THE NEW AGE OF ESPORTS - THE BRANDS, TRIBES, AND TRENDS DEFINING A NEW OPPORTUNITY
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A LINKFLUENCE SOCIAL INTELLIGENCE REPORT | 2021 THE NEW AGE OF ESPORTS THE BRANDS, TRIBES, AND TRENDS DEFINING A NEW OPPORTUNITY
Contents
03 What do we want to answer with this research?
05 Where is esports today? A break-out industry with room to grow.
07 Why social media intelligence?
09 How big is the conversation and where is it happening?
14 What are the trends driving growth?
20 What are gamers playing and what drives them?
24 Who are the Tribes defining the future of esports?
31 How can brands win? 9 tactics and 9 examples.
43 Sexism in gaming: what can brands do to help?
47 How has Covid-19 impacted gaming?
51 How to influence esports?
55 Tips for marketers.
THE NEW AGE OF ESPORTS – THE BRANDS, TRIBES, AND TRENDS DEFINING A NEW OPPORTUNITY A LINKFLUENCE SOCIAL INTELLIGENCE REPORT | 2
01
What do
we want to
answer with
this research?
Few industries have experienced the explosive growth
of the gaming industry in the last 10 years. While long
perceived to be the domain of children young and
old, the combination of mobile accessibility, fast data,
highly acclaimed content, and maturity of esports has
accelerated the industry.
THE NEW AGE OF ESPORTS – THE BRANDS, TRIBES, AND TRENDS DEFINING A NEW OPPORTUNITY A LINKFLUENCE SOCIAL INTELLIGENCE REPORT | 3
WHAT DO WE WANT TO ANSWER WITH THIS RESEARCH?
What's the purpose of this report? How was this report created?
The goal of this report is to explore This report was produced by the
the social forces behind the insights team at Linkfluence, a
persistent growth of the esport leading global social intelligence
industry and opportunities created company, using data from millions of
for brands, and to demonstrate social media posts, our proprietary
the depth, relevancy, and value of social listening software, Radarly,
social media intelligence to leaders and the expertise of our in-house
in marketing and consumer insights. entertainment industry researchers.
What is the listening scope, time frame
and data analysed for this report?
LI ST E N I N G SCO PE PL AT FO RM S
English (US, UK) Twitter Facebook
Chinese (worldwide)
Instagram Twitch
T I M E FRA M E
Forums Blogs
September 2019 -
September 2020 Reviews Little Red
Contributors Book
Kinnary Canet Hannah Issa Noémie Sanquer
Audrey Guilloux Sarah Laurier Joanne Tsan
Sarah Henchi Yutong Nong
Note: Douyou platform is not covered in China
THE NEW AGE OF ESPORTS – THE BRANDS, TRIBES, AND TRENDS DEFINING A NEW OPPORTUNITY A LINKFLUENCE SOCIAL INTELLIGENCE REPORT | 4
02
Where is
esports today?
A break-out
industry with
room to grow.
Few industries have experienced the explosive growth
of the gaming industry in the last 10 years. While long
perceived to be the domain of children young and old,
the combination of platform accessibility, fast data,
highly acclaimed content, and social media adoption
has accelerated the industry.
THE NEW AGE OF ESPORTS – THE BRANDS, TRIBES, AND TRENDS DEFINING A NEW OPPORTUNITY A LINKFLUENCE SOCIAL INTELLIGENCE REPORT | 5
WHERE IS ESPORTS TODAY? A BREAK-OUT INDUSTRY WITH ROOM TO GROW.
7+ hours
Average game time per week for video game players1
$2.5b
Estimated income for Fortnite in 20182
87%
1 limelight.com/resources/white-paper/state-of-online-gaming-2019/#perf
2 businessinsider.com/how-much-money-does-fortnite-make-2019-1
Increase in social media posts
since February 20193
3 Social data volumes using Linkfluence Radarly
THE NEW AGE OF ESPORTS – THE BRANDS, TRIBES, AND TRENDS DEFINING A NEW OPPORTUNITY A LINKFLUENCE SOCIAL INTELLIGENCE REPORT | 6
03
THE NEW AGE OF ESPORTS – THE BRANDS, TRIBES, AND TRENDS DEFINING A NEW OPPORTUNITY
Why social
media
intelligence?
A LINKFLUENCE SOCIAL INTELLIGENCE REPORT | 7
WHY SOCIAL MEDIA INTELLIGENCE?
A ground-breaking approach What makes social intelligence
to insights that matches a must-have part of the modern
the speed of modern digital research toolkit?
consumers’ lifestyles.
Social intelligence is a powerful approach to U N ST RU CT U RED DATA ST RU CT U RI N G
As the largest focus group, the web offers: RAW DATA T EC H N O LO GY A N D PR O C E SS
insight with relevance, depth, and breadth,
• Massively significant and diverse data and a game-changing tool for strategy,
planning, marketing, and communications. Words AI
• Unprecedented speed of delivery
• An unsolicited, objective research asset Linkfluence combines big data, artificial Phrases Data science
intelligence, real-time visualization, and Images Market expertise
human expertise to analyze consumer
SO C IA L M ED IA PR O FI LE S attitudes and behaviors, and adapt this Hashtags
ACT I O NA BLE I N T ELLI G EN C E
analysis to the needs of the user.
