I just got back from the “CMA Convention and Tradeshow”:http://www.the-cma.org/convention/intro.html in Montreal. And what is left ringing in my ears? *It’s all about ME.* Well, it’s all about them… the consumer. Marketers need to internalise that the game has changed and the consumer is taking an active, if not leading role.
Well, not even the consumer, but rather the “prosumer”. Max Lenderman (Creative Director at GMR Marketing LLC) defines the prosumer as a consumer that is: proactive, professional or a producer. In any case, this prosumer is empowered. And if we choose to collaborate *with* them, they can become our most powerful brand evangelists. More details can be found in Lenderman’s blog “Experience the Message”:http://experiencethemessage.typepad.com/.
Co-collaboration was also highlighted by Dr. Martha Rogers (Founding Partner, Peppers & Rogers Group). Rogers asserted that organizations need to enter a “learning relationship” with our customers. By positioning my customer as a co-collaborator with me, I am able to de-commoditize my product/service. I will have something to offer my customer that none of my competitors will – an ability to support my customer in a unique and personalised way. Rogers’ new book “Return on Customer”:http://www.returnoncustomer.com/ contains additional information about creating customer relationships built on trust and co-collaboration.
Category: Strategy
I attended, and was a speaker at, iSummit 2006, March 29-31, 2006 in Toronto, Canada. This entry is the second of two featuring my notes from the sessions I attended.
Xbox 360 Live Arcade
John David, the Lead Program Manager for Xbox Live Arcade, gave attendees a tour of this next generation videogame console’s Arcade service and revealed some other interesting factoids about the 360:
- Arcade gives Xbox 360 owners who connect to the Xbox Live service the opportunity to download and sample ‘simple’ arcade games. All are free to sample, but in most cases a small fee is required to play the full game.
- 50% of Xbox owners so far have connected to the Xbox Live online service.
- According to John, Arcade is a way for Microsoft to get the game console "back into the family room" where it will be used by all members of the family, not just the hardcore gamers.
- 3 million arcade games have been downloaded through Arcade.
- Microsoft had expected an average 8.5% conversion rate of Arcade game trials to purchase, but have been getting a remarkable 20% conversion rate instead.
- I learned a new term; John referred to a few of the Arcade games as "wife crack," meaning a game, usually puzzle based, that is highly addictive to the female spouse of a male gamer. (Of course, lots of women play videogames, but "wife crack" refers to games that appeal to spouses who normally never play videogames.) Microsoft is very interested in these "secondary" gamers (the spouse) because that’s where the growth in the videogame market lies. See also "gamer widow."
- While Microsoft’s focus is still on making the 360 "an awesome games box" the Xbox 360 console has other capabilities that make it directly competitive with current and future offerings from other major players, including cable and satellite companies.
- Microsoft will soon be adding music videos and song downloads to the Xbox Live Marketplace, some free, some paid. Hello, iTunes? It will be interesting to see what will happen when (not if) Microsoft adds TV shows and movies to the menu. Background downloading of large media files is apparently in the works.
- Xbox Live is also a communications platform: 600,000 text messages a day are exchanged on Xbox Live between its members.
_Hugh Thompson is the publisher and owner of “Digital Home Canada”:http://www.digitalhomecanada.com/. He is a consultant with over 10 years of online experience working for advertising agencies, vendors and consulting directly with clients on maximizing ROI from web marketing and e-commerce initiatives. As a voice for the Canadian electronic consumer, Hugh is a frequent guest on radio and television programs across the country discussing the latest in consumer electronics and the business of convergence in the digital home._
*One Degree: Why did you start Digital Home Canada?*
Some guys like cars but my passion has always been computers and consumer electronics so I decided to create a website about the convergence of technology in the home.
*One Degree: Did you intend it to be money making venture and did you ever expect that it would become your full-time job?*
When I first created Digital Home, it was for my own enjoyment. Once Digital Home was up and running, I considered trying to turn it into a moneymaker however since it was just after 9/11 and the dot com bust, I decided against it!
For several years, Digital Home simply became a neglected hobby while I went about the business of earning a living and raising a young family.
During that time I actually shut the site down for a short period of time, however so many people emailed asking me to reconsider that finally in the Fall of 2004, I hooked up with “24/7 Canada”:http://www.247canada.com/ who agreed to provide advertising representation for Digital Home.
With advertising representation secure, I “re-launched” the site with new technology, new servers and a new approach.
In November 2004, Digital Home became a full-time endeavour for me.
*One Degree: How do people find out about your site – is most of your traffic from searchers or from regular community members?*