Ads in Gaming & Esports: The Channel Your Brand Needs to Improve Marketing ROI

The main purpose of implementing successful marketing campaigns is to be ahead of the game and earn revenue. Some rules change, some stay the same. But one thing is for sure – the only constant in the world is the change and seeking new solutions is the best way to stay on top. The gaming industry has huge potential, as streamers gather loyal audiences around them. Putting ads in gaming is a relatively new thing in marketing. Gaming and esports are hugely underestimated channels for brands. Thus, the big players in the marketing industry haven’t dominated this area yet. Learn how to work with streamers, enter the game and improve your marketing ROI.

Marketers are facing a challenge – the ‘old school’ channels are still quite effective, but when it comes to Internet users (especially the young generations), traditional ads are a bit useless. According to Gemius & AdReal, 90% of Internet users started using their smartphones during the ad break on TV and 46% of them use AdBlock to hide the ads while surfing the Internet. This makes the usual channels highly ineffective. Brands have to find a new way to communicate with the ‘hard-to-reach group’. Ads in esports and gaming are the solution.

The ‘hard-to-reach’ group suffers from ‘banner blindness’ and is resistant to traditional forms of advertising (by choice). This group has a completely different customer journey path. They make their choices based on content, which they find inspiring, educational, entertaining and inspirational. Are games not entertaining, immersive and absorbing? Brand content implemented in games and esports (as well as in streams) can help your brand be ahead of the game and gain the trust of these ‘hard-to-reach’ customers.

Gamers are not just people who play video games. Since childhood, they are closely connected with the video game industry and new technologies. Streaming sessions and videos on YouTube channels are a source of honest and expert information about topics from beyond the scope of video games. Gamers share their knowledge with the audience and are perceived as trustworthy.

Gamers publish new content every two days (on average) and have a loyal and engaged audience. Take a look at the numbers – the global gaming market just hit over $138 billion in revenue in 2021 and is expected to exceed even more. Multiple platforms are involved in this process, including YouTube, Facebook, Twitch and Caffeine.tv, and the market is still evolving. Six top YouTube channels are closely or strictly linked with gaming. Esports is a slightly different stage, but it’s also a massive warmed-up audience to target with your marketing activities. There is no question that in game advertising and esports sponsorships are crucial for brands to build brand awareness.

Streamers gather massive audiences, thus, pairing up with a gamer that is relevant to your audience brings your brand to… a brand-new level. By creating an inclusive brand identity, establishing a partnership with a proper gamer (or gamers) and combining these actions with well-thought-out campaigns you can boost your ROI even over a few hundreds percent, thanks to the mentioned massive audiences and their engagement.

The user engagement KPI in ‘gaming and technologies’ category is around 8.7%. It may not seem impressive, but the key factor is that this category has a significant number of so-called ‘hard users’. These people are very keen to take part in diverse actions, campaigns or events, especially when there’s a gamification factor included.

At inStreamly, where brands meet streamers, running campaigns with high ROI is not rocket science. And the secret lies in the bond created between streamers and their communities. in 2020, we ran a successful campaign for Samsung with a click-through rate that surprised everyone – see for yourself.

Making a video about gaming takes far less time than making a video in any other category. That is why gamers publish, so many videos in short periods of time. Most gamers have published thousands of videos since their beginnings. Thanks to that, they have built themselves a massive audience of loyal fans, who value their content and really listen to what they say (or promote). A partnership with a gaming influencer transfers the possibility to reach a wide target group in a subtle manner. The content has to be made meticulously, to avoid the ‘push’ factor, as this group consciously rejects any kind of unwanted advertising. How big are these target groups?

Gamers and streamers are present across multiple platforms, as well as industry events and even organise charity & educational campaigns. In conclusion, gaming and esports can not be an underestimated marketing channel for your brand, as the gaming industry is constantly growing.