Emojis
Psychographics
Locations
Conversation drivers
From Twitter and other social media platforms. Links
Topics and emotions
Behaviors
Tribes + communities
P OST S PER DAY Demographics
Audiences
Times
Influencer topic authority
Platforms
Trend prediction
Devices
From Twitter, traditional web sources like forums, blogs,
Occasions
and websites, review sites, and other media platforms.
Brand and category
attributes
THE NEW AGE OF ESPORTS – THE BRANDS, TRIBES, AND TRENDS DEFINING A NEW OPPORTUNITY A LINKFLUENCE SOCIAL INTELLIGENCE REPORT | 8
04
HOW BIG IS THE CONVERSATION AND WHERE IS IT HAPPENING?
How big is the
conversation
UK
344k
U SA
5.2m
and where is
CHINA
1.66m
it happening?
This report focuses on the US, the UK, and China.
The topic of gaming represents a volume
of 8m posts between September 2019 and
September 2020, with 5.2m for the US,
344k for UK markets and 1.66m for China.1
1
Data tracked by Linkfluence. While this data is representative and includes the major Chinese networks,
the actual number including non-public forums, university forums, and regional websites is higher.
THE NEW AGE OF ESPORTS – THE BRANDS, TRIBES, AND TRENDS DEFINING A NEW OPPORTUNITY A LINKFLUENCE SOCIAL INTELLIGENCE REPORT | 9
HOW BIG IS THE CONVERSATION AND WHERE IS IT HAPPENING?
Where is the
conversation happening?
The type of the social media platforms
favored by gamers, compared to social media
users in general, provides a window into gamer
culture. Platforms that allow for in-depth
discussions allow gamers to express their
passions and frustrations, while responding
to those of others, as well as to discuss and
hypothesize about technology innovations
and upcoming content.
Blog and forums represent 53%,
(approximately 3.9 million) of total
conversations about gaming in social, e.g.
3.9M of conversation on the key platforms
throughout the year, suggesting that users
hold better-quality discussions compared
to the other platforms.
Distribution of platfoms over the last year indicate that esports fans favor forums, Sina Weibo,
and Twitch, and that conversations spiked in April, when most lockdowns in the west began.
THE NEW AGE OF ESPORTS – THE BRANDS, TRIBES, AND TRENDS DEFINING A NEW OPPORTUNITY A LINKFLUENCE SOCIAL INTELLIGENCE REPORT | 10HOW BIG IS THE CONVERSATION AND WHERE IS IT HAPPENING?
The social media
platforms of gaming
Twitch is the perfect place for brands to communicate
with gamers, but only with contextualized content.
Twitch users are demanding and are accustomed to high
quality video with commentary from experts. To engage
on Twitch, brands must partner with legitimate players
+65%
GROWTH IN GAMING
and understand gamer culture.The Razer Streamer
program is worth special note for its efforts to discover
CONVERSATIONS YEAR new and sponsor influencers on Twitch via the hashtag
OVER YEAR
#razerstreamer.
THE NEW AGE OF ESPORTS – THE BRANDS, TRIBES, AND TRENDS DEFINING A NEW OPPORTUNITY A LINKFLUENCE SOCIAL INTELLIGENCE REPORT | 11HOW BIG IS THE CONVERSATION AND WHERE IS IT HAPPENING?
The Chinese platform Sina Weibo (新浪微博) is the largest While Reddit is the most well-known platform in
social media channel for news, gossip, information, and the west, 'Forums' represents thousands of global
entertainment, is the leading social media platform for platforms, attracting more involved gamers discussing
gaming and esport content. athletes, events, game details, tournaments and
leagues, and gaming tips. As the primary domain
Esport and gaming clubs host fan pages on Sina Weibo,
+35%
GROWTH IN GAMING
sharing competition and other gaming community
information. Fans frequently create sub-community fan
+21%
GROWTH IN GAMING
for user-generated content (UGC), forums are closely
protected by users, and are not the ideal place for a
CONVERSATIONS YEAR brand to communicate, unless for customer care
OVER YEAR pages for their favorite esport gamers. Reporters from CONVERSATIONS YEAR
OVER YEAR
or support.
diverse media outlets share their analysis through their
Weibo accounts.
With its news-outlet oriented appeal, Twitter is the Reddit threads about Overwatch League:
primary platform for creating visibility around gaming
events, including the F1 Virtual Grand Prix, Modern + Los Angeles Valiant vs Washington Justice
OVE RWATC H LE AG U E 2 0 2 0 S E ASO N
Warfare Tournament, and FIFA20. Despite being blocked
in China, Twitter is also popular for the China-focused
+ Paris Eternal vs Washington Justice
+24%
GROWTH IN GAMING
LPL 2020 competition, 2019 LOL World Championship,
and the 2020 LOL World Championship. Twitter is an
OVE RWATC H LE AG U E 2 0 2 0 S E ASO N
CONVERSATIONS YEAR ideal place for pop-culture events like Grand Theft Auto + Vancouver Titans vs Boston Uprising
OVER YEAR
(GTA) memes, and Animal Crossing player references. OVE RWATC H LE AG U E 2 0 2 0 S E ASO N
Twitter is the ideal platform for community engagement “I coach overwatch for a collegiate esports
with jokes, memes, news, and is a more transparent forum team and can confirm that you are indeed
where 1.3 million users refer to gaming or esport in their correct in what you are outlining here in your
bios (based on analytics from Linkfluence’s Tribes software). post. Most of my practices are lined with
posing questions and poking and prodding
the answer from players on the team. The
fact is that Overwatch takes serious cognitive
function to play well.” – Reddit post
THE NEW AGE OF ESPORTS – THE BRANDS, TRIBES, AND TRENDS DEFINING A NEW OPPORTUNITY A LINKFLUENCE SOCIAL INTELLIGENCE REPORT | 12HOW BIG IS THE CONVERSATION AND WHERE IS IT HAPPENING?
