STEAM video game marketing video game publishing - Source Steam
7 Questions to Ask a Video Game Marketing Agency or Publisher
A video game marketing professional, I get asked these questions. A LOT. When to work with a marketing agency? What about full-service shop – all things video game publishing? Especially by indie game developers. Both by actual paying clients, and by prospects. To someone new to making video games, these topics are easily misunderstood. Esoteric.
STEAM video game marketing video game publishing – Source Steam
To tell the truth, I have lost count. A former brand director with an AAA video game developer-publisher and head of marketing for an early social game developer, I have been pitched a LOT. As in dozens of times each year.
Developing and marketing a video game? AND to have it become a chart-topping hit on the App Store, Steam Store, or Google Play Store?
It is a lot like being in the boxing ring with a Manny Pacquiao, Sugar Ray Leonard, Mike Tyson, or Muhammed Ali…in his prime. The odds are against you. No ifs, ands, and buts about it. Do not forget that for one single second. But if you ask a strapping young lad named Cassius Clay in 1964? At least you are going into the ring with a shot at immortality.
Two possible outcomes really.
Get them right? And your game has the rightful chance at GREATNESS. Be the next Super Mario, Angry Birds, Halo, or Assasins Creed.
Get them wrong? And your game will die on the vine. Like a concept aircraft, that never ever lifts off the runway.
Pokemon Go ASO App Store optimization social distancing style
1000 Dreams Fund for Girl Gamers to Catching Pokemon 6′ Apart
A video game marketing professional, I’ve been following both gaming and eSports. Now, more than ever. Which video game studio is being agile and nimble? How exactly is the video game industry transforming and adapting? Dean Takahashi of Venturebeat just reported what we all suspected. Newzoo had adjusted its 2020 eSports revenue down again. Again. From a forecast of $1.1 billion pre-COVID in February, to $1.059 billion in April, again to $973.9 million in July, and now to $950.3 million.
With the pandemic raging still, the attendance of eSports events notwithstanding, along with sponsorship dollars and merchandise sales. What’s the silver lining?
Competitive eSports Arena
That the Video Game Industry and eSports Are Positively Resilient
A shining example of agile evolving gameplay to accommodate social distancing? Why, Niantic and Pokemon Go of course. COVID sucks. Social distancing is unnatural. Wearing masks everywhere is bothersome. Not to mention people cannot see facial expressions, a fundamental way we communicate through body language. These suck. Get it.
Instagram Marketing NBA 2K promoted ad UGC promoted content video game marketing
5 Keys to Mobile Game or App Marketing Success with Instagram
Got a kick-butt mobile game or app? Sweet. Then Instagram is one marketing channel you cannot afford to ignore. Instagram’s potential cannot be underestimated especially when it comes to marketing or promoting products and services. Not just for ordering fast food, or driving foot traffic to a brick-and-mortar store or gym.
A visually-oriented social media platform, Instagram can be leveraged to enhance app store optimization, discoverability and retention marketing for mobile apps and video games as well.
Meaning, you don’t just use Instagram for sharing how you looked this summer. You carve out an Instagram marketing strategy that will help you not only introduce your mobile game or mobile app to your target audience but also drive major traffic to your product website.
However, it won’t be possible if you don’t take some of the most successful Instagram marketing tactics into consideration. Instagram marketing, especially for promoting a mobile game or application, is tricky. So, how do you get over the marketing hurdles and develop a highly converting video game marketing strategy? Stay with us till the very end find out!
5 Keys to Mobile Game or App Marketing Success with Instagram
Here are some of the most important revelations that you will need to introduce to your mobile game or app marketing for Instagram. We will go through each of them in detail to help you figure out the technicalities involved.
Instagram for Mobile Marketers
Instagram is well equipped for marketers that are looking to promote visually appealing products. Well, to be honest, you don’t necessarily require a visually appealing product to run a successful marketing campaign on Instagram. The creatives, however, cannot afford to NOT grab eyeballs and hearts. Native ads and formats that look like legitimate bonafide user-generated content or UGC.
The social media platform has provided enough opportunities for mobile marketers to promote their products. No matter what your products are, it mostly depends on how you portray them in the creatives. The creatives you prepare should be designed appropriately to 1) be a scroll-stopping agent and 2) depict your product’s functionalities to perfection.
You have got to grab your target audience’s attention since you are fighting with other players for a place on the feed. Now, how can you do that? Well, the answer to that question is the content you produce, of course, to leverage the different functionalities Instagram has to offer.
Here the types of content that you can design and publish to promote your mobile gaming application on Instagram:
Photo Ads
These ads look exactly like an organic Instagram picture post and give the users options to like, leave a comment, and share the content.
Video Ads
Video Ads give you ample space and time to play with your content and grab attention for at least a minute. Capturing attention and coming up with effective CTA is crucial to make successful video ads on Instagram.
Carousel Ads
You can give amazing effects using the Instagram carousel ads. Since you are a mobile gaming company, you can use it to showcase different features of your application by weaving a story.
Instagram Stories Ads
The stories ads do what it says – create stories worth sharing. These are vertical ads that appear between stories. You can design your story ads or use Instagram’s creative tools to create high-quality stories for your audience.
But, you will never succeed in using the above content efficiently if you don’t have your Instagram marketing objectives figured out.
