Gaming: Redefining Engagement, at Toronto Elevate Festival with Casey Campbell
Last month, Toronto hosted Canada's largest technology and arts festival - the Elevate Festival. A three-day event that features world-class speakers at nine stages with curated sessions about technology, innovation, culture and gaming.
Casey Campbell, our Managing Director – North America, was a keynote speaker at the Game-On stage and shared his expertise about the gaming industry, the in-game advertising business and how gaming is redefining engagement.
During his segment, Casey invited Sebasteann Barradas, Director, Gaming of Havas Media Group, for a fireside chat about why agencies should tap into the gaming world.
IT' S ALL IN THE GAME
The gaming industry is not only the most fun vertical in the entertainment business but also the biggest and most profitable one. Gaming surpassed the theatrical and musical industries, even before the pandemic. According to Statista, the gaming industry revenue is projected to reach US$197.00bn by the end of 2022.
As a medium, gaming has the power to create the next level of engagement, providing a fun way for brands to interact with their audience in the digital space while creating meaningful connections between people and brands.
MEDIA NETWORK
Gaming can support brands on many fronts, reaching a specific audience, telling a story and sending the right message while actively engaging with players.
A recent study from Statista shows mobile games with a market volume of US$152.50bn in 2022. At Gameloft, we reached the mark of 1.3Bn monthly active users in our extended advertising network, representing almost 40% of all the world's mobile gamers.
In the advertising world, the power of gaming is allowing marketers to engage and reach audiences through non-intrusive and immersive experiences. In-game advertising is a smart way to place advertising messages where they are most active and engaged – while playing games.
Gameloft for brands recently announced Combo, an extended network of gaming publishers with other top-tier mobile publishers. Combo is the largest premium in-game ad network with more than 100 games from the most prestigious franchises, such as Angry Birds, Minion Rush and my Talking Tom.
GAMING – THE NEXT LEVEL OF ENGAGEMENT
Gaming is much more than a hobby. It's a medium that connects people and builds communities. During the darkest moments of the pandemic lockdowns, gaming was an effective way to relieve stress and one of the few methods of social interaction during a time of regulated social distancing.
Video games are accessible on almost any device, with a vast catalogue of types and genres; the gaming community is now diverse and composed of all demographics. From Baby Boomers to Gen Alpha, everyone is a gamer!
Nowadays, with mobile phones, the fun can start anywhere. A study from the Entertainment Software Association confirms that video games contribute to positive mental well-being, also helping to develop essential life skills besides joy.
Unlike other media, gamers are 100% focused on the game while playing. Therefore, there is no room for other distractions. When playing in response to a pleasurable experience, the reward center in the brain releases dopamine. Dopamine is a powerful neurotransmitter in the brain, and it helps sustain people's attention and is responsible for the feeling of pleasure.
Reaching an audience in a positive state of mind, highly engaged with the media they're consuming, is why gaming is so unique. While traditional advertising is often passive and intrusive, gaming allows players to be part of the narrative and brands to actively engage with their audience and build meaningful connections.
FIRESIDE CHAT WITH SEBASTEANN BARRADAS – HAVAS MEDIA
Casey Campbell, Gameloft for brands & Sebasteann Baradas, Havas Media Group
What is your background in the industry, and what led you to this role?
I have spent the better part of my entire professional career in the gaming industry in one capacity or the other, in a nutshell:
•Brand Ambassador work for Nintendo
• Varsity Esports for Canadian University, helping build the program from the ground up
•Professional esports: Overwatch, COD, Valorant, Rocket League
•Branded Content activations, live streams, and creator campaigns
• Most recently dev side on Assassin's Creed at Ubisoft
This role was the natural evolution of that as it allowed me to pull together the scale of my knowledge to help create impactful strategies for brands to authentically integrate into gaming without degrading the experience for the gaming community.
What are your experiences with client needs, and how they've changed? Why are agencies now taking gaming more seriously?
A large portion of my client experience comes down to education, ensuring that they get a full and complete understanding of the gaming space, the content we are recommending, and the "whys" why the creator, why the game and why the platform.
My responsibility and passion for sharing insights to create better understanding, respect, and authentic activations.
Gaming has been quietly amassing scale for decades, the impact of this community cannot be ignored, but more so, this audience is very aloof. You can't access them via traditional means, which has caused agencies to realize that to make a meaningful connection with this cohort, you need to meet them where they are at- at, which takes expertise and authenticity.
Sebasteann Baradas, Director, Gaming of Havas Media Group
What's next for the advertising industry's approach to gaming? How do you see brands using gaming in the near to mid-future?
The future is to expand the scope to continue to test different facets of the industry. A brand cannot activate in esports and achieve success in gaming as a whole. Although the communities are robust and varied, and distinct, what works for one may not work for the other. The best way forward, and what many brands will continue to be able to explore, is how they can test different strategies and approaches in order to cater to larger sections of gamers in ways that are reflective of those pockets.
