I wonder if the guy who came up with the strategy worked in food marketing before. They treat the console as if it was yoghurt. 12 different flavours in order to push for shelf space with all might. It's a great way to gain awareness for fast-turning goods in the range of a few dollars, but for 400$ gaming consoles? I don't know.Having multiple SKUs helps them at retail in a lot of ways. First, it helps them maintain shelf space. If PS4 is selling at twice the speed, it would normally get twice the shelf space, but with a dozen Bone SKUs, it probably gets double shelf space instead.
Thanks!I was speculating on how it was odd you had no comment on my retail musings. Heh. Welcome to the thread sir.
Thanks!
I read over what you said, and I expected this. Not only did MS ship a lot of consoles, they shipped a lot of different bundles on top of that, with no sign of stopping.
January had the RB6 bundle, February has the 500GB Pick your game bundle, March has the Division bundle, April will most likely have a QB bundle, and will possibly have a game bundled from Bethesda (Doom or Dishonored 2) if either of those hit their Spring launch date. MS will be about giving customers a lot of different "options" via game bundles.
Once those specific Holiday bundles leave, they will be replaced with a "bundle of the month".
I don't know much about the retail side of things, but maybe MS is thinking of having deals this Spring to try and move stock. Do consoles get good deals during Easter? Last year for instance, GamesStop had an almost month long deal for the Xbox One back in April where you could save $175(?) on the purchase, but I don't remember if Best Buy had a comparative deal in that time, or if that is even a common occurrence.The problem I see with this, as far as our stores go, is that the higher priced bundles have almost no momentum at all right now. It's the cheaper bundle that sells. The Gears of War bundle is the only one moving right now, and when we get those Name your Game bundles in, I'm sure those will take over for some of that momentum instead, because those are the only two at the cheaper price.
They're not doing themselves any favors on market branding with the perception. They have a ton of boxes on the floor with all these higher price points, and almost no customers bother to even express interest in them.
What does this mean?And please, always keep in mind these words:
A buyer's bonus structure trumps EVERYTHING ELSE.
You don't even auto-subscribe? You're such a weirdo.And then I forgot to subscribe to the thread!
Oh, I dunno. They moved all of the AC bundles eventually, and they literally had thousands of those in the DCs. Sounds like there are a lot of new bundles coming, but they could ship comparatively small numbers of each, giving the impression things are staying freshThey seem to build a bigger and bigger wave of soon-to-come returns. Even worse, those bundles will not become hotter over time, be outdated and will have to be refurbished.
or not. lolThe problem I see with this, as far as our stores go, is that the higher priced bundles have almost no momentum at all right now. It's the cheaper bundle that sells. The Gears of War bundle is the only one moving right now, and when we get those Name your Game bundles in, I'm sure those will take over for some of that momentum instead, because those are the only two at the cheaper price.
They're not doing themselves any favors on market branding with the perception. They have a ton of boxes on the floor with all these higher price points, and almost no customers bother to even express interest in them.
I don't know much about the retail side of things, but maybe MS is thinking of having deals this Spring to try and move stock. Do consoles get good deals during Easter? Last year for instance, GamesStop had an almost month long deal for the Xbox One back in April where you could save $175(?) on the purchase, but I don't remember if Best Buy had a comparative deal in that time, or if that is even a common occurrence.
Basically it would be a way to get some extra cash from the people that will buy the Xbox One at $399, and then try to push more people to buy the console if it were discounted for a small window of time, artificially creating more interest in those bundles then there really is.
I don't know if this is actually helpful or not, but that is what I'm thinking on why MS is stuffing retail with 10 bundles.
Or who knows, maybe these retail managers love to look at all the different Xbox bundles. Like a box collection.
Oh, I dunno. They moved all of the AC bundles eventually, and they literally had thousands of those in the DCs. Sounds like there are a lot of new bundles coming, but they could ship comparatively small numbers of each, giving the impression things are staying fresh
or not. lol
Yeah, I guess the AC bundle was a good bit cheaper than these $400 bundles they've got now. Can you comment on stock levels at all? Just how many of these expensive bundles are you guys sitting on? Is it comparable to the AC stocks last year? How much of the January bundle did you get, and how much remains? Any idea how long current stocks would hold up, assuming no new bundle next month?
