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Play the Game

Posted in General, Marketing March 22nd, 2007 by Oliver Milman

The decision of specialist retailer Game to not hold a midnight opening for the launch of the PlayStation3 has managed to achieve the worst of both worlds.

Not only does the decision, based on the all-encapsulating fall-back of “safety reasons”, smack of marketing timidity, but it’s also had rival HMV grumbling of copycat tactics.

HMV insiders are slightly peeved that Game decided to follow its lead of opening its store early tomorrow morning to the hordes of PS3 enthusiasts, rather than at the strike of midnight tonight.

To rub salt in its rival’s wounds, Game will open at 7am, rather than HMV’s 7.30am. HMV will surely also be outraged that Game is offering bacon butties to the die-hards who can’t wait until lunchtime to buy a computer games console.

In marketing terms, Game’s strategy is rather lame. Sure, it doesn’t have the flagship store size of HMV or Virgin Megastore, which will be holding a midnight event, but that doesn’t mean it should simply do a pared down version of what its rivals are doing.

Gaming enthusiasts are some of the most disturbingly loyal consumers out there. The arrival of the much-delayed PlayStation3 must feel like the Second Coming to many gamers out there.

So why not exploit it better with a more original marketing plan? Why, for example, does Game need to constrict itself to a small event at its Oxford Street store?

The retailer could, for a little outlay, hire a decent venue to hold a branded event that would pull the punters in. You could even pitch a tent on Trafalgar Square and hire some security guards to counteract the much-feared security threat.

Unless Game marketers decide to use a little more invention in their thinking, they could find its game over in the PS3 retail battle. Pun intended.