Instagram Marketing NBA 2K promoted ad UGC promoted content video game marketing
Mobile Marketing Objectives
When it comes to setting up mobile marketing objectives for social media platforms like Instagram or Facebook, will have to implement a full-funnel approach. In other words, we will have to map out our target audiences’ journey right from install to re-engagement and then retargeting.
This is an important part of your overall App Store Optimization strategy and will have a huge impact on the strategies you will use for advertising your mobile application on Instagram. Let’s figure out how app installs, re-engagement, and retargeting are different and how they impact different parts of a funnel.
App Installs
App installs usually forms the upper funnel advertising strategies that are implemented to attract both new and existing mobile app users. You need to find the right users because you are not just looking for people that will download your application but also for the ones that will actually use it.
App Re-engagement
App re-engagement campaigns on Instagram form mid-funnel advertising strategies. In this, you will be focusing on the audiences that have become inactive on the application. You will also be targeting the users that have uninstalled your application. The idea is to maintain an active user base.
App Retargeting
Lower-funnel marketing strategies involve in-app advertising. In this, marketers can use machine learning to understand the real-time behavior of the active users. The information will help them come up with personalized ads to bring the users back once they leave the application.
Targeting New Prospects
Targeting new prospects to drive more app installs on Instagram is not complex at all. However, you will have to consider a few points, especially when it comes to developing an advertising strategy.
Choice of Ads
As we mentioned earlier, you have several Instagram ads that you can run for mobile app advertising. You have got photo ads, video ads, carousel ads, stories ads, and collection ads. The best thing is that you can optimize these ad types for your advertising objective, which in this case, is getting mobile app installs.
Call to Actions
You don’t just want the users to consume your advertisement and scroll away. The users should be encouraged to take action once they are done consuming the content. This can be done using a well-drafted call to actions or CTAs. In this case, you will be using CTA buttons like ‘Install Now’ or ‘Learn More’. There are almost 10 different CTA buttons available on Instagram, so you better select the right one.
Creativity
The online user is inundated with a barrage of content every single second. How would you make a space for yourself? Well, you do that by being extremely creative and mindful while designing the ad creatives. In other words, you have to figure out what exactly stops people from scrolling and triggers them to click on your ad or perform the desired CTA. This requires many rounds of A/B testing, so create a budget for that as well. You can also run ads on user-generated content that will give you more credibility.
Audience Targeting
Lastly, you don’t want to show up before the wrong people on Instagram. Since Instagram is owned by Facebook, you can easily access the latter’s targeting options and improve the conversion rate of your ads.
Targeting Re-Engagement
Re-engagement campaigns are, as we mentioned earlier, run to bring the user back to your application. The targeted users have stopped using the application (inactive users) and can be brought back by introducing them to new exciting features or updates in your application. How do you do that? Let’s find out.
Start with the right users
Use mobile analytics to figure out the right people to target on Instagram. Spend a good amount of time setting up an audience for re-engagement campaigns because running ads against the wrong audience might result in bad publicity.
Opt-in Push Notifications
Always try to make your application users opt-in for push notifications. This will ensure that they are in contact with the application even if they don’t open it for a long time. This is quite a basic strategy to keep your users actively engaged.
Starbucks Push Notification mobile marketing Instagram marketing
Advertise using Rich Media
Then, you can also attract inactive users on social media applications like Instagram, Twitter, or Facebook. However, you will have to focus on creating high-quality content and implement a structured App Store Optimization strategy.
Deep Linking
Deep linking is a phenomenon that you can leverage to redirect your users to the desired application screen. All you have to do is pick some of the right keywords, select the precise app screen for the link, and then advertise using the same link on various online marketing platforms. This will not only help you improve your conversion rates, but also boost customer retention.
3 Notable Instagram Ads in Mobile Games & Apps
Here are some of the best examples of Instagram ads for mobile games:
Certain mobile games are better with friends! What better way to celebrate a common love for “candy crushing” than a dance challenge? The below Instagram Candy Crush Saga mobile game campaign, positive captured the spirit. The lovely eye candy that the mouth-watering, visually stunning candies… Topped and amplified with a properly laid-down challenge…with friends!
Instagram Candy Crush Saga mobile marketing mobile apps video games
Here are some of the best examples of Instagram ads for general mobile applications:
In case anyone questions the marketers and agency at KFC Italy? Be certain this simple catchphrase “How Dip Is Your Love?” has been tested thoroughly. Extensively tried and tested over and over, via consumer insights and market research. Marketing genius, backed by data!
KFC How Dip Is Your Love Italy Instagram Marketing
Final Words
Instagram, if we go by design, is perfect for branding mobile games or applications. But you are not going to harness its potential if you overlook the above mentioned key aspects of Instagram marketing. The reason is simple. Instagram is evolving every minute and the factors that lay the foundation for evolution have been covered in the post. We highly recommend kickstarting your mobile game or app marketing on Instagram by understanding the ‘What-How-Why’ of it. Are you using Instagram to market your mobile game application? Do share the challenges and obstacles you have faced during the course in the comments section!
Triller entertainment app UGC user generated content eclipses Tiktok
Step Aside TikTok: Triller’s On Deck!
Triller entertainment app UGC user generated content eclipses Tiktok
The Trump government has banned two major Chinese applications – Tiktok and WeChat – from the US market. This is only getting more intriguing. TikTok’s owner ByteDance has sued the Trump administration. Its CEO just stepped down. After a mere 100 days on the job! All this will open the market for US-based TikTok’s alternatives like Triller.
