Hi! I'm in an "entrepreneurship" program with the local small business center (self evaluation, seminars, networking, etc.) and we were doing a networking exercise where we meet other people in the class and discuss our businesses.

Being one of only a handful of people under 40 in the program I wasn't too surprised at the confusion surrounding the shareware developer concept but to my horror I was never able to clearly break that spell and give a short and definitive pitch for our industry. Many people (40+ it seems) can't grasp the video game / shareware / web marketing concept. One guy just couldn't shake the old "pinball arcade" paradigm and kept confusing me for someone who fixes actual control panels at video arcades!

The reason this causes concern for me is that I know I'm going to encounter people in business (especially on the financial side) who fall into this category of 40+ with no understanding of the internet, computers or video games. How do I relay to an aging venture capitalist / banker / accountant what it is I do?

We should all have a 20 second pitch ready at all times and so I challenge all of you to describe this business of video games and web distribution in a simple one or two sentence pitch. The reader / listener should hear the pitch and be able to not only understand the business but also see it in a positive light and want to know more. All without using the buzzwords we've become so familiar with (shareware, web, download, etc.).

Assume the listener,

a) Does not and has never owned or used a computer
b) Hasn't seen the internet and doesn't really know what it is
c) Has no children to help them understand it ;)
d) Is distrustful of anything dealing with the dot com industry
e) Has never seen or played a video game before.
f) Their only exposure to video games comes from sensationalist news reports about their connection to school shootings.

I still haven't been able to do it! Any takers on this challenge?

To start off, this is where I'm at:

"Hi, I'm a video game developer. I make games that people buy off the internet and play on their home computers."

NOTE: Every time I used words like "shareware", "web" or "download" I ended up having to go into an explanation into what each word meant, which throws off the pitch and diverts from the subject matter.

Hi. I make computer games. Don't look for them at Best Buy though, our customers buy directly from us, which is much cheaper. We also let potential customers try out our games before asking them to make a purchase, so they know that they'll like what they get. Let's see the big retailers and publishers try that!

Originally posted by KNau
To start off, this is where I'm at:

"Hi, I'm a video game developer. I make games that people buy off the internet and play on their home computers."


Get rid of the indirection between you and the customer. What you do is "create and sell videogames."

The fact that you sell directly to the customer rather than through an intermediary is probably called "direct sales" or something like that. And Internet Sales are really just a high-speed, higher-tech version of Mail Order Sales.

Hope this helps!

I'm an independent software developer. I design and develop software, including video games, and sell them over the Internet.

We sell wholesome electronic entertainment by allowing our potential customers to temporarily sample our product and then buy at their convienience from their own home or office.


It may generate a few 'how' questions, but it gets the point across.

Good ideas! Wow, you guys did a much better job than me :)

I like the idea of linking it to older or more familiar concepts like direct sales or even mail order - it gives them a frame of reference to build upon without having to know anything about the technology.

i like to describe myself as a farmer.

I sell my own production of potatoes ( games ) on the market.

people get it immediately that way and they also get the work load involved.

pat.

Originally posted by patrox
i like to describe myself as a farmer.

I sell my own production of potatoes ( games ) on the market.

people get it immediately that way and they also get the work load involved.

pat.

I've had a high comprehension rate with "I'm a starving artist" as well. ;)

-David

I'm an ex-fighter pilot, but right now I'm between becoming an astronaut and trying to conquer mind over matter.

Something like "I develop games" is enough. The rest is just filler.

Phil.