ravinhood
Posts: 3891
Joined: 10/23/2003
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You see, you are talking to someone that worked in one of those outlets, though it wasn't EBgames or Software etc. or Best buy. I was the software department manager of the company I worked for. I was responsible for keeping the shelves stocked with what SOLD. Not just whatever new piece of crap that came onto the market. So it's not like I couldn't stock whatever I felt like, that I felt would have turnaround in the PC department. And I did get turnaround with what I purchased. And yeah our console department was larger, there's what five different console types out there all requiring a different cartridge to play, sure there's going to be more space needed, we were supplying a massive entertainment product to the consumer, so we had to have more space for them. The problem was when I called my distributer and he says, sorry we don't have that game in stock, they are "direct" sales only. So it's not the retail outlets not giving you space, it might be you aren't dealing with enough distributers to get your products in that space.
When I went in an applied for that job, I told the owner I would double his software sales. If I didn't I would quit. And I did double it. You see before and in most software outlets here they have a bunch of punk kids who know nothing about the software. I went into Software etc. because I priced them and Ebgames and Best buy, so I could have matching prices when people came to our store, anyways, this punk kid is sitting in a chair behind the counter playing one of the video games, now this is the store clerk....I'm standing there looking at the PC games and from the CHAIR he asks me, "need any help"....lol, just cold and plain like he hoped I would say NO! lol Still sitting in that chair playing that video game, while there are customers in that store that might have needed some help. We aren't suppose to goto him, he should have been roaming and helping, not sitting on his butt playing a video game.
I made it a point to know about the games I had on my shelves. I read the magazine reviews, I visited forums, albeit I didn't and still don't take much quality information from them because they are too biased, I checked ebay prices to see if the game was holding it's own. If a game started to sink on ebay, I start dropping the number of copies I had on my shelves and looked for something else/new to replace it with.
I sold wargames and rts games and fps games alike. If I could get it and it was a quality game, I stocked it, if it was a crap game, it got left at the distributers. I'm sorry I'm not around for Matrix games today, or some of your games would get quality space, just like the wargames of old did. It's a lot more than just shelf space though. It's knowing the PRODUCT, I don't know how much that was warped into my head as I continued my career in the retail business. Product Knowledge sells, pointing to a shelf does not.
I probably could have asked that punk kid something about a console game and he might have known it, if he was interested in it. But, I would bet 100% he knew nothing about computer pc games, if they were any good, what age level recommended etc. etc. Best Buy has some pretty good kids, at least they will help you find something and don't just POINT you in a direction, if it's not on the shelf they will take you to a computer and look it up for you to see if it is available for purchase or order. But, they themselves know little about the game if you start asking them questions. You get replies like "It's written on the back of the box" lol Well what system requirements does it have? "Ummm I dunno, it's written on the back of the box" lol rofl PRODUCT KNOWLEDGE has gone bye bye in today's consumer market. People take a job for the income and having a job, no care, no interest, non goal oriented in learning what they are selling, at least in many of the businesses that I visit. I have to wonder if "developers" aren't following that same pattern. Just a place to flop their butts and draw an income, not really devoting themselves to creating quality products, as long as they are getting that paycheck they are happy?
I have since moved on and upwards into another field of sales, construction sales, it's lucrative and it's more in open spaces and traveling many places. heh that rhymes. For the time being I am on r & r due to a traffic accident. So it gives me plenty of time to come here and DEMAND MY RIGHTS! lol By gawd I deliver customer satisfaction, I demand it in return. ;)
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Matrix Games Limits Retail and Expands Direct Sales - 
RE: Matrix Games Limits Retail and Expands Direct Sales - 
) straight out of the box. Not that they don't already of course
. Staying retail with even more limited shelf space for PC Titles is´nt possible for wargames. It was a hard fight to actually getting into retail when they didn´t cut back the shelf space for PC titles. It simply doesn´t pay off and you end up with a fat negative balance, which isn´t really what we´re looking for 
the problem it seems ppl. don´t care much about the produts they sell. perhaps any knowledgable personal would need more pay, so the shops rather take cheap, but poor personal ?
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