According to a Harvard Business School Professor Clayton Christensen’s study, 95% of the 30,000 products launched each year don’t catch on in the market.
Now, let’s shift our focus to the online gambling industry. eGaming Monitor reports that around 6000 titles are released by iGaming developers every year. In such a vast sea of options, the key is to have that special ability to stand out and grab the spotlight. Getting noticed in this space isn’t a matter of chance – it’s about knowing your players and having the guts to try new things. After launching more than 250 games, we’ve picked up a few lessons along the way. And here we want to share some of them.
Be proactive. Be ahead of the game
An iGaming product demands an effective marketing strategy to ensure it will make a mark in the industry, and every $ of marketing spent is worth it. Gaining resilience in the market isn’t luck. There’s a science to it.
Marketing planning kicks off right from the early stages of game concept development, where leveraging data is paramount. It provides insights into user preferences and prevailing market trends. By dissecting user behaviour, demographics, and industry dynamics, a meticulously crafted pre-launch campaign resonates authentically with the target audience, ensuring more resilience for a product after its release.
What really matters here is the experience. The whole point of using your past is to enhance the development and marketing of your future products. Gathering data on games and examining key metrics like player retention, active users, and the number of rounds played serves as the best guide to understanding what clicks with the audience.
Diana Larina, Head of Marketing at Evoplay, confirms: “In our experience, it’s not just about collecting data – it’s about asking the right questions about it. We’ve seen that the most successful games are those whose marketing strategies evolve with the behaviour of real users. Metrics like session length, churn points, and in-game activity help us spot not just what works but why it works. That’s where data turns into a competitive advantage. We always start with a question: ‘What decisions are we planning to make based on this research or data, and why are these decisions important to us right now?'”
Smart marketers gather a ton of data and make meaningful moves with it.
Harnessing the power of pre-release & post-release phases
Marketing planning spans across pre-release, release, and post-release phases.
And we at Evoplay know that every season has its own beauty. But the post-release season is the most harvesting period. Here, the core focus of product resilience shifts to two key areas: B2B and B2C.
B2B direction:
- Nailing the perfect communication for game releases with partners (newsletters, Client Area, etc.).
- Giving a game some extra love by organising themed campaigns with casinos during which the product takes centre stage.
- Creating promotional materials dedicated to the title.
- Securing the game’s top placement on partners’ platforms.
B2C direction:
- Communication with the iGaming audience through social media.
- Running influencer campaigns.
- Engaging the audience to participate in promo activities: special promotions, personalised bonuses, and loyalty programs.
80% of results are generated from 20% of the time invested – that’s the golden marketing rule. Optimise your resource allocation and efforts towards activities that promise the highest returns, especially during the pre-release period. The most effective approach is to put your brand’s unique spin on everything you do, particularly in the formats of promotional campaigns.
To emphasise, events play a crucial role in iGaming marketing. They are particularly adept at creating anticipation for an upcoming game launch. Throwing a party and gathering a diverse group of individuals, all abuzz with excitement about your project, brings an incredible energy that transcends the impact of emails or other digital channels.
iGaming brands often miss out on the feeling part. However, the in-person experience is what establishes a connection. Feelings deserve a seat at every marketing event. You may call it “B2B marketing” or “B2C marketing”, but at the end of the day, you market to humans.
Moreover, it serves as your brand’s prime opportunity to foster resilience right from the initial stages, offering partners an exclusive glimpse into what the product entails and how they can reap its benefits.
Nevertheless, it doesn’t mean that marketers can afford to relax and be out of the swim while campaigns are in progress. It’s time to navigate the aftermath of product marketing. Keep a close eye on the game’s metrics behaviour, pay attention to user feedback, and incorporate updates based on both data analysis and player reactions.
Listen to what they say
According to SurveyMonkey, 91% of people believe companies should fuel innovation by listening to customers. In the iGaming development realm, it’s crucial to attune one ear to partners and the other to players.
To make your products even better, make it a habit to gather feedback from different sources, like social networks, where players share their thoughts. Keep those lines of communication open with partners, primarily through face-to-face meetings at events or conferences; they’re goldmines of insights. Remember, feedback isn’t just about tweaking things here and there. It’s your company’s North Star. Embrace the opinion and incorporate it!
We’ve seen it ourselves. We’re always keeping an eye on how players respond to our games, and that feedback plays a big role in what we build next. Not long ago, we even asked for input on a game that hadn’t gone live yet – just to see what players thought before launch. We ran a test campaign with the team. Players got early access, shared their thoughts, and jumped into a prize pool giveaway. In the end, 20 people walked away with rewards, and we walked away with the feedback we could really use.
Before riding the wave, make the wave
Marketing for the sake of product resilience indeed has a larger wiggle room than meets the eye. Fortunately, we live in the digital era, in the age of social media being a town square of the internet.
Continuously crafting and sharing content, such as YouTube videos, along with platforms like TikTok, tutorials, updates, engaging UGC and collaborations with influencers are key to making an iGaming product evergreen. Establishing strategic partnerships with other gaming platforms or relevant brands can further expand the reach and draw new players.
You may provide a counter-argument: 80% of consumers forget branded content after 3 days (Prezi). Yes, but the thing is to make your content a sustainable flywheel. Let the social proof for your product unfold organically. Perhaps your product features a charismatic character that captivates iGamers’ attention or a compelling storyline that could inspire fan fiction. There’s undoubtedly some unique aspect to it waiting to be highlighted!
Every product has a story; it’s up to the marketer to skillfully share it.
The creator economy is worth over $100B, influencer marketing – $16.4B.
Spot the difference?
The fluff-free truth is that creators often bring a unique set of advantages compared to influencers. One key aspect is authenticity. They don’t fake their passion for a product. They also tend to have a more profound connection with niche audiences, with their content often tailored to a specific group that shares their interests.
In the present landscape, we’re witnessing a surge in collaborations with micro-influencers, with a notable 77% of brands favouring these partnerships. The appeal lies, again, in the authenticity and engagement that micro-influencers bring to the table. Influencers add value by offering credible reviews, showcasing gameplay, and actively engaging with their audiences, creating a compelling narrative around your product.
Ultimately, a well-balanced strategy combining creators and influencers can really amp up your marketing game, paving the way for a robust campaign to fortify your product’s resilience post-launch.
Toy around with the idea that, as the 95-5 rule says, only 5% of your audience actively seeks what you offer, while the remaining 95% are currently “out-market.”
Here is where you can stand on the shoulders of this majority to make it your audience in the long run, fostering resilience in your product strategy.
When it comes to iGaming, that 95% could very well represent the next generation. At this point, online gambling faces fierce competition from the expansive entertainment industry. Yet, the key lies in the creation of innovative and unconditional content that resonates with younger demographics. Also, recognise the importance of aligning your marketing channels with their preferences. Given that social media significantly impacts 54% of Zoomers, it becomes paramount to embrace influencer marketing to build up product resilience.
In their book, Al Ries and Jack Trout state that marketing is a battle of perceptions, not products. The law of post-launch resilience is to win this battle. What often matters most isn’t necessarily having the absolute best product but rather how your product is perceived by the audience. It’s all about shaping that perception, and marketing is the key player in making that happen.
Conclusion
Pulling all the pieces together – from strategy to the little details – is never simple. It takes time, teamwork, and a solid understanding of who you’re actually trying to reach. But in our experience, that mix is what really makes a product last. Everything has to click – how you position it, talk about it, and get it in front of people. It’s not always easy, but it’s worth it when it works.
