Playing To Win in The Gamer PC Market

Kelt Reeves, CEO of custom PC company Falcon Northwest Computer Systems, Medford, Ore., inhabits a business world ruled by solid-state drives, liquid cooling and the occasional odd request from a client. For many customers, what's painted on the outside of the PC is as important as what's packaged inside. He remembers one client who asked the paint color to match precisely the hue of a Playboy model's shirt on the cover of the April 1990 issue. Past requests have included faux stone finishes, airbrushed flames and renderings of pop icons. "It's very expensive, and sometimes frustrating, but it's always fascinating," Reeves said. "As long as they're happy, I'm happy."

That level of customization, he says, is just another day in his life as a system builder in the gamer PC space. While Falcon Northwest caters to a higher-level customer than other system builders, a dedication to quality and customer attention is held in equal regard across the market. But these days, Reeves pointed out, increased price competition and top-notch customer support present challenges that innovative paint jobs alone cannot surmount. While the industry doesn't always agree about which trends to follow or the best way to drive growth, many believe audience expansion is key.

Spreading The Gospel
It's a sentiment shared by many others in the gamer PC sector of the system-builder industry, who see a niche market in need of expansion outside what's considered the normal gamer demographic. "The gamer is now changing in what they use the computer for," said Velocity Micro Inc. President and CEO Randy Copeland.

Copeland started Richmond, Va.-based Velocity Micro out of his home a decade ago. He's seen his business grow to 100 employees, while watching the market for high-performance PCs expand beyond the core gamer.

"Consumers who use their home PCs as media centers as well as gaming machines are demanding faster processing speeds and the ability to play high-definition content. Customers whose work involves video or photo editing and graphic design also require more processing power and reliable hardware infrastructure," he said. "The digital lifestyle is starting to take hold more. While there's a lot more price competition, people are now aware of why they need higher-performance PCs."

Video-editing programs, high-definition video files and storage capacity for large volumes of digital media often influence a buyer who previously would only have been concerned with systems capable of playing cutting-edge games. He says he expects that trend to continue in 2008, as the concept of the "digital media center PC" gains traction. "People are using them for more than just gaming," he said.

Frank Azor, senior vice president of Alienware, bought by computer giant Dell Inc. in March 2006, gives credit for expanding audiences to the system builders as well. "Gaming is a niche market that has grown, thanks to the gamer system builders who have been going out and promoting it," he said. Other game markets have helped contribute to system builders' success, as well. "Console systems have helped, too, with cross-platform titles."

Two things system builders said are of paramount importance are attention to detail, and customer service and support. "You can't cater to that audience unless you have those two qualities," Azor said. "I would say that it's essential." That includes maintaining the highest standards for packaging and construction, as well as providing a highly educated group of individuals ready to respond to technical issues. "The craftsmanship and the availability of quality tech support are the two major things," Copeland said. "That's still how we live."

AVADirect Inc. President Alex Sonis said his Twinsburg, Ohio-based company offers quality assurances by testing every single computer it ships and providing custom packaging for the assembled system. "Basically, it's hand-delivered. For a system that's pretty expensive, it will be delivered hand to hand," he said. "It goes from our dock directly to the end user's home." Sonis said his company's approach to detail starts with the customer selecting from 300 cases, ever-available motherboards and six brands of memory and hard drives. "It makes our job really complicated, but we're doing it on purpose, because it separates us from the competition and allows us to be more flexible," he said. "The customer can put together anything they want with us."

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