Are Gaming Platforms the Next Logical Addition to Omnichannel Marketing?

Over the past few years, the marketing industry has seen a substantial increase in digital ad spend and brand exploration in terms of virtual and immersive strategies for customer engagement. While statistics show that ad spend on gaming sits at around $6-$8 billion in the US, representing less than 6% of total digital advertising spend, the growth trajectory for advertising across gaming platforms is projected to be fast-paced with very minimal limits on the potential these platforms offer brands in terms of customer engagement. 
With the promises of the metaverse on the horizon, many teams are looking to explore more immersive customer experiences for their brands. What better way to do that than by leveraging the expansive and interactive worlds of gaming platforms? While in-game advertising isn’t a new concept, the ways in which brands are exploring their immersive capabilities are.  
As the number of users across gaming platforms increases, the line between the real world and the virtual world continues to blur. As a result, avatar-based virtual experiences are becoming more of a standard practice for modern consumers. As part of their omnichannel and engagement strategies, brands are developing immersive customer experiences through the utilization of interactive elements exclusive to virtual platforms.

Explore Untapped, Engaged Audiences

While the long-standing stigma (that gaming is a pastime most popular among young males) still lingers, data paints a different picture. According to Statista, 45 percent of gamers in the U.S. are women, and nearly 30 percent of U.S. based gamers are over the age of 45. The fact of the matter is, gaming platforms offer an expansive reach into a variety of different consumer demographics, most of which are highly engaged and open to new forms of technology, innovation, and interactivity. 
 
In addition, the virtual expanse of gaming platforms gives marketing teams direct access to the widest consumer population — millennials and Gen Z. Both of these groups have matured alongside ever-changing technology and developed an agile mindset that makes them the perfect group to target for early adaptation of innovative tech and experiences, and smart brands are taking advantage of it.  

Many examples of innovative brand user-experience marketing, centralized around these generational groups, can be seen across avatar-based gaming platforms like Roblox. These platforms have partnered with a number of brands to create exclusive in-game clothing, accessories, and experiences to elevate game play via virtual in-game purchases and immersive engagements.  

Image via Roblox
 Savvy marketing teams see the true potential that gaming platforms have to offer in terms of larger market sizes of engaged audiences. They also understand that there are endless possibilities for developing new, innovative ways of interacting with customers and that gaming platforms are the gateway to the future of immersive virtual user experiences. There’s no better place to explore the full capabilities of what these virtual brand experiences have to offer and may potentially evolve into in the metaverse.

Discover Unlocked Potential

Modern consumers are starting to recognize marketing efforts as intrusive and disruptive. In response, marketing teams have shifted their strategies to create more consumer-friendly initiatives, leveraging highly utilized platforms and methods like native shoppable video and image-based ads, influencer marketing, and user-generated content such as reviews and unboxing videos. While these methodologies have helped increase engagement for many brands across their omnichannel marketing strategies, the unlocked potential gaming platforms hold for brands to develop the next innovative, user-friendly, immersive brand experiences is endless.
The key to mastering this will be how these marketing initiatives are incorporated into user experiences across the prospective platforms. A great way that brands can test their ideas is by utilizing gaming platforms and garnering feedback from the highly engaged user gamer base. Modern gamers are an ideal test group for a number of reasons. First, they are constantly seeking new in-game experiences to enhance game play. Additionally, they are cognizant of anything that disrupts their gaming experience or hinders game play. 
 

32 percent [of U.S. gamers] believe ads should never interrupt a hardcore gamer’s flow. –The U.S. In-Game Advertising Report 2022

This means that any advertising presented to players in-game will need to seamlessly blend into the user experience while also making an impact. Brands are exploring what innovation in this vein looks like through the development of product-themed in-game purchases, brand-based rewards that enhance game play, and brand-themed elements of the game, such as virtual stores or play experiences like the Vans World virtual skate park. Developing these immersive brand engagements will help marketing teams adapt their strategies across other platforms and channels to be just as seamless and integrated, satisfying the wants and needs of their modern consumer bases.
Image of Vans’ Virtual World Skate Park

Step Up Your Creative Game

As advertising has become more digitally native, marketing and creative teams have had to up the ante when it comes to the look and feel of their marketing elements. Evolving brand marketing assets and methodologies to feel more native to each platform is a major element of the strategy, but it’s not all of it. Just as critical is the user experience (UX). The gaming community as a whole have come to expect high resolution, hyper-realistic, impressive graphics and UX from their game play experience, and they will notice if ad experiences are not up to par with the existing game elements. 

 

If you want to advertise in games, bring your best creative.” -The U.S. In-Game Advertising Report 2022

Pushing the boundaries on creative through a UX lens will be a crucial element of both in-game advertising and immersive virtual brand experiences. Both marketing and creative teams will need to fully understand the virtual environments they are crafting materials for to ensure consistent and flawless integration and optimal user experience. Consumers do not want to feel like they are being marketed to. They want to experience brands and develop connections products on their own terms. Savvy marketers understand this and utilize it as an underpinning of their marketing strategy to ensure high customer engagement through cutting-edge branded user experiences.

