Video games are more than choosing your favorite fighter or staying up late with your friends trying to win the final level and save the princess. They're a massive industry with a rich brand engagement base, and many companies are learning to leverage these bases to connect with consumers through unique, immersive experiences.
Video game advertising and marketing have come a long way. Nowadays, many brands consider video games an essential outlet for engaging with their target audiences. These games influence trends and create new ways to reach and engage with customers.
Some of the ways companies are using games for marketing include:
1- Advergame
Advergames are video games created specifically to advertise a brand or product. They are fully interactive experiences designed around the advertised item.
This strategy works by making the player actively engage with the brand, and if the player enjoys the game, they're more likely to have positive feelings toward the brand. This is especially true for younger audiences and people interested in video games. While advergames can be a fun and effective way to reach consumers, there are concerns about their impact on children, particularly food-related products.
One of the most famous examples is Burger King’s Sneak King, one of the cheapest Xbox & Xbox 360 games, at $3.99. Later, in February 2007, the price dropped to $0.99. Players take control of Burger King's mascot, The King, in a stealth food-delivery-themed game that lasts four levels that are based on Burger King's commercial advertisements.
2. In-Game Advertising
In-game ads have become rather common, appearing as billboards, branded gear, or product placements. These subtle integrations make the virtual world feel more realistic while promoting real-world brands.
Similar to product placement in the film industry, these virtual products can only be changed once the game is released if it's an online game. However, unlike product placement in traditional media, this strategy allows gamers to interact with the virtual product. Examples include FIFA or NBA 2K, which display real-world sponsorships on virtual stadiums.
Advertisers can buy and set different targeting parameters for in-game ads based on their audience’s interests and location. The ad will change based on who is viewing it, giving advertisers a way to reach their desired audience and giving gamers more variety in the ads they see.
In-game advertising can be done through:
- Virtual billboards: These are like billboards in the real world but appear within the game environment.
- Product placements: Brands can place their products within the game world, like a specific brand of car or drink.
- Branded content: Brands can create specific content within the game, such as a branded race track or a sponsored tournament.
3. Collaborations
Video games have become a powerful platform for marketing collaborations, allowing brands to reach a vast and engaged audience and create immersive experiences that resonate with gamers.
These collaborations focus on finding ways to engage customers through experiential campaigns. This process is called immersive marketing, which aims to create engaging experiences that allow customers to interact with products or brands in a more lifelike and multisensory way. This leads to deeper connections between the brand and the customer and can strengthen brand loyalty.
Videogame & marketing collaborations
From fashion brands like Louis Vuitton entering virtual universes to fast-food chains like Pizza Hut delivering food through an in-game command, video games and brand collaborations are opening more possibilities and changing the way companies connect with their customers. Here are some of the most famous collabs:
1- Grand Theft Auto (GTA): Civilist & MISBHV
Credits: GTA
In December 2020, the real-world fashion brands Civilist and MISBHV were introduced to GTA Online as part of The Cayo Perico Heist. The collaborations let players buy clothes from both labels at retailers across Los Santos in GTA Online.
The collaboration between Grand Theft Auto Online and the real-world fashion brands Civilist and MISBHV brought high-end streetwear into the virtual world, blending gaming with fashion.
Civilist, a Berlin-based skate shop, introduced its skatewear-inspired designs, while MISBHV, a Polish label known for streetwear and its relationship to underground music, showcased more vibrant outfits. These additions aligned with GTA’s nightlife-centric themes, particularly around The Music Locker, a virtual club setting featured in the game update.
2- The Sims: Moschino, H&M, IKEA & More
Credits: Amazon
Don’t tell me you didn’t spend hours on this game building your dream house, breaking hearts, and maybe accidentally setting your house on fire.
This cultural phenomenon has a history of collaborating with real-life brands. One of the most iconic collaborations was with Moschino, where players could dress their Sims in high-fashion designs, allowing them to live out their fashion fantasies.