The orders imminently banned the Chinese applications citing national security concerns. The bottom line? Chinese applications are being sidelined for various political and security reasons. And their US-based competitors? Surely WILL NOT miss this opportunity.
One such application is Triller. With exceptional market exposure and hefty capital and war chest, Triller IS on deck. All set to snatch the spotlight from its Chinese nemesis. Things are getting hotter in the US tech market.
What is TikTok?
At its core TikTok is a short-form video social media application. It lets users create short-form user generated content. Tiktok users can create and share entertaining 15-second videos on topics of their choice. TikTok is ByteDance’s international product. Wait, what? The company has maintained a separate application for the Chinese market. The application is called Douyin which in China, has over 300 million monthly active users. Mind you, this is almost the entire population of the United States!
Tyumen, Russia – January 21, 2020: TikTok and Facebook application on screen Apple iPhone XR
TikTok was born as a result of two major applications coming together. Think Douyin meets Musical.ly. How can you tell? This is the reason why it has many of the same features the two applications have. It has quickly risen through the charts to become a primary social media application for users looking to create and watch short musical videos.
Two years since its launch, Tiktok has already amassed over 800 million active users worldwide. And this is newsworthy HOW? For starters, Tiktok has achieved something phenomenal – considering there are already many video-first social media platforms. Tiktok has consistent been at the top of Google Play Store and Apple’s App Store list of best mobile applications. In particular, Tiktok has done a wonderful job of engaging influential content creators. Not to mention dominating organic app store optimization. So, what’s stopping the US government from letting their people use TikTok? Let’s dive deeper.
Apart from censoring politically-charged content, mainly critical of the Chinese government, TikTok has been accused of many security flaws over and over again.
Security and Privacy Issues With TikTok
President Trump has anxieties about China. He doesn’t hide his fears that China will overtake the US when it comes to setting the ground rules on the Internet.
Trump has gone to the length of banning TikTok and WeChat from the US market if the parent companies don’t sell the applications to a US-based company.
But WHY? The current administration alleges companies like ByteDance are in agreement with the Chinese government. You may be asking, HOW is this a concern? First and foremost, this can leak American user data or any uncensored content. THAT in turn gives the Communist Party an upper hand. So, will ByteDance give the rights to a US-based company?
Well, Microsoft and Twitter have been showing interest in purchasing TikTok. And Walmart. And Triller. More on that later.
They have been in talks with ByteDance and are looking to purchase the application for use in countries like the US, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand. While it would be the first time when a company split happens on the regional lines, but it is very much on the cards at the moment.
Apart from the national security concerns, a lot of the debate has been about the kind of content people post on TikTok. While many videos are just memes and incredibly funny, some videos are just downright cringy and disgusting. We don’t even want to talk about them here because it’s just gross.
Then there had been a lot of news related to how TikTok became the epicenter of the Black Lives Matter campaign and the riots in the US cities. So yeah, the US government has plenty of reasons to get rid of the application once and for all. Or at the least, regulate or censor it. In the name of natural security, of course.
What is Triller?
Let’s get back to the topic. President Trump has already maligned the reputation of TikTok. This will only open the door for TikTok’s competition to fill in the gaps. What’s the name of the application that’s leading the pack? At the head of the pack there is…
And then there is Triller.
Triller was released in 2015 and was branded as an AI-powered video editing application. People responsible for Triller – David Leiberman and Sammy Robins. These are the same creators behind Disney’s Frozen: Karaoke and many other mobile applications.
The application allows users to shoot multiple takes of the same thing and then compile all the clips to give you the best music video. It’s similar to TikTok but has features that will definitely beat TikTok any given day.
There are many similarities and notable differences between TikTok and Triller
Monthly active users on TikTok – 800m with over 2b downloads. Monthly active users on Triller – 65m with 250m total downloads.
Music Industry – Triller was designed to work with the music industry while TikTok planned to disrupt it.
Artificial Intelligence – Both have integrated Artificial Intelligence in some form or the other.
Social Media Intereoperability – videos on both Tiktok and Triller are shareable on other social media channels.
Video Editing –Triller edits the videos for you while TikTok allowed users to edit the videos the way they liked using the excellent editing features for the creators.
Content Discovery – Discovery on both platforms are different too. On TikTok, you will get the list of trending hashtags, top videos, and other campaigns. On Triller, you will find leaderboards, genre categorization, and more.
Genre Focus – Triller focuses on hip-hop and EDM. The discovery page on Triller is full of hip-hop and EDM songs and challenges. On the other hand, TikTok gives users the choice of genre.
Latest Funding and Capital For Triller
So, Triller is growing and it’s growing fast. The application is backed by big Hollywood celebrities in the music industry like Snoop Dogg and Lil Wayne. How is this important? Put simply, Triller is bound to balloon both in size and valuation. The time we wrote this piece, Triller was pitching for a new funding round of $250 million, which will easily make it a billion-dollar application.
This will be huge as the company was valued at $130 million in October 2019.
The founder and CEO of Triller, Mike Lu believes that Triller could very well take over TikTok in the coming months given the backlash it has received recently.
He also believes that Triller has been very successful in establishing its own identity and ecosystem – a feat very difficult to achieve in such a competitive genre of mobile applications.
Not just that, Triller even sued Tiktok for patent infringement! The lawsuit was filed in the U.S District Court for the Western Division of Texas. The patent number in consideration is 9,691,429. The patent is about ‘systems and methods for creating music videos synchronized with an audio track.’
