Adults or Children are the main Gi-Joe buyers?

[triant]

I ve always had this question in my mind...

Who are the main gi joe buyers? Adult collectors or Kids?
What hasbro thinks? Does hasbro having in mind to please the collectors or the kids?

For example I think that skystriker was for adults but the target group for the new retaliation figures with all these bright colors and the huge guns is probably the children.

[Troynos]

For example I think that skystriker was for adults but the target group for the new retaliation figures with all these bright colors and the huge guns is probably the children.

^ This


G.I. Joe movie lines are meant for the kids.


Hasbro is in a rough place with Joe because it has to appeal to the kids but their consistent market is the adult collector. So Joe has to be marketed for both.


The kids are the future market Hasbro wants. Adult collectors are the people that keep the line afloat.

[SonOfMindbender]

Right now, it's not kids. Maybe some are but not the bulk of the buying audience. There's no promo vehicle to target the children right now. Also, You are 100% right on about the Skystriker and the new product. The movie line defiantly had kids in mind however, no movie, no way of getting kids interested.

[VideoViper]

Kids are the primary target.

That said, GI Joe like Heman, model trains & so many other toys have a more adult following because those thing are represented by the times that those people lived in.

Action figures as a whole will always be aimed at kids, but like model trains, it won't always be the kids that are buying them

[blackbarn]

Regardless of who is buying Hasbro would LIKE it to be kids and will continually try to hook them.

[Cdt Weasel]

Adults. Kids dont have enough money to pay for all the toys themselves.

[GeneralxRon]

Who do you think they make all those wonderful oversized spring loaded gun accessories for?... kids.

[nerdsgetchicks]

It is adult children.

[Dem_Yoe'z!]

If kids were buying these, figures like Sci Fi, Lifeline, and Lowlight wouldn't be the first figures off the shelf because kids don't know those characters. It would be Duke, SE, SS, Destro, and CC that would be wiped off the shelves first, along with all the Renegades figures (since they have a cartoon tie in).

Also, kids don't tend to troop build, so troopbuilders would be far more abundant if it were primarily kids buying Joes.

[cab00se]

kids...do you really think all those figs disappear because of collectors? There may be alot of us out there, but the kids far outnumber us...Its is not just collectors buying up all the shadow trackers/renegades SS's/low light's/techno vipers/zombie vipers...kids buy them too. Why?? Because, like collectors, they know what is a cool fig too. They just dont care if it's one per case or selling for 10x the price on ebay. They see a cool toy, and say mommy can i have...Not saying collectors dont clean out the pegs in a lot of places, we all know they do, I just dont think we are the main buyers for any action figure product...If that were the case and they were meant strictly for collectors, then why put them in the toy isles? Are certain lines collector oriented...maybe some more than others...but I can guarantee you Hasbro doesnt really care who buys their products. I think we as collectors, think we are bigger than we really are, mainly due to us having a forum to discuss or collecting habits... just sayin...

[theprocess]

kids...do you really think all those figs disappear because of collectors?...

I have seen kids and their parents buying Gi Joes. Even the retaliation toys...

I still think most kids just buy video games.

[07GT500 COBRA]

The 25th line was expanded from an original planned lineup of about 15 figures to what we saw up until 2009 with ROC largely because of it's immense popularity with adult collectors. Sure, there were sells to kids. But that line was sustained and thrived on adult collector purchases. There were little media tie ins to the line then other than comics.

ROC and especially Retaliation may be geared towards kids, but I think the line ultimately lives or dies with adult collector interest.

[ero]

Hasbro is in a rough place with Joe because it has to appeal to the kids but their consistent market is the adult collector. So Joe has to be marketed for both.

The kids are the future market Hasbro wants. Adult collectors are the people that keep the line afloat.

That's why I think they need to go the Star Wars route and have a vintage line and a cheaper, more accessible Saga Legends-style line.

