Product Placement
As Digital Video Recorders (DVRs) and subscription-based satellite radio have become more prevalent, traditional advertisers are turning more to product placement as a means of getting eyes on their product offerings. Although product placement is a much softer sell, it can be an effective way to use mobile marketing to keep your brand top-of-mind and to create or reinforce your brand image.
Historically, strategic product placement has been included in TV shows and movies. Advertisers pay for the right to have a product, logo, or advertisement featured in a movie or popular TV show. The best example of this is BMW's longstanding relationship with James Bond films. The elaborately equipped cars that Agent 007 drives in his films are always BMWs, and BMW pays for that privilege. As video games grow in importance and trade off with people's consumption of other media, product placement has spread into this channel as well.
When done correctly, product placement in mobile game applications can be a win-win-win situation for the user, the game publisher, and the advertiser.
• For the user, the product placement creates more realism in the game.
• For the game publisher, it increases the margin on the game.
• For the marketer, there is an increase in brand awareness and affinity.
Again, the immediacy and interactivity of the mobile channel is key to this type of promotion. Within mobile gaming product placement is the opportunity for clickable product placement and linking, otherwise known as plinking. As an example, if a user is playing a driving game, he might pass a billboard that you have sponsored in the game. If the user is interested in finding out more about your product, he can click on the billboard to find out more information. Similarly, a user playing a
"single-man-shooter" game might pass a storefront that you have sponsored in the game. If the user wants to find out more, he can simply click on the storefront.
Before you begin marketing in this channel, you must research and understand both the game you will be placing your product in and the audience that the game will attract. It is crucial that your product and message be as targeted and relevant as possible. If you don't approach this avenue with caution, you run the risk of a negative branding effect because some users might resent your marketing message being a part of their gaming experience.
The final option for mobile marketing in video game applications is through game sponsorship. In this model, a product or brand pays for the right to run short advertisements or promotions before or after the game is played. These short ads are called pre-roll or post-roll promotions, and advertisers can choose to sponsor entire games or share sponsorship with other advertisers. These advertisements can be still or animated, depending on the game, and usually last between 10 and 30 seconds. Mobile games or applications with sponsorship are usually offered as a free download because the game-development costs are subsidized by the advertising.
The allure of mobile game sponsorship is the massive targeting capability and the interactivity and immediacy of the mobile channel. If gamers are interested or want to find out more information about your product, they can click on the ad to visit your website, register for emails, or purchase the product without having to go to the computer. This type of immediate interactivity is simply not available on more traditional gaming consoles.
Most gamers will understand that the advertisements they see before and after playing a game are a necessary evil to endure because they drive down the price they have to pay to download the game. That being said, they are usually prepared to ignore your advertisement, unless it is particularly engaging, funny, or compelling. Instead of playing it safe, this is an opportunity to be outrageous or a bit flamboyant to get players' attention and overcome the "banner blindness." Pay attention to the game's target demographics, and create something that will catch their eyes. Mobile display advertising companies such as AdMob, GreyStripe, and AdWhirl offer services that embed rotating advertisements within mobile applications, including mobile games.
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