Wii Archive

I’ve been a fan of QVC for a long time – I think they have always done a good job of being the tops of television shopping when it comes to the quality of their programming. Their sets and graphics are always improving and their hosts seem a notch ahead of competitors including HSN. QVC pushes their social media efforts and even hired “social media host” Courtney Cason earlier this year.

One of the things that is pretty amazing is how well they are able to take electronics and create “packages” which sell for a much higher price than the item sells for alone. Their packages remind me of my days working at The Wiz in NYC where every salesperson knew that the best spiffs were on accessories and rarely on the main products themselves. That’s why a computer rarely went out the door without a surge protector or mouse pad.

If you are wondering if anyone actually buys the packages QVC offers – they claim to have sold 7,500 of the iPod Touch 8gb packages this month.

I have two examples of how QVC maximizes revenue on their electronics sales — the iPod Touch and the Nintendo Wii.

iPod Touch – QVC vs. Amazon/Apple Store

The 32gb 4th generation iPod Touch launched today as a bundle on QVC for a whopping $426.80. Before we get to what’s included in the QVC bundle, the base device is currently selling for $299 in the Apple Store and Amazon is selling the iPod Touch device for $244 after $25 gift card. QVC charges a whopping $11 for shipping plus sales tax in all states.

The simple math comparing QVC to Amazon – QVC total price $474, Amazon total price $244. That’s a $230 dollar difference! You could buy a 2nd iPod Touch from Amazon for the same price as the bundle on QVC!

Continue reading “Here’s How QVC Maximizes Revenue on Electronics Sales” »

Natali Del Conte from CNET appeared on Fox and Friends this morning to discuss the Wii and a few other gadgets (Dash GPS and iPhone apps). The Wii discussion was the focus and during the discussion, the host asked Natali how to find a Wii game system. She explained that you could use “rss” and trackers to have availability sent directly to you daily.

Next she went on to explain something that should never be discussed in public. Natali noted, “The way I did it, you know it’s not the most honest thing but if you buy the package and then I returned the games I didn’t want.” Below is the video of her appearance and the rip off segment appears at about the 1:30 mark.

Now Natali, you are here in NYC long enough. You should know that if you go to 101st and Amsterdam, see a guy named Willy, he will hook you up with plastic, a shrink wrap machine, electronic devices for each merchant and pricing stickers. He also sells kits for The Gap and Banana Republic. This makes life easier :)

traineo has launched a contest along with the Nintendo Wii to award a Wii package to the person who uploads the best motivational video to YouTube. I am betting many of the videos will actually use the Wii as part of the motivation.

Besides the promotion,  you can also join the Wii traineo group and become part of the community. I think this is the next evolution of Weight Watchers. Community support and tools to support your weight loss.

traineo CEO Alasdair McLean-Foreman told me this afternoon, "I think like a lot of people we were pretty surprised as to how much interest the Wii has had a 'fitness tool'. In the same way Nintendo is revolutionizing the gaming industry we're working to do the same in health and fitness on the web with traineo – the idea to setup a competition for our users made sense and we're excited to see the response."

Also check out the story of one Wii'r, Mickey, who created a video about how he used the Wii to lose weight. He has been all over the press, both on and offline, and now has a book deal! About half way down the page he discusses his usage of traineo.

Check out our other coverage of traineo and YouTube.