Play Meter

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THE IDEA BANK
Selling used games
iS for all seasons
By Roger C. Sharpe
Memorial Day has long brought
tears of joy and tears of depression
to a variety of operators over the
years. For some this holiday ushers
in the summer and boom time for
business, while for others there's a
feeling of hope for rainy_ days and the
beginning of fall. Basicafiy the lines
are neatly drawn as to who falls in
which category: inner city arcades,
especially those in major metroplitan
areas, hope for rainy weekends and
general poor weather so that
travelers will venture to the movies
or other entertainment rather than
the -beach; suburban locations,
depending upon the area, suffer the
same problem of losing customers to
the sand and surf and really make
their money on weekend evenings
and , of course , when the weather
makes it desirable to be inside.
But look for the smiles and they
will be on the faces of those
operators who can't get enough
eq uipment into their locatio ns:
they're the seasid resort places
that suddenly come to life once
Memorial Day reminds people that
it's time for summer and those
weekends of heading to the beach.
For some, it's the beginning of three
months that will mean all their
ea rnings for th e whole year.
Suddenly the hours the place is open
are lengthened: weeknight, early
mornings, almost any combination
to maximize the limited period of
time a nd the investment in
equipment.
For those who will be enjoying the
good time, there s really no- need to
worry about anything other than the
weather, because the season will
make its own mark all things being
equal. But for those other places and
owners who are truly in the majority
and will be having some sleepless
nights, there may just be something
to trigger some extra dollars in the
Operators might enhance sales of older games by placards on backglass (see
photo) saying.' 'Buy This Game.'
10
arcade or game room , short of doing
tournaments or having some other
events in the hopes of drawing in
business.
Year after year you've undoubt-
edly tried much the same approach
no matter if you're experiencing
feast or famine in terms of business.
But there is something well worth
trying, even in these times, that I've
seen done around the country in
various game rooms and arcades.
What I'm driving at i,~ to make your
equipment on the floo ' available for
sale. Now, before you say how crazy
the idea is and how, although you've
thought about it in the past, you
realized that it was just more trouble
than it was worth-before you say
any of this, listen out the suggestions
for implementing this technique
successfully, especially during the
summer months when business may
be just a bit slower than normal.
The thing is that many operators
consider selling machines around
Christmas time and don't really take
advantage of the fact that buying
games isn't a one-season phenom-
enon. Those newly opened businesses
which recondition equipment, and
along with many distributors, seem
to come alive after Thanksgiving and
then just as quickly fade from view
after the first of the year. But an
arcade or game room has the distinct
advantage of always having the
machines on display. Who knows?
Have you ever stopped to think
about that one regular customer
who comes in and plays the same old
game day after day? In fact , you've
thought of getting rid of the game,
but in the back of your mind, you
remembered that loyal player and
figured, what the hell, you'll keep it
for a while longer. Well, did you ever
think of talking to that player and
bringing up the subject that he could
buy the game? It really is easy.
Most arg~ements about selling
PLAY METER, jul y 1, 1981