in game advertising
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Put simply, in-game advertising is serving ads into a game environment, but the nuances vary dramatically. For some 3D games, in-game ads appear as posters or billboards in the virtual world. For online 2D casual games, in-game ads can replace an object in the game with a branded product, or even serve a branded quest into the game for a week long run.
What is In-Game Advertising?
With advancing technology, videogames have become increasingly interactive, common and addicting.
Videogames are now accessible in our homes, at work, and on our cell phones
The internet allows players to interact with other players around the world
The World of Gaming
72% of American households play computer or video games
The average game player age is 37 58% of players are male and 42% are female 19% of most frequent game players pay to play online
games 55% of gamers play games on their phones or handheld
device In 2010, consumers spent $25.1 billion on the games
industry Gamers spend on average, 8 hours a week playing
games
Industry Facts
Sales Growth
In-Game ads can either be “dynamic” or “static.”
Static ads stay the same every time the game is played. They are typically hard-coded during the development and appear as billboard or props, like vending machines.
Dynamic ads can be changed over the internet for online players.
Types of In-Game Advertising
Automotive Beverages Fast Food
Companies
Main Categories Featured in IGA
Videogame industry is huge and it keeps growing
DFC, a research company that specializes in the video game industry, predicts that in-game advertising spending will double from $3.1B to $7.2B by 2016
53% of players are ages 18-49, so if this your target in a campaign, in-game advertising could be very beneficial
Significance for Advertisers
Easy to target a particular market accordingly with a videogame genre
Quickly reaches consumers, ex: (Farmville, which launched on June 19th 2009, reached 50 million users by October 1st of the same year)
Effective in increasing brand awareness, and especially effective at priming audiences for engagements and sponsorships within associated gaming environments
Advantages of In-Game Advertising
According to Microsoft’s Massive (an in-game ad serving company for Xbox & PC), in-game advertising has been found to increase purchase intent by 24%, brand recommendation by 23% and, overall brand rating by 32%
In-game advertising also has a greater advantage over TV since, TV spots only feature 30-60 seconds of commercials & a typical in-game advertisement exceeds 300 seconds!
Advantages Continued
New medium to reach consumers
Ads are unavoidable in a virtual environment
High reach due to the growing popularity of video games
Advantages Continued
High game repetition creates a negative brand attitude
Difficult to plug a product on an alien planet in the year 2553 in Halo, or do the same in a fictional medieval world filled with dragons and orcs in Skyrim
Disadvantages of In-Game Advertising
The prominence of a brand placement has a positive impact on brand recall
Brand attitude became more negative as the number of game repetition increased
Academic Research: Journal of Advertising
Coca-Cola Polar Race
In-Game Advertising: Example 3
Looking to reach an 18-34 year old audience
Want to avoid advertising clutter
When there is a contextual relationship with your brand & the game
Tips for when to use In-Game Advertising
Do keep your message creative, simple & straightforward
Do make sure message is relevant & tailored to audience
Do use the most vibrant colors of your brand palette, but avoid making it too bold & out of keeping with the brand environment which, will spoil the experience
Do’s of In-Game Advertising
Don’t use messaging that is inappropriate (Gamers are quick to tweet, blog or post about brands that annoy them)
Don’t attempt to use IGA as a cheap medium but, instead an impactful cut-through
Don'ts of In-Game Advertising
Most likely, games will start being formatted by building the game around the brand’s social media plan
Games will start using content that unlocks based on user engagement (ex: FB page which will reveal a game code).
Future of In-Game Advertising
How many people here play video games? Have you ever noticed in-game advertisements while playing? What category of in-game advertisement have you seen the
most? & in which type of game? In your opinion, do you believe in-game advertising is effective? If so, do you find it more effective than TV advertising? And
why? Do you find IGA annoying, pleasant or irrelevant when playing a
video game? Has an IGA ever influenced your purchasing decision? Do you feel that more companies will start advertising through
games?
Discussion Questions
Initiative. (2012). In-Game Advertising: Gaming is a global phenomenon and presents huge opportunities for advertisers. 1-9.
Skim, m. (2010). In-Game Advertising Project: Static vs. Dynamic IGA's and Concerns.
http://is300project.blogspot.com/2010/11/static-vs- dynamic-igas-and-concerns.html
References
Cauberghe, V., & De Pelsmacker, P. (2010). Advergames. Journal of Advertising,
39(1), 05-18.
Tassi, P. (2011, Sept. 14). Analyst says video game advertising will double by 2016. Retrieved from http://www.forbes.com/sites/insertcoin/2011/09/14/analyst-says-video-game-advertising-will-double-by-2016/
References Continued