Knowing what to avoid can help you build an advergame that looks great, appeals to your target market and generates brand loyalty.

Advergaming has been increasing in popularity since inception, and the market is projected to continue its growth. No longer a niche market, Gartner research says 20 percent of global tier-one retailers will have some form of marketing presence in online games and virtual worlds by 2010. Many of these companies are experimenting with advergames with great success.

Sometimes considered an arena for tweens and techies, advergames have been steadily and quietly building an audience of women between the ages of 35 and 49 — a coveted demographic for advertisers.

Before jumping in and launching an advergame in the hope of gaining additional interest in your product or service, do some homework first to know your audience and what makes an advergame effective.
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Creating an advergame without advanced planning may leave you with little traffic and no return on investment. When planning an advergaming campaign, marketers should keep in mind several steps that could keep their game from missing the mark.

Building the wrong game
When planning a game, keep your target audience in mind. Don’t build a shooter game when your target audience is gun control activists or your campaign may not be as effective as it could be. To elicit good memories and feelings, you can start by repackaging older games that are traditional favorites by adding a new spin. Some users will enjoy reliving their youth, while younger users will see games as retro and cool.

The main goal should be to increase awareness of your brand and ultimately sell your product or service. Keeping that top-of-mind when creating the game will help you build traffic and interest while starting to create a loyal following of customers.

Advertising overkill
Simple is better with an advergaming campaign. Products can be integrated into the game itself, such as a game where the user takes a spoon to scoop up cereal to gain points, or with ads surrounding the game on the perimeter of the screen, or dynamic ads within the game such as a message appearing on a billboard during a driving game.

However, too many ads can turn away potential players and future customers. Gamers want to play the game first, knowing that advertising is secondary and is likely paying for the availability of the game. They will view — and expect to see — advertising in exchange for playing a fun game, but they will be turned off if the advertising is too dominant and interferes with the game.

Underestimated promotion
Just because you create a game doesn’t mean people will find it and play it. Understand that the advergame is the centerpiece to the campaign. To get consumers interested in playing, it will need a call-to-action. This is where an integrated game can work well because consumers become familiar with your brand when it is an essential and relevant part of the game. Other advergame campaigns offer players incentives or a discount after playing the game.

Simply just building a branded advergame and expecting people to play won’t be successful. You’ll need to promote the game through your website, e-newsletters and through sites and forums that are of interest to the target audience.

Limiting your audience
Advergames should be fairly simple for the user to learn and play. Make sure that the game is not too complex. There’s a reason why casual games such as Solitaire and Mindsweeper have persisted so long on PCs and mobile phones. People can relate to easy-to-play games that they can come back to repeatedly when they have a few moments of free time.

Don’t create an advergame that requires advanced gaming skills, too many rules or controls, and too many hidden or secret ways to earn additional points. Advergames are vastly different from traditional video games and so are the players. Games should be fairly straightforward, reminiscent of the classic days of video games, and they should not take much time to learn how to play.

Skimping on the visuals
Don’t use poor graphics. On the one hand, the game needs to be simple to play but it also needs to be visually appealing. Gamers of all types are familiar with cutting-edge graphics, high-speed internet service and gaming systems such as the Nintendo Wii, Microsoft Xbox 360 and Sony Playstation 3.

Today’s gaming systems are not limited to the hardcore gamers. In fact, the Wii has been noted as a crossover success for women and seniors.

To create an advergaming campaign that translates well, there is a need to create an interesting game that fully utilizes graphics to draw in users and tantalize them with a cutting-edge, creative-looking game.

Confusing your customers
When making an advergame simple to use, the directions should be kept as simple and fun as possible. Avoid long-text directions that take several pages to explain. Instead, use common keys and directions for game playing such as X for shooting, Y for blocking and the arrow keys to move.

Knowing what to avoid can help you build an advergame that looks great, appeals to your target market and generates interest in your brand, subsequently building brand loyalty.

