Advergaming ? Playing to Win

Advergaming ? Playing to Win
>From automobiles to personal hygiene, advergaming can
promote a product and capture the time and attention of
potential consumers of any age. While adult consumers have
the disposable income to spend, consumers under the age of
18 are big marketing targets for companies and the millions
of products and services offered. There's no denying the
influence a child has on the spending habits of a parent,
and advertisers are aware that pulling in the kids pulls in
the parents ? and their money.

According to a recent brandingvoodoo.com posting, nearly 33
million kids and teens between the ages of 3 and 17 use the
internet regularly, and it is projected that number will
grow to 38 million by 2008. Further, between 72%-81% of
kids ages 8-18 are playing online games when they are using
the computer.

While the kids may be playing the games, parents are very
aware of how their kids are spending their time on the
internet. Most parents check on their kids regularly to
make sure kids aren't involved in dangerous activities, so
parents become aware of the games kids are playing and the
products they promote nearly as much as the kids.

But kids aren't the only ones playing online games, which
is one of the big appeals of advergaming to marketers. In a
recent study conducted by the Interactive Digital Software
Association, 42% of frequent game players are over 35,
while another 30% are age 18 to 35. With such a huge
demographic, advergaming has just begun to scratch the
surface of its possibilities.

Advergaming isn't cheap, though. Advertisers spend an
average of $100,000 to $500,000 for a custom-designed game
for use in an advergaming campaign. Most marketers who use
advergaming feel the benefits far outweigh the costs,
however. Advergaming eencourages repeat visits to websites
and has higher "stickiness rates" ? people play games for
longer periods of time than they would view other forms of
advertising, like pop-up or banner ads (which most of us
consider very annoying), or offline advertising (which is
so non-interactive.) Many consumers are parting with
valuable minutes, even hours, of their working days to play
advergames. Advergaming simply captures consumers'
attentions longer, allowing greater education about new
products or product features.

Advergames can also be used to gather valuable consumer
information seamlessly. Players willingly provide email
addresses and personal information in order to play games
and have the chance to win prizes. Consumers also share the
game with others, through challenges or multi-player
gaming, allowing viral marketing to work its magic.

As more innovative games are created that provide both an
absorbing, educational brand experience and seamless
opportunities for rich data capture, marketers will
continue to use advergaming as a key component for
advertising campaigns.

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