[zartan_73]

I believe that most of the people purchasing G.I.Joe action figures are adults that grew up in the early 80's and early 90's. I also believe these same adults buy them for thier children in hopes that they will also like them and be a fan and collector of them as well. Once we as adult collectors start getting older and our passion dies for collecting, or we die in general, G.I. Joe will not be around unless children today start liking it as well. Therefore, Hasbro needs to make ARAH figures to satisfy thier hardcore fans and collectors, but they also need to try and figure out ways to reach out to younger children and hope they catch on to it. Which is why you see ridiculously large weapons that we as collectors hate, but children might like. I do not mind it, because I can just throw the stupid gun in the trash, and hope chiildren love the gimmick. Because I want G.I Joe to go on forever. They also need to make movies and come up with cartoons to reach out to children and then sell figures based on those shows. I try to keep an open mind, because even though I LOVE G.I. Joe and the old cartoons, I can admit that they were kind of corny. But that is okay, because I love them, and they are my childhood memories. However, kids these days are so much more mature and advanced in ways of technology and story, that old cartoons bore them. Which is why Hasbro needs to change the storylines and add things that we as hardcore fans of ARAH look at, and most say WTF!!!! Yes, I sometimes find myself criticizing the hell out of shows like renegades, Sigma 6, Rise of Cobra and so on, but I also have to understand thier point of view for survival of the species. I can take the minor storyline changes and lame rank changes, and ridiculous relationship changes, or whatever, as long as they still satisfy my WANTLIST of my memories that they cannot change with updated figures of my precious ARAH figures of old. Which, when I look at my collection, they have almost completed, and I am very happy about it. It takes time for them to make all these figures, and I hate waiting 6 years to complete my figure lineup, but it is almost done, and I love them. Hard to get exclusives or not, I am gonna do it. They are almost done making the whole line of old joes. Where do they go from there? They need to do something to attract the new generation!!! With the delayed movie, I am sure there are going to be changes that I am going to puke a little bit in my mouth over, but I have to take it with a grain of salt, and just be happy that G.I.Joe is STILL ALIVE and I am happy for it. Not to mention. I keep watching RESOLUTE, over and over again, because I thought...WOW, that was awesome!!! Watching smakeeyes drive his sword into the guts of a cobra trooper, and all the other cool stuff was a fresh take on what I loved as a kid. And, I actually thought that the figures they made from thet show were some really good figures. I wish they continued it. So, sometimes, they upset me a little with the changes, but sometimes they have a winner !!!!
YOOoooooooo JOE !!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[theprocess]

I believe that most of the people purchasing G.I.Joe action figures are adults that grew up in the early 80's and early 90's. I also believe these same adults buy them for thier children in hopes that they will also like them and be a fan and collector of them as well. Once we as adult collectors start getting older and our passion dies for collecting, or we die in general, G.I. Joe will not be around unless children today start liking it as well. Therefore, Hasbro needs to make ARAH figures to satisfy thier hardcore fans and collectors, but they also need to try and figure out ways to reach out to younger children and hope they catch on to it. Which is why you see ridiculously large weapons that we as collectors hate, but children might like. I do not mind it, because I can just throw the stupid gun in the trash, and hope chiildren love the gimmick. Because I want G.I Joe to go on forever. They also need to make movies and come up with cartoons to reach out to children and then sell figures based on those shows. I try to keep an open mind, because even though I LOVE G.I. Joe and the old cartoons, I can admit that they were kind of corny. But that is okay, because I love them, and they are my childhood memories. However, kids these days are so much more mature and advanced in ways of technology and story, that old cartoons bore them. Which is why Hasbro needs to change the storylines and add things that we as hardcore fans of ARAH look at, and most say WTF!!!! Yes, I sometimes find myself criticizing the hell out of shows like renegades, Sigma 6, Rise of Cobra and so on, but I also have to understand thier point of view for survival of the species. I can take the minor storyline changes and lame rank changes, and ridiculous relationship changes, or whatever, as long as they still satisfy my WANTLIST of my memories that they cannot change with updated figures of my precious ARAH figures of old. Which, when I look at my collection, they have almost completed, and I am very happy about it. It takes time for them to make all these figures, and I hate waiting 6 years to complete my figure lineup, but it is almost done, and I love them. Hard to get exclusives or not, I am gonna do it. They are almost done making the whole line of old joes. Where do they go from there? They need to do something to attract the new generation!!! With the delayed movie, I am sure there are going to be changes that I am going to puke a little bit in my mouth over, but I have to take it with a grain of salt, and just be happy that G.I.Joe is STILL ALIVE and I am happy for it. Not to mention. I keep watching RESOLUTE, over and over again, because I thought...WOW, that was awesome!!! Watching smakeeyes drive his sword into the guts of a cobra trooper, and all the other cool stuff was a fresh take on what I loved as a kid. And, I actually thought that the figures they made from thet show were some really good figures. I wish they continued it. So, sometimes, they upset me a little with the changes, but sometimes they have a winner !!!!
YOOoooooooo JOE !!!!!!!!!!!!!!