Latest Triller Publicity Campaigns
Unless you have been living off the grid, you must have heard. The ‘Mike Tyson v. Roy Jones Jr.’ fight is happening on 28th November 2020 and Triller is a major sponsor!
Triller video social networking app secures exclusive streaming rights of Roy Jones Jr and Mike Tyson for an alleged $50 million
After years in retirement, Mike Tyson and Roy Jones Jr. are returning to boxing. And who else but Triller is headlining their return to the spotlight. This IS like a battle between Superman and Batman. Or between Thor and the Incredible Hulk. As part of the ‘Triller Battles’ campaign, the social media app is sponsoring the Pay-Per-View event and is bound to earn a major reputation for the same.
Verdict on Triller: Just Another Social Media Channel or a Legit Heavyweight Champ?
Well, the growth of Triller is looking bullish. It definitely has a solid foundation as it is a well-established application in its genre and is not leaving any opportunity to land itself the top spot. It has a long way to go to earn the popularity and audience TikTok amassed in just a few years. It’s growth, however, looks very promising. Oh Yes, and its leadership team? Top-notch technical and publishing talent. Its Mobile Marketing and go-to market strategy? Rock solid. Even though Triller has publicly said it has spent $0 on marketing.
Triller also has the back of big names in the music industry.
A recent news update was that many US-based TikTokers are planning their exit on the platform to join Triller. It can be a publicity stunt to manipulate the general sentiment about TikTok and persuade its audience to join Triller instead. Given the strong gaming background of its leadership team – and the convergent paths between the video game industry, music, and entertainment – one cannot help but think of the mighty Triller becoming a ten thousand pound gorilla.
The battle between the two is definitely getting heated. There are so many factors in play here and therefore, only time will tell which application comes on top, at least in the US market.
Triller Plus Tiktok? Hmmm…
Need even more intrigue and plot twists? Triller is now said to be in the race to acquire Tiktok. Count them a contender next to Microsoft, Twitter, Walmart, and others…
Regardless of WHO ends up with the crown jewel of Tiktok’s 800 million monthly active users? With Go Big campaigns like Mike Tyson-Roy Jones and partnerships with Little Wayne and Snoop Dogg, one thing is for sure.
WHATEVER happens, Triller will win HUGE, among the coveted Gen Z demographics… and much much more.
Social Media Post Copy –
TikTok US ban and Triller on a ride of its life! Find out why TikTok is quickly getting sidelined and Triller is getting the spotlight. Read now to learn more!
#FreeFortnite Apple bans Fortnite from the Apple App Store
Epic’s Fortnite banned by Apple and Google: Everything you need to know. Cnet. Epic.
Platform Powerplay – Epic vs Apple. Industry First or Deja Vu?
Unless you have been living under a rock, the all-out war between Epic Games and Apple (and Google) IS the talk of the industry. And its flagship, you ask? Fortnite was said to have made $1.8 billion in 2019. Additionally boasting over 350 million players. 250 million players from the Apple App Store alone.
Epic Games’s “Nineteen Eighty Fortnite” campaign is, quite simply…. clever. Extremely controversial. Nevertheless very clever and bold. Boldly mocking Apple. And daringly appropriating Apple’s famous 1984 commercial during the Super Bowl. Yes, those many many moons ago. When Apple was the metaphorical underdog. And IBM was the Big Blue, the Behemoth, the old and stodgy. In short, Big Brother.
#FreeFortnite Apple bans Fortnite from the Apple App Store
That being said, who doesn’t love a Biblical David versus Goliath story? By offering its players the option to buy in-app purchases on the Epic Store, Epic Games got its flagship Fornite disinvited from the Apple App Store party. And from Google. But is Apple unjustified in enforcing its developer terms and conditions?
A greater question is, is Epic Games really the innocent and bullied David of a developer?
If you ask EA, or Tencent, or Riot? Far from it. A developer-publisher does not build a $1.8 billion a year franchise (make that battle royale empire) by thinking or acting small. Nor by playing by the rules all the time. If Apple “Frees” Fortnite, then why not FreePUBG? And FreeBumble? If the New York Times gets an affiliate revenue cut for every single book sold from its New York Times bestsellers list, then is this that different?
At launch, Fortnite for Android was available exclusively on the Epic website.
When it comes to video game publishing, certain decisions are not ever taken lightly. Take for example, the platform(s) on which a game launches. What about exclusivity on the Apple App Store? Or Google Play? And what about Nintendo Switch for that matter? Or available on all platforms, all at the same time? For a period of time? Or for perpetuity? You get the idea.
At launch, Fortnite for Android was available exclusively on the Epic website. And purchases made in-app on Android? FREE from the standard 30% revenue share, uniformly extracted by Google and Apple from every other developer on their platform.
All This Hoopla over a $2 Price Differential? What!?
That’s right, you read that correctly. A measly $2 difference! Trivial? Not to the players. Pocket change? Not when you run the math. Epic Games created a mechanism for its players on Apple and Google to buy Fortnite’s V-Bucks directly on the Epic store. Instead of paying $9.99 inside the App Store or Google Play Store, Epic is being very very deliberate and smart. Rather its players are monetarily encouraged to pay $7.99 on the Epic Store.
