target audience for dolls

Actually, I was wondering about that too. I'm glad you asked since I couldn't figure out how to ask. I will be following this.

 

Each company has their own style and aesthetic, and people will buy what attracts them most. So I guess in that way, companies are targeting those people that like that aesthetic. I think that's the most basic answer.

About Company A versus Company B (another example based on yours):
I really like Company B, as your scenario suggests, but I mostly buy from Company A because I really love their sculpts, service, and etc more. Company B is fine and dandy and has a few sculpts that I quite like, but I'm not as drawn to own them as Company A's sculpts. Maybe it's because their customer service isn't as nice as Company A's. Maybe it's that the feel of the resin isn't as I expect. Or maybe it's because, even though I like Company A's sculpts, the bodies are too articulated for my liking. Company A makes a body that looks better naked, so my brain is telling me not to go for Company B. There may be many underlying factors to not buy from Company B.....and maybe I just like Company A so much and am so used to it that I don't really feel the need to go to any other company. Customer loyalty.

You are right that all companies target consumers; that's how they make their businesses work. It's very interesting to see and observe it happening in this hobby.

 

I've been in the hobby for two years, but I'm certainly not an expert either. I think that people either buy most or all of their dolls from the same company, or they seem to have dolls from every company. I think that the personality thing could be true. I'm a very creative person, and seem to gravitate toward companies that produce fantasy sculpts or slightly unrealistic sculpts. Each company has a specific flair to it, so it would make sense that people repeatedly buy from a certain company that jives with their likes and personality. I also like to consider other factors that guide me to certain companies, like customer service, prince range, the quality of the dolls, and reviews that I hear about the company online. I will say that I personally love Bobobies/Resinsouls, which brings me to another factor: exposure. I've only really seen Bobobies/Resinsouls up close and personal, so I own two of those. The only dollzone doll I've ever seen is the tiny that I own, and I have a friend who has a luts. I might have held him once. But, I trust Bobobie, so I have two Bobobie SDs. I hope that sort of answered your question!

 

As someone who has followed marketing it is no surprise that certain companies cater to certain collectors. They are going for the bottom line which is money. So if a certain type sells more for them then they are going to make more of that type and cater to their buyers. Personally I like the difference in companies. It makes for less searching when you know which companies cater to your tastes.

 

I would think that each company would try to target as many consumer groups as possible which is why (I am sure, but not an expert) they offer different styles and sculpts of dolls. I also think that there are companies that target the consumers who seek a more affordable doll (RS or Bobobie) and companies that like to stick to what they feel is a more high end product.

I personally don't care who the company is, I buy based on the sculpt and the style that I like. I tend to look for the more goth and dark/scary/unique dolls, so I will browse all the companies I know looking for that particular style or sculpt. When everything is said and done, I will most likely own at least 1 doll from every company!

 

I totally believe this. I find myself being drawn to certain companies (like DC) much more than others

 

There's some level of market selectivity going on from the companies, I think... but I suspect there's also a heavy dose of "go with what you know" from our side as collectors, as well. If you have a doll from Company A or Artist B, then future dolls from them are at least something of a known resource. Company C or Artist D, whose dolls you may not have any first-hand experience with, are a lot less of a "sure thing"... especially if those dealers are new to the market, and there aren't a lot of people who own their dolls yet to provide good second-hand information about them.

Some collectors are brave and willing to take a chance on an Unknown. Many of us, though, when faced with the idea of spending $500, or $800 or more on something tend to be more cautious. We stick with what we know we like.

 

There's definitely a sense of returning to what you're familiar with, as Brightfires mentioned. When you have one doll from a company, and like it, you'll be more inclined to return to that company for reasons other than that their sculpts generally appeal to you. For myself, I've been exploring the idea of shelling a set of characters as tinies, since they're easier to drag around to conventions and meets. I went through company after company of tinies, thinking I'd get a variety of them... and then decided on all from the same company two of my existing ones came from instead, even though there were plenty of other sculpts that appealed to me. The reason? I love their engineering, and even if I like some of those other sculpts, I don't know how their engineering will compare. So I'm sticking with "Company A" even though I did like what I saw at "Company B, C and D."

 

I think targeting a particular market doesn't really work well when your product is pretty much the creation of a particular sculptor. They can't just produce something to order, like--hey, we think anime styles are selling now, so please sculpt a doll like that, even though you are totally into making more realistic dolls. It just won't work!

Also, the bjd market isn't all that big and diverse. bjds aren't like, say, t-shirts, that many people might buy, but that you can gear towards infants or teens or men or up-scale or every-day undershirts, etc.