This is like trying to read an Alphabet soup.

[Troynos]

That's why I think they need to go the Star Wars route and have a vintage line and a cheaper, more accessible Saga Legends-style line.

And that's probably what the DG Joes are testing the market of.

[triant]

So, the right answer is somewhere in the middle?
I mean Hasbro design some of the products having in mind what the children like and some other having in mind what adults want.. Or Hasbro dont have a plan about the target group of gi joe?

Of course a tv series or a movie enhances the popularity of the gi joe amongst children.
But we must have also in mind that many of the kids or adults just buy the figures because they like them (like bravo team or forces of valor). For example lowlight or beachhead or general hawk or shock trooper are awesome figures and any kid or adult who like military action figures would probably have bought many of them, despite the ignorance for Gi joe verse..

[Troynos]

The right answer is: both.

[spiderpumpkin]

Adults only. Maybe ike 6 kids buy the figures and toys. The kids don't even buy those roll play accessories.

[Troynos]

The line NEEDs the kids to buy otherwise it'll disappear.

We're not going to collect forever, each year more and more of us drop off. Without the kids there is no future for the line.

As Joe fans we should support whatever Hasbro needs to do in order to generate kid interest.

[Ripcord]

I believe Hasbro makes the toys for kids but I believe adults buy them now. Most kids dont read comics now, no current GI Joe cartoon, so I would say that it's about 80%-85% adult. Sure some kids will buy them but I believe its mostly adults buying.

[troublemagnet]

What about ditching the whole GI Joe vs Cobra thing all together and coming up with a new storyline that utilises new characters and a new misson statement?

[Headman]

What about ditching the whole GI Joe vs Cobra thing all together and coming up with a new storyline that utilises new characters and a new misson statement?

They did that. It was called Extreme. It failed.

[troublemagnet]

They did that. It was called Extreme. It failed.

That was because it was poorly executed and the old line was still fresh in every one's mind.

[Headman]

That was because it was poorly executed and the old line was still fresh in every one's mind.

It's because it was a bad idea.

[Xenos]

What about ditching the whole GI Joe vs Cobra thing all together and coming up with a new storyline that utilises new characters and a new misson statement?

I don't really see what that would accomplish. The odds of coming up with something that kids will love is extremely small (just look at all the different failed toy lines that aren't based off of an existing property) and in taking the huge risk that you'll make something that the kids love, you will be alienating all of the adult collectors.

[Raw Dog]

I have no idea, I don't work for Hasbro, lol, but if I were to take a guess, I would say that the target audience is children. I would also say that the adult collector is on the minds of the folks responsible for making GI Joe but that the majority of what was produced with us in mind is ultimately purchased by kids. Those are just my thoughts. I have no evidence to back up my claim.

[zedhatch]

Hasbro is in a rough place with Joe because it has to appeal to the kids but their consistent market is the adult collector. So Joe has to be marketed for both.