RED is a user-generated content (UGC) platform primarily
for discussing beauty, cosmetics, travel, and fashion, used
mainly by women18 to 25 years old. However, it is a key
channel for topics and content that overlaps with these
topics and gaming.
+16%
GROWTH IN GAMING
Products discussed related to esports include the massage
gun, esport hotels, esport travel spots (such as the LOL
CONVERSATIONS YEAR
OVER YEAR Park in South Korea), fashion products (such as the Nike X
LPL / Air Jordan X LPL collection), and cosmetics (such as
the MAC X Honor of Kings collection).
With 1.2b monthly active users, WeChat is the most Due to its short-form, visual nature, Instagram has less
adopted social media platform in China, and is also used overall gaming content with less engagement. One
for non-social purposes from banking to ride-hailing to exception is Overwatch, which has 71% of content on
food delivery. WeChat’s public accounts are complete Instagram, including podcasts, news, fanart, and cosplay,
websites in their own rights, many of which are structured supported by influential communities like monicpost.
+5%
GROWTH IN GAMING
like blogs, sharing news on gaming and esports. Unlike
on Sina Weibo content on WeChat is usually long, +5%
GROWTH IN GAMING
Many Twitch posts are shared on Instagram, indicating
that the platform is used more for distribution than
CONVERSATIONS YEAR containing detailed information and analysis. CONVERSATIONS YEAR
OVER YEAR OVER YEAR creation, especially when it comes to streaming.
The most highly engaged gaming topics on WeChat Regardless, it is an important platform for maintaining
are League of Legends (LOL), LOL Pro League (LPL), LOL fan base through art (sketches; cosplays). It is also ideal
King Pro League (KPL), political topics, such as the trade for cross-pollinating gaming with pop culture, through
war’s impact on Tencent, and banning of Chinese apps in the broadcast of memes, and gaming related news.
the US and India, and gossip about gaming ambassadors
Like Twitter, Instagram is a great place for brands and soft
such as Jay Chou and Karry Wang. The most successful
players (for example, the Animal Crossing community),
content on WeChat uses titles with names of celebrities,
but the need for visual content limits the interaction of
interesting images, and giveaways. Advertising is placed
hard gamers.
at the bottom of the article.
THE NEW AGE OF ESPORTS – THE BRANDS, TRIBES, AND TRENDS DEFINING A NEW OPPORTUNITY A LINKFLUENCE SOCIAL INTELLIGENCE REPORT | 1305
WHAT ARE THE TRENDS DRIVING GROWTH?
What are the
trends driving
growth?
The explosion of gaming and esports did not happen
in isolation simply because of an increased demand
for gaming. A rapid improvement in access to content
and democratization of production, the fostering of
esports competitions by government and industry, and
innovation in technology have coalesced into a perfect
accelerant for the industry. Each of these trends are a
possible entry point for brands seeking to access new
customers and their communities.
THE NEW AGE OF ESPORTS – THE BRANDS, TRIBES, AND TRENDS DEFINING A NEW OPPORTUNITY A LINKFLUENCE SOCIAL INTELLIGENCE REPORT | 14WHAT ARE THE TRENDS DRIVING GROWTH?
Growth driver #1: Gaming is a very conversational topic,
with consistent growth over the past
Live content 12 months, led by strong demand for
content, especially video-on-demand,
and social and it’s ever-expanding accessibility on
broadcasting devices from laptops to smartphones,
over platforms with better user interfaces
and exclusive content.
“Live gaming and sports
content will serve as the Live content and broadcasting have
foundation for a new category been especially popular, as evidenced
that I call social broadcasting.” by #PS4live in March and August 2020
– Ben Keighran, CEO Caffeine (81K and 41K posts, respectively).
TOTA L VO LU M E PE RS PECT IVE OVER T H E YEA R – GA M I N G A N D E S P O RT
+87
6 M O N T H PE RI O D E VO LU T I O N , MA R– S EP 2 0 2 0 ( VS . S EP 2 0 1 9 – FEB 2 0 2 0 )
THE NEW AGE OF ESPORTS – THE BRANDS, TRIBES, AND TRENDS DEFINING A NEW OPPORTUNITY A LINKFLUENCE SOCIAL INTELLIGENCE REPORT | 15WHAT ARE THE TRENDS DRIVING GROWTH?
A NA LY T I C S FR O M RA DA RLY
G O O G LE PL AY
T WI TC H
Top hashtags include #streamer, #twitch,
#youtube, and #googleplay, emphasizing the
importance of broadcasting to the video game
Twitch has enabled people to broadcast from their
experience.
usual devices without specialist technology, opening
With more and more apps focused on streaming broadcasting to millions. Viewable on phones, smart
and broadcasting, Google Play is also a domain TVs, game consoles, and PCs, the reach and regularity
for gaming reviews and consumer content. of livestreams indicates accelerating momentum.