In 2007, H&M and The Sims started another unforgettable collab that offered a lot of fashionable clothes and accessories for men and women inspired by real-life H&M designs. You could also build your own H&M store with facilities like cashiers, mannequins, room designs, and many other items.
In 2008, IKEA was another brand that featured its products in the Sims world. Players could recreate their own IKEA-inspired living spaces or experiment with different styles and layouts, so they have more hours to build their dream house.
The Sims also had many other collabs with brands like Gucci, with their “Off the Grid” items being introduced to The Sims 4 as Gucci’s first digital recreation.
Another important collab was with MAC Cosmetics. Artistry Romero Jennings designed the in-game looks for MAC in The Sims 4, making them the first-ever real makeup brand to be used by Sims.
3- League of Legends: Louis Vuitton
Nicolas Ghesquière with Qiyana, a virtual champion from League of Legends.Photo: Courtesy of Louis Vuitton
Louis Vuitton designed in-game skins and a trophy case for the League of Legends World Championship 2019. The partnership also included a limited-edition capsule collection in real life.
The collaboration was influenced by Qiyana, the female protagonist of League of Legends, offering a range of items designed for women and other genderless items and accessories.
4- EverQuest & Pizza Hut
EverQuest, one of the earliest massively multiplayer online role-playing games, was introduced in 2005 as an in-game collaboration with Pizza Hut, allowing players to order a Pizza Hut meal directly from within the game using the /pizza command. Typing the command would launch a web interface for placing an order, so players didn’t have to pause their gaming sessions to order food.
The Power of Video Games in Marketing
The gaming market consists of billions of players across platforms, from mobile gamers to PC users, and using video games in marketing has been an increasingly important strategy for brands to connect with diverse and engaged audiences. Here's why:
Immersive Brand Experiences: Video games offer a unique platform for interactive marketing experiences. Brands can create customized in-game advertising or real-life collaborations that help provide a more engaging way to interact with consumers than traditional advertising.
Building Positive Brand Associations: Collaborating with popular games can help brands align themselves with positive values and emotionally engage with their customers, increasing brand loyalty and positive perceptions.
Data-Driven Insights: Video games provide brands with the ability to gather insights and analytics on player behavior and preferences in a more detailed way, as gaming platforms offer valuable data on player behavior, preferences, and demographics. This data allows brands to create targeted campaigns that resonate more with the target audience and to reach them more effectively.
A Look to the Future of Video Game Marketing
The influence of collaboration between video games and brands has opened endless possibilities for both sides to connect with audiences, showcase their products, and improve their services. As technology continues to evolve, new marketing techniques are emerging which also influence new ways to collaborate between brands and video games. Here are some key trends shaping the future of video game marketing:
1. Immersive Experiences
The use of Virtual and Augmented Reality (VR and AR) has helped to expand the use of new techniques to generate immersive experiences within marketing strategies, which has helped to bridge the gap between the physical and digital spaces allowing brands to provide customers with new experiences that allow them to have a deeper understanding and connection with the brand.
2. Influencer Marketing and Esports Partnerships
Collaborating with popular gaming influencers can significantly amplify a brand's message, reaching a highly engaged audience, as well as sponsoring esports teams which can provide a better brand exposure, especially among younger audiences, like Faze Clan, the esports organization that has partnered with brands like McDonald's, Chipotle, and NFL teams.
3. AI-Generated Content
Using AI-powered tools marketers can generate personalized content, and analyze player or customer behavior in real-time, which allows them to design hyper-targeted campaigns.
Advanced AI algorithms can process datasets to identify trends, players’ preferences, and using that they can create marketing strategies that can attract audience and have a better impact on them.
AI can also be used for in-game content creation, which opens new ways for brands to show their services or products within the game and for customers to have a better engagement with the brand, like the Sims collabs with Ikea and H&M.
The Win-Win Marketing
Brand collaborations in games can be a win-win for both sides. These collaborations can create significant brand value and lead to better client engagement. They can also help brands align with the latest trends, participate in cultural moments that resonate with their audience, and provide a wider reach, especially among younger audiences like Gen Z and Millennials.
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