Facts and myths (not only) about advergaming
There are many myths and half-truths about the advergames and games in general spread among people. We would like to provide you here with several factual information, why should you, as well as us, believe in what we are doing and find out, that the advertisement with the help of games can really work.
1. The players of the advergames are not children
The games are only for children - this is one of the most widely spread myths of all times, which we tend to hear fairly often. In reality this is not true - according to the research of the Nielsen/NetRating agency, the whole 30.5 % of the players of advergames is aged from 35 to 49 and 16.65% of players aged 25 to 34. Teenagers aged 12-17 take up only 14.3 %. Moreover, the age of the average player is shifting every year to the right, which is confirmed by the information that the gaming industry, as for the height of its sales in 2007, overtook the music as well as movie industries.
2. People tend to prefer active amusement to passive
According to the Harris Interactive company research, the whole 31% of Americans older than 18 prefer playing games to watching TV, 35% prefer games to going to the movies. In other words, many people do not like passive amusement and rather like to be part of something they can directly affect. And games are the ideal pastimes.
3. People are playful and want to have fun
Do you know that a considerable part of the Internet users play at least one online game per week? At that 38% of men and 26% of women older than 18, regularly tend to look online games up too. You can address not only them by the advergame more easily.
4. Up to half an hour in your favour
It might sound incomprehensible, but around 50% of people, who receive an email with the link to the game, spend in average 25 minutes with it. That is many times more in comparison to the time people dedicate to watching the advertising spots or reading press advertisements. How many other possibilities of propaganda with the similar length of captivation do you know?
5. Advertising games support the viral marketing and the word of mouth
A great percent of players do not keep good games to themselves and rather share it with their friends (so called viral marketing). Up to 90% of players, who receive the link to the game from their friends trot out their score or success in the game back with them. In case of high quality and suitably designed game, your message can be spread among other potential customers with no expense.
6. Lower costs on the campaign
The costs for the development and distribution of advergames are, in comparison to the TV advertisements, incomparably lower. A common price of simple advergame starts already at several thousands of dollars. With the similar price you are often not even able to buy one single space for a spot on TV, not speaking about having to create it somehow.
7. The field of advergaming is predicted to experience bright tomorrows
According to the Boston research company Yankee Group, the advergaming industry in 2009 should have the turn out about 312.2 million dollars (in 2004 it was 83.6 million).