THE NEW AGE OF ESPORTS – THE BRANDS, TRIBES, AND TRENDS DEFINING A NEW OPPORTUNITY A LINKFLUENCE SOCIAL INTELLIGENCE REPORT | 16WHAT ARE THE TRENDS DRIVING GROWTH?
Growth driver #2:
Esport competitions
become mainstream
Watching esports has become But the large FPS and MOBA E VO LU T I O N O F G R OW T H AC R OSS SO C IA L M E D IA
a common way to enjoy gaming, tournaments aren’t the only driver 1m
with a 102% increase in discussions of conversation about esports
on the topic worldwide since and gaming. Virtual concerts in 800k
September 2019. In China, the rise Fortnite and the esports NBA 2K
of esports has been even more tournaments are perfect examples 600k
dramatic, with competitions being of the growing popularity of
400k
the primary driver of conversations spectating outside of the 'die-hard'
throughout the year. One community. 200k
tournament alone, the LPL Spring
For example, one of the largest
competition, drove the bulk of
spikes in engagement in 2020 was
conversation from January 2020
driven by controversy after fans of
through May 2020.
a famous Chinese actor, Sean Xiao,
criticized LOL. Facebook Media Review Pinterest
Twitter Forum Sina Weibo Twitch
Instagram Comment Little Red Book WeChat
Blog
THE NEW AGE OF ESPORTS – THE BRANDS, TRIBES, AND TRENDS DEFINING A NEW OPPORTUNITY A LINKFLUENCE SOCIAL INTELLIGENCE REPORT | 17WHAT ARE THE TRENDS DRIVING GROWTH?
Throughout the last year, every time there was a peak in conversations,
it was driven by various types of esports and gaming events. Here are
the main peaks that occurred and the events that created them.
39% 20%
39% monthly growth | November 2019 20% monthly growth | April 2020
Major events included the ONE Esports Dota As the suspension of sports and other activities
2 World Pro Invitational Singapore, LOL Final drove attention to gaming, the most discussed
Championship, and Ultimate Battle Royal Live. titles were Overwatch, Call of Duty, and
In China, the LOL World Championship (LOL S9) Valorant. In China, major tournaments were
was held in Shanghai and Beijing, as well as the still a topic of conversation, including the 2020
2019 LOL World Championship, All-Star Las Vegas LPL, 2020 Spring LPL, LPL Playoffs, KOK Esport,
2019 (LPL全明星), the LCL Competition (esport and the story of FPC, the team that won the
competitions between university students), 2019 LOL World Championship (S9).
and Xiamen International Animation Festival.
46% 20%
46% monthly growth | March 2020 20% monthly growth | August 2020
Major events included the MotoGP Esport In the US and UK, Fortnite, Call of Duty,
World Championship, and the cancellations of and MarioKart Esport drove the most buzz,
leagues due to coronavirus pandemic, which while in China, the 2020 LPL, 2020 LPL
generated a high level of discussion due to their Summer, LOL 9th Annual Grand Ceremony,
cancellations. In China, the 2020 LPL and 2020 Hainan Dota2 Master Sponsorship, and S10
LPL Spring Competition drove conversation, as competition in October and November created
did traditional sports including the NBA, World the most excitement. JDG, the Chinese esport
Cup, and Tokyo Olympics as the audience team, also held an event for their fans online.
for these sports shifted to esports due to Fans also discussed Bilibili’s exclusive rights to
cancellations. distribute the LOL competition.
THE NEW AGE OF ESPORTS – THE BRANDS, TRIBES, AND TRENDS DEFINING A NEW OPPORTUNITY A LINKFLUENCE SOCIAL INTELLIGENCE REPORT | 18WHAT ARE THE TRENDS DRIVING GROWTH?
Growth driver #3: Technology and content innovation is the second biggest driver of excitement, after esporting events. In fact,
conversations on Reddit and 4chan, two of the most highly respected platforms in the gaming community,
Technology innovation (together representing 71% of conversations on forums) are mainly about device updates, new platforms,
title releases, and game settings, underlining a need in the gaming community for constant novelty in both
and novelty technology and content (with 781K posts about these topics on Reddit, and 862K on 4chan).
Of these topics, new releases drive the most interest. For example:
“We want to give gamers certainty
that they're buying a true next-
April 2020
generation console. There's been
Popular content included the latest "That doesn’t mean I want another
a lot of technology changes and
episode of future-gazing podcast Pokémon. I play lucario for his glass
advances, which only really interests “The World Ahead”, FIFA updates, canon underdog play style, not because
us in the extent that they enable the PlayStation Plus Celebration of the franchise. I do enjoy the Pokémon
transformative change in the way that pack, Nintendo pre-order, and new games, but the newest ones have
products from hardware brands. definitely been pretty bad." – Reddit
people play and experience games.
For us, the time to capture that and
to make a big step is with a console
transition or platform transition.
August and September 2020
What we call the generation approach.” “Black Ops Cold War is arriving in
Topics that drove conversation
included the release of Final Fantasy November, but before that, players
– JIM RYAN,CEO PLAYSTATION
XIV Shadowbringers, news about will get the beta version. The beta
Animal Crossing New Horizons version will come out before a month
(Joe Biden’s signs, Nintendo’s success of the official release. Releasing the
with the game), and the release of beta version is an old tradition of the
Hyrule Warriors for Nintendo Switch. Call of Duty franchise.” – Blog
THE NEW AGE OF ESPORTS – THE BRANDS, TRIBES, AND TRENDS DEFINING A NEW OPPORTUNITY A LINKFLUENCE SOCIAL INTELLIGENCE REPORT | 1906
WHAT ARE GAMERS PLAYING AND WHY?
