In regards to relationship marketing, Nintendo frequently sends customers who sign up for the Club Nintendo membership service deals and sales via email that is exclusive to these members.The more one spends on Nintendo products and registers on the website, the more rewards and opportunity for deals are presented by Nintendo. Besides Club Nintendo, Nintendo is similar to its competitors in that it typically has little to no knowledge of it's customer's shopping habits(due to most of their products being sold via outside stores such as Gamestop and Best Buy.) and thus, have generally poor relationship marketing strategy relying on brand loyalty for sales.
Nintendo however serves as a platform for other developers. Independent video game studios either design or port(a process of optimizing a video game made on competitor's consoles to work on multiple consoles) games on Nintendo consoles. While not as reliant on 3rd party developers as Sony and Microsoft, a great portion of games available on Nintendo consoles come from them. In order for those developers to make or port games on Nintendo consoles, they have to go into an agreement with Nintendo, pay licensing fees and also pay for development kits("DevKits") to properly program the games on the console. In exchange, Nintendo gives the games it's iconic seal of quality and then publishes and distributes the games. Nintendo is VERY serious about the content available on it's consoles so it's very selective on the games they allow for publishing, which has many 3rd party developers prefering to publish on Sony and Microsoft platforms instead(Electronic Arts being notorious for skipping out on making Nintendo ports of their games).
From what I just mentioned, it seems like Nintendo doesn't have a very reliable business marketing strategy when it comes to dealing with outside developers. Nintendo now has to rely on internally developed and published games for a majority of it's profits. This isn't good at all as seen with it's continued losses and booming successes of it's competitor's consoles and game sales.
http://www.wired.com/2014/01/nintendo-forecast/
Tuesday, May 13, 2014
Tuesday, May 6, 2014
Ch. 8 - Segmenting and Targeting Markets
Following Nintendo all this time has made it clear that it's actual target market is young and single consumers who are not burdened by too many responsibilities and have more disposable income than other types of consumers. From children to young adults (5-24) is Nintendo's main focus.
Nintendo products are also widely available across most of the 1st world, with several game specialty shops, electronic stores such as Best Buy and even some department stores like Target and Walmart. Add on top of its widely available product line is the fact that Nintendo products are cheaper in price than it's competitors Sony and Microsoft, making them more appealing to young consumers who may not have the means to afford the others.
That's not to say that Nintendo has been entirely 100% focused on young and single consumers however. Within recent memory, Nintendo has been going for a more family oriented approach to marketing. Beginning with its Wii system, Nintendo has been aiming to get all members of the family involved in some form of gaming using the gimmick of motion controls using an easy to navigate set of controllers. In this regards it has been highly successful as the Wii has even been used in elderly homes as a form of therapy.
With that said,Nintendo's newest system, the Wii U seems to only be targeting the young market again. The Wii U has ditched the motion controllers in exchange for a tablet/controller hybrid and the games available are more focused on hobbyist gamers(as in consumers who play games more often and of different varieties than others). The gimmick of motion controls of course like all gimmicks became tiresome and so Nintendo had to go in another direction. The good part about this is that it gave Nintendo a fresh new direction to focus on game development. The bad part however is that it has put it in direct competition with Sony and Microsoft's newer consoles as well which is turning out to not go well in Nintendo's favor.
Nintendo products are also widely available across most of the 1st world, with several game specialty shops, electronic stores such as Best Buy and even some department stores like Target and Walmart. Add on top of its widely available product line is the fact that Nintendo products are cheaper in price than it's competitors Sony and Microsoft, making them more appealing to young consumers who may not have the means to afford the others.
That's not to say that Nintendo has been entirely 100% focused on young and single consumers however. Within recent memory, Nintendo has been going for a more family oriented approach to marketing. Beginning with its Wii system, Nintendo has been aiming to get all members of the family involved in some form of gaming using the gimmick of motion controls using an easy to navigate set of controllers. In this regards it has been highly successful as the Wii has even been used in elderly homes as a form of therapy.
With that said,Nintendo's newest system, the Wii U seems to only be targeting the young market again. The Wii U has ditched the motion controllers in exchange for a tablet/controller hybrid and the games available are more focused on hobbyist gamers(as in consumers who play games more often and of different varieties than others). The gimmick of motion controls of course like all gimmicks became tiresome and so Nintendo had to go in another direction. The good part about this is that it gave Nintendo a fresh new direction to focus on game development. The bad part however is that it has put it in direct competition with Sony and Microsoft's newer consoles as well which is turning out to not go well in Nintendo's favor.