The kids are the future market Hasbro wants. Adult collectors are the people that keep the line afloat.

Problem is the marketing isn't geared to kids, it's geared to us.

Everuthing (including this very site) is a part of the marketing machine and it ALL points to the adult collector. There is not even the slightest notion of marketing to kids. Hasbro keeps saying they are makeing this stuff for kids, but how would the kids even know about it? Not every kid patrols message boards or newsites (most avoid them like they have rabies), so how are they reaching children?

Simple answer, they aren't nor are they trying to.

I think Hasbro's thought process is the kids MIGHT come to the table automaticly with media support, however you cannot base your marketing stratagy on a possiblity.

[Xenos]

Problem is the marketing isn't geared to kids, it's geared to us.

Everuthing (including this very site) is a part of the marketing machine and it ALL points to the adult collector. There is not even the slightest notion of marketing to kids. Hasbro keeps saying they are makeing this stuff for kids, but how would the kids even know about it? Not every kid patrols message boards or newsites (most avoid them like they have rabies), so how are they reaching children?

Simple answer, they aren't nor are they trying to.

I think Hasbro's thought process is the kids MIGHT come to the table automaticly with media support, however you cannot base your marketing stratagy on a possiblity.

How is any action figure line being marketed towards kids though? Do they run commercials for TF or Star Wars? I can't remember the last time I saw one. I think the vast majority of sales to kids are just impulse buys based on being the coolest looking thing in the toy aisle, and which toy has a movie based off of it.

[rglass2]

the line needs the kids to buy otherwise it'll disappear.

We're not going to collect forever, each year more and more of us drop off. Without the kids there is no future for the line.

As joe fans we should support whatever hasbro needs to do in order to generate kid interest.


agree 100%

[Raw Dog]

I think movies and television shows, for the most part, have replaced commercials as the main source of advertising for action figures. I also think that just about everything you can find at TRU, Target, Wal Mart and the like as far as toys are concerned are intended for kids.

[Wylde Weezle]

I always thought it was risky using a PG13 movie for toy marketing, but it worked for Avengers and Transformers. Maybe it could work for GI Joe, but ROC wasn't a good argument for getting kids to love the line.
For kids, I'd say the best bet is an animated tv show, and Hasbro is shooting itself in the foot by having no Renegades toys on the shelves right now -- while the series is still airing.

[musashi3000gt]

What about ditching the whole GI Joe vs Cobra thing all together and coming up with a new storyline that utilises new characters and a new misson statement?

Isnt that what Renegades was too? Hasbro didnt get the figures out on the shelves untill the series had been cancelled for over a month though. I think Hasbro has been asking themselves this question for a long time too. They dont even have a clear understanding of who thier target audience should be or how to bring a new audience in. You can tell there has been a tug-o-war with GI Joe for years now.

[Darth_Risar]

I tend to hand out Joe and Star Wars as presnts to kids more so than anything else.

[Raw Dog]

I always thought it was risky using a PG13 movie for toy marketing, but it worked for Avengers and Transformers. Maybe it could work for GI Joe, but ROC wasn't a good argument for getting kids to love the line.
For kids, I'd say the best bet is an animated tv show, and Hasbro is shooting itself in the foot by having no Renegades toys on the shelves right now -- while the series is still airing.

Lol, I hear you on the whole PG 13 thing bro. I mean, when I was a kid our toy lines were based on rated R movies, lol! We had Terminator, Aliens, Robocop, and Ghostbusters, just to name a few, and they were all toys based on rated R movies, lol! That said, Retaliation should be rated R if they want kids to buy the toys. Maybe that's why they delayed the release? Maybe they needed to add more swearing, violence and nudity?

[ChaplainAsst]

Lol, I hear you on the whole PG 13 thing bro. I mean, when I was a kid our toy lines were based on rated R movies, lol! We had Terminator, Aliens, Robocop, and Ghostbusters, just to name a few, and they were all toys based on rated R movies, lol! That said, Retaliation should be rated R if they want kids to buy the toys. Maybe that's why they delayed the release? Maybe they needed to add more swearing, violence and nudity?