What are
gamers playing
and what
drives them?
The world of gaming and esports is not a closed
community only accessible to geeky insiders. Far
from it, esports is now entrenched in larger society,
and conversations related to gaming show that the
nature of gameplay and communities surrounding
each type of game have a major impact on the
affinities of gamers and their worldview, and their
interactions with brands outside the game.
THE NEW AGE OF ESPORTS – THE BRANDS, TRIBES, AND TRENDS DEFINING A NEW OPPORTUNITY A LINKFLUENCE SOCIAL INTELLIGENCE REPORT | 20WHAT ARE GAMERS PLAYING AND WHY?
Esports not only creates an arena for
competition, but gives space for meaningful
conversations about many topics of varying
emotional charge. This provides a door
for brands to foster a relationship with the
community, which can be opened by talking
to players (and observers) about what they
care about, while being acutely aware of the
emotional context to maintain authenticity
and avoid coming off as 'too cool'.
Frequent positive emotions discussed include
accessible entertainment, relaxation, the
emotional reward of improving skills, and
fostering a sense of community. Negative
emotions include game bashing, hate speech,
and violating community rules.
THE NEW AGE OF ESPORTS – THE BRANDS, TRIBES, AND TRENDS DEFINING A NEW OPPORTUNITY A LINKFLUENCE SOCIAL INTELLIGENCE REPORT | 21WHAT ARE GAMERS PLAYING AND WHY?
Strategy Games Survival
EX A M PLE : STA R C RA F T EX A M PLE : FO RT N I T E
Often perceived as being the most Although still competitive, this gaming
challenging of esports categories, category is the most collaborative
conversation is usually positive and among players and brands (as long
driven by fan discussions about skilled as they hold an appeal to the player
players, tournaments and awards community). The most recognized
announcements. Developers and example is the Travis Scott Fortnite Tour,
designers are also a topic with a high which earned acclaim for providing a
level of engagement. positive place for youth to socialize.
Racing Sports
EX A M PLE : F 1 / M OTO G P EX A M PLE : N BA 2 K
Of all esports categories, racing garners Engaging a more conventional audience
the highest percentage of conversations due to its overlap with traditional sports,
from a broader community, with the Soccer and Football simulation
support for teams, players, and gaming community is similar to the
streamers (#SupportSmallStreamers). racing and survival community in its
Live streaming is highly viral and there strong collaboration and positive impact
are a larger percentage of observers on gamer’s lives. Sponsorships are the
than other categories. main mode of brand interaction and
often have an overlap with real-world
marketing (BurgerKing for Stevenage).
THE NEW AGE OF ESPORTS – THE BRANDS, TRIBES, AND TRENDS DEFINING A NEW OPPORTUNITY A LINKFLUENCE SOCIAL INTELLIGENCE REPORT | 22WHAT ARE GAMERS PLAYING AND WHY?
Multiplayer Online Battle Arena / MOBA
EX A M PLE : LO L
The category with the largest 2020
prize pool, MOBA has a large insider
community, especially in China and
Korea. While many brand partnerships
have been forged, the category has
also experienced the most negative
conversation around sexual harassment,
especialy related to DOTA2 (mainly in
Forums; Reddit), suggesting a chance
to support women’s empowerment.
First-Person Shooters / FPS Racing
EX A M PLE : CO U N T E R- ST RI KE G LO BA L O FFEN S IVE EX A M PLE : NASCA R
Outside the gaming community, FPS Although anchored in a broader
games have been accused of fostering community of Racing fans, and with
violence in society, especially among a real-world marketing opportunity
youth. While this is vehemently rejected overlap similar to sports simulators,
by the FPS community, controversial the racing simulation category also
opinions are often posted on Twitter has a higher level of aggressive
with lots of trolling and sarcasm, conversation, including incidents related
although viral debate deflates as quickly to hate speech, firearms, and gamer
as it escalates. FPS game-bashing is a suspensions. These topics are most
common practice across Twitter. frequently discussed on Forums.
THE NEW AGE OF ESPORTS – THE BRANDS, TRIBES, AND TRENDS DEFINING A NEW OPPORTUNITY A LINKFLUENCE SOCIAL INTELLIGENCE REPORT | 2307
WHO ARE THE TRIBES DEFINING THE FUTURE OF GAMING?
Who are the
Tribes defining
the future of
esports?
The biggest influence on consumer behavior is word-of-
mouth and social media, controlled by an ever-shifting mix
of cultural trends and identities. And it is digital culture, not
national borders, that define new consumer segments. These
rapidly-shifting psychographic groups are defined by common
passions rather than traditional demographics, and are known
as 'Tribes'. They are vocal, listen to their peers and influencers,
and engage in online, offline, and social buying journeys that
are not linear but circular, multi-directional, and even reversible.
More than anything, they define the future of esports.
THE NEW AGE OF ESPORTS – THE BRANDS, TRIBES, AND TRENDS DEFINING A NEW OPPORTUNITY A LINKFLUENCE SOCIAL INTELLIGENCE REPORT | 24WHO ARE THE TRIBES DEFINING THE FUTURE OF GAMING?
