asymmeter

It definitely takes a commitent to make that kind of thing work, no bones about it. But it really can be a lot easier to execute on that than most people think once you bake it into your customer service culture. I could drone on about such things, but that would waste valuable guitar playing time :)

Line 6 should absolutely be engaging on these forums. Building a vibrant online community around any brand is tremendously important nowadays, and engaging directly with your customers as a part of that community is crucial to forming the real, human connections that are the point of the whole system. Look at what the guys at Fractal do - most users feel like they're literally on a first name basis with Cliff. Or think of how you interact with companies on social media, a similar sort of community. Which company are you going to feel more positive and loyal towards - the one who just spams your feed with "10% Off" and banner ads, or the one that tweets you back directly when you complain to solve the problem? Nothing about community building is 'set and forget'. Granted, sometimes finding the resources to do it can be challenging, but the payoff for both the company and the customer is huge. Beyond that, you also have to consider that this forum probably sucks in plenty of traffic from users simply googling questions about Line 6 products before they buy them. Try searching "variax custom tones". Including the sitelinks, the first five results ALL take you here. Are you really going to take pages with that kind of rank and power to influence customers and just ignore them?

Brilliant. I've got one of these en route and this has inspired me to start thinking of creative paint jobs.