Power of Gaming: Female Target

If you thought gaming was for the teenage and middle-aged male demo, think again.  Women, especially ages 35-64, are spending hours a day playing casual games online, and it has become a prime place for brands to reach an engaged audience.  Pogo.com, the biggest player in the casual gaming space, reports that women spend an average of 7 hours per week engaging with social and casual games.   Something else you may not expect is that 1 out of every 5 women playing games on the site is 45-64.

One of the greatest advantages for a brand in the gaming space is that, unlike TV and even digital video, gamers are consistently engaged.  Levels of multitasking are minimal in gaming: you can walk away from a TV commercial or digital video to make a sandwich, but you can’t walk away from your game, if you do, you lose.

More and more brands have caught on to the power of gaming and are leveraging the guaranteed engagement and high amounts of time spent.  While in the general display arena, advertisers must strategize in order to lure users to click on even the most high-impact units, gaming is one place where intent to engage is practically handed to you.  Once users enter the gaming experience, they are typically devoting 100% attention and high levels of time spent.  And, in integrating themselves into the games, brands have seen unparalleled spikes in ad recall and purchase consideration among gamers.

An especially effective way for brands to integrate into casual games is through a sponsored virtual good, a non-physical object that can be earned for use in a game.  While virtual goods usually must be purchased, a brand can sponsor a good and allow users to earn it through incentivized brand interactions in the game.  For example, a branded juice machine in Restaurant City that makes juice faster.  Or, a branded paper towel dispenser that cleans your restaurant more quickly.  In associating themselves with a highly coveted good, advertisers realize thousands of hours of time spent with their brand from users determined to earn the items.  And, the advantage that the acquired good brings to users causes continued positive association with the brand.

While gaming can be an extremely powerful platform, advertisers must really understand how to use the space.  With high levels of engagement also comes extreme sensitivity among gaming audiences on behalf of their experience.  Advertisers must follow a couple of crucial rules.  Integrate yourself in a way that brings benefit to the user.  And do not, under any circumstances, interrupt or distract from the game.  One thing is for sure, there is no shortage of feedback among gamers, and advertisers will quickly know their impact, positive or negative.

Considering the advantages of gaming for an advertiser and the wide demographic makeup of users, it would be difficult to find a brand that would not benefit from this type of campaign.  Which begs the question, how can your brand benefit from gaming?