In Conclusion

Today’s marketing teams are optimizing their strategies for success by creating engaging customer experiences across a variety of channels, built upon a robust first-party and zero-party data collection strategy. As we look to the endless potential of virtual experiences provided by marketing teams, it is clear that exploration of new immersive UX marketing needs to start in the world of gaming. Savvy marketers know that the future is based around the virtual worlds of the metaverse and the expansive user experiences it can provide. 
To better understand the broad range of audiences they can reach, determine the level of engagements they can create, and explore the potential future of interactivity, marketers must integrate in-game advertising into their omnichannel strategies. The gaming platforms of today are the gateway into the virtual worlds of tomorrow. Brands that want to future-proof their marketing and advertising strategies in these UX-based immersive worlds are exploring in-game advertising as a first step in innovating and refining their methodologies for the modern and future consumer.

You may also like...

Subscribe to Our Blog

Subscribe to receive an email when we publish new content!

    Ready To Empower Your Business?

    We can help you future-ready your business with customized, innovative solutions designed to foster sustainable growth.

    Let’s Talk
    Meto

    Meto

    Meto is a tech-based nonprofit intent on making access to quality higher education a reality for all students. We have a special focus on creating scholarships for low-income students.


    In 2018, Meto was founded to connect African students with university opportunities. Along the way, we have learned that all students can benefit from our innovative model, wherein universities make the first move and invite good-fit students to apply. So, in 2023, we opened our platform to students across the globe.

    website: https://meto-intl.org/

              Nikhil Badlani Foundation

              The Mission of the Nikhil Badlani Foundation (the “Foundation”) is to enhance the lives of underserved children in West Orange, NJ and neighboring communities through music lessons, scholarships, and traffic safety education for all.

              Since the Foundation was established in 2011, Theorem has consistently been an annual sponsor of and team participant in the STOP for Nikhil 5K Run/3K Walk. This event intends to raise traffic safety awareness and to serve as a way to remembervbgfc ≈ and honor those who have been killed or seriously injured in traffic accidents. We recognize the importance of raising awareness and road safety amongst teenagers and parents alike, especially in the local communities of our Chatham, New Jersey office. Learn more about the Nikhil Badlani Foundation at nikhilbadlanifoundation.org

              Diversity and Inclusion

              Theorem actively aids in the ongoing fight against systemic racism and discrimination, realizing the importance of ongoing discussions surrounding diversity and inclusion.

              By contributing to organizations such as Black Girls Code and the Anti-Racism fund, we aim to be a fundamental supporter of diversity in the workplace and beyond. These organizations specifically speak to Theorem’s role as a leading voice in the technology innovation space and we avidly support their missions. The vision of Black Girls Code is to empower girls of color, ages 7-17 to become innovators in STEM fields and encourages them to be the builders of their own futures. The Anti-Racism Fund serves as a response to the inequities experienced by the African-American community. It provides monetary support to a dynamic portfolio of curated organizations as a way to inject and enable social change.

              Feeding America

              Feeding America is the largest charity working to end hunger in the United States. By partnering with local food banks, food pantries and other community food programs, Feeding America looks to advance change across the country and ensure equitable access to nutritious food.

              As a long-standing contributor and sponsor of Feeding America, we deeply believe in their vision of an America without hunger. The need for and importance of organizations like Feeding America has has become more and more prevalent as communities face more hardships as a result of the pandemic and the current economy. Theorem is dedicated to its continued contributions to Feeding America to do our part to empower and strengthen our communities. Learn more about Feeding America at www.feedingamerica.org

              Grameen America

              Grameen America is dedicated to helping entrepreneurial women who live in poverty build businesses to enable financial stability mobility.

              Since their founding in the United States in 2008, Theorem has supported Grameen America’s mission, which seeks to build upon the legacy of Presidential Medal of Freedom, Congressional Gold Medal and Nobel Peace Prize winner Muhammad Yunus. Through financial contributions and event participation, Theorem has contributed to Grameen America’s cause. As an immigrant entrepreneur himself, our CEO Jay Kulkarni is especially eager to support the organization’s mission of aiding underserved communities. Learn more about Grameen America at www.grameenamerica.org

              Vision Spring

              VisionSpring is making the wonder of clear vision possible for all by helping provide affordable and quality eyeglasses to those in need. For many, lack of access to affordable eyeglasses leads to loss of employment or less educational opportunities.

              VisionSpring partners with organizations who join them in their mission of supporting livelihood initiatives, enhancing potential for all. Learn more about Vision Spring at https://visionspring.org Theorem has consistently partnered with VisionSpring to organize free events, such as eye check-ups, across multiple villages in the Mysuru, India region, impacting over 3,000 rural residents. We stand with VisionSpring in their mission to increase accessibility to quality eyewear and eye care.

              Covenant House

              Covenant House provides housing and supportive services to youth facing homelessness, helping young people transform their lives.

              For more than 5+ years, Theorem has supported Covenant House with corporate sponsorships, leading career-building workshops at their Newark, NJ shelter facility and participation in the organization’s fund raising Sleep Outs. Covenant House utilizes these Sleep Outs to raise funds and help shine a light on the injustice of youth homelessness, inspiring communities to step up and protect the vulnerable. We are proud to support Covenant House’s programs, which are designed to empower young people to overcome and rise above adversity, today and in the future. Learn more about Covenant House at www.covenanthouse.org

              Contract Type

              |

              Location

              Job Title

              Contract Type

              |

              Location

              Job Title

              Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Ut elit tellus, luctus nec ullamcorper mattis, pulvinar dapibus leo.

              Apply Now