Face it, the old ways of marketing are dead and that means you need to be executing expansive online marketing campaigns. With over 1 billion active users on Facebook and Twitter alone, it’s obvious that social media is the new crux of your video game marketing campaigns. To be successful, there are 8 things you need to do. Read this and then go do it.
Who’s in charge here?
Establish your Facebook, Twitter, Youtube, and Google+ as the go-to authority for all the information your fans need. First, develop and release creative content on a regular basis. Write and schedule updates well in advance that include events, contests, videos and other content. Be prepared to throw some of that out the window and update on the fly as needed.
Second, have a social media manager in place that is engaging and replying to users’ questions, comments and responses in real time. Do (and continue to do) those two simple things and fans will know you’re the boss.
Let’s Get Hardcore!
Hardcore gamers are fewer than casual gamers but they are the most vocal, and therefore influential in the success or failure of your campaign. Get them on your side fast by gaining public support from respected professional gamers who show no affiliation to your title. Once on your side, you will keep them there by being consistent and interacting with any and every user possible.
Engage Fans With Insider Information
Interact with your fans in ways that will make them feel “in.” Your social media manager and specialists should know the game inside and out. If your game is The Mario Brothers, then they should know when Mario brushes his teeth and what color underwear he prefers (red right?). Use that inside information to interact then watch your users engage more, share more, and come back every day.
N3rd Love
Fans taking time to interact with and share your content deserve recognition. Give them some swag like free games, T-shirts, or posters. Run regular and frequent contests on Facebook, Twitter, and Youtube. A good contest is easy to enter, features exclusive prizes, and boosts subscriber/follower/user counts. Once you have your winners, make it known and give them online shoutouts. Others will take note, share with friends, interact and get you more buzz.
Where Is Everyone? (Pick a Platform)
Decide on which platform you are going to run the core of your social media campaign, major contests, and develop your content for first. Likely, it will be Facebook because it has the largest user base. Run your large, national and international contests here to ensure the greatest number of people can access it with the least amount of effort. Developing content for that platform first to serves as a guide for creating content on other platforms.
Tease Fans With Exclusive Content
Maintain the attention of ADHD video gamers by keeping exclusive screenshots, gameplay videos, interviews and announcements up your sleeve and never give away too much at once. Tease fans by telling them you have exclusives coming their way soon to start the conversation and build hype. Take it a step further and leverage their anticipation, “If we hit 1 million Likes, we’ll release an exclusive character trailer.” Doing so makes your limited quantity of exclusive content and announcements as valuable, shareable and effective as possible.
Coordinate Announcements
Big announcements should be made on every available social media outlet at the same time. Blast out that important release date or big contest on each outlet concurrently including top tier blogs. Keep the information the same, but change the delivery so fans that engage you on multiple platforms are rewarded with extra unique content. Also, be sure to coordinate new content releases and announcements across other departments including sales, marketing and especially PR.
Develop New Fan Bases
Fans that already follow, like and subscribe to you are a captivated audience so focus on reaching new fans as well. Do so by running ad campaigns on Facebook and YouTube, reaching out to relevant blogs and publications, and encouraging your existing fan base to share your content with friends. Also, cross-promote the different social media platforms with each other and within all online and TV ad campaigns to increase traffic and awareness.
Now… If you need a Social Media Agency… Let me know… john AT supercoolcreative.com
Originally published on iMedia Connection Blog, written by John Newell
