Such casual sexism

C-Net reports that mystery games are on the rise again:

Mystery games, which require players to solve puzzles to advance a storyline, were popular in the mid-1990s but then fell out of favor, said DFC Intelligence analyst David Cole.

Did Bladerunner count as a mystery game? I loved that game, but it was tough and I gave it up for more Quake. Anyway - this David Cole here has some casually sexist suggestions for game marketers:

DFC Intelligence estimates that casual online games generated about $400 million in revenue in 2006, even while one of the fastest-growing demographics--women over 35--was slow in shelling out cash for that purpose.

"The big way to reach them is retail distribution, which is always a challenge, Cole said. "It would be great to be in a grocery store or (convenience store) impulse purchase. That's why it's been tougher for this type of game."

Oh, the grocery store! Dear David, might I suggest the book store? Or Starbucks? How about advertising on Amazon pages that target your age and gender demographic? Perhaps a series of ads on female-friendly portals would work. Maybe some magazine ads.

Maybe just don't categorise all over-35 women as housework slaves who only get their purses out in grocery stores, eh.

Let's say - for argument's sake - that grocery stores are, proportionally-speaking, where you are likely to find the largest group of over-35 women in one place at any one time. I don't know if they are, but we're looking at both sides here. Is this the best place to flog a game to them, while they're doing the (boring, impersonal, choresome) weekly food shop? Is that the best customer relationship, does it impart the healthiest attitude to the customer?

I won't speak for all women, but I'd be bloody surprised if grocery shopping was considered by anyone to be "me time", or the sort of place where you'd be interested in discovering new entertainment. It's so unimaginative. If you want to convert 35+ women into purchasers, maybe talk to Yahoo!, who - I've been told - are doing a roaring business with the very same demographic ..  in digital downloads.

Comments

[pauln]

I can understand your ire, but I'm not sure the thought behind it was "right, where can we find the most women".

Where I live the Sainsburys entrance lobby is home to the DVDs and magazines; you can't get to the main store without walking past them. I've stopped and looked for bargains quite a few times.

Is it the best time to sell people games? Yes, absolutely - in fact, if grocery shopping is really that much of a chore, the pay-off of also purchasing a new game is the sugar that makes the medicine go down.

Is it a healthy way to get people regularly purchasing games? Probably not, but that's retail for you.

It might be a wholly-male phenomenon however, and his idea might not cross genders - I have no idea. I think I'll ask my mum if she's ever looked at the DVDs :)

[Hugh "Nomad" Hancock]

Well, it might well be an excellent time to get me to buy a game!

I love grocery shopping. I'm passionate about my food, and so when I'm shopping for it is about the best time ever to present me with something cool and new - my avant-garde sensors are on full alert.

Then again,

1) I was thinking about buying the "Desperate Housewives" game if it was any good - so I may not exactly be the poster child for red-blooded, repressed testosterone here.

2) I'm not sure that the games companies want the competition. Honestly, in a battle between buying, ooh, anything EA has produced in the last two years and a nice cask-aged bottle of sherry vinegar, the vinegar has it.

[bob]

I'm with Hugh, in fact, one of the only places I actually enjoy shopping is at a good grocery store.
In the U.S. at least, most people *don't go to bookshops.* Many people have computers but don't make web purchases. Everyone eats, however, and most households cook, at least sometimes. Their reasoning *may* have been sexist, but the fact remains- putting games in grocery stores would certainly broaden the exposure and market, and impulse purchasing greatly increases sales. If you were marketing to teenage boys, that would probably be a lousy place to sell games, but otherwise, for the broadest demographic, that's the place.
I'm *not* crazy about the idea of "games for 'girls'" and "games for 'boys,'" but the industry certainly limits the audiences for many of its games by making them incredibly sexist.

[Alice]

I know Wal-mart is a big shifter of games; I'm also not saying grocery stores aren't a good place to put games. They are. Games are already there, like Tesco & ASDA in the UK.

It was the casual sexism of David Cole's attitude that to get to the 35+ female, you have to put the game on the shelf at the grocery store. No other thought required, no other places considered.

Personally, I think Starbucks would make more sense.

[barbex]

As a mother of two I have to say: grocery shopping all by myself? Definitely wonderful me-time! Would I buy games? Hell yes, I hardly see any other stores!
But I agree, Amozon and Starbucks would make just as much sense.

[fridge]

Talking of casual sexism...

Loves C3Po, against all odds/good judgement
Won't betray Leia's trust
Is small
Is cute
Is awesome at communicating, even via bleeping

Weren't you implying that all of those were typical female traits in the blog above...?

; )

[Alice]

Dude, that's *gender* traits. Height is provable. Cute too ;)

The sexism in David's thing may've just been one of omission, but it is casually sexist to associate 35+ females with just grocery shopping: a household chore that used to be solidly the female domain before equal rights.

It's old fashioned, and out of touch, and *lazy*. My point was, if you want to reach women, please make a bit of an effort, and try to think of women as people with jobs and tastes, rather than drones in Sainsburys.

[bob]

I was probably prejudiced by my love for grocery stores and dislike of overpriced coffee drinks, but I was thinking of Starbucks patrons purely as a much smaller demographic than grocery shoppers (and I'm not so sure about the women over 35 demographic relative to Starbucks).
Regular Starbucks patrons clearly do have a level of disposable income that makes them more likely to be computer owners and therefore impulse buyers of games, so it certainly is more targeted.

[Alice]

Starbucks is doing a pretty roaring trade for the music industry..

[Yoox]

As someone(a guy I might add) who worked in a grocery store, he's absolutely right....we specifically stocked and put out all sorts of knick knacks/cutsey items/chick lit/etc. along the regular food items, that only female customers would ever buy.....and they did!

There was very few items out that appealed to Males...except in the toys and Liquor. Although the Decor may seem gender Neutral, the higher ups were well aware a grocery store is a Female Market....

I do think the customers see it as ME time....I love to walk around and think, however rarely do activities that need to be done also allow you to walk. There is even walking meditation!