So Epic gets its players to buy virtual currency from Epic directly for $2 less than the same bundle on the App Store? But why? Because this trains players to buy in-app purchases from Epic directly. For every 1000 V-buck bundle sold, Epic nets $7.99. Rather than having gamers buy as an in-app purchase directly inside the Apple or Google Fortnite app. In which case, Epic would have netted $9.99 less 30%, which nets out to just under $7 per bundle.
To anyone who thinks a $2 discount is not significant, think again. If this creates precisely the monetization and purchase behavior Epic wants, what gives? It doesn’t take years of consumer insights or market research, on video game pricing to predict the revenue mix by sales channel, fast-forward 4 weeks. Who stands to lose? Simply Apple. And Google.
Thirty percent of $1.8 billion is a lot of money. $540 million to be exact – paid to Apple and Google, last year.
FreeFortnite! FreeFortnite! Shots fired. Missiles launched. War declared. But CAN Epic win the war against Apple and Google? If Fortnite’s banning on the App Store and Google Play Store is any indication, most likely NO.
Was this fallout between a powerful video game developer and the publishing platform, an industry first?
But let us rewind the clock ten years. The year was 2010. Another high-flying video game developer and publisher. Different platform.
On the brink of filing for IPO, Zynga did the unthinkable. Zynga launched its own social network to compete against Facebook. The motivation? You guessed it. To protest Facebook’s anti-competitive practices. And to resist the Facebook policy of charging developers an ungodly sum of 30 %, to market and publish on the Facebook platform.
What’s at stake? In the case of Zynga in 2010? Zynga had a $597 million year in 2010, net of platform fees and revenue share. Assuming this was $597 million after giving Facebook a 30% cut, Zynga COULD have had a $853 million year! Clearly a $250 million sum is worth going to war over for Zynga in 2010.
Fallout from Facebook’s new policies banning auto-notifications and negotiating for better revenue share, Zynga launched its own website and game discovery platform.
And what about Facebook? Just testing its Facebook Credits, a universal currency across all of Facebook’s 500 thousand+ developers. The revenue share? You guessed it. Thirty percent.
When Facebook changed its developer policy and banned Facebook developers from auto-posting on user newsfeeds, who cared? For one, consumers cared. Who in their right mind, liked seeing their newsfeeds stuffed with meaningless “help a friend on FarmVille” requests?
From Zynga’s angle? This one obscure change hindered Zynga’s viral marketing. Think of it as limiting Zynga player’s user-generated content. Except the content was really developer-auto generated. Check out the following video, amongst 1000s, that cropped up. To address one need. Quite simply, to turn off auto newsfeed postings. All the joys of social media marketing 1.0.
User Video teaching others to turn off Facebook newsfeed auto postings
Facebook was responding to user feedback, and defending its share of revenue from all Facebook developers.
Wait, so Facebook was addressing the experience of real users? Yes. Shouldn’t Facebook get compensated for helping Zynga acquire hundreds of millions of players? And in so doing, making Zynga very cash-rich and IPO darling in 2010? Seems reasonable.
Since Zynga derived a majority of its revenue on the Facebook platform in 2010, it benefited from the discoverability afforded by the platform.
$540 million is worth going to war over for Epic in 2020. As $250 million was worth going to war over for Zynga in 2010.
Fast forward to 2020. By the same token, it was estimated Epic got over 250 million downloads from the Apple App Store alone. To those of us coming from mobile marketing, we appreciate the media value of those users ranged in the hundreds of millions of dollars. The many millions of users Epic acquired on the App Store weren’t free. So should Epic be granted FreeFortnite? Or abide by Apple and Google’s developer policies? You know, like every other policy-compliant game and app developer?
FreeFortnite? Does that also mean FreeSupercell? Or FreeTinder? So SHOULD Epic Games pay a princely sum for the discoverability of its app, without which arguably Epic would not have had a $4 billion+ franchise on its hands.
In case you are wondering, Zynga and Facebook made up. Zynga agreed to an undisclosed set of terms of payment and revenue share from Facebook. Guess it’s only fair.
What does that mean for Epic and Apple and Google? Only time can tell. But platforms serve a distinct purpose. And derive a lot of power. And Yes. Apple explicitly stated. No links or side-stepping in-app purchases. Nobody forced Epic to publish on iOS. Since it chose to, Epic explicitly agreed to the iOS developer’s business terms. Building a link for players to make in-app purchases on the Epic Store? A legal breach.
Platform powerplay. Deja Vu. Well played. But nice try, FreeFortnite.
Tinder Bumble Dating Apps for Personalization, UGC, and Mobile Marketing
8 Lessons Learned From Tinder and Bumble
Dating apps like Bumble and Tinder offer mobile marketing best practices in communications, influencer marketing UGC and more
Describing the recent uprising of online dating apps as ‘remarkable’ is nothing but an understatement. Experts say that nearly 28 million people are going to use them by 2022.
And this statistic only talks about the United States.
Apps like Bumble, Tinder, Match, Hinge, OkCupid and others are quickly taking over the world. There are SO many lessons marketers can learn from them, especially to improve FTUE, or first-time user experience.
In this post, we are going to list out the top lessons one can learn from the success of online dating apps.
Not just that, we are going to help you understand how exactly you can implement them in your upcoming or existing digital marketing strategy.
So, stay with us till the very end!
8 Lessons Worth Learning From Tinder and Bumble
1. Find and Focus on Your Niche
What’s the golden rule of marketing?
