Microsoft's Xbox brand strategy is moving faster than pro skateboarder Tony Hawk in a high-skills videogame. But the marketer of videogame hardware and software knows where it's heading: at the nexus of home entertainment.

"We're evolving from our initial focus on graphics, power and great games that appeal to hardcore garners," says Don Hall, Director of Xbox Brand Marketing. Xbox wants to associate the brand with innovative games and entertainment experiences that bring people together to compete, hang out and have fun.

"Xbox will increasingly feed into the emerging 'digital entertainment lifestyle' that consumers, especially teenagers and young adults, are participating in," Hall says. "Games are at the heart of Xbox. But music, movies and communication are all part of the fabric of consumers' lives. Xbox can and will play a growing role in bringing these forms of entertainment together for consumers."

Halls says Xbox Music Mixer is a great example of how Xbox is innovating in this broader interactive entertainment space, with Karaoke, music mixing and 2-D and 3-D visualizations. The product, which connects to the Xbox game console, will launch this fall. It will also allow consumers to download photos, movies and music from their PC to the Xbox.

Videogames appeal mostly to male teenagers and "twentysomethings." With its Karaoke and visual capabilities, Music Mixer should skew younger and bring more females into the Xbox fold.

"By expanding our brand focus and our product offerings, we hope to appeal not only, to hardcore gamers but to the more casual gamers and fun-seekers," Hall says.

Landor Associates, San Francisco, is helping Xbox to map the evolution of the brand's "look, feel and voice," Hall says.

Building a 'buzz'

When Xbox launched its videogame system in November 2001, it had one major goal: gain instant credibility with hardcore gamers. These 16- to 26-year-old males drive the industry.

And they know when they're being marketed to. So, Xbox created brand awareness and a "buzz" well ahead of the product launch through special promotions and public relations.

Part of the awareness was in-store merchandising. Xbox placed point-of-purchase displays in stores about a year before the launch.

That's where Microsoft really helped, says Bill Brownell, Xbox's Director of Channel Marketing. "Retailers knew we had the marketing dollars, resources and commitment from Microsoft. We weren't going to go away."

Xbox also got the word out through gaming magazines and Web sites on its technical capabilities--an advanced graphics chip that delivers extraordinary visuals, a built-in hard disk for high power and lightning speed and an Ethernet port for Internet connection.

These high-tech features demonstrate relevancy, invite discovery and earn "coolness." They also support the brand's initial position: "the future of gaming today and tomorrow."

Xbox's logo and packaging reflect this "for gamers by gamers" approach. Working with SBI and Co., a Salt Lake City-based package design firm, Xbox selected a vibrant green and deep black color palette.

"These colors really stand out on the shelf and give us a distinct brand identity," says Justin Kirby, Xbox's Lead Marketing Manager. "The black sets off the power behind the Xbox, while the green signals mystery and high-tech." The bright green also connotes an unearthly light.

Jewel logo adds intrigue

The Xbox logo includes a sphere with a 3-D "X" or nexus. This iconic element--called a jewel--adds intrigue to the brand, Kirby says. "It's an unending void."

Package design for videogame consoles is subtle and simple. Consumers do their homework before they walk into a store to buy a videogame system, Kirby says. They're not impulse shoppers. But the color scheme does help consumers find the brand quickly.

"The first thing consumers do when they pick up our carton is to turn it over and look at the back for graphics and games," Kirby says. The carton's backside shows about a dozen images of games that users can play on the Xbox system.

Litho-printing in six colors on the corrugated carton delivers striking graphics. A UV coating on the printed-paper laminate adds gloss and prevents scuffing. Micro-type around the bar code deters product counterfeiting.

Inside the carton, polystyrene end caps protect the console. A protective film sheet over the console prevents scuffing and keeps out dust. A corrugated tray enables Xbox to add a special promotion--such as an extra controller or free videogames--to the package.

Newer cartons of Xbox display a controller on the front panel. This image appears under a "corner tearback" graphic that invites discovery.

"Many consumers thought the original controller was too big," Kirby says. "The new controller is smaller. We don't say it's on the package. But game enthusiasts know that its size and shape have changed."

The packaging features trilingual labeling. This allows the company to sell one SKU in the United States, Canada and Mexico.

In addition to package design services, SBI helped Xbox create a guidebook for all brand communication, including the Internet. This guide contains a vision statement and details the placement of the jewel on packaging, typeface requirements, co-branding policies and more.

Hardware accessories for Xbox come in clear clamshell packaging. Like the console package, the graphics are subtle with the name of the product on a blister card with the signature Xbox green.

