GameStop has come out declaring that 2008 is the year that they start to appeal more to the casual gamer. To quote Daniel DeMatteo, Chief Operating Officer of GameStop, "Honestly, we are having to retool the way we think of things in our stores in terms of merchandising, layout and also customer service because it is no longer only the hardcore gamer walking in who knows exactly what he wants.”
Funny, I was in a GameStop yesterday buying some games, and the same thing crossed my mind. I was so compelled by my experience, that I wanted to write about it even. However, after going through their recent comments to the media, I believe GameStop's solution is missing the point. If you stand in the middle of a GameStop store for 15 minutes, you get a pretty good idea what they need to do to make the shopping experience better. Because that's what I did.
Hit the jump for my take on all this.
1. Too many games on display!
I have never been in a GameStop where it didn't look like there were just way too many products on display. It's overwhelming. Too many displays, too many games, too much of everything. It's like a high school kid who has decorated his room over the last five years, and covered up every single inch of space with some sort of poster, sticker, or toy, that is an expression of himself. It's just too much.
The stores definitely make an attempt to lay things out in a way that you can tell where each section is. But quite frankly, it's not working, simply because it's clutter-fest. You don't need to display 10 copies of a game. One is just fine. You don't need to have six of your magazines on display. One front and center is enough.
2. The store is way too cramped.
Naturally, the first bullet point results in this second one. The aisles are too narrow. It makes the place very claustrophobic. Unless you are petite like a Japanese school girl, you feel like a bull in a China shop walking through a GameStop.
If you want a more inviting store, you need to create a greater sense of space. Either get bigger retail space, or rotate more of your inventory so that you have less on display, but it is updated more often. Instead of showcasing a ton of ads and displays -- which I reckon is necessary because of the MDF that goes into a retailer -- they can do things like use LCD monitors to rotate 10 ads on a display, rather than display all 10 ads on a wall.
3. Something smells funny.
I don't know what it is about these small game stores, because there is a lingering odor. I don't think it's the staff, or typical nerdy customers, as I'm sure some people would like to point fingers at. I actually think it may be because of all the used games they sell.
I recall before that GameStop had a much fresher new store scent. Ever since they started to sell used games, there is a hint of an odor that just isn't so fresh. If you think about it, they display hundreds of boxes that have been owned by random people, and I'm sure many games weren't stored in clean environments. You stack up enough of these used games, you are bound to get a funkiness in the air. I'm sure having the store so crowded isn't helping the ventilation.
You’d be surprised how certain smells can be more inviting than others. Many companies even do research into what smells they pump into their stores to increase sales.
4. Awkward...
While you gotta give credit to the staff since they generally try to be on the ball, I've run into too many of them that would make the average casual gamer uncomfortable. Perhaps it's the long fanboy ode to what games they love, or the not-quite-there training they get when they have to hawk their magazines, and membership service, which results in overzealous pitches. Even I, who has been shopping there for years and am borderline fanboy, sometimes can't wait to get out of the store, because it's just too much.
When you add all these things up, it basically results in a retail environment that is intimidating for anyone but the hardcore gamer. This is a fundamental issue that can't be just addressed by adding more things to make the casual gamer happy. They need to tone down the hardcore stuff to make it less intimidating. They need to rethink their overall store atmosphere.
Now, before all the hardcore gamers shout out "Who cares about casual gamers! Bah!" -- I for one would love to have my girlfriend, and mom, and gay uncle Charlie buy more games. Share my love of gaming with them.
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Dr. Boa may sound like someone who starred in some porn with Dirk Diggler, but his true passion is interactive entertainment. He's notched +15 years in the gaming industry from QA to launching several big hits, so he's got a healthy perspective on what goes on from the flipside. It's amazing he's not a jaded cynic yet. He's finally glad to see more drug filled parties with playboy bunnies and B level celebs like all other entertainment fields. Yes, gaming has finally made it.
Contest:
4:58 PM on 01.25.2008
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I don't think it's the staff, or typical nerdy customers, as I'm sure some people would like to point fingers at.[/b]
Yea, about that. A close friend of mine works at a Gamestop and he's almost certain that it's one of his co-workers. He said and I quote, "the guy reeks of ass and not the I-just-had-sex ass, it's the I-haven't-had-a-shower-in-days ass." Let your nose be your guide.
I think Gamestop needs larger stores. I'm sure they can afford to stop buying the smallest store in the whole mall--more and better-organized wall space would make the whole place so much happier.
they are the same thing. I forget who owns who but they are literally the same. EB tends to be the smaller of the two in my experience.
It was great. There was a lot more space, the wooden floor helped alleviate the claustrophobic environment, and the games had enough shelf space to be nice and orderly.
Yeah. Now that Gamestop is practically the only major video game retailer left, they have no excuse.
However I have a problem with the list Dr. Boa made.
First you got to give the employees some slack since most of them are out of highschool kids (generally the ones who couldn't get into college) whose job experience is zero. So of course their customer service skills are lacking.
Two, most of the stores I've been to are staffed with people who don't know single thing about video games. The idea of Fanboyism doesn't even exist because they don't know enough about video games to be a fanboy of anything. In my old store I was the only one who was an actual video game nerd and only me and another employee (who only work one day a week) actually owned video game consoles that wasn't a gamecube or gba (this was last year 2007). My assistant manager bought a wii for his 5 year old daughter and thought it was cool kid toy, nothing wrong with that, but this was the first console he ever bought in his life.