It is: ‘Don’t sell anything if it’s not a solution to the customer’s problem.’
Utilizing this golden rule in the world of online dating apps is very simple.
You have a dating app that people who are single will try to use to develop a meaningful relationship with another person.
The ‘problem’ is that people are single, and that is something they want to change.
To make sure your solution reaches the right people, you will have to THOROUGHLY research your market. This is essential because it will lead you to your target audience.
This will mostly involve LASER targeting. In this, you mostly try to target a narrow market, find a profitable position, and try to compete with other players.
An extensive survey conducted by Hinge shows that the biggest problem customers have regarding online dating is about the superficiality of the apps.
This made Justin McLeod (the founder of Hinge) design an online dating application that focused on helping users create deeper connections.
2. Tap into The Unpredictable Award Phenomenon
Gamification of dating experience has been very well documented over the past five years.
Many users on the app are NOT looking for a date. The whole ‘swiping through the profiles’ thing is quite fun for them.
They use the application only to have entertainment. Gamification of the dating experience can be used to create anticipation among the users.
The best way to understand this is by connecting it to the concept of unpredictable awards.
Here, the users’ level of excitement can be regulated using algorithms that come up with little surprises each day. By doing this, the users are constantly engaged.
Most online dating applications tend to lose customers because of bad FTUE. This happens when users install the app, sign-up, get disappointed, and leave.
Just in case you have a poor FTUE, gamifying the dating interfaces using elements like tap-to-like, shake-to-refresh feed, etc. can help you compensate.
3. Make Marketing More Personal
One of the biggest marketing trends that companies around the world are looking to take advantage of is personalization.
Personalization is a useful strategy that gives marketers an opportunity to collect more personal data from their target audience.
This can go on to affect the way companies promote their products and services. The basic design of their products can be inspired by the concept of personalization.
Coming back to dating apps, one of the most common things you will find is that they will ask for your basic personal information.
It is important for them to know your age and location so that they can shape your user experience to perfection.
If you are looking to use personal data in your content marketing strategy, you must take lessons from these online dating apps.
The application of data analysis and interpretation will also help you improve your application’s FTUE.
4. User-Generated Content – Let Users Speak
The surge of online dating apps and the simplification and gamification of online dating has had a great impact on how millennials approach online dating.
People could say the most important impact of gamification is that they have helped get rid of the shyness around the concept of dating.
This has allowed users to share their online dating experiences on various online platforms. In other words, they are helping marketers with user-generated content and consumer insights.
One of the main reasons why they are so successful with user-generated content is that the marketers go out of their way to hijack a viral story.
Apps like Bumble even have created a form that allows users to share their stories on their experiences.
Talk about taking social listening to the next level!
5. Effective Influencer Marketing
Creating blog posts for video content around your online dating app is one of the BEST ways to generate buzz for your product.
But, that’s an organic way to promote a product online. It works, but it takes time.
This is one of the reasons why influencer marketing has been a go-to marketing strategy for marketers of online dating apps.
Because the content related to online dating is interesting to fans of content creators.
Hinge, an online dating app, makes the best of user-generated content and influencer marketing to create SUPERB social media campaigns. The marketers at Hinge have been working closely with popular meme accounts to create organic posts that bring in definite results.
Influencer marketing is crucial in the marketing of many apps and brands. By creating content that is very much relatable to the general public, it generates a sense of authenticity in the target audience.
6. App Store Optimization
App Store Optimization is definitely a critical part of any online dating app marketing strategy.
This is because your application is going to compete against almost 2 MILLION other applications for visibility.
According to statistics, the average Apple user spends almost 33 minutes per month on the App Store. This data was for the United States back in 2018. Since then, the time spent on the App Store has likely gone up.
Although this is a lot of time for marketers to improve their products’ visibility, they cannot rely on users to find their way to the product through the app store.
Marketers have to take advantage of the app store search algorithm to ensure the users are being directed to your application.
This is exactly where the App Store Optimization comes into play.
App Store Optimization is nothing but a strategic system. It involves elements that can tactfully increase the relevance of your application.
7. Viral Video Marketing
Viral videos work. This is because it tends to trigger certain emotions in the target audience. These emotions make them watch and share the video over and over again.
Creating funny videos related to your online dating application really helps you gain visibility on the Internet overnight.
Viral app videos can get you millions of shares and views online. However, they require constant experimentation to figure out what exactly your audience likes.
Statista shows that many videos have been able to gather millions of views in just 24 hours. This is a result of a successful integration of influencer and viral video marketing.
8. Clear Consistent Communication
Inconsistent communication doesn’t end well in modern-day marketing.
The moment customers start feeling the inconsistency in voice, tone, and content of a brand’s marketing, they tend to leave the experience.
The inconsistency in communication leaves the customer with a bad taste in the mouth.
Looking for customer backlash? Just make one bad joke or write a casual description of any sensitive social issue. Your brand will be done and dusted right there.
Therefore, it is important that you come up with simple messages to reflect your brand values. And, you have to know what customers can expect from your products.
Your visual branding should be consistent across all channels to prevent any kind of marketplace confusion.
Final Thoughts
These are great tips, aren’t they?
But, there’s one more lesson left to improve FTUE and any experience after. It is not to dupe people.
Honest interactions are the foundation of trust. Also, to build long-term loyalty with customers, you will have to quit the short-term sales mindset.
That pretty much sums it up for this post.