The Tribes of esports have
grown and diversified
The events of 2020 presented a major challenge to
esports. Just like traditional sports, esports teams
and their fans were accustomed to engaging
in real-life, and were forced to find new ways
to engage. However, unlike traditional sports,
gamers were able to adapt to gaming
in isolation and not only survive, but thrive.
Consequently, esports moved into the spotlight,
with an emphasis on providing a richer
experience, and pushing leagues and teams
to find novel ways to interact with their fans.
Based on the type of game, digital and real-life
community, and other interests, the various
Tribes surrounding gaming and esports
have grown and diversified.
GAMING & E-SPORT – THE BRANDS, TRIBES, AND TRENDS DEFINING A NEW OPPORTUNITY A LINKFLUENCE SOCIAL INTELLIGENCE REPORT | 25WHO ARE THE TRIBES DEFINING THE FUTURE OF GAMING?
TOPICS
Living Fantasists
With a focus on role-play and immersive
experience, Living Fantasists enjoy
attending conventions related to their
favorite leagues or Twitch affiliation, such as
#OWL2020, #blizzcon, and #homestand.
They identify as creatives and describe
themselves as artists, designers, creators,
and event promoters, and due to their
involvement in real-life events, were most
impacted by COVID.
EMOJIS
+ Where to find them?
First-person Shooter (FPS)
Third-person Shooter (TPS)
+ What do they talk about?
Fashion and luxury
Tech and innovation
+ Examples of profiles
@delcattnip HASHTAGS
@black_ace_cosplays
@annjelife
@angalese
THE NEW AGE OF ESPORTS – THE BRANDS, TRIBES, AND TRENDS DEFINING A NEW OPPORTUNITY A LINKFLUENCE SOCIAL INTELLIGENCE REPORT | 26WHO ARE THE TRIBES DEFINING THE FUTURE OF GAMING?
TOPICS
Gaming Culture
Maniacs
This tribe strives to connect esports with
the mainstream and to remove player
stereotypes. They serve to broaden the
gaming audience and therefore are a great
entrypoint for brands. They mix gaming
content with mainstream content and
frequently post about social issues like
sexism and racism which they highlight
in their bios with #blacklivestories, EMOJIS
#womeninesport, and #realonesgaming.
+ Where to find them?
TPS
Sports
+ What do they talk about?
Fitness
Food
Technology HASHTAGS
+ Examples of profiles
@313queenpinky
@blackdogceo
@reaperofhugs42
@watchvenn
@gengesports
THE NEW AGE OF ESPORTS – THE BRANDS, TRIBES, AND TRENDS DEFINING A NEW OPPORTUNITY A LINKFLUENCE SOCIAL INTELLIGENCE REPORT | 27WHO ARE THE TRIBES DEFINING THE FUTURE OF GAMING?
TOPICS
Slow Lifers
With a focus on relaxation, enjoyment, and
a collaborative mindset, they spend more
time observing gaming, and often post
about their environments and “chill-out”
activities. Although their accounts are full
of soft-tone colors, food, and fashion, they
are often serious players who project an
image of a balanced and more mainstream
lifestyle. This also makes them an excellent
entry point for brands.
EMOJIS
+ Where to find them?
FPS
Multiplayer Online Battle Arena (MOBA)
+ What do they talk about?
Food
Fashion
Photography
+ Examples of profiles HASHTAGS
@treatzlol
@dwreckidoez
@itsbririvers
@michelemorrow
THE NEW AGE OF ESPORTS – THE BRANDS, TRIBES, AND TRENDS DEFINING A NEW OPPORTUNITY A LINKFLUENCE SOCIAL INTELLIGENCE REPORT | 28WHO ARE THE TRIBES DEFINING THE FUTURE OF GAMING?
TOPICS
Inspiring Mentors
Finding greatness, improving skills,
pushing technology, and spreading a
gaming culture are the objectives of
the members of this tribe, who define
themselves as innovators and community
leaders. They are sometimes coaches,
commentators, or operate businesses
related to gaming, and or are sources
of knowledge around platforms, AI,
live tracking, and broadcast tools.
EMOJIS
+ Where to find them?
Esports competitions
MOBA
+ What do they talk about?
Technology
Business
Sports
+ Examples of profiles HASHTAGS
@the_evany
@jefchau
@felwgg
@juliealexandria00
THE NEW AGE OF ESPORTS – THE BRANDS, TRIBES, AND TRENDS DEFINING A NEW OPPORTUNITY A LINKFLUENCE SOCIAL INTELLIGENCE REPORT | 29WHO ARE THE TRIBES DEFINING THE FUTURE OF GAMING?
TOPICS
Aesthetic Addicts
Instilling creativity, design, and realism into
gaming culture is the aim of the Aesthetic
Addict. They are usually casual gamers,
but obsessed with the visual language
of gaming, and often involved in gaming
design directly, or peripherally via the
incorporation of gaming imagery into
their artwork. They are involved in creating
player or league visuals such as custom
banners and backgrounds, including for
brand partnerships. EMOJIS
+ Where to find them?
FPS
TPS
+ What do they talk about?
Art
Fashion
Sports
HASHTAGS
+ Examples of profiles
@mikeyanezart
@mattwildbore
@rid_pesik
THE NEW AGE OF ESPORTS – THE BRANDS, TRIBES, AND TRENDS DEFINING A NEW OPPORTUNITY A LINKFLUENCE SOCIAL INTELLIGENCE REPORT | 3008
HOW CAN BRANDS WIN? 9 TACTICS AND 9 EXAMPLES.
