Are you thinking of opening a gaming cafe? If so, do yourself a favor and take this matter seriously.
See, many people think that running a gaming cafe is easy. They believe that all you need to do is buy computers and get people to rent them. Well, every experienced cafe owner can tell you it’s a bit more complicated than that.
The good news: you don’t need first-hand experience to avoid common industry pitfalls. Here are some dos and don’ts of starting a gaming cafe.
Do Get Quality Hardware
Your first step should be to invest in your infrastructure. Make sure to get units that can run today’s games on High or Ultra settings. This will help you avoid issues with lag and provide a high-end experience to your customers.
One alternative would be to get low-end hardware and upgrade it later. As tempting as it is, this is likely to cost you more in the long run. Upgrading a component can cause a domino effect, forcing you to replace other parts as well.
Don’t Go Overboard
The more units you have, the more you’ll have to shell out for their maintenance. This includes physical cleaning, game installation, disk defragmentation, and so on. Plus, you’ll occasionally need to replace your mice and keyboards.
In other words, go for quality over quantity. Having a fully-equipped video game cafe is great during the first few weeks, but the costs will add up.
Don’t Ignore Your Connection
Video game cafes need a strong internet connection to provide a smooth experience. While you’re getting an internet plan, remember to ask what kind of bandwidth you’ll need.
For example, let’s say you’re organizing a free PUBG tournament. If your networking isn’t up to the task, your participants will likely experience high ping issues. If this goes on for a while, it will put a damper on the whole experience.
Do Know What People Want
Keeping track of your customers’ needs is another key element of having a gaming cafe. For starters, installing games that nobody wants to play is a waste of money. Also, you’ll want to be ready for the next big industry hit.
Having an active social media presence is a big help here. Other than gouging your customers’ interest in particular titles, this is the best way to promote your business.
Do Hire Professional Staff
Once you’ve equipped the cafe, you’ll need to hire the staff. As a rule of thumb, you should go for someone who has enough and is familiar with the industry. Needless to say, they should take the job seriously.
What you shouldn’t do is hire people because they’re “gamers.” Often, their only motivation for accepting the offer is the ability to play games on the job.
More on Opening a Gaming Cafe
Though these tips won’t ensure your cafe will be a hit, they’ll help you get started. Once you grow into the job, you’ll have even more information to work with. Until then, remember not to bite off more than you can chew.
Want to make sure your new business venture starts off on the right foot? Here are that will help you attract new customers to your gaming cafe!
