Engaging with esports
Melbourne hosted its first Esports Open in September, 2018, where the top teams from Australia and New Zealand competed before crowds of between 15,000 – 20,000, according to early estimates, not including viewers tuning in via online streaming platforms such as Twitch.1 Major retailer JB Hi-Fi sponsored the event, providing attendees with a gaming zone and the opportunity to pre-order games at a lower price. Other brands such as Boost Mobile had activation zones to encourage attendee engagement.
So why are so many brands becoming involved with esports?
Esports is a rapidly growing industry, with estimates it will reach over $900 million globally, in 2018.2 And with over 380 million viewers globally, it is unsurprising that many major brands are already becoming involved in the industry. Of particular interest is the audience, with a studies in the UK, Germany, France and the US finding that 71% of esports fans were male with an average age of 26.3 The online viewership on Twitch alone, one of the most prominent streaming platforms, boasts 15 million daily active users.4 In August 2018, the most streamed esport globally, was League of Legends at 80 million total hours viewed, followed by DotA 2 at 70 million total hours viewed, of which 47 million were solely esports related.5 The audience for esports is enormous, growing, and an incredibly attractive segment.
So how have brands become involved with this audience?
One important consideration for brands when entering the esports industry is that its audience is exceptionally digitally savvy. Having grown up with and around technology, this audience is well aware of when they are being exposed to advertising. Brands that have found success in reaching this audience have done so organically, recognising the vital role of a game’s community and how to tap into that. For example, a non-native to the esports industry, Mercedes-Benz meaningfully engaged with the DotA 2 community through recognising the existence and power of a meme. While the meme was initially a satire of an announcer's comment promoting the Mercedes-Benz E-Class Sedan, the brand brought the irony to their own Twitter page, recognising the community’s reaction to the meme. Overall, the campaign was a success, with Mercedes generating more publicity from memes than from its ads on continual circulation as well as garnering the community's support of the brand’s involvement.6
Esports is a growing industry globally, with many major brands recognising its potential. Some esports such as Overwatch have developed a competition structure similar to traditional sports, providing some familiarity to brands new to the space. The esports industry is indeed something to be aware of, though brands should ensure they understand the community’s dynamics, particularly as these dynamics may differ substantially between games and genres.