ADVERTISING OPPORTUNITIES WITHIN THE ESPORTS ECOSYSTEM
From 2016 through 2017, over 600 sponsorship deals were made across the esports industry ranging from in-game activations to mega-million live event sponsorships deals.
The benefit to advertising in esports is twofold. First, the audience is young, highly engaged, and loyal meaning that brands who strategically advertise and truly immerse their brand narrative to ‘get into the game’ flourish in the ecosystem. A great example of brand immersion can be seen with Arby’s and its creative videos of Arby’s sandwiches being blown up which directly referenced Counter-Strike: Global Offensive and its bomb defusing missions. These spots were shown during ELeague broadcasts on Twitch and TBS on TV and were a huge success.
Secondly, when compared to traditional sports, media buys and partnerships are relatively cheap. As a young, digital-first experience, esports’ positioning in the entertainment industry allows for creative partnerships of all forms to be tried and tested, some falling flat and others impacting the gaming culture and revolutionizing advertising practices in the industry. With an industry and audience that’s so young, brands that aren’t afraid to get creative are rewarded.
An iconic esports advertising example is Turtle Wax partnering with OpTic Gaming, one of the oldest esports organizations. A rather non-endemic esports brand, Turtle Wax found a unique angle: partner with an esports organization and their athlete who loves cars and offer him an unforgettable branded experience. The partnership has done so well that as of March 2018, Turtle Wax plans to significantly expand their esports investment.What’s the big reason for Turtle Wax’s success? Esports fans are incredibly engaged and follow the lifestyles of their favorite players on social media. The relatability of gamers and esports athletes expands beyond their on-camera ‘streaming personality’ and into their daily lives where people want to know what restaurants they frequent, what brands they love, and how they live their lives.
A more organic example of a brand benefiting from high engagement because of a gamer is the time Tyler “Ninja” Blevins (yes, the guy who played Fortnite with Drake) mentioned on stream that he loves wearing MeUndies to his 100K+ viewers. About 15 seconds later, the MeUndies website crashed from a traffic overload. MeUndies jumped on the opportunity and 13 hours later, shared a mockup of the unofficial “Ninja” MeUndies via Twitter.
Common Ways to Advertise in eSports:
• Event sponsorships
• Media buys
• Team & Player (influencer-esque) partnerships
• Publisher partnerships and in-game activations
WHICH ADVERTISERS ARE CURRENTLY DOMINATING THE ESPORTS SCENE
Although technology, gaming, and consumer electronics brands lead in their investments into the esports scene (endemic brands), non-endemic brands are also making their mark by investing in esports.
Because of its rapid growth and popularity, it comes as no surprise to learn that food brands are also leading the charge in sponsoring esports teams, events, and leagues. Which makes sense. While some companies find it a challenge to advertise to such a diverse audience, regardless of age, household income, gender or culture, everyone likes to eat.
As brands like Pringles have laid the foundation with their involvement in esports over the last several years, companies like Snickers, McDonald’s, and KFC are diving in headfirst with recent championship series and team sponsorships. Because it’s such a young industry, marketing in the esports ecosystem is a bit like the Wild West; a few rules and previous examples to follow but often, esports advertising campaigns are one-of-a-kind curated content creations that have the potential to change everything.
“OUR ESPORTS PARTNERSHIPS HAVE HELPED DRIVE BRAND RELEVANCY AND WERE A SIGNIFICANT FACTOR IN OUR YEAR-OVER-YEAR SALES GROWTH… OUR SOCIAL MEDIA CHANNELS - WHERE ESPORTS FANS ARE HIGHLY ACTIVE - HAVE EXPERIENCED TREMENDOUS GROWTH WITH ENGAGEMENT UP 50% LAST YEAR.”
— COURTNEY LAUER
(TURTLE WAX GLOBAL MARKETING DIRECTOR)
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