Advertising Is Ineffective for Videogames

The NPD Group does more than to put out monthly data related to hardware and videogame sales in the United States. And a recent study from the firm seems to indicate that when it comes to game advertising efforts, whether they are in print, on television or online, they are not very effective at actually selling products, with a big number of gamers saying that they mostly make decisions based on what they hear in their social circle.

The new study, which polled no less than 21,000 self-described gamers, shows that 41% of those questioned make purchases based on word of mouth, while 31% of them stated that hands-on experiences with the game they are interested in is very important.

Meanwhile, only about 5% said that they are influenced by advertising. The disparity is pretty big but some of it could be attributed to advertising having an influence even if players are not aware of that.

The NPD study also shows that 24% of gamers are aged between 2 and 12, with 20% between 25 and 34, and 17% between 34 and 44. When it comes to genre, males are dominant, but not overwhelmingly, at about 56%.

Another interesting statistic is that of cross ownership. The people who play on the Nintendo Wii seem to be pretty much console monogamists, as only 25% of them have an Xbox 360 and just 14% of them are also owners of a Nintendo Wii.

On the other hand, those who play on the PS3 tend to be the most open to other home consoles, as a little over 33% of them also have an Xbox 360 and more than 42% own a Nintendo Wii. The same number of Xbox 360 players have a Wii console but only 18% of those playing on the Microsoft device also own a PS3.