Tuesday, April 29, 2014
Ch. 11 - Developing and Managing Products
Nintendo has been known for having unique and innovative ideas for it's various gaming consoles and software. Thinking outside of the box is Nintendo's creed when it comes to developing new products. From Evolving the Gameboy from just a single screen, monotone portable gaming device to its 3DS iteration, which has an additional touch screen, vibrant 3d graphics and app capabilities to add onto it being just a portable gaming system.
The best example of Nintendo's new product strategy in my opinion however is with it's Wii console. The release of the Wii really speaks to the aim of Nintendo as a business. Creative, new, and universally fun for people of all age ranges. Wii was a real game changer(no pun intended) when it was released whether you hated it or loved it. Its impression on the gaming industry is still being felt to this day with the other, newer consoles still taking notes from Wii's features.
Wii started development with the code name "Revolution"(which I think sounds waaay better than Wii) back in 2001 soon after the release of Nintendo's Gamecube console. The main goal of the Wii was to change the way games were to be played and increase the immersion factor. Incorporating new motion controls to achieve this, it also had the added benefit of being an exercise as well as being entertainment which falls in line with Nintendo's views of being simple and clean fun for the whole family. Wii ended up being a reaaal big deal when it released, beating out its major competitors, Sony's Playstation 3 and Microsoft's Xbox 360 for a few years after its release. From dancing games that utilizes motion controls to sports games like boxing that does the same, Nintendo Wii really broke the mold the way Nintendo was infamous for doing.
The best example of Nintendo's new product strategy in my opinion however is with it's Wii console. The release of the Wii really speaks to the aim of Nintendo as a business. Creative, new, and universally fun for people of all age ranges. Wii was a real game changer(no pun intended) when it was released whether you hated it or loved it. Its impression on the gaming industry is still being felt to this day with the other, newer consoles still taking notes from Wii's features.
Wii started development with the code name "Revolution"(which I think sounds waaay better than Wii) back in 2001 soon after the release of Nintendo's Gamecube console. The main goal of the Wii was to change the way games were to be played and increase the immersion factor. Incorporating new motion controls to achieve this, it also had the added benefit of being an exercise as well as being entertainment which falls in line with Nintendo's views of being simple and clean fun for the whole family. Wii ended up being a reaaal big deal when it released, beating out its major competitors, Sony's Playstation 3 and Microsoft's Xbox 360 for a few years after its release. From dancing games that utilizes motion controls to sports games like boxing that does the same, Nintendo Wii really broke the mold the way Nintendo was infamous for doing.
Tuesday, April 8, 2014
Ch. 10 - Product Concepts
Nintendo's products fall into the heterogeneous category of shopping products. The various games and video game consoles produced by Nintendo are all essentially different from each other as well as from it's major competitors Microsoft's Xbox division and Sony's Playstation division (although this is blurred with 3rd party games sold on all 3 platforms). When you buy a Nintendo product, you know for sure that it's a Nintendo product.
Nintendo's product lines consists of video games(either published by or developed and published internally), video game consoles, and licensed merchandise such as toys, posters, cards, comics and candies based on various Nintendo video game franchises. Nintendo's main focus when it comes to products seems to be more so along the lines of developing games. Most of Nintendo's "console sellers"(games that move consoles) are it's own internally developed games such as The Legend Of Zelda and Super Smash Bros. with less focus on publishing games developed by other developers.
As a brand, Nintendo is on a global scale. Based in Japan, Nintendo gets a good majority of it's sales from overseas within the Americas, Europe, Australian(Australia and New Zealand) and Asia territories. Nintendo has been doing so since the 1980's and is one of the more easily recognizable brands out there now. Many consumers to this day are fiercely loyal to the brand even to this day with many buying only Nintendo products over everything else when it comes to video game entertainment. Whistle the Super Mario theme or hum the Tetris theme anywhere and chances are someone is going to recognize the tunes despite them being over at least 20 years old.
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Nintendo's product lines consists of video games(either published by or developed and published internally), video game consoles, and licensed merchandise such as toys, posters, cards, comics and candies based on various Nintendo video game franchises. Nintendo's main focus when it comes to products seems to be more so along the lines of developing games. Most of Nintendo's "console sellers"(games that move consoles) are it's own internally developed games such as The Legend Of Zelda and Super Smash Bros. with less focus on publishing games developed by other developers.
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| Super Mario Candies |
Tuesday, April 1, 2014
Ch. 17 - Personal Selling and Sales Management
Nintendo has an online service called "Club Nintendo" that was created for long-term consumers in mind. The way that the service is designed is that those who register can earn points(fashioned as gold coins from the Super Mario series) for every Nintendo product they purchase(and register) that can be redeemed for either free Nintendo games or other Nintendo related merchandise unavailable otherwise. Those who are registered can also fill out surveys about the products they've registered as well that also earns them gold coins.