How can
brands win?
9 tactics and
9 examples.
Esports has not only bolstered the gaming industry,
but opened it up to mashups with other industries.
This has created opportunities for brands, particularly
those able to think creatively and move quickly into a
less-understood space. The following is a list of tactics
brands have used with success to take advantage of
the growth of gaming and build fresh rapport with
consumers.
THE NEW AGE OF ESPORTS – THE BRANDS, TRIBES, AND TRENDS DEFINING A NEW OPPORTUNITY A LINKFLUENCE SOCIAL INTELLIGENCE REPORT | 31HOW CAN BRANDS WIN? 9 TACTICS AND 9 EXAMPLES.
01
ADAPT MARKETING TO
TACTIC ESPORTS TRIBES AND
DIGITAL OCCASSIONS
"As a brand, you always want to Brand case study
go where your consumers are,"
says MyAnh Nghiem, director Before the pandemic, Louis Vuitton's While in-game prestige skins
of communications for Venus. 2019 partnership with LOL included characters helped the brand to
Female gamers are on the rise, a real-life capsule collection, in- infuse LOL with its aesthetics
and gamers' overall spending game prestige skins, and a custom- and codes, the capsule collection
capabilities have increased, made trophy - a pre-pandemic (displaying t-shirts, hoodies, jackets,
creating opportunities for precedent in the space. leather goods as well as accessories
brands to see this cohort as a like keyrings and bag charms)
With more than 1.2M posts on
marketable audience of potential offered something to everyone with
social web covering this unexpected
customers. While data on the a price range from around $10 to
collaboration, and highly positive
amount of actual spending over $5,600. The collection became
reception coming from users
on luxury and beauty within viral, mainly due to engagement of
across the world, the Louis Vuitton
esports and gaming is scarce, the the younger generation playing with
partnership can be seen as a
success of recent fashion and the LV Instagram filter, gamers and
"validating moment" for the esports'
beauty collaborations signals the luxury addicts. Similar mechanics
audience, Naz Aletaha, head of
audience is ready to spend on were used in the luxury collections
global esports partnerships and
these new offerings. visible online, with retailers,
business development at Riot
celebrities and luxury collectors
Games says.
adding to the buzz.
THE NEW AGE OF ESPORTS – THE BRANDS, TRIBES, AND TRENDS DEFINING A NEW OPPORTUNITY A LINKFLUENCE SOCIAL INTELLIGENCE REPORT | 32HOW CAN BRANDS WIN? 9 TACTICS AND 9 EXAMPLES.
02
ACTIVATE
TACTIC UNDER-USED GAMING
INFLUENCERS
While the influencer economy Brand case study
has boomed, increasing media
prices and influencer fatigue While Louis Vuitton capitalized on a in engaging broader Twitter
have diminished the value of this holistic approach through gaming community, securing significantly
key media channel. Meanwhile, (branded collection, branded skins, higher reach than a typical fashion
gaming influencers have luxurious trophy), luxury brands also collection (Gucci x The Fnatic: 82%
remained under appreciated and leverage the powerful influence of of related posts on Twitter vs. an
under-utilized, especially in the popular players. average of 3-5% for typical fashion
west. Many gaming influencers collections such as Off The Grid,
The increasing popularity of gaming
have a broad range of interests Gucci Epilogue). Users appreciated
influencers drives online craze and
which overlap with those of thier the "subtle nods to the gaming
sales. Over the summer, Gucci's
gaming audience, and are an world", including the fact that divers
collaboration with "the Fnatic" was
excellent opportunity for brands are a specific category in LOL, and
widely discussed on social media
to access new customers with that Gucci's double G logo can
during men fashion week. In a
trust and relevance. also stand for "good game" among
partnership with the London-based
players.
esport club, the brand released a
collection of limited-edition dive
watches. Priced at $1,600, all 100
pieces sold out within 48 hours.
Launched at the same time as the
#GucciOffTheGrid collection, the
limited edition generated 12.4K
posts. The partnership succeeded
THE NEW AGE OF ESPORTS – THE BRANDS, TRIBES, AND TRENDS DEFINING A NEW OPPORTUNITY A LINKFLUENCE SOCIAL INTELLIGENCE REPORT | 33HOW CAN BRANDS WIN? 9 TACTICS AND 9 EXAMPLES.
03
LOOK BEYOND THE
TACTIC HARDCORE, TO THE
GROWING MAINSTREAM
As seen in the first part of the Brand case study #1
study, gaming communities are
on the rise. With casual gamers In May 2020, MAC Cosmetics #MACxHonorofKings generated
representing a significant chunk partnered with a hit video game, 5.06M engagement actions on Sina
of the players, this “mainstream Honor of Kings, for the second time Weibo as Honor of Kings fans were
takeover” makes the esports in China. The exclusive makeup eager to show off products they
universe a key territory for brands collection proved to be popular bought. A popular esport blogger
wanting to increase visibility. amongst players, more than half of got involved, boosting engagement
whom are females under 24 years old). as he saw the MAC X Honor of Kings
"There's a huge crossover,
collection lipstick as a perfect gift
especially given the continued Over 209K posts on social media
for his girlfriend on May 20th (520’s
growth of the female gaming referred to the exclusive makeup
pronunciation in Chinese is “I love
community, as well as gamers products, highlighting the expressive
you”, therefore couples gift each other
integrating fashion, style, and makeup look echoing the Honor
on that day).Furthermore, aesthetic
beauty into their streams," writes of Kings color codes. Online
addicts shared their creations by
Mark Jiang, MAC's vice president conversation reflected consumers’
putting MAC X Honor of Kings lipsticks
of global commercial. love for MAC’s bold lipstick colors
on 4 Honor of Kings characters.
and their signature eyeshadow
palette. Smart influencer strategy, As per WeChat conversations, Honor
tapping into the online beauty of Kings has more female players
community and beauty gamers, than male. However, the signature
helped the company reach new lipsticks also attracted male gamers,
audiences without sacrificing its demonstrating that the gender blur
unconventional brand DNA. is reflected in the gaming universe.
