Has anyone ever hired a publicist for music gear?

[spruce_moose]

I've got to figure out how to not mess up a crowd-sourcing campaign and after seeking some advice it seems that the only chance I have of hitting the target is to try get some kind of targeted exposure in the US. I'm from NZ, and if I targeted it locally it'll bomb for sure..

In a few weeks I should be able to disclose the invention I'm talking about, but it's small, and has a small margin. With a decent number of pre-sales, paired with pedal presales, I don't think it's impossible to get funded. From the point where the product is validated, I don't think it's impossible for it to be licensed by someone like Dunlop one day. It might sound like I'm dreaming, but the first place I'll post anything about it will be here and you're welcome to be the judge

I sort of get the feeling a publicist that charges a giant bag of money each month, but doesn't understand guitar pedals is not going to be good bang for buck.. Having someone on board who gets the product and has belief in it succeeding is really my best chance.

[D.o.S.]

If I was you and I was looking to hire a publicist I would hire the best one I could afford, not the one that likes guitar.

Think about it the same way you'd hire anyone else. You're not going to hire someone to fix your roof because you both like David Bowie or something, you're going to hire the best person you think has the best shot of fixing your roof.

[PeteeBee]

^^^ word. And so many people that support you will also not be guitar players, or extremely different guitar players. Having a professional, sharp image and all that is always good. This person might well save the day.

Consider me intrigued to see your stuff!

[spruce_moose]

I think I might have been meaning that if they're usually based in completely different fields, then maybe there'd be a higher chance they're completely miss the mark.

[weed_killer]

I think I might have been meaning that if they're usually based in completely different fields, then maybe there'd be a higher chance they're completely miss the mark.

Not necessarily - a good publicist is one that will properly research the background of the project and make sure they're full up to date with your wants and needs. The other advantage would be the potential for them to come up with unique approaches to marketing the product without the usual retreads that someone involved in gear might fall back on.