The advergaming industry is moving to mainstream advertising as an increasing number of companies move their budgets online. Staying ahead of the curve and giving your customers something they cannot find elsewhere will increase retention and loyalty.

John O’Green is the president of BOSSdev. Read full bio

By John O’Green - President BOSSdev, Inc.

Even the most carefully crafted Web 2.0 program can fall flat if users don’t get what they have come to expect from the two-way internet. Here are some key pitfalls to avoid when planning your brand’s efforts.

Many marketers say they have a handle on Web 2.0. They’re LinkedIn, they update their status in Facebook and have followers on Twitter. But in reality, there’s a lot of talk about the social media space — and not necessarily a lot of actual work behind the words.

When creating new concepts for a company to incorporate Web 2.0 features, such as user-generated reviews, viral marketing tactics and spreading information via word of mouth, keep in mind that without allowing consumers to have input and control, a carefully crafted marketing or advertising program can end up with very few users, or can even be lambasted on the latest industry blog that lives to make fun of poorly conceived campaigns.

By knowing what not to do when launching into the two-way internet, where businesses and individuals interact and collaborate, smart companies can adopt new technologies that build brand awareness and attract loyal customers. Here are some guidelines for updating a company’s website and online plan.

The customer is king
Web 2.0 is not a programming language or a specific architecture. It’s a methodology that enables individuals to create and share content online. Where Web 1.0 was a one-way flow of information, from a company’s website to the customer reading the information, Web 2.0 is two-way — businesses and customers respond and create content together. Customers can use tags to categorize merchandise and offer reviews of products and services for others to see, essentially producing a more effective website for future customers. Customer-generated information is perceived as more authentic and carries increased credibility to spread word of mouth.

Marketing still has its place
When a company offers user-generated reviews, advergames or features such as custom tag creation, it should not be assumed that customers will find these options and automatically adopt them. Traditional online marketing tactics should still be employed to drive traffic and recognition to a company’s website. Search engine optimization, pay-per-click campaigns and even email newsletters to an existing customer base are all important drivers for site traffic.

Don’t build a walled garden
The proliferation of Web 2.0 was made possible through the integration of various programming languages, referred to as mashups, which often are created by users who have no association with either site used in the mashup. Sites such as Facebook and Google offer application programming interface (API) code that developers can use to create new applications based on the code of the original site. An open site with APIs allows for the creation of mashups and, in turn, further spreads the reach of the original sites.

While companies may consider opening the back-end of their sites through APIs, others are taking an additional step by offering Software as a Service (SaaS), which is software that lives online vs. downloads and applications that are housed on a user’s desktop. This decreases the need for downloads and space on a computer, as it instead lives within a user’s browser, making it accessible to the user from anywhere and from any computer.

Remember to share
Don’t forget to make it easy for customers, partners, media and other audiences to stay up-to-date on the company and its offerings. Another important step for any company is the need to offer Really Simple Syndication (RSS) feeds. RSS is an easy way for anyone interested in a company’s website to stay up-to-date with the latest news, sales or new products. The information is packaged into aggregated content that is read through feed readers, such as My Yahoo, Bloglines or Google Reader. This allows companies to virtually keep in contact, with minimal effort and maximum returns.

Networking needed
Don’t play the wallflower. Explore social networking communities. User-generated content is being shared online through social networks such as MySpace, Facebook and numerous sites that are created for specific industries or interests. Marketing through social networks is still in its infancy.

However, many marketers are experimenting with custom Facebook applications that reflect the concept of advergames, where the user engages in some sort of activity with advertising as the byproduct. For example, Facebook users can add an application that display a user’s top songs, offered by a site that sells music.

Whatever avenue a company takes, keep in mind that any Web 2.0 initiatives should be well thought out, appropriate for the company’s audience and include features that allow customers to have a say and pass information to their circle of friends.

Links: iMedia Connection