The Devilish Sales Tactic (2)
"Excuse me? You mean you've even thought of a countermeasure? Is that, by any chance..."
No matter how much one might be able to leverage the administrative power of the police, it was difficult to maintain that indefinitely. 'Well, it's not like the police's message meant they truly couldn't do it, though.' Just as Yoon-gi thought this, Nakayama seemed to have a rough idea of what kind of solution Yoon-gi had in mind. The problem was, he was definitely wrong.
"Are you planning to slip the police a bit more money?"
At the somewhat expected thought, Yoon-gi shook his head. "No. I don't think that's necessarily bad, but there's a better way."
"What is it?"
"A lottery ticket."
"A lottery ticket?"
"Yes. We'll distribute lottery tickets to each retail store so that customers can win the protagonist's bracelet."
"Oh...! That sounds like a remarkably good method."
As Nakayama's face brightened, Yoon-gi shared one more piece of good news. "And, for the stores that want to receive these lottery tickets, make them give up their right to return the unsold stock."
True to his nature as a merchant to the bone, Nakayama immediately grasped Yoon-gi's intent and flashed a grin. "That is, quite simply, devilish."
"I'm just giving them an opportunity."
Yoon-gi smiled back. The Sega game console released just before the Super Genesis had failed miserably. Because of that, retailers were very hesitant to take on stock for the Super Genesis launch. However, Yoon-gi had completely resolved those concerns: unlimited returns. He had promised that unless there was a specific reason, he would accept returns for any Super Genesis units left as inventory. Thanks to this, a truly sufficient quantity of Super Genesis units had been flooded across Japan.
What if they didn't sell? Millions of Super Genesis units would be returned. But what if millions of lottery tickets were distributed across Japan? That would provide a justification to refuse returns. Retailers would give a lottery ticket to a customer for every Super Genesis sold. In other words, this lottery ticket had a two-birds-one-stone effect that was beneficial for both Sega and the retailers.
"I've already filmed the commercials. Starting tomorrow, ads related to the lottery tickets will be broadcast on TV during prime time."
"I can't even fathom how many steps ahead you're looking."
"Actually, it's not that big of a deal. You only need two things."
At Yoon-gi's words, Nakayama asked politely, looking intrigued. "And what are those two things?"
"One is a heart that doesn't fear failure."
"Hmm, I see."
Actually, because it was such an obvious statement, Nakayama was disappointed, but he wasn't the type to show it on the outside.
"And the second is the wealth to not fear failure. Is there any reason to fear if an advertisement fails? More money will just keep piling up in my bank account in the meantime."
At this, Nakayama burst into a pleasant laugh. "Hahahaha! That is certainly true. If your wallet is thick, it's definitely easier to take such bold actions."
There was no mockery in Nakayama's tone. Rather, he seemed pleased by the honest answer, his eyes and lips smiling simultaneously.
'Well, there is actually a third reason, too.' Yoon-gi just smiled and didn't add anything else, thinking there was no need to say it. 'Because I know what it's like to be poor.' That was the third reason he kept to himself. Even a rich man can last three years after going bankrupt. That was why Yoon-gi knew how to take risks. Even if he failed, he would still be living a better life than the one he had lived before. That was why Yoon-gi was prepared to bear any risk that had value.
"The lottery tickets will be brought from Japan Commodity to Sega headquarters. So, mobilize all of Sega's staff to distribute the tickets nationwide."
"Of course."
In a way, it was a situation where Sega could be perceived as a 'black company' (exploitative workplace). However, the promised, generous bonuses were enough to make the employees work voluntarily.
The effect of the lottery tickets distributed nationwide was truly immense. It made the Japanese people scour the entire country to find shops that held the tickets. Furthermore, if a shop had the tickets, the Super Genesis would sell out completely as long as the tickets lasted! Thanks to this, calls flooding Sega with requests for additional Super Genesis stock continued day after day. Of course, the demand was for the stock to come 'with' the lottery tickets, but Yoon-gi had plans to utilize even this.
"When we shipped the first batch, we were the 'underdog,' but for the second batch, we are the 'top dog'."
The fact that the Super Genesis sold well had already become an established fact across Japan. Therefore, Yoon-gi also shipped a significant quantity of 'games' to the stores that wanted to receive Super Genesis shipments. In a word, bundling. In fact, during the first shipment, the games didn't sell very well. That was because most people looking for the Super Genesis were people who wanted the protagonist's bracelet. But now, the games had been shipped to each store. That meant the stores had no choice but to bet their lives on selling the games as well.
"There's no need to worry. I've played them all myself and only authorized the release of games I thought were decent."
No matter how much he played them himself, he couldn't guarantee that every game would be fun. However, Yoon-gi's desire to enjoy games when he was young had been so immense that he absolutely never authorized anything that could be classified as 'trash.' Thanks to this, the forced sales(?) through lottery tickets were happening without much discord. Because people had seen it through the movies—how quiet the Super Genesis could make their children.
"I thought it was very risky for us to pre-screen the games, but it seems to have yielded even better results."
At Nakayama's words, Yoon-gi nodded. "Screening is natural. Especially in a situation where we have to make a profit from the hardware."
In the case of something like the Google Play Store, which is familiar to modern people, there is no need to screen the fun of the game itself. Because it's not an era where you have to make a profit from hardware. But this era is not like that. Who would buy a game console if only trash games were released? Especially in this era, since the ways for ordinary people to obtain information were very limited, it was extremely common to buy so-called 'poop games.'
"'The shop owner wouldn't lie, would they?'"
"Yes?" Nakayama asked back at Yoon-gi's sudden mutterings.
"It's just as I said. It means that's how most consumers think. That's why they ask the shop owner to recommend a game."