Ghostbusters was PG.

To the main point, right now, there is nothing particularly accessible about GI Joe to kids. Adults love the line because we accessed it as kids through comics and cartoons. Kids don't watch the Hub in numbers like Hasbro wants, obviously. There are no video games supporting GI Joe - not even a tablet game supporting the line. Compare this to Hasbro's other boy action figure lines, and you see the massive difference. TFs has several games. SW has many games. GI Joe has had one in the past 10 years. It did have a nice conversion in Battlefied once upon a time, but that's it.

Nostalgia is keeping the toy line alive. TFs are far more novel than GI Joe with kids, as these days any army figure or vehicle is a GI Joe. Hasbro has to find a way to share the story of characters that kids actually care.

[Headman]

Ghostbusters was PG.

To the main point, right now, there is nothing particularly accessible about GI Joe to kids. Adults love the line because we accessed it as kids through comics and cartoons. Kids don't watch the Hub in numbers like Hasbro wants, obviously. There are no video games supporting GI Joe - not even a tablet game supporting the line. Compare this to Hasbro's other boy action figure lines, and you see the massive difference. TFs has several games. SW has many games. GI Joe has had one in the past 10 years. It did have a nice conversion in Battlefied once upon a time, but that's it.

Nostalgia is keeping the toy line alive. TFs are far more novel than GI Joe with kids, as these days any army figure or vehicle is a GI Joe. Hasbro has to find a way to share the story of characters that kids actually care.

This is it right here. GI Joe needs a great game franchise. I'm not talking shitty movie tie ins that look like they should be for the PS1. I'm talking a game of the year candidate. The entire GI Joe line should be refocused on the video game medium with action figures supporting it.

[triant]

This is it right here. GI Joe needs a great game franchise. I'm not talking shitty movie tie ins that look like they should be for the PS1. I'm talking a game of the year candidate. The entire GI Joe line should be refocused on the video game medium with action figures supporting it.

What he said!!

something like this:
Ghost Recon Alpha - Official HD Film - YouTube (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7-wAzlqzXH0&feature=player_embedded)

[Ford]

The last kids to buy any G.I. Joe product in great numbers was...us. And that was 25 years ago. Everything since then has been sold on the basis of nostalgia.

[Colder Soldier]

What I don't get is what kids are really attracted to bright colors and spring-loaded weapons these days? When I was a kid I didn't hate them, but I'd rather have a realistic badass looking dude over a guy with a pink sword and a giant rocket launcher he couldn't hold.

Did the damn Ninja Turtles ruined action figures forever?

This is it right here. GI Joe needs a great game franchise. I'm not talking shitty movie tie ins that look like they should be for the PS1. I'm talking a game of the year candidate. The entire GI Joe line should be refocused on the video game medium with action figures supporting it.

^This too.

[MeLikeJinx]

Since 2008 when I first began buying Joes again... I have seen probably around... five kids buying Joes. LOL.

[Crazy Legs]

Kids from 10-15.

[Dem_Yoe'z!]

What they ought to do is make it 2 lines: 30th/POC line aimed at adult collectors, and Sigma-Six style figures aimed at kids.

[Dealer Destro]

Adults without a doubt

[sparks007]

I think it depends on what you consider an adult

[dmizrok]

if it was marketed for kids, then why would they make convention exclusives and NOT ADVERTISE them to kids?

[emags]

What I don't get is what kids are really attracted to bright colors and spring-loaded weapons these days? When I was a kid I didn't hate them, but I'd rather have a realistic badass looking dude over a guy with a pink sword and a giant rocket launcher he couldn't hold.

Did the damn Ninja Turtles ruined action figures forever?



^This too.