Outside of this process, Nintendo frequently sends Club Nintendo members deals and sales via email that is apparently exclusive to these members.I myself being a member have received various sales promotions from Nintendo. Im also on the mailing list of both of Nintendo's major competitors Sony and Microsoft and I can definitely give Nintendo credit for being more friendly when it comes to sales promotion for "valued" customers than the others(Microsoft being THE WORST at this).
With that being said, Nintendo also keeps track of consumer's tastes in video games. Theres been many of times I've been suggested a video game due to me registering another game that's similar. It's kind of creepy in a way, but it's to be expected since Nintendo is keen on keeping it's customers in the loop. These suggestions often come with very detailed descriptions and I have on more than one occasion considered buying a game based on them. Overall, its pretty nice that Nintendo at least knows the games I would most likely be interested in instead of just throwing random games in my face. Im not a serious Nintendo gamer(I do most of my gaming on Sony's consoles) but I must admit that it feels more comfortable shopping with Nintendo than the others. Seems like Nintendo is paying more attention to my preferences and is ready to do business. I'm speaking from experience, so I know that there's many like-minded people out there that continue to shop with Nintendo because of this.
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| Club Nintendo's home page |
Outside of this process, Nintendo frequently sends Club Nintendo members deals and sales via email that is apparently exclusive to these members.I myself being a member have received various sales promotions from Nintendo. Im also on the mailing list of both of Nintendo's major competitors Sony and Microsoft and I can definitely give Nintendo credit for being more friendly when it comes to sales promotion for "valued" customers than the others(Microsoft being THE WORST at this).
With that being said, Nintendo also keeps track of consumer's tastes in video games. Theres been many of times I've been suggested a video game due to me registering another game that's similar. It's kind of creepy in a way, but it's to be expected since Nintendo is keen on keeping it's customers in the loop. These suggestions often come with very detailed descriptions and I have on more than one occasion considered buying a game based on them. Overall, its pretty nice that Nintendo at least knows the games I would most likely be interested in instead of just throwing random games in my face. Im not a serious Nintendo gamer(I do most of my gaming on Sony's consoles) but I must admit that it feels more comfortable shopping with Nintendo than the others. Seems like Nintendo is paying more attention to my preferences and is ready to do business. I'm speaking from experience, so I know that there's many like-minded people out there that continue to shop with Nintendo because of this.
Tuesday, March 25, 2014
Ch. 16 - Advertising, Public Relations and Sales Promotion
Historically speaking, Nintendo has been known for the outlandish way it chooses to advertise it's products. The advertisement campaign for it's 3DS handheld gaming console was by far the most peculiar. The campaign was called "I'm Not a Gamer" and it involved actors and athletes playing the console then proudly stating that they're not gamers. This was done to appeal to non gamers and I guess show that you don't have to be a "gamer" to enjoy playing video games on the 3DS. The campaign wasn't well received as many felt that it "missed the mark" when it came to successful advertisement. Internet spoofs of the campaign began to spread like wildfire and Nintendo discontinued the campaign.
Nintendo has been focused on consumer's lifestyles when advertising their products with the general theme of happiness. Nintendo advertisements try to convey that if you buy their products, you and your family will be much happier and closer than ever. On occassion, they've been known to employ humor as well in their advertisements as in the case of "Super Smash Brothers", released in 1999 for their N64 console.
The mediums typically used by Nintendo for advertisement are TV commercials and magazine ads(typically within gaming entertainment publications). Nintendo also at one point had it's own dedicated magazine called "Nintendo Power" which focused on all Nintendo related video game news and reviews for games. It ran from 1988 till it was discontinued in 2012. Nintendo power used to give gamers news surrounding their newest products 1st before other publications and also offered demos of upcoming games periodically. Personally speaking, playing demos of games not released yet was always an exciting thing for me. I always felt a little superior to my friends if I got to play something 1st and that usually makes me buy the game when it is released, so I can definitely see the logic in giving away free demos.
A parody of "I'm Not a Gamer"
Nintendo has been focused on consumer's lifestyles when advertising their products with the general theme of happiness. Nintendo advertisements try to convey that if you buy their products, you and your family will be much happier and closer than ever. On occassion, they've been known to employ humor as well in their advertisements as in the case of "Super Smash Brothers", released in 1999 for their N64 console.
