a lot of education into their videos. Sure in the end there’s usually a recommendation on a product that pertains to the subject but I don’t feel that the whole thing was a sales pitch.

 

[mikeintoronto]

Would it surprise you that the information they are telling you is paid advertising? The counterpoints that they choose are minor at best. It's clever, you get paid to push a product and then offer some negatives and everyone thinks they're being unbias. And because of that, no matter how unbiased they may seem, it's still paid advertising.

Their YouTube videos are also monetized. I was quietly commending them for ad free videos until I starting seeing the ads. Filling their channel with videos is fine but to me it just looks like they’re making content just to make more ad money. As a business, that makes sense but I don’t trust the content anymore and I’ll only tune in if I’m bored or it’s a product I’m curious about.

 

[NS Mike D]

I sell commercial equipment for a living. I have a limited customer base and I build relationships with my customers based on trust. A lot of people think salesman are just about making the sale and doing so with the greatest gross profit margin. That is certainly the case with some salesman but shouldn’t be used as a broad stereotype.
I build trust with my customers by offering them the best solution for their needs, whether it’s a cheaper option than what I COULD sell them, or even something different from what I sell at all. The last thing I want to do is sell something that a customer is not going to be happy with. If they trust me they will come to me for all of their needs and I make a living that way rather than price gouging.
I think BRS adopts this mentality. They have been incredibly helpful to me in the times that I’ve had warranty issues or needed questions answered.
Also, they put a lot of education into their videos. Sure in the end there’s usually a recommendation on a product that pertains to the subject but I don’t feel that the whole thing was a sales pitch.

In somewhat of a defense of the OP, they are putting out more product promotion videos (aka infomercials) rather. But there are only so many how to or experiment videos you can make.

 

[robbyg]

In somewhat of a defense of the OP, they are putting out more product promotion videos (aka infomercials) rather. But there are only so many how to or experiment videos you can make.

Very true and the ones testing for long term results can take months to complete.

 

[Cell]

I think BRS is one of the best things going in reefing. It's a darn near one stop shop with good customer service that also produces a ton incredibly helpful how-to video's and reviews. They are peerless in this regard.

 

[Bassman]

Man, what a disappointment. I went to BRS looking for those 6 easy payments! If y'all counld see how many 1 of 6, 3 of 6 5 of 6 transactions my wife has going through my checking account!

BRS videos are great content for YouTube. Like everything else in life, take it with a grain of salt. I like some of their testing, but still form my own opinion. I appreciate their time and effort.

Now, if someone would start that 6 easy payment scheme....I'd be broke, but with nicer equipment.

 

[User1]

Don't get me wrong. Some of their videos are great and contain very high quality information but I find myself just skipping to their actual evaluations/data gathering most of the time. It just feels like 90% of the time I'm getting infomercialized. Sometimes it even makes me question the validity of their findings.

I would disagree and say you are coming in a bit too hot here. Yes, it is a business. We agree. However it is up to the hobbyist, both new and old, to decide what content they want to watch. And we all know there is plenty on the internet. Plenty of both good and bad (and in some cases down right horrible and misleading).

Let us get back to the business side of it. Time is money. It takes both to do what they do. 5 minute talks, live streams, 52 weeks of the BRS 160, list goes on. From what I've seen they are at least pretty consistent and willing to have a dialog. They do best to be neutral and put their hobbyist perspective on it. Not always easy to do. Their most recent best of 2019 and what they would like to see - a lot of that was Frankly based on their sales data. I mean - what business wouldn't do that if they had it in front of them. In short - they are putting their money where their mouth is by providing this content and some of it is short enough for someone to pick a light, with proper spread, height, and par in a couple minutes.

I've never personally met them but my gut tells me they genuinely care and try to provide factual information. Do they get it right every time? No. But at least they try. Again, just my opinion. I've been in the hobby for about 20 years and I watch them, exchange emails, posts, and what not. Sometimes they present something I didn't really think of.

