Session Description: Social Gaming represents half of all Facebook users and one of every two visits to Social Networks on average. Fad or vital to any marketer’s strategy going forward? You decide. To help, we’ll look at Social Gaming by the numbers in the US and around the world. An expert line-up of speakers will share insights about social gaming dynamics, success stories and best practices. A special focus on global market development from regions where mobile is the dominant platform will give a hint at the future of Social Gaming in the US. Check into this session to participate in the gamification of your marketing strategy.
This session took place Tuesday, April 12, 2011. The speakers:
- Mark Silva, Senior VP, Emerging Platforms Real Branding / Anthem Worldwide (Moderator)
- Jimmy Kim, Founder and CEO, NexoNova Studio
- Kim Kyaw, Senior Media Strategist, Toyota Motor Sales
- Tim Chang, Partner, Norwest Venture Partners
I was a bit disappointed about this session. I expected more actionable items, or at least a US slant. The panel took more of a “what’s happening in Asia” angle, so in truth, I ended up leaving a few minutes early.
Bullet Point Review!
- It’s got the reach of television and the engagement of games.
- Over half of Facebook users play social games.
- It’s bigger than the population of England.
- It’s bigger than the number of users of email.
- Zynga is by far the largest social gaming company.
- Playdom was acquired by Disney.
- Social gaming is a “Rich get Richer” phenomenon that grows aggressively.
- Zynga launched CityVille and got 100 million users in under 8 weeks.
- Social game advertising is not for amateurs.
- Advertising is less than 10% of revenues & social games monetize only 1-5% of users.
- Seek fit & utility, not just reach & demographics.
- Social gaming is more about getting together with friends than the game itself.
- There are various levels of commitment to advertising in games:
- Branded virtual goods.
- Branded game mechanics.
- New branded game mechanics.
- Multiple channel integrated campaign.
- When 7-11 did the tie-ins of their generic products with the Zynga games, they saw an incredible increase in business, repeat customers, frequency of current customers coming in, etc.
- There are many cultural factors for social gaming growth.
- In-game advertising hasn’t worked in the past because it wasn’t adding any value to users.
- When considering branding virtual goods, consider decorative vs. ability.
- Mobile is the new hope for social gaming.
- Fighting for distribution power, talent, and new revenue streams.
- CPE is cost per engagement. Some companies can track this. The user watches the ad, answers a question, and earns a new item from the game.
- “If content is king, then distribution power is god almighty” – @Timechange
- Cross promote games to other game users.
