Post by account_disabled on Apr 29, 2024 11:35:47 GMT
According to the Global Games Market report, there are 2.2 billion active gamers worldwide. And in North America, video games generated $27 billion in revenue in 2017, while the Asia-Pacific region generated $51.2 billion. Globally, smartphone gamers represent 32 percent of the market, console gamers 31 percent, and PC gamers 23 percent. A huge segment of the world plays video games. And the profile of a “gamer” no longer fits the nerd stereotype of the 80s and 90s. The growth of the gaming industry and diversity of playstyles and interests shows that anyone can be (and probably will be) a gamer. But for business leaders and marketers, video games can represent an opportunity to build an interactive portal into their brands. These portals can be designed to appeal to specific demographics and take a variety of forms, from a retro-style gaming product to an immerse virtual reality experience. Innovations in technology are driving much of this opportunity.
But this space is mature enough to glean a set of best practices for how to approach, evaluate, develop, and deploy brand-based games. In this article, we’ll explore high-level opportunities for brand-based video games and a framework for how your brand should think about video games. What Brand-Based Video Games Can Do Previous successes in this space include Burger King selling 3.2 million units Diabetes Email List of their Xbox games, leading to a 40 percent boost in profits according to BusinessWeek. In a different space, the U.S. military developed America’s Army at the cost of only .25 percent (note the decimal point; it’s important) of their $4 billion recruiting budget (Zeller). And one of the game’s creators, Mike Zyda, says the game was “the most cost-effective thing the Army has ever done in recruiting” (Quirk). In more recent times, Kim Kardashian: Hollywood, a mobile game from the reality television star, has generated $160 million in revenue and 45 million downloads, according to Forbes. Energy drink brand, Red Bull, bet big on eSports and it’s paying off. Cumulatively, their YouTube channel on all-things eSports has generated several million views.
And their Twitch channel has over 120,000 subscribers and more than 15 million views. These are examples of mega successes of brand-based games. And in the short time since launching these efforts, the gaming industry has evolved and expanded to enable even more brand-based gaming experiences. Broadly speaking, a video game can serve as a vehicle for any of the following (independently or in combination): Brand Awareness Brand Engagement Customer Acquisition Product Promotion Direct Sales Event Engagement Data Capture Social Likes and Shares Web Traffic Increased Time on Site Repeat Website Visitors Natural Backlinks Revenue Active Brand Participation Like any good marketing campaign, the benefits of deploying a brand-based video game are many. Yes, the Burger King video games (Sneak King, Pocket Bike Racer, and Big Bumpin’) generate a substantial amount of revenue. But they also support the significant investment in the company’s King-focused ad campaign. They created a larger-than-life character to represent the personality of the brand. And the series of games featuring him as a playable character gives fans a way to engage with him directly.