You hit the nail on the proverbial head. I find it hard to believe that in the 1980s, kids wanted realistic toys, but not so much today? My only thought is that Hasbro is aiming at a younger audience. Maybe action figures were for 8-10 before, but now it is aimed at 4 -6? Just a theory....

[cab00se]

if it was marketed for kids, then why would they make convention exclusives and NOT ADVERTISE them to kids?

no one is saying they completly leave out the dorks....con exclusives are clearly meant for collectors. The stuff at your local walmart...not so much. People...read the package it clearly says FOR AGES 4+. If it was meant for adults would they instead put FOR AGES 21+(DCU Figs do!!) on the package??...Hasbro has clearly tried to market GI Joe again, do you think Renegades(or the whole HUB network) was meant for us middle aged fanboys?? Hardly....Collectors and websites like this have thrived over the last few years due to GI Joe being placed back in the toy isles...for kids, not their parents. We have just been really fortunate to have a second chance at our childhood, and this time we are employed (mostly)...

[zedhatch]

no one is saying they completly leave out the dorks....con exclusives are clearly meant for collectors. The stuff at your local walmart...not so much. People...read the package it clearly says FOR AGES 4+. If it was meant for adults would they instead put FOR AGES 21+(DCU Figs do!!) on the package??...Hasbro has clearly tried to market GI Joe again, do you think Renegades(or the whole HUB network) was meant for us middle aged fanboys?? Hardly....Collectors and websites like this have thrived over the last few years due to GI Joe being placed back in the toy isles...for kids, not their parents. We have just been really fortunate to have a second chance at our childhood, and this time we are employed (mostly)...

One cartoon is the entire marketing stratagy for the kids, even though they waited almost a year to bring the related figures out to support that cartoon? On its best level that is marketing incompetance, at it's worse it is an assumption by conjecture.

but what's worse is YES that cartoon was marketed to the adults, where was the promotion, the advertising or word spread about the Joe toon?

IF hasbro really and truely wants to market to kids, they are sucking at it.

[CrimsonGuard101]

Adults...we corner the market..especailly the DG joes...

[dmizrok]

You hit the nail on the proverbial head. I find it hard to believe that in the 1980s, kids wanted realistic toys, but not so much today? My only thought is that Hasbro is aiming at a younger audience. Maybe action figures were for 8-10 before, but now it is aimed at 4 -6? Just a theory....

the neon and the crazy guns came from the fact that the govt passed some law that made companies tone down the realism with the weapons...i remember t.r.us had a TOY GUN AISLE...and they looked so real back then...and i remember going in there one day, and the aisle was BARREN. ALL realistic guns were recalled...they had forgotten a RAMBO toy M60 and they let me buy it since it was their mistake...buit yeah," for the safety of the kids" and all that....

[whitefox360]

I think we'd all like a difinitive answer to the question of who buys more joe product...complete with real numbers and graphic based charts, problem is all thats made available to us is the ability to speculate.

I cant see any child buying joe stuff simply because, more often than not, theres none on the pegs to see or buy. Even with the movie stuff, which was supposed to be gi joe's glorious return to retail, stores got one case and WE picked them up. What we left at our respective stores will stay there, odds are good, until another collector that wants them gets them.

Theres no way a child, with no reliable means of cross county transportation or source of income is outcollecting an organized fanbase of grownmen who are prepared to bitch, and bitch loudly, because a box of toys that was scheduled to be released TODAY is still in the back unpacked.

Hell there are guys on this site who are getting calls from managers of dollarstores the second a case comes in...hasbro tells us kids buy more of this stuff because many of you are already out of control with the letters and obscenity you send in their direction.

Why the hell would they give you guys MORE reasons to make demands that youll quit the line over when they already know that releasing a 25th style covergirl in her issue #76 outfit isnt going to bring the line back to prominence anymore than the skystriker was.

The only group of people that buy more gi joe than we do are retailers themselves. Kids dont even know what the brands about now. Though, to be fair, hasbro doesnt either at this point.

