Mashable c21 social gaming

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Why 5 Big Brand Marketing Campaigns AreBetting Big on Social Gaming

3 days ago by Brian Anthony Hernandez 18

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Skeptics of social gaming for business purposes exist, but that’snot stopping some big brands from disproving those critics’misconceptions.

Big brands are finding ways to leverage the enormous social gamingpopulation (which is expected to reach 68.7 million players by theend of 2012). They’re jumping into the game — so to speak — withbranded virtual goods, integrated ads and offers as well as gamesthat combine digital and real-world incentives.

For example, marketers like Century 21 have started using brandedvirtual goods — inexpensive, non-tangible items people buy to use in digital games — in order to gain brandrecognition and tap into the profitable social gaming trend. In 2011, U.S. gamers will spark $653 million in revenuesolely from purchasing virtual items, predicts research aggregator eMarketer. That figure is expected to reach $792million in 2012.

Here are five brands that are successfully using social gaming in their marketing campaigns. If you know of any otherstellar campaigns, please share them in the comments section.

1. Century 21

5/6/2011 Why 5 Big Brand Marketing Campaigns…

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To try to make its 40-year-old brand appeal to the age group that buys the most homes — people who are 25 to 34— residential real estate organization Century 21 launched its first social gaming campaign in early April.

Century 21 partnered with mobile gaming company ngmoco to create branded virtual goods that players could use inngmoco’s We City [iTunes link], a game in which players build cities. The Century 21-branded virtual goodscomprised of skyscrapers, homes and other buildings that players added to progress through the game, which wascompatible with the iPad, iPhone and iPod touch.

The social gaming campaign ended April 26, and it has paid off. Century 21 Chief Marketing Officer Bev Thorne says92% of We City players have incorporated Century 21-branded structures into their virtual cities. “That’s quite theengagement rate,” she adds. “We’ll also be basing our success on brand survey results, video views and appdownloads.”

Appssavvy, a company that focuses on connecting brands to people through digital social activities, developed thestrategy and design for Century 21′s first attempt at leveraging social gaming for marketing. Appssavvy is no strangerto the online social realm, as it already has planned similar campaigns for big brands such as Coca-Cola,McDonald’s, Microsoft, Nestle and Frito-Lay.

2. MasterCard



GamesThatGive is one company helping brands take advantage of the social gaming boom via Facebook.

“Games on Facebook are a special and powerful marketing tool that can easily bring a brand virality, deep brandengagement and sales growth,” says Adam Archer, CEO of GamesThatGive (GTG).

GTG makes custom-branded Facebook games with charitable twist. For example, its You Play, We Give campaignfor MasterCard donates as much as 10 cents to Junior Achievement Hudson Valley for every minute a person playsthe game, which has more than 30,000 Likes and gets more than 80% of visits from returning visitors. On average,gamers spend 45 minutes on the game page each visit.

The concept and execution are the same for GTG’s other big-name clients — Pepsi, Propel, Starbucks and Quaker.A user can play those companies’ custom-branded games on Facebook for a short amount a time until a pop-up boxappears requesting that the user “like” the company in order to “double your donation.”

“Not only are thousands of dollars going to charity as a result of people playing games, but large companies aresuccessfully using branded social games to turn Facebook fans into customers,” Archer says.

3. Psych



USA Network’s TV show Psych has a game-heavy website for its fans called Club Psych, where users earn rewardsfor consuming and sharing content, as well as interacting with fellow fans and content. The rewards range from virtualitems (badges, wallpapers, digital music) to physical ones (posters, DVD sets).

“After the launch, users’ time on the Psych website increased from an average of 14 minutes to 22 minutes;pageviews were up to 16 million from 9 million in the previous season; and average site visits increased from 2 timesper month to around 4.5 times month,” says Rajat Paharia, founder and chief product officer for BunchBall, which“gamified” the Psych experience.

“USA Networks also saw viewership of the show — in the 18 to 34 demographic — rise 40%, and it was awarded anAdAge Media Vanguard award for Best Social-Media Loyalty program,” he says.

4. New York Public Library



In early April, the New York Public Library revealed a digital campaign called Find the Future: The Game, which goeslive to the public on May 21.

Using a mobile app, players will complete tasks at the Stephen A. Schwarzman Building on 42nd Street. The tasksencourage players to explore the library and “40 miles of books.” For example, a player might be tasked to scan aQR code located at the Declaration of Independence and then respond to a creative essay prompt.

“There is something to be said for being in the presence of rare, historic objects,” Caro Llewellyn, producer of theLibrary’s Centennial celebration, told Mashable in April. “Wikipedia and Google are fantastic, but to see objects likethese in the flesh has enormous power and can truly inspire creativity.”

Five hundred pre-selected people will participate in the game’s launch on May 20, one day before the game goes liveto the public.

5. Expedia



Mashable c21 social gaming

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