Is the overstock actually affecting perception? Have people commented on it, or what?
Thanks. <3 I was mostly wondering if all of the various bundles together neared the AC stocks, but regardless, it sounds like whatever you have isn't going to move without some kind of assistance. $400 is a lot for a Bone though. Anyone have any idea what the ASP actually is on a Bone these days?The more expensive bundles don't have anywhere near the overstock the AC bundles had, which was kind of depressing how long those stuck around for. But I mean, the Halo bundle? That wasn't in huge numbers anyway, and they just don't move at all. Put it in this perspective, with collector's editions of games, we eventually mark them down to the same price of the regular game to sell them so we can clear the floorspace, but we can't do that with the hardware, because it's a console. They don't have margin options for that.
So the Tomb Raider bundles, that kind of thing, they're not just sitting in huge piles in the back, endless numbers or anything. It's more just that they move at such a glacial level, the stock we do have is almost... toxic? I don't like that word, but it means that it is a SKU that will sit, and has sat, through the busiest time of the year with little to no consumer interest behind it, and now we're in the slowest months, meaning they aren't fucking going anywhere.
Customers ask us why we have so many different models on the floor sometimes, but most of the time they don't even bother and just go straight for the cheapest bundle and move along. Passing disinterest in the cost.
I feel like I lost IQ points reading this
Love how long and detailed Abdiel's posts are. One of the perks of a slow-ass month.
I just quoted Queso from the December NPD results. I asked why there are so few releases in January, and basically it was this. Managers don't take new games in January to keep their inventory clean and get buyer's boni.What does this mean?
I'm lazy so I ask here, is it physical game or just download code on Gears bundle?I wonder How fucking a lot Gears ultimate sold, since is almost the only XB1 bundle which sell. I think >3 million all considering is likely Worldwide.
I'm lazy so I ask here, is it physical game or just download code on Gears bundle?
Why do they over ship every holiday? Someone at MS seems to think that any moment now a huge wave of 360 owners are suddenly going to upgrade. I don't think they realize those Kinect band wagoners are long gone.
Lol first time I'm seeing this.you mean someone like aaron Greenberg?
http://www.technobuffalo.com/2015/1...ox-360-fans-to-head-to-xbox-one-this-holiday/
So, yeah, how about that UC4 bundle?1 week to go and this thread is a wasteland. January is slow in all aspects.
Too far away to speculate . April is a whole nutha season for me. Well get back to you maybe next month because I'm interesting if SFV moves much ps4 hardware.So, yeah, how about that UC4 bundle?
*awkwardly tries to get some conversation going*
Are you an insider?
Are you an insider?[PS4] A few
[XB1] Little less than a few
[3DS] Even fewer still
[WIU] Which?
PS4] A few
[XB1] Little less than a few
[3DS] Even fewer still
[WIU] Which?
You could have at least called it interesting!Too far away to speculate . April is a whole nutha season for me. Well get back to you maybe next month because I'm interesting if SFV moves much ps4 hardware.
Everyone knows that "a few" is 3. So PS4 sold 3 consoles, XB1 sold 2 consoles, 3DS sold 1 console, and no one bought a Wii U.
Seems legit.
You could have at least called it interesting!
Yeah, I want to see what SFV does (or doesn't) do as well. It comes out pretty soon but the hype doesn't seem to be aligned with it. That doesn't necessarily mean poor sales though.
MKX will have bigger NPD, Street fighter should sell better in rest of the world.Im thinking SFV opens substantially lower than MKX as of now. That could change but pretty certain it will be well under it
MKX will have bigger NPD, Street fighter should sell better in rest of the world.
Wrap it up folks. Cosmic has spoiled the thread.
Now Kev can't tease this month.
Much ado has been made about a possible marketing deal for Doom. How feel you all about this? I seriously doubt Doom will move much in the way of HW or hype for consoles. The previous console versions didn't fare too well critically or sales wise and I don't see this version changing that for the franchise.
That said what marketing deals do you see having the most potential to move HW? Personally I thought The Division would be but MS has hardly put any marketing muscle behind it at all and has priced the accompanying bundle over the established mass market price point. AFAIK there are no other marketing deals yet revealed that scream "oh boy hold onto your butts" this year except a repeat of deals forged previously (COD, Battlefield, etc). Am I missing something?