I guess what I"m trying to say is that today we have a bunch of forums. We have youtube, instagram, and groups. There is a lot of content and not all of it is good. We, the hobbyist, need to decide what we want to pay attention to. So no, I don't see them as QVC. I see YouTube folks more like QVC.

BRS - yes, business to make money. They took the risk and I hope they get the rewards. And my opinion is they provide some content for us to consume. They don't have to, they just do. If we throw them a bone here or there because of it or it helps them - more power to them. But I don't believe that is why they do it.

Edit: I hold the right to be incorrect . Just my opinion.

 

[Belgian Anthias]

There are two ways of selling things. Take the profit of selling as much as possible and or most expensive products on a short base or build a business on long term costumers.
The trick is to combine both, sell as much as possible to a newbie en keep him a "satisfied" customer . When it goes wrong the customer will (must) blame himself, come for guidance and go home with a new product. Some selling strategies are based on " facts and (self-made) data" to "prove" it is not the product that may or can be blamed. The use of provided data and products is out of reach of the seller and is the full responsibility of the user, in this case, the manager of a life support system, a reef aquarium.
Is BRS TV reliable information? It is a guide to commercial products! Is the provided data "scientifically" correct?
As it is not a secret BRS TV has a commercial background, de customer is aware of the fact "data" is provided to promote commercial products. It may not be excluded products with a high-profit margin are favorited.
The problem I see is the fact that BRS TV is mostly seen and followed by newbies, using the provided information as guidance, and who accept what they see as "facts", "facts" which then may live there own life on the internet.

Dieter Brockman, one of the driving forces behind the Berlin method, said in an interview with Roger Vitko in 2004: “The Internet is as much a curse to hobbyists as it is a blessing.” "It contains many false statements and badly thought out hobbyist “experiments” accepted as fact.

 

[User1]

There are two ways of selling things. Take the profit of selling as much as possible and or most expensive products on a short base or build a business on long term costumers.
The trick is to combine both, sell as much as possible to a newbie en keep him a "satisfied" customer . When it goes wrong the customer will (must) blame himself, come for guidance and go home with a new product. Some selling strategies are based on " facts and (self-made) data" to "prove" it is not the product that may or can be blamed. The use of provided data and products is out of reach of the seller and is the full responsibility of the user, in this case, the manager of a life support system, a reef aquarium.
Is BRS TV reliable information? It is a guide to commercial products! Is the provided data "scientifically" correct?
As it is not a secret BRS TV has a commercial background, de customer is aware of the fact "data" is provided to promote commercial products. It may not be excluded products with a high-profit margin are favorited.
The problem I see is the fact that BRS TV is mostly seen and followed by newbies, using the provided information as guidance, and who accept what they see as "facts", "facts" which then may live there own life on the internet.

Dieter Brockman, one of the driving forces behind the Berlin method, said in an interview with Roger Vitko in 2004: “The Internet is as much a curse to hobbyists as it is a blessing.” "It contains many false statements and badly thought out hobbyist “experiments” accepted as fact. RVitko2009-09) ref: http://www.baharini.eu/baharini/doku.php?id=en:makazi:het_water:filtratie:vodka

This was one of the points @Thales raised during his most recent skimmate podcast, "Allergic to Effort". A lot of information is out there but so much to wade through to find the good and useful information from the bad. I forgot the example they used but the long and short of it is this which covers quality data and effort. Hobbyist has GHA and wants to get rid of it. Search the internet, find a 3 to five minute video that says do A. B. C. and D. and done. We don't need 2 hours to do this when we can clear manually, reduce this, and give it some time... Not exact but my point is we don't need a 2 hour video discussing things mixed in with Q&A when all I need to know is how to change the bloody light bulb.

Again with BRS - yes, they are a vendor. A business. But look at the recent video algae fighting mistakes. It isn't about selling you something. It is about the mistakes they made and sharing of information that lasts about 30 minutes. Watch it or don't - I still don't see the QVC connection.