Now I know this all just specifically with my old store, but my experience with others are generally not the best. If ain't Madden, GTA, or whichever game is being pushed to be pre-ordered no one knows about it. If anything video games are already pretty mainstream and people who work at the stores only play the games their casual customers play anyway.
What stores need are knowledgable employees that know their product, but what do you expect when you make minimum wage.
Yet, I do agree with this "sometimes can't wait to get out of the store, because it's just too much", but it's because all I hear about is whether Madden 07 is better than Madden 05 or they bitch about too much text and reading in games, and ask when does all the shooting start?
There are no video game geeks in video game stores anymore for a reason. My old manager told me once that she didn't want to hire too many video game geeks because they would be to opinionated about video games and deter sells. The less the know about video games the less likely they'll confuse or stop the customer from buying a "bad" game. This is what she told me, god honest truth.
Dr. Boa has spoken.
Not to say that 'hardcore' gamers don't play Madden.
Uh oh, I said it? HA!
Aside from those kids, we get confused parents who can't pronounce playstation right or combine two consoles into one like the the PlayBox (i know someone posted this, but this honestly does get brought up alot). Usually these parents are being dragged by their 9 year old kid who either A) only plays movie franchise games B)whine about why they can't buy GTA or C)not really sure what they want, but thinks the box art looks cool.
That's all we get as customers. Very rarely we get geeks, but I guess this has to do with it being a Gamestop in the middle of Suburban country (houses, albertson's, starbucks, house,...repeat)
And I'll agree the ones around here are a bit on the small side, there is so much crap around that its a cluster fuck to move in there, especially if there are more than 4 customers in the store. And even with a small floor space you can do things to really open it up.
Its come to the point where I'll order or pre-order a game online and choose next day shipping to get it on release day rather than go to the store. Mostly because the closest one is 15 mins away 30 mins round trip and gas prices and me working all day just don't want to deal with it. If I wasn't asked to get all this extra stuff with a simple game purchase in the store I might go. I'm not a soccer mom that has no idea what to get their kid, I've been gaming since I knew what they were and I don't need to hear about how much this strategy guide will help me with the game I'm going to purchase.
I KID I KID - It's FRIIIDAY!
No, the smell of the flea market is the smell of savings. Being able to buy 10 pairs of socks for 3 bucks (there's always that guy there that sells socks that conveniently fell off the truck). And if you want to see stuff in mint condition, some of those mexicans at the flea market have old NES games in absolute perfect condition. Box, instructions, and inserts intact.
Honestly I prefer shopping at the big box retailers. They don't harass me there.
Many times, I have had a mom in front of me, buying some game for her little boy (who is likely way too young to be playing the game in question) and ask for a game that [I know] hasn't come out yet.
The clerk checks the system, and realizes the game doesn't come out for a month or so.
Meanwhile, I have already informed the woman that the game is expected to release on XX/XX/XXXX date and has a E, T, M, etc. rating. The clerk looks at me with the typical, expected "you need to get a life" expression...
I'm a hardcore gamer so.. of course I know when the game comes out. Maybe I'm too demanding. Regardless, I would expect the guy to know what games have been released and shipped to the store.
I can forgive that type of thing at the Walmart electronics section, but not from a store that relies on video games for its principal source of revenue. Know the item you are peddling!!!
OMG thank you for saying something. I worked at a store in Louisville a while back, and for some reason when I walked over to the PS2 wall it would always smell like ass. There would be days where I could hardly go over there to put cases on the wall. The strange thing is that it came and went, so I figured it was just someone who shit their pants, but it was always in the same exact spot. Other days it would be gone, and there was nothing in the cases. I have never figured out the mystery of the ass smelling PS2 wall.
OMG thank you for saying something. I worked at a store in Louisville a while back, and for some reason when I walked over to the PS2 wall it would always smell like ass. There would be days where I could hardly go over there to put cases on the wall. The strange thing is that it came and went, so I figured it was just someone who shit their pants, but it was always in the same exact spot. Other days it would be gone, and there was nothing in the cases. I have never figured out the mystery of the ass smelling PS2 wall.
however i don't like going in there when the manager is there
he always jumps on me as soon as i get in the door with "hey man how you been?" then has to know what I'm in for and then trys to tell some bad joke and pushes every sale on me and then ask if i want to preorder etc etc etc and always acts like hes hooking me up
all I want is to look at the store and if i need something i'll ask for it
then if i don't buy something he or do as he suggest he has this hurt expression and attidtude
in fact i went in last week for a mad catz component cable for both my wii and ps3 and he handed me 2 because according to him its better to have one for each because you won't need to change the cord
and when i told him my systems are close enough i can plug them both in he mad a dumb comment
i really don't like that guy fucking give me space
As to the common conception about unknowledgeable GameStop employees: a friend of mine went to buy The Orange Box on PS3 twice (once for himself, another time for a friend), and he was told both times that there wasn’t a PS3 version of the game. He had to say, “Look in your computer,” and then they found it.
Actually I said look in your draw! I had to hold myself back from cursing. Oh and on that note I dread going in there to buy a game from lesser know developers like Atlus or NIS they never know what I'm talking about...
Yeah I remember Funcoland, it's now a Gamestop, and so is my Software ect.
But Boa you're spot on with the too many games on display. I just picked up a copy of Disgaea for my PSP with the 25% off coupon in their emails. If I did not know exactly what I wanted and what the cover looked like I would have been pretty hard pressed to find it.
The GS in my local mall is so small and has so little backroom space they had empty packing boxes from their shipments cluttering the area all around the registers. It's a pretty sad affair.