For reference…I just quoted Queso from the December NPD results. I asked why there are so few releases in January, and basically it was this. Managers don't take new games in January to keep their inventory clean and get buyer's boni.
I liked the wording and it could be the official motto for January, together with "waiting for tax refunds".
Interesting. So I'm guessing the buyer gets a bonus for not overbuying during the holidays, and the auditor comes by in January to see if they qualify? That makes good business sense. And it sounds like they actually get penalized for anything that arrived between Christmas and the auditor's visit, so the end result is the buyer works to ensure the store has nothing to sell in January. That makes good business sense? =/GTA would never do that, but sure GTA is the exception to every rule. And every other company pitching a game talks about how great their game is going to do and how it's going to exceed all benchmarks. So that never really flies.
And when a buyer's bonus is on the line in terms of carried inventory, you could come in arguing anything and be shown the door. A buyer's bonus structure trumps EVERYTHING ELSE.
Much ado has been made about a possible marketing deal for Doom. How feel you all about this? I seriously doubt Doom will move much in the way of HW or hype for consoles. The previous console versions didn't fare too well critically or sales wise and I don't see this version changing that for the franchise.
That said what marketing deals do you see having the most potential to move HW? Personally I thought The Division would be but MS has hardly put any marketing muscle behind it at all and has priced the accompanying bundle over the established mass market price point. AFAIK there are no other marketing deals yet revealed that scream "oh boy hold onto your butts" this year except a repeat of deals forged previously (COD, Battlefield, etc). Am I missing something?
Is Mass Effect already pushed to 2017?Other than that I don't see anything outside of exclusives that would push consoles. Maybe FF15? If Sony has that marketing deal I can see them doing an LE console here.
Is Mass Effect already pushed to 2017?
Apart from that maybe Mirror's Edge (won't sell many consoles).
FF15 has to go to Sony if there is a marketing deal. I can't imagine how an Xbox deal would play out.
There is a Euro World Cup coming, so in Europe a Fifa bundle would make sense. In NPD not so much.
Olympics are ignored, too. Sadly.
In the end it really seems to be the usual suspects and big first party/exclusive titles this year.
And VR of course.
Yeah DOOM shouldn't be a big hardware mover. Will probably do well enough for itself in terms of units sold but I just dont see it pushing consoles.
Honestly as of now I dont see much at all hitting this year that will push systems at a large scale as of now.
I honestly think the marketing deal for Doom is just for MS and Bethesda to show both companies have a partnership. It won't move and consoles and there is no promise it'll even sell better on The One.
That said I would have expected MS to push The Division more. It comes out soon and I think it has a bundle? I would suspect MS to push that as it has potential to move consoles. We'll see though. Other than that I don't see anything outside of exclusives that would push consoles. Maybe FF15? If Sony has that marketing deal I can see them doing an LE console here.
Is Mass Effect already pushed to 2017?
Apart from that maybe Mirror's Edge (won't sell many consoles).
FF15 has to go to Sony if there is a marketing deal. I can't imagine how an Xbox deal would play out.
There is a Euro World Cup coming, so in Europe a Fifa bundle would make sense. In NPD not so much.
Olympics are ignored, too. Sadly.
In the end it really seems to be the usual suspects and big first party/exclusive titles this year.
And VR of course.
FF15 has to go to Sony if there is a marketing deal. I can't imagine how an Xbox deal would play out.
Friend, the FFXV design is basically done, and I'm sorry to say that Destiny and MGS5 reign supreme. It isn't very good. Maybe you'll get something better next time with the Kingdom of the Hearts.
We in Nathaniel Drake's time now. The bestest of times. Bless this murderer.
How early should we expect a GTA 6? 2017/ 2018? That would be huge...Is Mass Effect already pushed to 2017?
Apart from that maybe Mirror's Edge (won't sell many consoles).
FF15 has to go to Sony if there is a marketing deal. I can't imagine how an Xbox deal would play out.
There is a Euro World Cup coming, so in Europe a Fifa bundle would make sense. In NPD not so much.
Olympics are ignored, too. Sadly.
In the end it really seems to be the usual suspects and big first party/exclusive titles this year.
And VR of course.