"Ah, is that so?" Nakayama couldn't empathize because he had the wealth to buy all the games anyway, but he understood.
"Then, from the shop owner's perspective, what choice would they make? First, a game that sells out immediately because there are so many people looking for it even without a recommendation. Second, a game that doesn't sell and becomes a total loss if not sold quickly."
"Thinking economically, it would obviously be the latter."
In fact, one can experience this very well in traditional markets and fish markets. If you just say, "Give me something good," to a shopkeeper with a kind smile, the owner will say, "Oh, of course," without changing their expression at all, and hand you low-quality goods. It's not for nothing that people in the 2010s prefer marts where fixed prices are the standard. Even if it's hard to buy great items, at least you don't get ripped off.
"That's why we have to screen them even more. If the goods the stores sell didn't have the 'Sega' or 'Super Genesis' brand, we wouldn't need to care at all. But consumers look at our brand before the shop owner. But what if the console is full of only trash games? Then the shop owners told the lie, but we are the ones who suffer the loss."
"Hmm... I will create a department that professionally screens games."
"Creating it is fine, but there is something you must be careful about."
"What is it?"
"Only compose it of people who truly love games. The moment you start worrying about academic backgrounds or connections, the company's stock will fall."
Nakayama, understanding what he meant, nodded with a resolute expression. "I will start by playing the games properly myself."
"That's a good idea."
Cases of people who know nothing about the field appearing as department heads via nepotism are numerous even in modern times. But at least at Sega, it didn't look like that would happen for a while.
A bustling Japanese weekend. A television began to be installed in front of the shop where Yoon-gi had generated tremendous sales. They had connected the power cord from inside the shop to connect the television and the game console outside. In particular, the television wasn't one used in an ordinary home, but a projection TV. And it was a massive 45 inches at that! Nowadays, if you say a 45-inch TV, most people would say it's small, but in the 80s, most TVs were 15 to 17 inches. Even until the early 2000s, a 30-inch TV was considered quite large. But the projection TV installed in front of the shop was a whopping 45 inches! Honestly, by the standards of this era, it was an eye-poppingly expensive price, but that was only by the standards of ordinary people. For Yoon-gi, it was a sufficient reason to buy it for investment.
"Is it okay if I install it like this?"
The projection TV installed in front of the shop. And in front of it, a 3-seater sofa brought from a nearby furniture store was placed.
"I'm very satisfied."
Yoon-gi praised the owner's efforts and sat on the sofa. And then, he started the Super Genesis.
"Se~ga~"
The sound rang out loudly through the projection TV. With a large projection TV and a sofa placed on the street, people passing by were already looking, but the sound drew even more attention. At Choi Deok-bae's remark that he must have drawn aggro excitedly to get attention, Yoon-gi naturally fiddled with the jujube in his pocket. Leaving Choi Deok-bae, who was smacking his lips, behind, Yoon-gi began to play the Super Genesis's ambitious work, Sonic. It's a game with a hedgehog-motif character as the protagonist, and thanks to its unique speedy progression, it's a game that gains immense popularity in the original history as well. A game that should have come out six years later. However, as tremendous development costs went into the Super Genesis, Sonic could also be developed earlier than scheduled. Of course, it was released somewhat lighter than the Sonic that would have come out in '91. Because even if the Super Genesis was high-performance by the standards of this era, he couldn't pull the time forward by six years. However, it was clearly boasting tremendous performance compared to contemporary Famicom games, so all the passersby stopped and began to stare at the projection TV screen.
'As expected, getting attention really is a great feeling, isn't it?' Yoon-gi began to enjoy the Super Genesis, feeling the gazes of countless people as if he were playing games in his own living room.
"Sojiro! I told you we have to go home!"
"Keisuke! Can't you come quickly?"
"Kitani! This kid, really!"
If it were a small TV, it would have been hard to catch the children's eyes. But because it was a massive 45 inches by the standards of this era, the children planted their feet firmly on the ground as soon as they saw the screen and were lost in the game. However, there is no one in the world who only wants to watch.
"Mom, buy me that!"
"Tanaka next door has that too. Buy it for me!"
"Buy it, buy it!"
For parents with children, what could be the most difficult situation? Perhaps it's a child pestering them to buy a toy. But the more troubled the parents are, the more someone likes it. Watching the parents who, defeated by their child, inevitably entered the shop, the owner's mouth was stretched from ear to ear. A model-turned-minor is doing promotions outside the shop through a projection TV that the shop could never afford. It was truly a windfall that rolled in while he was just sitting there. Therefore, the owner sent infinite gratitude toward Yoon-gi. Of course, Yoon-gi doing this was partly to enjoy the game himself, but it was also meant as a reward. Because this shop had accepted Super Genesis stock to the maximum extent the shop could accommodate. The shop owner, who found out that Yoon-gi was a Sega official, had set his merchant instincts to the max and bet on Yoon-gi, and it was a huge success.
"Thank you very much for today."
After business ended that day, the shop owner bowed sincerely toward Yoon-gi. Thanks to Yoon-gi's promotion, he had been able to sell seven times the usual volume. It was an enormous profit because he had been able to sell the stock even without lottery tickets.
"Don't mention it. People who trust each other should help each other live."
At Yoon-gi's words, the shop owner bowed again, and as if he remembered something, he exclaimed.
"Ah, I don't know if this will be helpful, but I heard one thing."
"You heard one thing?"
"Yes. Recently, since the Super Genesis is selling so well, Nintendo officials have been going around to shops and asking them to sell Nintendo well too."
"Well, I suppose that would be the case."
Yoon-gi nodded at the somewhat expected phenomenon.
"But those officials told me to look forward to September. They said that when September comes, there will be a reversal, so it would be good to receive Famicom stock in advance."