The marketing of iGaming products is a complex process, which requires analysis, understanding of a target audience, and a set of effective tools. Popular casino games are much-discussed in the news about the gambling industry. But how can game developers create and market a product, which will be on everyone’s lips?
Vladyslav Garanko, CMO at Platipus, explains what is crucial while marketing an iGaming product, what channels are the most effective for advertising, and ways to increase sales volume.
The range of iGaming products in the market is impressive, which creates a high level of competition among game developers. How to market and promote a gaming product successfully under such conditions?
There is an important step you are missing there. Before you set to promote you really need to understand what’s your USPs are. In a highly saturated market being “yet another game developer” just won’t cut it. You must bring some additional value to the player, or, the operator. And that’s the first thing you want to make an accent on. Or, in short. Find your niche, make sure players know you are there. Grow. Dominate your niche. Expand. That’s the most effective way.
In your opinion, what casino products will get the biggest popularity in 2022?
I don’t believe many things will change by 2022. We can expect the trends to continue but nothing new emerging as of yet. The crash games are probably going to stay for a while longer, alongside other games that came to us from crypto casinos.
But if we look beyond that, into 2023, or 2025, now that’s where things are going to be more interesting. First of all, we expect a significant change in the landscape of gaming, specifically in games themselves. We expect them to be even better, brighter, and more visually appealing. That’s partially due to the devices the players use becoming more and more powerful on average, and players themselves becoming more and more demanding.
What’s also interesting is that with the increase in esports, we can expect a more digitalized audience, more receptive to the idea of gaming and gambling but more desiring for the element of skill. It will also probably come at a cost. More players inevitably mean more problems related to gaming and more governmental regulations.
What channels are the most effective for the advertising of gaming products?
For us as game developers? Live events. For us, as game developers, to players? Exclusively through a partnership with an operator’s media channels.
What marketing analytics is important to know before releasing a game?
The work starts before the game is even made. What’s the demographic? What do they want to see? What do they expect? What theme will resonate best with them? What features to use, etc. Most of those answers come from research and the performance of other games. Before release, however, just seasonal factors and promotion strategies really.
What are the best methods to increase sales of iGaming products?
Consistency, customer orientation, reliance on local representatives. You would be surprised at how much can be achieved with effective communication.
Slots seem to lead the list of the most much-in-demand casino games. What is the secret of this niche’s success? Do game studios apply special marketing tactics while developing slot machines?
Well, the secret to the popularity of slot games is very simple. It’s their simplicity. A player does not need to have specific skills or a lot of experience to enjoy most slot games.
To go deeper into that, we need to understand player psychology. There are many reasons why people play, but we can roughly round those reasons into three categories: thrill, financial gain, habit. Keeping in mind that people are very complex beings and, therefore, many of those reasons are likely to overlap at any given time, but to understand, let’s dissect and look at each reason closely. Thrill. Thrill-seekers just want some adrenalin in their veins and preferably in a safe environment, which is why instead of risking their lives by jumping with a parachute, for example, they risk their expendable funds in simple games with rules and risks they understand.
Financial gain seekers are obviously playing casino games to earn money. It is a very dubious activity, and I would personally not advise anyone to be a professional gambler. However, such people exist, and at the heart of it all, we all just want to hit that button and win big.
Lastly, but not least, is a habit-forming part of games. Most of the time, people entertain themselves to, well, escape reality in a way, to decrease mental strain and to let their minds relax and wander. This “feature” allows us to maintain our mental health and be more productive in general. A game that does not require a lot of thinking is both relaxing and entertaining. Which then turns into ritual, which then forms the habit. After a tiring day, you may want to just sit back, relax and watch the reels spin. As with everything else, moderation is the key here.
And, as a closing word, I would like to bring attention to three simple rules that every player should keep in their mind to stay away from that horrible slope of problem gaming. One – never bet more than you can stand to lose. Two – gambling should never be treated as a solution to financial problems. Three – when the fun stops – stop.
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