"For hardware accessories, you have to show the product. It's the hero. Consumers can see the size and shape and get a real feel of its use," Kirby says.

The blister packs include both peg holes and flat bases. This gives retailers flexibility to hang the products on pegs or stand them up on shelves.

Xbox recently changed its clamshell blister packs to reduce costs. It switched from a PETG polymer to a combination PETG and APET. Package functionality remains the same. But package material costs dropped 25 percent.

Interactive entertainment

In November 2002, a year after the Xbox launch, the videogame marketer rolled out Xbox Live Starter Kit. This product takes advantage of the Ethernet port on the console and enables gamers to play online.

"It changes the social dynamic of gaming," Hall says. "You can play games online with your friends across the street or across the country." The product allows users to create or participate in online tournaments.

Xbox Live comes with a headset to allow gamers to talk to their competitors during play This headset--packed in a clear clamshell--appears through a die-cut window on the carton.

Graphics on the Xbox Live Starter Kit promote this interactive message. Honeycombed lines with ghosted images of consumers' faces in the background convey a network of users.

Along with the headset, the clamshell contains a subscriber-code card. Users scratch the card to reveal their code. This reinforces the discovery and mystery aspects of the brand, Kirby says.

Xbox Live's packaging uses an orange-and-black color scheme with a hint of the signature green in the Xbox name and jewel. "Orange is distinctive, friendly and energetic, and it works well with green," says Orlena Yeung, Xbox's Packaging Manager. "The vibrant color allows the product to have its own 'personality' within the Xbox brand family."

P-O-P targets broadband markets

More than 30,000 point-of-purchase merchandising elements in 12,000 stores accompanied the launch of Xbox Live. "We targeted markets with higher broadband penetration," Brownell says.

One P-O-P display featured a talking green head. It also included a flip-chart booklet that discussed the product's technical capabilities and requirements.

"We want to excite consumers to buy Xbox Live. But we also have to inform them so they're not disappointed or confused when they get home and use the product," Brownell says.

Since the Xbox Live launch, the marketer has changed the packaging by adding a fifth panel to the front of the carton. This flap allows Xbox to add more data on operating the product. "It's not a plug-and-play device," Kirby says. "We have to communicate a lot of information on the package." BP

XBOX GAMES USE '10-FEET' DESIGN RULE

What's most important when designing a package for a videogame? "Use the 10-feet rule," says Justin Kirby, Xbox's Lead Marketing Manager. "A consumer should be able to read the game's title and know the game's genre instantly from 10 feet away."

For example, "Midtown Madness 3" appears in bold and big text on the case. An image of a Mini Cooper automobile dominates the package. Other visuals include the Eiffel Tower, the Washington Monument and Capitol dome and panicky pedestrians.

"The game is about a zany racing experience in two 'living and breathing' cities--Washington, D.C. and Paris," Kirby says. "We have to communicate that visually in a small amount of space."

Xbox game cases use color-coding to differentiate the product offerings. Most games come in a plastic case with Xbox's signature green color.

Xbox uses a metallic-grey case for established and popular games that retail at a value price-point of around $20. Copy on the front cover says, "Platinum Hits."

For Xbox Live-enabled games, Xbox places an orange horizontal stripe across the top of the front cover. A stretched oval within the stripe says, "Live Online Enabled."

MULTIPLE WAYS TO WIN AT RETAIL

Microsoft's Xbox faced tough competition from three entrenched videogame hardware makers when it hit the market in November 2001. To succeed, Xbox knew it had to win at retail.

Xbox showed retailers its packaging prior to launch. The carton was too big. Xbox reduced its size to get three facings on a standard 48-inch endcap shelf.

As part of its merchandising strategy, Xbox placed permanent displays or interactive kiosks in stores. "About 80 percent of consumers try our product before they buy," says Bill Brownell, Director of Channel Marketing. "That might be at a friend's house or at the store."

Brownell favors permanent displays. "We can update these interactive units with new games, video messages and signage." Traditional point-of-purchase displays are temporary, with a 30- to 60-day shelf life.

Special effects--such as lenticular or holographic images--may play a role in future P-O-P displays. You can quickly communicate visually a game with a morphing character using special effects, Brownell says.

Where to go for more information ...

* Brand consulting services. At Landor Associates, contact Doug Biehn at 415.365.3826 or doug_biehn@sfo.landor.com

* Package design services. At SBI and Co., contact Philip Mascher at 503.423.2931 or pmascher@sbiandcompany.com

Bob Swientek, is the Editor-in-Chief of BRANDPACKAGING magazine.