Getting the Most Bang for Your Buck in Social Games Advertising

Chris Cummings, Lycos Getting the Most Bang for Your Buck in Social Games Advertising

Hi, my name is Chris
Manage Lycos' portfolio of games & community products
Includes Gamesville, Tripod, Angelfire, white label solutions
Prior to Lycos, oversaw development of gaming & customer
acquisition programs for regulated, land-based casinos in US, UK
Follow Social Media & Community 2.0 Strategies on Twitter @community20 - Join the conversation with #socialc20 Director of Product Management, Lycos [email_address] @chriscummings01

What is a social game?
An opportunity to creatively tap into the player’s social graph
This is about friends and acquaintances, not strangers; peer pressure
Delayed gratification
Accomplish a task now, get your reward in the future; appointment gaming
Incentivizing players to recruit on your behalf
Your game experience gets richer if more of your friends play the game, too; viral
Follow Social Media & Community 2.0 Strategies on Twitter @community20 - Join the conversation with #socialc20

Social games are big
Of approx 60 million targetable game players, US represents 74%
That’s a lot of volume!
“ Targetable” game players is different from total game players
Facebook ads target users who “like” the game, not all of users
Source: Adparlor

And that’s just Facebook… Follow Social Media & Community 2.0 Strategies on Twitter @community20 - Join the conversation with #socialc20

Social games are big business
Social games to attract $293 million in advertising spend in 2011
Up from $220 million in 2010
$4.3 billion to be spent worldwide on social networks in 2011
29% increase over 2010
Source: eMarketer
Follow Social Media & Community 2.0 Strategies on Twitter @community20 - Join the conversation with #socialc20 Ad Spending on Social Games & Applications

Beyond display ads and lead generation, how are advertisers using social games to achieve marketing objectives? Follow Social Media & Community 2.0 Strategies on Twitter @community20 - Join the conversation with #socialc20

Sponsorships
Source: Mall World

Branded Virtual Goods
Source: Wee World

Branded Games
Source: Social Times

Promo Codes
Source: Social Times

Let’s look at three recent case studies Follow Social Media & Community 2.0 Strategies on Twitter @community20 - Join the conversation with #socialc20

Green Giant's Farmville Cash
Source: Mashable
Follow Social Media & Community 2.0 Strategies on Twitter @community20 - Join the conversation with #socialc20 Overview: Drive real-world produce sales via virtual farm items. Results: Over 100,000 in Farm Cash was given away as part of the six week pilot program Started in select Target stores but soon expanded to over 4,000 stores nationwide "It's been a great opportunity to modernize our communication channels to consumers. " - Michalin Modena, Green Giant Fresh marketing manager

Honda CR-Z in Car Town
Source: Mashable, Car Town Addicts
Follow Social Media & Community 2.0 Strategies on Twitter @community20 - Join the conversation with #socialc20 Overview: Promote the US launch of the Honda CR-Z in Car Town via billboards, video, virtual cars. Results: Only 3 million users to start -- but highly targeted. Users “purchase” the car in-game -- and keep it beyond promotion. Toyota followed suit with Prius campaign in January 2011. “ With Car Town, p a rticipants can engage with and experience Honda in a fun and casual environment that ’s not overtly commercial. ” - Steven Carter, American Honda Vice President marketing

Charles Chocolates & Chocolatier: Sweet Society
Source: SF Weekly
Follow Social Media & Community 2.0 Strategies on Twitter @community20 - Join the conversation with #socialc20 Overview: Players can order and send an actual box of Charles Chocolates confections to friends (or themselves) after unlocking the recipes in their virtual factories. Results: The first time a virtual good has been “made” on Facebook and then been transformed into a real-world good…

3 rules for a successful ad integration Follow Social Media & Community 2.0 Strategies on Twitter @community20 - Join the conversation with #socialc20

Rule #1: Be Relevant
The integration should feel natural -- in terms of game and audience
Will the people playing the game feel at home with you in their “home”?
Take advantage of what you know about the game audience
Customize according to demographics and other user data
Create a sense of urgency
Demands immediate action while drawing attention to your brand

Rule 2: Bring Value
Offer players something that helps them in the game
Branded items are nice… but they’re better if their useful
Let branded items persist beyond the actual campaign period
Cars, hot air balloons, etc. all function as effective reminders
Benefits can come in multiple different forms
Virtual currency, items that provide a competitive edge -- help them win!

Rule #3: Don’t Interfere!
To be successful, make yourself optional
If players feel coerced into paying attention to you, you’re going to lose
Be low friction
Make it fast, make it easy… short videos, short surveys, etc.
Be compelling
Make them choose to pursue you and engagement will soar

And don’t forget… Follow Social Media & Community 2.0 Strategies on Twitter @community20 - Join the conversation with #socialc20

Return on investment
Establish a baseline before you begin -- what’s the current trend?
Create an activity timeline (month by month).
Monitor volume of mentions (positive & negative), likes, video views.
Measure sales revenue & number of transacting customers.
Overlay your data into a single timeline -- look for new patterns!

To get the most bang for your buck…
Be relevant
Does your brand have a natural affinity with the game, the audience?
Bring value
Help them win… and leave behind something worthwhile for them to enjoy
Don’t interfere
Only interrupt the game with advertising content when it’s requested
Remember the ROI
Track video views, Likes, mentions etc., to see how they translate into ROI

Thank you!
Questions?
Twitter: @chriscummings01
Web: gamesville.com
christophercummings.com
Additional resources
http://www.insidesocialgames.com
http://blog.games.com/
http://www.appdata.com/

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Getting the Most Bang for Your Buck in Social Games Advertising

by Christopher Cummings on Apr 04, 2011

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Getting the Most Bang for Your Buck in Social Games Advertising — Presentation Transcript