I used to find this commercial HILARIOUS
The mediums typically used by Nintendo for advertisement are TV commercials and magazine ads(typically within gaming entertainment publications). Nintendo also at one point had it's own dedicated magazine called "Nintendo Power" which focused on all Nintendo related video game news and reviews for games. It ran from 1988 till it was discontinued in 2012. Nintendo power used to give gamers news surrounding their newest products 1st before other publications and also offered demos of upcoming games periodically. Personally speaking, playing demos of games not released yet was always an exciting thing for me. I always felt a little superior to my friends if I got to play something 1st and that usually makes me buy the game when it is released, so I can definitely see the logic in giving away free demos.
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| R.I.P. Nintendo Power =( |
Tuesday, March 18, 2014
Ch.14 - Marketing Channels and Retailing
Nintendo uses the Retailer Channel type of Marketing Channels for selling and distributing its wares. They also use Direct Channel marketing by way of it's e-shop and Nintendo World stores with one being located here in NYC, near 34th street. I however didn't visit this store but visited a Gamestop store around my way. Gamestop is by far the largest video game specialty chains still in existence in this country. Other big chains such as Best Buy, Target and Walmart may sell video games in their respective electronics sections, but Gamestop's main focus has always been video games(although within recent years they've been selling other electronic devices such as iPads and Beats by Dre headphones).
Being a video game specialty store, Gamestop of course sells Nintendo games and consoles as well as Nintendo's competitor's wares. From my observations over the many(MANY) years of shopping at various Gamestop chains I noticed something now that I''m actively researching Nintendo that I failed to notice before: the Nintendo section is almost always located in the front of the store and if not in the front, within close proximity to the cash register.
I feel really dumb for noticing this now(I've been shopping for games at Gamestop since I was a preteen) but now that I see it, I can understand why it's always in those locations. I think it's like this to easily catch the eye(or quickly distract) younger gamers before they notice the more mature content Microsoft and Sony tend to produce. Im not a reeeaaal big Nintendo gamer( I just own a 3DS for gaming on the go) so I usually have to weave through a crowd of small children in order to reach the Xbox and Playstation sections all the way in the back of the stores. Its crazy. Now everytime I'm in a Gamestop I'm going to be conscious of this.
Anyways, as a retailer, Gamestop is good for general society looking to find games or consoles conveniently. They sell new and used games at fair prices and often have promotional sales in store and/or online. If you want to sell anything however, I STRONGLY suggest you look elsewhere. Gamestop's selling and trading in policies are hilariously unfair. Seriously. Its such common knowledge within the gaming community, its an internet meme. Sell on amazon.com, ebay.com or a "mom and pop" game store if you want a good return for selling games. With that said, Gamestop is pretty decent otherwise, always well stocked and scarcely having shortages(especially in the case of Nintendo). I've been a customer for years and have several games on reserve as I'm writing this. I shop there for the convenience factor mostly, but for REAL gamers, Gamestop really isn't all that hot.
Being a video game specialty store, Gamestop of course sells Nintendo games and consoles as well as Nintendo's competitor's wares. From my observations over the many(MANY) years of shopping at various Gamestop chains I noticed something now that I''m actively researching Nintendo that I failed to notice before: the Nintendo section is almost always located in the front of the store and if not in the front, within close proximity to the cash register.
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| A photo from my visit to the Gamestop on Flatbush Junction, Brooklyn |
I feel really dumb for noticing this now(I've been shopping for games at Gamestop since I was a preteen) but now that I see it, I can understand why it's always in those locations. I think it's like this to easily catch the eye(or quickly distract) younger gamers before they notice the more mature content Microsoft and Sony tend to produce. Im not a reeeaaal big Nintendo gamer( I just own a 3DS for gaming on the go) so I usually have to weave through a crowd of small children in order to reach the Xbox and Playstation sections all the way in the back of the stores. Its crazy. Now everytime I'm in a Gamestop I'm going to be conscious of this.
Anyways, as a retailer, Gamestop is good for general society looking to find games or consoles conveniently. They sell new and used games at fair prices and often have promotional sales in store and/or online. If you want to sell anything however, I STRONGLY suggest you look elsewhere. Gamestop's selling and trading in policies are hilariously unfair. Seriously. Its such common knowledge within the gaming community, its an internet meme. Sell on amazon.com, ebay.com or a "mom and pop" game store if you want a good return for selling games. With that said, Gamestop is pretty decent otherwise, always well stocked and scarcely having shortages(especially in the case of Nintendo). I've been a customer for years and have several games on reserve as I'm writing this. I shop there for the convenience factor mostly, but for REAL gamers, Gamestop really isn't all that hot.
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| Alot of these Gamestop memes are hilarious |
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