The Advantages of Advergaming

Performance marketing is going mobile. It has been for quite some time. Findings from media research firm BIA/Kelsey show that United States-based mobile advertising will hit $790 million in 2010. This makes targeting actionable consumers via Smartphones and other mobiles devices imperative. One major way to go about doing this is through mobile games.

Mobile gaming is about more than feeding virtual crops or creating interactive potions with Papa Smurf. These games allow advertisers to immediately tap into the user experience as well as user habits. Ad-funded games enable brands to drive real-time promotional messages to the user through the game. This is akin to the area-based social media model, which customizes advertising based on where users are currently located. But unlike location-based media that is highly effective at near zero cost, creating games specifically designed to engage a core audience can be fiscally irresponsible. So how then can mobile gaming drive campaign results?

First, choose a popular game to advertise on. Second, leverage social media to improve relevant targeting. Social networks can cost-effectively drive relevant users of similar interests to games. Relevant in-game ads, ads that successfully engage can dramatically improve opt-ins, brand awareness and consumer loyalty.

For performance marketers accustomed to continuous testing, assessing and optimizing, mobile gaming is an industry whose time has come.