Marketing

Marketing

For someone to be able to play your game, they first need to know about it. This article contains resources and information about marketing video games.

Email #

Email​​ marketing ​​is ​​the​ ​single​​ most​​ powerful ​​way​​ to​​ connect​​ with ​​people​​ who​​ love ​​your​​ games. Social ​​media ​​has ​​a ​​broad ​​reach ​​but ​​it ​​is ​​not ​​personal ​​like ​​an​ ​email.​​Further more​ ​very ​​few​ ​people actually ​​click ​​the​ ​links ​​that ​​you ​​send ​​out ​​through ​​Twitter ​​and ​​Facebook ​​because ​​they ​​are inundated ​​with​ ​so​​ much​ ​other ​​content. ​​People ​​do,​ ​however,​ ​click ​​links ​​when ​​sent ​​via​ ​email​ ​from someone ​​they ​​know.

Because​​ email ​​marketing​​ is​​ so powerful​​ it​ ​should ​​be​ ​the ​​backbone​ ​of​ ​your ​​company’s​​ marketing strategy ​​At​ ​every ​​opportunity​​ you ​​should ​​encourage​​ people​​ to ​​sign​​up ​​for ​​your​​ mailing ​​list.​​ It​ ​is the​ ​primary ​​way​ ​that ​​you​ ​will​ ​get​ ​people ​​who​ ​purchased​​ your​ ​first​ ​game​ ​to ​​purchase​ ​your second​​ one. You ​​need ​​to​ ​treat ​​your ​​email​ ​list ​​like ​​it​ ​is​ ​the​ ​fan​ ​club​​ of​ ​your ​​studio.​ ​You​ ​should​ ​share​ ​news​ ​first here ​​NEVER​​ have ​​a​ ​sale ​​without ​​telling ​​your ​​mailing​ ​list ​​first ​​(to​ ​do ​​so​ ​is​ ​like ​​not​ ​inviting ​​your best​ ​friends ​​to ​​a​ ​party.) ​​Respect ​​your ​​list, ​​these ​​are ​​your ​​true ​​fans.

From Chris Zukowski’s Email Marketing Basis for Video Games eBook

Subscriber Acquisition #

Before we go into further strategies about why a user should join your mailing list, the first step is to ensure that your mailing list doesn’t have any additional friction. When talking about friction in the context of users, we mean barriers that prevent a user from performing the desired operation. This could be a form that asks too many questions or doesn’t seem secure or trustworthy. The latter of which is becoming an even more prominent hurdle to overcome as concerns over data privacy grow.

Note: A better acquisition point than your website is your game itself. This can be exceptionally effective when paired with in-game rewards as mentioned below.

Now we need to discuss the why. Why should your user give you their email address?

While it’s nice to assume that staying up-to-date on your game or team’s news is reason enough, for a lot of users it likely won’t be. Joining your mailing list should offer a clear, tangible benefit. That’s why it can be incredibly advantageous to “sweeten the pot” a bit through the use of an additional incentive, like a downloadable freebie. In Chris Zukowski’s “Email Marketing Basis for Video Games” eBook mentioned above, he calls this a “lead magnet”.

Here are some suggestions for things you could offer in exchange for their email address:

  • An eBook of your game’s concept art.
  • The original soundtrack for the game.
  • A detailed walkthrough, guidebook, cheat sheet, or map of your game.
  • A free game. Potentially from a game jam your studio participated in or a back-catalog game that doesn’t sell as well anymore.
  • Exclusive items for an existing game they may own (like character, skins, emotes, etc).