Gaming advertising: How brands are winning hearts with mobile game ad experiences

What’s more, contrary to what people usually think, gamers are not just a young male audience.

• 43% of Indian gamers and 40% of Southeast Asian gamers are women
• 31% of Indian and 40% of Southeast Asian gamers are over 45 years old

With this large and diverse mobile gaming audience in the region, the potential audience for mobile game experiences is vast, making it an extremely lucrative platform for advertisers and marketers. However, both brands and game developers face a significant challenge that requires a thoughtful and strategic solution: how do they ensure that the ad experience does not detract from their gameplay yet delivers on goals?

Let’s look at some brands that have done this effectively and get insights into the power of mobile game advertising.

The brands that took their advertising game to the next level

All brand marketers will relate that it isn’t easy to integrate.

This holds, especially with mobile gaming experiences.

Making your brand’s story fit into the gaming experiences that your audience loves without disrupting it is a considerable challenge. But there’s hope – here are the stories of three brands that have achieved this delicate balance and taken it to a whole new level: making the ad look like a seamless and effortless part of the gaming experience. Let’s understand how they achieved it by:

1. Finding a game that was a good fit for their brand

2. Creating an experience that engaged the gamers

3. Leveraging the right format for their objective

1. Paddle Pop’s sweet gaming experience

First, let’s explore how Paddle Pop created a world of mobile gaming for Indonesian parents and children staying at home during the pandemic as it relaunched its popular ice cream, Choco Magma. In a time when parents were seeking ways to keep their little ones engaged and a boost of fun activities could lift spirits, Paddle Pop created an engaging gaming experience.

The brand created a microsite with a game that brought the family together and encouraged them to partake in an immersive puzzle-adventure, multi-level ice cream-making game. The game allowed players to make the Choco Magma ice cream in real-time, and its reward-based system nudged people to play and win exciting prizes. And there was also a mega incentive: the top six players on the leaderboard won a free package of Paddle Pop’s Choco Magma ice cream.

The game kept users engaged and focused with various coordinated activities across different levels. Choco Magma Land players were captivated by exciting elements that offered an exhilarating adventure to them. No wonder the brand saw a 6x click-through rate.

In a post-campaign study, Paddle Pop also found that 86% of respondents took positive action after this experience. The campaign also resulted in a 60+ bps increase in market penetration and a 50+ bps increase in market share for Choco Magma ice cream. This shows that the brand successfully achieved objectives across the funnel.

2. Castrol’s blended in-game experience that accelerated recall

There has been much talk about blended in-game advertising. It is a hot new format that integrates the ad seamlessly into the game's natural environment. For example, a racing game could include a billboard with the real-world advertisement of a brand, or a sports game might feature elements such as sponsored jerseys or in-game products. This format is interesting because it makes it relatable to the gamer with a realistic and effortless placement and also helps advertisers keep it subtle yet make an impact. Undoubtedly, it is an effective way to reach players without interrupting gameplay.

So, when Castrol wanted to increase recall for its product Castrol Power1 among young Filipinos, this seemed to be the perfect opportunity. Considering the love for gaming among Filipino Gen Z and millennial gamers and the relation of the product to vehicles, a game with cars was a natural choice. The brand designed an experience that was innovative, exciting, and creative, which was reflected in the results of the brand lift study: 70% of respondents successfully recalled the ad – evidence that Castrol achieved its goals.

3. Sprite’s refreshing gaming experience that grew brand love

The Coca-Cola Company’s Sprite has been loved by the Indian youth for its refreshingly witty and relatable communication. Taking that forward during the Indian Premier League (IPL), which is India’s biggest cricket tournament, Sprite launched a campaign, "Din Bhaari, Life Jaari" (referring to life going on despite intense or heavy moments). The campaign aimed to help the younger generation with a fresh perspective on life by encouraging them to hit "refresh" whenever they faced a heavy situation. This campaign was designed to increase brand love among the brand's core target audience, who are quick thinkers and always looking for new experiences.

Taking this to the medium they are most active on, Sprite chose to amplify this message with a mobile gaming experience on Glance, the smart lock screen. Sprite invited people to play a cricket-themed game called the Sprite CPL before they unlocked their phones. In the game, the player had to be a batter, and if they were dismissed during the game, they got a second chance to “Reset with Sprite” and play with better clarity. This invigorated users' purchase intent, leading them to the Coke Home page to complete purchases. With this fresh and engaging gaming experience, Sprite recorded 2.3 million gaming sessions, achieving a massive impact on its target audience.

These were just glimpses of what brands can do with mobile game advertising. Three simple things to remember from this are:

1. Integrate your brand with the game that relates most closely to it

2. Create engaging experiences that do not disrupt gameplay

3. Understand various formats and how they work to engage effectively

As mobile gaming continues to grow, so will the opportunities for advertisers to reach this vast, engaged audience.