 

[shred5]

Tough to find a competitor with the same track record though. The key is supporting the smaller youtube channels that look at things without bias. Melevs reef fits that criteria (at least for me). But it's sad to see even some small youtubers falling into the marketing trap. Like we get it, ecotech, brightwell, and marine depot sent you all this gear but at least try to make comparisions instead of just stating "this is the best, I wouldn't use anything else".

Really? Premium Aquatics or Marine Depot and they have been around allot longer and have just as good of a track record.

Their only issues is BRS is the master of advertising. BRS has taken advertising to the extreme.

 

[Pickwun]

Well, they do call it "BRS tv".
I like their vids, because biased or not I actually get to see what they promised in the title.

 

[Oberst Oswald]

Their videos have helped me become successful, save money and have 99% perfect transactions. Old enough to know, usually, when I'm being conned and BRS is pretty much on the level when they suggest a product. When they recommend the best product it usually has the high price to match. I try to buy mostly from my LFS but BRS is my mail order supplier of choice. They deserve to drive a car like this...

 

[joe0813]

don't like the videos then don't watch them, pretty simple. BRS puts in a lot of time to help people in this hobby. Not only what they do for the hobby but their customer service is better than any other company ive ever ordered from and this is why they are the only place I buy stuff for my tanks.

 

[CarolinaCorals]

Don't get me wrong. Some of their videos are great and contain very high quality information but I find myself just skipping to their actual evaluations/data gathering most of the time. It just feels like 90% of the time I'm getting infomercialized. Sometimes it even makes me question the validity of their findings.

 

[ScottR]

I haven't seen anyone accuse them of lying, unless it was lying by omission. For instance, if a product outperforms what they sell they aren't going to test that product against what they sell. I've only seen them test one product they don't sell, black boxes, and it was clear they were biased against them from the beginning. For the most part they are producing infomercials. They do have some good info though.

And they apologized for the backlash over their bias for black boxes later on oddly.

 

[mkwarner77]

BRS was priceless to me when I was just beginning to get into the hobby. I didn't know where to even start so I began researching. I found BRS 365 days of reefing vids to a great source for me. While the tank I was setting up wasn't as large, it taught me alot about the type of equipment and set up I needed.

 

[Reef man 89]

There videos actually got me into the hobby. But I must admit I have bought stuff for no reason just because I saw it in there video. I don’t think there data is far from the actual truth because if they aren’t honest about the products then we all wouldn’t be buying from them.

 

[atoll]

What I would like to see more of is comparison videos from BRS. As an example, lets say I am after new lights, what would be useful is comparisons of the lights BRS sell with good and perhaps not so good points between them. Something like the new Hydras v the new Radions v Orpheks.
From what I recall the Orpheks are their light of choice, well now we have the Radions gen 5s. What are the comparisons and are the Orpheks still their top dog.
Car reviews, camera reviewers etc all do comparison reviews why not more aquarium equipment or are they afraid of upsetting their suppliers? OK so at the end of the day it's up to the customer to decide and not just on performance for many but at least such comparison reviews would help would be purchasers IMO and this hobby is often about opinions.

 

[Stigigemla]

Having a small LFS with a limited number of customers my first priority is to keep them in the hobby.
After what I see from the BRS videos they are pretty serious and focus on things they recommend and reefing advice. Their videos is a great help for me as most of my customers understand english. In order to not have problems I believe they do just as IO do.
Products they dont like or sell or have to low profit on just doesnt appear in their tests.
In that way it is possible to continue to sell other products from the same manufacturer without hard feelings.
And of course when having a limited budget for the videos it is just more fun to talk about good products. It gives their company better reputation. If nobody sees videos with a lot of junk everybody thinks their products are good. I am pretty certain the BRS are trying hard to sell good products to have a good feedback on the net.