We hope you enjoyed our content. Have questions? Feel free to put them down in the comments section. We would love to hear from you!
Manticore Games Core Royale video game making and user generated content engine without coding
Reviewing Manticore Game’s CORE Engine: Sandbox platform for making video games UGC and video game publishing
Manticore making video games screenshot
More and more young gamers dream about following their passion and working in the video game industry.
The traditional path to making video games? Extremely hard. It is a career with unclear, complex career paths. Convoluted at best. Manticore realizes the difficulty of making video games. Its response? A sandbox environment that makes making video games and publishing video games intuitive and user-friendly. Like others, it has designed a game engine that simplifies the creation process. More importantly Manticore provides a digital playground where you can publish your own games made on the CORE engine. Your concept, your user-generated content or UGC, published when YOU are ready to get player feedback. Think of it as UGC and content creation plus video game publishing in ONE platform.
Core is a game engine built on top of the Unreal Engine.
The premise is to make an all-in-one platform where one can create, publish, and play their games and UGC in the simplest way possible.
Manticore wants to take away the intricacies of game development and let everyone focus on the design elements of the development, rather than having to deal with complex configuration problems.
Engine design and Game creation: Core offers a simple drag-and-drop interface, and also richer coding via Lua.
On top of being built on the Unreal Engine Core also uses Lua for scripting. Lua lets users dig deep and manipulate the source code of their games. Other than that, the creation process is quite straightforward.
Users can just drag and drop objects from Core’s stock library or design their own unique world on top of the frameworks provided by Manticore in the game engine. Like Roblox, this strategy of letting players create UGC to test and engage other gamers is not new. But to revolutionize video game creation and publishing as a category? Ambitious. And amazing.
There DO exist some limitations. For example you can’t import your models or customized materials that you made somewhere else to CORE. Rather you are stuck with the building blocks Manticore gives you in the game engine. Not to despair however. To counter limitations of this self-contained environment, CORE gives you many tools out of the box. These include a huge selection of in-game content that creators can easily take advantage of.
The end results? One can start his or her journey making video games, minus a steep learning curve.
The Core here provides the users with all the barebones stuff with more than just a few gimmicks.
Anything and everything that you can do in a game engine can easily be done here visually
The creation process is intuitive. And provides a positive experience especially for the newbie game developer.What about documentation? Or help getting started? Manticore has provided a comprehensive manual. You can easily access the documentation on Manticore’s website through the Core engine. They have covered everything from Basic Tutorials to the Core API in detail.
They literally give you anything that you need to know about—especially if this is someone’s first time making a game. Consider it an easy transition. One can be a working Joe by day. And a game creator by night. On CORE.
Publishing Games: Built-in Discovery and Publishing in the CORE Engine
You can publish the games created in Core on their platform. Here other players on the engine can hop on in your game and try it out. Think of it as simple quick-and-dirty beta. Including multiplayer on their platform.
Automatic Multiplayer Support
Out of the box, any game published on Core is multiplayer compatible. Why does this matter? A LOT if you are making a battle royale stage or just an FPS shootout Arena. Even without the technical knowledge about backend mechanics, having multiplayer support shortcuts design and testing.
Any player can just easily enter that game. Or you can just invite your friends for a private Showdown. Think built-in discoverability. And limited closed beta. Rather than investing time and energy in traditional market research and consumer insights, Core lets creators TEST the concept for fun, playability and gather feedback with real players. The only question is how many, how broadly, based on the readiness of the game.
Manticore making video games multiplayer
Like Game Central Station in Wreck It Ralph, Core lets you play your characters in different games on the Engine
What happens if you get bored with one game? Take a deep breath. The portal devices in the published games lets you play your character from one game and keep playing inside another game. It’s like your own personal avatar and character. One that you can continue playing through different creations with your friends or teammates.
Think of it as an interconnected multiverse of video games. You can just hop into different worlds through these portals and just have a fun gaming experience. JUST like Game Central Station in Wreck It Ralph!
Solo game design:
Or, if you just want to make a narrative-driven game experience, you can also make that on Core.
Manticore has added a whole lot of diversity to its game engine and even more so to its publishing platform. You basically have everything that you might ever want as a game developer. Even after you have designed and published a game, there is replay and repurpose value. In short you can make any design changes that you want quickly and without destroying the game balance.
Learning a new game engine usually takes weeks or months. With its simple drag and drop, Core gives you an Express ticket. To make the game development experience simpler and a whole lot less painful. Not to mention quickly beta testing and monetizing an entire game of your own creation. Your UGC, developed and published your way.
Manticore making video games solo
Final Thoughts: Great promise and potential, even in Alpha
Core is a great game engine for video game development and making and publishing UGC. It does have a few drawbacks. Video games developed on Core, for now, can only be published in the Core’s own game library. You cannot take them out, or publish them on any game store for now.
Manticore did said on their website that they are working on making these games available on mobile and steam. But right now, you are committing to developing and publishing exclusively on CORE.
The other big limitation is that, you can’t import any foreign object in the engine that you made somewhere else. So, you are basically stuck within their toolbox and only limited by the tools they provide you with. But overall, for an Alpha version, Manticore has really outdone themselves. And delivered on making a great engine with a surprisingly huge selection of built-in content.
Even the programming model is extremely polished. Some people may be challenged getting used to the built-in code editor. For now, Core is an excellent platform for first-tie game developers. Especially those who just want to create a good game and have fun later on playing on it with their friends.
