Why In-Game Advertising Will Be So Successful
In his Mediaweek article on April 12, Mike Shields spoke to the CEO of Massive Inc, Mitch Davis, about In-game advertising. Mr Davis predicts that in-game ad spends could reach US $2 billion by 2010.
The majority of advertisers so far have been entertainment networks, film studios, fast-food brands and mens products such as Gillette. Placing advertising in games is seen as an ideal way to reach the crucial -and increasingly distracted- demographic of 18-34 year old males.
It is an absolutely brilliant idea and let me tell you why it will work. Gamers want so much for their experience to be real. MMORP games like World of Warcraft (difficult to advertise in, admittedly) occupy the minds of their users more than most people realise. There have been well-documented scare stories about how these games lead to obsession and mental health issues when things go wrong to a player's character in the game. Bah! They have been saying that about Dungeons and Dragons for several generations now. What these studies imply is how much of the gamer is 'living' inside his character.
I want companies such as Gillette to really start having a play with this. Roll-out a particular branded or coloured package that is only advertised in games. Make a Gillette product that only 'exists' in the game and see what I am talking about. Trust me, the desire to bring back pieces of whatever world the gamer is involved is barely controllable. Work with that. They will be eating out of your hands -and absolutely giddy about it to boot.
This is the tip of a very lucrative iceberg.
The majority of advertisers so far have been entertainment networks, film studios, fast-food brands and mens products such as Gillette. Placing advertising in games is seen as an ideal way to reach the crucial -and increasingly distracted- demographic of 18-34 year old males.
It is an absolutely brilliant idea and let me tell you why it will work. Gamers want so much for their experience to be real. MMORP games like World of Warcraft (difficult to advertise in, admittedly) occupy the minds of their users more than most people realise. There have been well-documented scare stories about how these games lead to obsession and mental health issues when things go wrong to a player's character in the game. Bah! They have been saying that about Dungeons and Dragons for several generations now. What these studies imply is how much of the gamer is 'living' inside his character.
I want companies such as Gillette to really start having a play with this. Roll-out a particular branded or coloured package that is only advertised in games. Make a Gillette product that only 'exists' in the game and see what I am talking about. Trust me, the desire to bring back pieces of whatever world the gamer is involved is barely controllable. Work with that. They will be eating out of your hands -and absolutely giddy about it to boot.
This is the tip of a very lucrative iceberg.
posted by Gordon White at 11:00 am
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