Justin Ko's Blog

SteelSeries is known for offering a wide range of high quality peripherals with a focus on performance rather than flash or gimmicks. One of the greatest examples of this can be seen with the Xai and Kinzu. The Kinzu is a mouse made for the lower end consumer, who is considering buying a gaming mouse for the first time. The Xai on the other hand is geared towards the veteran high end user who wants the latest and greatest technology. This has allowed SteelSeries to capture profits from a wide range of gamers. A quick look at the STP strategy will really show this benefit.

The main segmentation techniques used are behaviour and demographics. There are essentially two types of gamers, the hardcore and the casual, with the latter unwilling to spend as much on products. However, both have a need to have good peripherals while gaming. If I were to convince my friend who is a casual gamer to spend $100 on a mouse, he will immediately decline. In this case, a $30 mouse will be much more reasonable to him.

After identifying these 2 users, SteelSeries developed a differentiated targeting strategy. The Xai was promoted as a high end mouse, while the Kinzu was promoted as an affordable alternative for everybody.

To position the brand, SteelSeries focused on simplicity in the design with maximum focus on performance. As such, both mice look identical, with the only difference lying in the components. Positioning the new products was relatively easy, as the Steelseries brand was already notorious for its good quality. In many consumers’ eyes, SteelSeries was already number 1 in performance and value.

“For gamers the Xai/Kinzu is a gaming mouse that provides simplicity and performance, unlike Razer which provides style and flash.”