Roblox and Minecraft are two spectacular sandbox games. Both occupy a segment of the video game industry that is targeted at young kids aged 7 to 12. Both loved by millions of gamers all over the world. Quite similar to each other, they often get compared to each other by gamers. Both games combine education with fun. What does that leave me as player? Something truly unique and interesting. Whether in terms of Art, UGC (User-Generated Content) or gameplay, the list of similarities run long. Both of these games go head to head against each other. For good reasons.
Today, we’ll be taking a closer look at the rivalry between these two titles. I will compare all of the different aspects of both of these games and let you decide which game is better.
Now, without any further ado, let’s get started!
Minecraft Sandbox Video Game concept vs Roblox
Minecraft
Minecraft Sandbox Game concept vs Roblox
Minecraft is currently the best-selling game in the entire world. Make that over 200 million copies sold as of 2020. Developed by Mojang, Minecraft gets about 126 million active users every month.
Set in a blocky world, Minecraft is a very quirky game. You can literally create anything in this game or go out on adventures with your friends. This game is perfect for single-player or multi-player gamers.
Art-Style of Minecraft: Blocky Cartoonish World with Immersive Realism
Like I said above, Minecraft is set in a blocky world. One in which the art-style is quite unique and interesting. Everything has a cartoonish-touch in this game. Yet it still manages to remain realistic and immersive. From gorgeous castles to a pixelated piece of art. You can basically create anything in this game.
Gameplay:
Minecraft Sandbox Game Concept
Minecraft’s Gameplay: Awesome Survival or the Sandbox of Your Creation
The gameplay of Minecraft is extremely diverse. You can do whatever you want. This game can take you on an awesome survival adventure. Or it can be the sandbox of your own creation.
When you jump into survival mode, you will have to survive in the harsh world of Minecraft by gathering resources and finding food and shelter. Enemies appear at night. You must defeat them in order to survive.
In creative mode, you are given infinite resources and the ability to fly. You can basically create anything in this game, even a working computer. There are tons of materials in the game which replicate real-life properties.
The online gameplay of this game is something completely different!
When you interact with other players, you get a whole new list of game-modes which have been created by the community. There is a lot of UGC in this game which is just waiting to get explored. You can also interact with other players online and make some new friends. Or you can just invite your real-life friends. And play for a long game of Minecraft.
Monetization: Minecraft Marketplace but NO Shortcuts
Want to make money using Minecraft? Then you might be in for a long ride. Making video games and money from Minecraft is not very easy as compared to Roblox. Though, there is the Minecraft marketplace where the users can sell their content to earn some bucks.
It might be a little tough to start making money through this game. But it is still totally possible.
Roblox
Unlike Minecraft, Roblox is a completely free game. One which can be enjoyed by anyone quickly and easily. Roblox currently has 115 million active monthly users. What separates Roblox from Minecraft you ask? Roblox is more than just a game. Roblox is a simplified game-development platform which is extremely fun and engaging. A very creative and fun game, Roblox can get ANYONE hooked.
Since Roblox is free, its creators generate revenue thanks to in-game microtransactions. By using good old-fashioned market research and consumer insights, a young creator can find the market appetite for his or her game content.
Roblox’s Art Style: Cartoonish but Much More than Blocks
The art-style of this game is pretty cartoonish, but it doesn’t follow a blocky theme like Minecraft. The world of this game looks quite beautiful, and it is filled to the brim with mysteries that are waiting to get explored.
Gameplay: UGC is the backbone of Roblox!
Roblox Gameplay Concept
Roblox is more than just a game. It’s a gaming platform where you can basically enjoy any genre of games. The games on Roblox were created by gamers for gamers. The possibilities are endless. You can play the Roblox version of Call of Duty. Or should you so choose, enjoy a Roblox Minecraft.
UGC is the backbone of Roblox!
Roblox is not a single-player game. Instead it can only be enjoyed together with the community. You can just play with your friends. Or you can play with other people online. There are about 40 million games currently available on the platform, which have been created using the Roblox developer tools.
Do YOU want to try out different games and socialize with tons of people online? Then Roblox is the game for you.
Monetization: Roblox Can Help Anyone Generate an Income for Themselves!
Monetization is a major factor which might make you want to try out Roblox instead of Minecraft.
Like I said before, in Roblox, the games are designed BY users. You can create your own game on the platform and generate revenue from it. The games themselves are free. However, the user can earn money through microtransactions. Robux is the virtual currency of Roblox, usable by gamers to purchase different items. Whenever a gamer uses Robux to buy an in-game item, Roblox keeps a small cut and gives you the rest. A HUGE selling-points for Roblox.
Conclusion: Minecraft for Single-Player or Social Fun. Roblox to Make New Friends or to Try Your Hand at Coding & Content Monetization
Minecraft and Roblox are both breathtaking games. Both worth checking out. The ONE that you end up spending most of your time playing depends on your own preference.
Just looking to have a fun single-player adventure? Or simply trying to have some fun with your friends, then Minecraft is what you should be playing.
Looking to make new friends online? Then definitely give Roblox a go. Want to try your hand at coding or even earning revenue from your creation? Then Roblox is the game for you. Not only is Roblox more educational than Minecraft, Roblox can introduce young gamers to the world of coding or game content monetization.
Both of these titles are extremely fun and filled to the brim with endless possibilities. Personally, I prefer Minecraft as I really love its approach towards creativity.