I say when the movies out and finished and all that, do a 4 inch line online to the tune of 7 figures bi-annualy with an oldschool vehicle updated and released in each class once a year for collectors.

While retail and tv get an action adventure oriented, "super gi joe adventures" property populated by a handful of colorful characters, 12 inch figures, vehicles and accessory packs that dont look like a pain in the ass to maintain to parents that arent thrilled with little men that come apart easily and come with tiny pieces that get lost in seconds.

I mean, hell, retaliation figs are ten bucks, the 1/6 joes are twenty...to me, theres more kid friendly play value, and bang for the buck, with the big guys and im not a 12 inch fan.

[keith13]

Adults...we corner the market..especailly the DG joes...
Absolutely...no children buy Gi joe toys anymore. I have not seen a child pick up a toy in quite sometime in fact the only people I see in the toy isle are adults the same age as me. Hasbro sees this and understands, that is why they going with the flashy colors that to us look awful but to children it might catch their eye. The problem that most toymakers are failing to realize is that many children do not play with toys. The reason as many of us know that causes the new joes to fly off the self is not because kids got to have them it is because adult collectors are fiending for the next score before the great famine occurs.

[Volrath2242]

Man Children buy them all!!/end stupid post

[Ford]

You hit the nail on the proverbial head. I find it hard to believe that in the 1980s, kids wanted realistic toys, but not so much today? My only thought is that Hasbro is aiming at a younger audience. Maybe action figures were for 8-10 before, but now it is aimed at 4 -6? Just a theory....

In our day, if kids wanted an action figure that was a soldier or a barbarian or a cat-man with a magic sword, they got it. But the way helicopter-parents are now, they don't want their precious little snowflakes to be influenced by anything violent. We're lucky G.I. Joe hasn't been rebranded as a team made up of members from Greenpeace, PETA and GLAD.

[CrimsonGuard101]

In our day, if kids wanted an action figure that was a soldier or a barbarian or a cat-man with a magic sword, they got it. But the way helicopter-parents are now, they don't want their precious little snowflakes to be influenced by anything violent. We're lucky G.I. Joe hasn't been rebranded as a team made up of members from Greenpeace, PETA and GLAD.

pray tell...define helicopter-parents? lol

[r3v3n63]

I started a thread similar to this a while back, thought I would add it since it's got some responses in it too.
http://www.hisstank.com/forum/g-i-joe-toys-modern-general-discussion/93501-who-buying-joes.html
Something I have noticed recently at my store is that almost always it's either me or guys my age looking in the action figure isle but after the Avengers movie came out I've seen more kids going through the Marvel figs then ever before but even though the toys had been on the shelf for nearly a month it was only after the movie came out they got kids attention. So, maybe after the Joe movie finally comes out there will be a kid demand for them.

[Steevy Maximus]

Compare this to Hasbro's other boy action figure lines, and you see the massive difference. TFs has several games. SW has many games. GI Joe has had one in the past 10 years. It did have a nice conversion in Battlefied once upon a time, but that's it.
Star Wars is always the exception, but as far as Transformers goes, it had ONE modern game to its name in the US prior to the 2007 movie.

It's not games driving those brands (though, they do help), it was a big successful cartoon or movie push that got the ball rolling. GI Joe's efforts in those areas have been not as successful, so there is not a big game push.
If gaming had THAT big an impact on toy sales, you'd see a lot more of them, especially from Hasbro's stuff.



With Joe, it's a complex answer to this question:
On average a given collector does buy more per individual than most kids get. BUT, there are more kids than collectors, so even a bunch of kids getting 3-4 figures will eventually outpace the collector who buys one of everything.
Ultimately, Hasbro likely views Joe the same as they view STar Wars: it is a toyline, designed to be purchased by kids, but with a significant collector market worth catering to.