I think companies DO have a style, but the buyers are just drawn to that existing style-- so it's the style first and it finds its market (or not!), not that you have a doll company that tries to cater to a certain part of the bjd market.

The companies have the sculptors that they have, and those sculptors can only do what they do. Volks does their style and it attracts People who like that style. They can certainly try to compete with Iplehouse for the more realistic muscle-man market, but that would be stupid. They have tried to offer more mature styles to widen their market, but people who like Iplehouse will still buy from Iplehouse.

Soom have thought, "hey, people out there might want some fantasy dolls,"-- BUT they still had to have the desire to make a LOT of them, and the sculptors who could pull it off, and it might not have worked at all. I think they just tried it and it paid off for them. Other companies try it and may or may not be successful. It really depends on the artists involved! AND if it happens to appeal to a lot of people.

ANYWAY... I think it is primarily buyers who are attracted to the different kinds of dolls, rather than a company trying to make dolls aiming at a particular thing. There really aren't set micro-markets among bjd owners, for one thing, and artist do what they do== they don't just change like that in order to cater to what might sell! That NEVER works! If the artists aren't passionate about what they do and do the styles they do best, it SHOWS.

And, most people buy from a variety of companies and like a variety of dolls. (I am that way, anyway!)

 

Definitely. A grand example of that is Doll Chateau. Their dolls are so special you either love or hate them. If you're the Tim Burton kind of fan with Corpse Bride etc (or just something similar) I am pretty sure you'll be rolling on the floor with excitement about the Doll Chateau dolls.

Luts and Fairyland both have quite cute and "anime-ish" styled dolls, while Soom, Iplehouse and previously to a large degree Dollshe, all have mature and large dolls. They all have a style, and the people who are drawn to that style will inevitably be the targeted audience

Whether they are intentionally targeting an audience, or they just make what they like and then people flock to that depends. But look at Iplehouse and Sooms dollhistory. They very markedly changed and after that change they suddenly rocketed in popularity. I don't think that change was a coincidence, to be fair. They saw what was popular and they changed.

 

Doll companies are certainly aware of their audience and buyers, just like in almost any kind of businesses. I don't think that they target specific types of people, but rather try to keep their aesthetics coherent to appeal to people who like those kinds of looks. I think the artistic aspect also has to do with it too, dolls are sculpted by artists beforehand and they have all their own style, just like artists working in other medias, and this influences the general look of the dolls.

By keeping to do what they are known for, it's easier for them to have returning customers, or even gain new ones. For example, I don't own a Soom doll myself, but if I wanted one with fantasy/anthro parts, they would be the first one that I would look at because I have seen so many Soom dolls with fantasy/anthro parts before.

I think that sometimes doll companies might try to reach for another audiences by releasing a doll that is outside their known looks, often in limited edition, to attract people who migth like this kind of doll but never considered the company before for various reasons.

 

Sure, all companies are trying to find their own niche. You can even see this with the first companies out there. Volks definitely checked if there was a market for dolls like BJD's, but because they were the first, they didn't have to think about competition. Recently, they've come up with the SD17 and SDGr bodies, to appeal to a larger audience.
When Luts came into business, they chose to develop dolls with a clearly different style than Volks. For the longest time they were known as the company who made Elf BJD's, long before any other company did so.

Today, you see many companies try out differently sized dolls, or dolls with different body-types. Fantasy colours, fantasy parts, realistic BJD's, Chic-line, anthro's etc etc, they are all attempts to target a different audience. Of course they enjoy making dolls, but companies have to offer something new as well, or else it will be more difficult to survive.

 

Fairyland started their company with the intention to create fairy like dolls. The names of their lines Mini/Litle/PukiFee and FeePle reflect that. With their Chicline they tried to appeal to an audience that likes the Fashion Doll look, but that audience is apparently so different than the one they have already attracted, they are having a hard time selling their Chicline dolls. There are Chicline fans (I even have Chicline, FeePle and LittleFee dolls), but their numbers are much smaller and it costs a lot to maintain a different doll line.
In the end, doll companies try to make what sells as they must sell dolls in order to be able to make them.

Doll companies do at times adopt a new trend started by a pioneer company. Over 6 years ago only a handful of companies (Dollshe, Volks, DollZone and SoulDoll, I think) sold 70 cm muscular male dolls which was very new in a hobby with mainly chubby, childlike dolls. Now most larger doll companies have a 70 cm male line and it's hard to imagine the hobby without these dolls.