By Fabio Tambosi, SVP of Marketing, ESL FACEIT Group (EFG)
Gaming is a multi-billion dollar industry—bigger than music and movies combined—and esports is a fast-growing part of that. Just like other live sports, such as the NBA, the Premier League and Formula One, top athletes, sold-out arenas and incredible energy are all the norm in this space. As are fans.
But while brands have long been used to partnering with major league sports, they’ve proven more hesitant when it comes to entering the esports and gaming space, opting instead to test and learn.
Fortunately—and finally—that mindset is now shifting in noticeable ways. More brands—not to mention the savvy CMOs at their helm—have increasingly seen the true potential of this opportunity, found the right partners and made the investment.
The end result has been a positive evolution, one for the record books, in fact. Whereas sports and gaming were once treated as an ad hoc, tactical initiative, they are now increasingly becoming a core element of marketing strategies. Why? Because brands are finally grasping how they can authentically connect to a global community of three billion gamers and nearly 640 million esports fans, 24/7, 365 days a year. Brands are finally recognizing just how dialed in and engaged gamers and esports enthusiasts are, characteristics that make them a desirable demographic to pursue, court and inspire towards loyalty.
Long term strategies
Brand involvement in esports has followed a traditional formula thus far: A brand invests to try it out, they like it and ultimately, they stay. And now it’s a blueprint for the power of long term brand partnerships and the rewards that come with them. Because if you want to play—and more importantly, stay—in the esports space, you need to show consistent commitment to the players and fans. Discerning gaming audiences demand transparency and authenticity from every brand they engage with, and they’ll see right through anything resembling hollow or shallow.
Community is everything
This is also why brands should proactively embrace this community for the long haul. Intentionally devise ways for gamers to view your brand as nearly endemic to them and their community. That means understanding, listening to and creating for the esports audience specifically. Which requires thinking with a gaming community-first mindset.
For example, DHL’s esports heritage was born at a tournament in Birmingham where audience members wore DHL t-shirts, painted their faces in the brand’s colors and even—for two memorable years—chanted the brand’s name. Repeatedly. A situation most marketing leaders can only ever dream of. And now, several years later, DHL has embedded itself to an extent that everything from the content they craft to the rewards they offer are tailored with this community in mind.
Always-on and engaged
The beauty of the esports landscape as a marketing opportunity is that it’s always on—offering a ‘first-of-its-kind’ space through which a brand can connect with a global audience that literally never sleeps. It also offers a seamless blend of digital and physical opportunities that, as any marketer will tell you, are becoming increasingly important for engaging consumers. From live events and tournaments to conventions, authentic storytelling in meaningful ways brings brands to gamers. And that storytelling continues long after those events end.
Some advice for any CMO who’s still on the fence? Lean in and partner well to add value to this incredible landscape. Because esports marks the new evolution of marketing for gaming. One your brand needs to be part of.