But Joe collectors can not and have not ever been able to support Joe at mass retail levels, and have repeatedly proven unwilling to spend the extra to support collector oriented offerings.
The one time Hasbro gambled on "hey, maybe it IS just collectors buying Joe" and tailored a line to that market was GI Joe DTC in 2005-One of the biggest flops Hasbro's had in the past 10 years.


I think a sad reality is that the toy market in general has changed so much over the past 10 years or so that "just a cartoon" or "just some advertising" or "just a video game" are not viable solutions to the issues Hasbro faces in marketing GI Joe or any of their brands.
That's why the movie series is becoming so important: it gets the brand more attention than anything Hasbro has the money for. USA Today covered Retaliation toys. Entertainment Tonight covered the film multiple times. Machinima got the original trailer premiere. That's on top of Paramount's marketing efforts.
That kind of exposure would cost Hasbro more money than the Joe brand brings in with in current sales.

So to answer the initial thread question: right now it's probably split between kids and collectors, though, with how little is being stocked by retail, I don't think either are buying that much period.

[CrimsonGuard101]

With Joe, it's a complex answer to this question:

The one time Hasbro gambled on "hey, maybe it IS just collectors buying Joe" and tailored a line to that market was GI Joe DTC in 2005-One of the biggest flops Hasbro's had in the past 10 years.


I

Lets try this again with POC quality products and a similar vehicle offering with POC level vehicles...I htink it woul dbe turned aorund 180 degrees...it would be way more success

[kneroh]

In our day, if kids wanted an action figure that was a soldier or a barbarian or a cat-man with a magic sword, they got it. But the way helicopter-parents are now, they don't want their precious little snowflakes to be influenced by anything violent. We're lucky G.I. Joe hasn't been rebranded as a team made up of members from Greenpeace, PETA and GLAD.

yea that's why they buy them Call of Duty, Halo, Assassins Creed any every other blood soaked violent video game on the market....

Come on. Kid's aren't buying joes not because of fucking green peace or a gay rights organizations. They'r'e not buying them because they don't want them. Things have changed quite a bit since 1984.

[CrimsonGuard101]

yea that's why they buy them Call of Duty, Halo, Assassins Creed any every other blood soaked violent video game on the market....

Come on. Kid's aren't buying joes not because of fucking green peace or a gay rights organizations. They'r'e not buying them because they don't want them. Things have changed quite a bit since 1984.

I blame Facebook/Social Media and ultimatley the internet...no one goes outside to play with their toys anymore :( humans live inside their homes way too much the last few decades...and it gets worse every year, especially when the parents are both out working 18 hours a day to survive and have little to no time for thier kids...much less go get toys and go have some fun. I am trying really hard with my 2 nephews to make sure they are exposed to as many real toys as they can take, no ipads no iphone sand deifnelty no Myspace/Facebook. Lukcily thier dad is not a technogeek and also is tyring to keep them in check on that front..so there will at least be joes in the family for some time to come lol

[Steevy Maximus]

Lets try this again with POC quality products and a similar vehicle offering with POC level vehicles...I htink it woul dbe turned aorund 180 degrees...it would be way more success

I'm doubtful of that:
from my observation, the Joe community was a bit bigger then, and the products were as good as the line was at the time.
Hell, considering how the PoC vehicles were pretty much DOA at retail, I don't think collectors would be supporting much DTC vehicles.

I think a big issue is that a lot of the Joe buying audience, outside of parents and dedicated collectors, are what I call "casual collectors":
Guys who have fond memories of Joe from their youth, who might stop by the toy section now and then and pick up a Joe they see on pegs. These guys aren't active on the sites and don't follow the brand outside of what they can buy at Walmart and whatever media attention the brand is getting (like a movie).
I think that's been a problem with the decreased distribution: a lot of smaller markets effectively dropped GI Joe as an available item and a LOT of casual collector sales are lost because they don't have the drive to seek out the line from non-traditional sources like hardcore collectors tend to.

[DarkHorse]

Whatever anyone says, kids are not the target audience. Dumb parents who think theirs kids will like the stuff are.