Suspicious boat endorsements - name and shame!

Reading through some of the forum threads lately and amazed at how many paddlers have only just decided to join surfski.info and give a particular brand a good wrap within a few posts. Also interesting that they have chosen to remain anonymous.

It was the latest thread on the DD3 Magnum that really made me laugh. Check out how many posts all these contributors have to their name and how helpful they are in showcasing the skis! (AST1979, OCONNOR, ALLUM, SYDNEYPADDLER)

I'm not casting aspersions on DD3, for all I know they may be a great ski, but I am casting doubt on the impartiality of the new members posting in that thread. Here is an example of the thread poster "Sydneypaddler"

3 months ago in another thread.

Own a DD3 Australis “it was fantastic and really suited my level of paddling”
Paddle 4 times per week
“I have had my Australis now for 3 years and it has many more years left”

5 days ago
“But i was not looking for the top end skis - v12/14 , Elite, Uno, Albatross - as I only paddle twice a week, and three times when the wife permits”
When i decided to try I gave the Australis and Magnum a go. The Australis a little too tippy for me. When I jumped in the Magnum I could not believe the speeds I could maintain, how stable it was and how well it was made. I was so happy with the Magnum that I ordered 2 carbon models

Just a few inconsistencies. Here is the full posts , make your own judgement.

3 months ago
I started on the v10sport. It was a good ski providing more stability than the original v10. I tried most skis for my level - fenns and thinks, I then tried the Australis by DD3, it was fantastic and really suited my level of paddling. I found that when paddling with my mates the ski seemed to run better when we were all paddling at the same stroke rate. I found the Australis to be even better in the runs.
I use the ski 4 times per week and the ski is as solid as the day I purchased it. I did have a small problem with the footboard and the crew at DD3 fixed it straight away, they even gave me a ski whilst mine was getting fixed.

A mate of mine has the Magnum and I had a go of it. It is really stable - more than my Australis-and fast. It is the carbon model (mine is the glass). I was surprised at how strong it was for 11kg. I know he is really happy with the performance and build quality. I have had my Australis now for 3 years and it has many more years left.
If you are located in Sydney give the guys at DD3 a call or they could even be at the race this weekend at clontarf competing

1/8/14

I have been paddling for about 6 years starting on the v10 sport which was a great entry level boat for me as I had a background in competitive sports my whole life. Once I progressed I moved onto the V10 - red stripe/seam. It too was a really great boat for comfort and speed. LIving in Sydney I had ample opportunity to try most skis as either some of my friends have them or that we are lucky to have distributors. All of the skis had their good points. But i was not looking for the top end skis - v12/14 , Elite, Uno, Albatross - as I only paddle twice a week, and three times when the wife permits.
I decided to give the local manufacture DD3 a try. earlier I was misled by some of the distributors that DD3 were an inferior product. When i decided to try I gave the Australis and Magnum a go. The Australis a little too tippy for me. When I jumped in the Magnum I could not believe the speeds I could maintain, how stable it was and how well it was made. I was so happy with the Magnum that I ordered 2 carbon models, one for me and the other for my brother who is returning from living overseas. One ski weighing 10.8kg and the other 11.2kg. I understand the heavier one is due more gelcoat because it had more of a design.

...it's sad because DD really is a good person...I think he just lost control over the actions of other participants in his company who don't understand CRM...(us!)...
I like Dawid Mocke's tips for small online businesses
(retrieved: www.fin24.com/Entrepreneurs/Profiles/Daw...cess-online-20140803 05/08/2014)

Tips for small online businesses:

- If you are in a niche market with a community, the relationship is key.
- You need to build trust and not break it.
- There are no call centres; you are the person behind the business.
- Don’t lose sight that everyone visiting your site is a customer.
- If you don’t answer emails submitted from a website and pretend to communicate, it will fail.
- Treat customers on web as if they’re in your shop.

When online I always remember the old cartoon that reminds me that "online, nobody knows you're a dog." (insert picture here of one dog talking to another as he sits in front of a computer and types on the keyboard.)

