One of the things that has been a sore point for the Wii U and even the early days of the 3DS, is marketing. Not just advertisements but brand awareness to let people know that the machine is not an extra controller for the original Wii. In that, they have failed. While the "Wii would like to play" advertisement was effective in showing what the Wii about, the commercials so far have not shown that killer app that shows why people need to buy a Wii U and how different it is from the competition. As such, marketing has been sparse over all forms of media (Television, Print, Online, Radio). I have not seen many Wii U commercials and I know many who have not either... some who have yet to see a single advertisement. We can ask why and how this happened, but the prudent question is, "How do we go forward and improve and stabilise the marketing?" Part of that is finding different regional marketing and PR people who know how to launch sophisticated technology and get the word out. The reason things should be done regionally (by continent) is because there are vast cultural differences between Japan, North America, Europe, Australia, Brazil, etc. If you've ever seen a Sprite commercial from Denmark and noticed how different their advertisement is from those in the United States, then that should let you know that a "one size fits all" approach will not work most of the time. The Wii U Tour was a great idea, but show it in more places where more people (re: parents) would see it and get to know it. Kiosks should have gone up in every Toys 'R Us, Wal-Mart, Target, Big Lots, Sam's Club and more so that its presence would not have gone unnoticed. There should also have been more than one playable demo, or at least one graphically advanced demo, that showed this was not a Wii with a new controller. There are still games coming to the platform that appeal to core gamers like Bayonetta 2 or eShop titles like those from Shin'en, but with no awareness, the games won't be bought.
Shawn “Loc Da’Borg” Jackson is a native of Mississippi, born in Vicksburg and raised in Philadelphia in Neshoba County. At the age of 15 he was diagnosed with Tourette Syndrome and, later into his early 20s, he became Profoundly Deaf. Writing has been one of the main staples of his life and he has dedicated a good portion of it to educate, entertain and enthrall with the written word.