So there are Surfski Porn shills out there? (shudder) Tell me it isn't so!!

HI I AGREE,

My favourite is reading a "fantastic" review of a ski on this website and then finding it nearly impossible to test/ demo or even see the new ski.
2 cases in point:
1. my name is still on some list to demo a double that came out last September
2. over the December holidays i tried to demo a single for three weeks with no joy...
But oddly their mates wrote amazing reviews

I don't have a problem with a manufacturer using this site to promote their products. THINK for example,do it beautifully. They are upfront about it. We know who they are and who they represent, yet they will answer questions when posed. Most of the manufacturers appear from time to time. Ranga promotes and defends EPIC, answers questions, gives opinions and offers advice. We know who he is and what product he endorses. We appreciate the feedback and accessability this offers us. Even AR-Convert promoted Carbonology early on. Is it Latman who produces Stealth skis. Dean has answered questions about the Fenn range. All good honest blokes

The trouble with the post as presented by DD3, is it also promotes negative feedback. Most of us can see through the marketing attempt. And make no mistake, this forum is the best marketing a ski manufacturer can get. Just because three mates promote your ski, this doen't mean that 3 others won't get online and bag your product.
That one line "the nose fell off" has undone any good the other posts have achieved.

If you want to use this forum to promote your product, do it right.
Get your website up to date. Get out and let people paddle your boats, and most importantly be honest. Get on the forum and say, " good'ay I'm so and so from DD3 and I'd like to tell you about and answer questions about my skis."

All this current post has done has increased the feeling that DD3 doesn't do things upfront and properly. I don't know who gives you guys marketing advice....but stop listening to them.

If I was behind these accounts I'd be politely asking Rob to remove the posts or at least deleting the text themselves. Rob doesn't want to be seen to be censoring the site and I think most of us would be happy to see this matter buried and move on.

For that matter if thats the course of action taken I'd be happy to see that thread and this thread disappear and lets get back to how great the sport of surfski is

I'm one of the guys who posted positively about the DD3 Magnum.
Feel a bit miffed by the implication that I'm not telling the truth or not qualified to have an opinion on an intermediate level ski.
My opinion is what I wrote - it's an excellent ski. I'm not paid to say this and I did buy one.
.Three of us tested it against 2 other skis for a morning and 2 of us purchased it. We've all paddled other skis on top of that too. We're beginner/intermediates and the Magnum suits us.

Poor web site and follow up service etc ... Yes, agree with everyone that this lets him down - but let's not say that means the skis aren't good or that customer opinions on the skis don't matter.
If we hadn't had access to test the ski and had relied on the web to find his product, we would've purchased a different ski. We just got lucky enough to get access to one.

DD3 - fix your site and marketing and there are plenty more sale to be had.

Whatever the authenticity of the original post, it's clear that genuine feedback has resulted, and that's ultimately the purpose of this site and forum.

As has been expressed by others, it generally works better for a posters to be upfront and open, rather than using a pseudonym.

My recommendation would be to post something like, "Hey guys, I'm X from Y ski builders. We're a small company and don't often feature. We think we've got a great (awesome) product for xyz reasons and we've had some great results in xyz races... Anyway wanting to try us out can use a demo at xyz event."

You may still get some negative feedback, but at least the respect will be there that you stood up and were counted. And if you do have a decent product, then, as in this thread, there will be some positive comment too! Fuck it, just be open and honest!

I hate having my bullshit sensors go off and have to make decisions about whether to ban people or sort out stupid fights. I have enough issues keeping spammers off the forum!

Ok, end of rant. Sorry for that.

You're a legend mate, no apologies remotely required. And respect for calling it as it is.

Here is a link to Hayden's non existent price list on their highly commercial and professional site.

I also note everybody seems to be antonymous. (Hard word to spell BTW).

haydensurfcraft.com/price-lists/

You can arrange to have a go in my ski if you want Andrew Queenslciff cheers

You mean this pricelist?

haydensurfcraft.com/wp-content/uploads/2...-List-BoardsSkis.pdf

Click on the craft then look down the description to see the link to the pricelist.