THE NEW AGE OF ESPORTS – THE BRANDS, TRIBES, AND TRENDS DEFINING A NEW OPPORTUNITY A LINKFLUENCE SOCIAL INTELLIGENCE REPORT | 34HOW CAN BRANDS WIN? 9 TACTICS AND 9 EXAMPLES.
03
LOOK BEYOND THE
TACTIC HARDCORE, TO THE
GROWING MAINSTREAM
As seen in the first part of the Brand case study #2
study, gaming communities are
on the rise. With casual gamers Coca-Cola tried to implement - iRacing series, Coke machine,
representing a significant chunk interactive platforms to reach Happy hours. Chris Bigda, Director
of the players, this “mainstream mainstream audiences. In 2018, the of Sports Marketing and Activation
takeover” makes the esports brand launched @cokeesports to for The Coca-Cola Company,
universe a key territory for brands run weekly tournaments sessions: commented the news: “eNASCAR
wanting to increase visibility. Major league soccer and Clashroyale presents a unique opportunity
battlefield. The initiative generated for Coca-Cola to engage with
relatively low engagement on twitter consumers through some of the
(319K followers vs. 1.9M followers best esports competition that exists
for LOL esports). Learning from today. Through our new position as
this, Coca Cola decided to focus a NASCAR Premier Partner we’re
its investment in core sponsoring, exploring innovative ways to activate
cross-gaminges and cross-channels. across the sport. This series allows us
Recently, the brand announced its to connect with race fans, identify
plans to promote new talent. new talent and ultimately, celebrate
champions with refreshing ice-cold
The company has also been named
Coca-Cola.”
as the sponsor for the eNASCAR
iRacing Series, and created new
assets to promote the partnership
THE NEW AGE OF ESPORTS – THE BRANDS, TRIBES, AND TRENDS DEFINING A NEW OPPORTUNITY A LINKFLUENCE SOCIAL INTELLIGENCE REPORT | 35HOW CAN BRANDS WIN? 9 TACTICS AND 9 EXAMPLES.
04
USE THE SPIRIT OF GAMING
TACTIC TO INSPIRE FUN AND
PLAYFUL CONTENT
While exclusive collaborations Brand case study
boost visibility and help reach
mainstream audiences, gaming While exclusive collaborations reach In 2020, KFC supported the LOL World
codes, aesthetics, and playfulness mainstream audiences, gaming- Championship (S10) in Shanghai, to
can also be explored as a new specific aesthetics, and playfulness huge success. Comments like “it is
way of storytelling and can also be explored as a new way of already a habit of watching esport
content creation. storytelling and content creation. games while eating KFC”, “cannot watch
the esport competition without KFC,
In 2013, KFC was accused of breaking
family bucket here i come”, and “S10 and
a food safety law in China. The case
KFC is the perfect combination” were a
led to a loss of trust, something the
result of the initiative.
brand had to address. In 2015, KFC
entered the esport category, hoping The “WOW bucket Esport Season” and
to reforge a bond with consumers. partnership with Chinese actor Wang
Yi Bo (王一博) was another.
KFC created the “KI” (KFC’s AI), a
tool which tracks player behavior In the west, KFC's Gaming Twitter RA DA RLY A NA LY T I C S S H OWI N G T H E SU CC E SS O F KFC ' S
CO LL A BO RAT I O N WI T H C H I N E S E ACTO R WA N G YI BO
and delivers KFC discounts and account showcases esport events,
other rewards. KI uses KFC coupons device updates and brand activations.
to invite fans to enjoy winning Partnerships include Nintendo (Animal
moments. The activation triggered Crossing, 200K views on Twitter)
strong engagement from esport and X box (Invasion, 135K views on
players who call KI “the Paul’s Twitter). Light-hearted content, such
Octopus of esport”. as a prototype of the KFC console,
RA DA RLY A NA LY T I C S S H OWI N G KFC ' S SU CC E SS I N
generated 24K mentions. CO LL A BO RAT I O N S WI T H N I N T EN D O A N D X BOX
THE NEW AGE OF ESPORTS – THE BRANDS, TRIBES, AND TRENDS DEFINING A NEW OPPORTUNITY A LINKFLUENCE SOCIAL INTELLIGENCE REPORT | 36HOW CAN BRANDS WIN? 9 TACTICS AND 9 EXAMPLES.
05
EXPLOIT GAMING’S SUITABILITY invent IRL events and customer comments and discussions about the
TACTIC FOR AUGMENTED AND experience, and find innovative collection and its theme (“a love affair
IMMERSIVE EXPERIENCE ways to engage consumers. between a mermaid and shark”).
Launched simultaneously on The squad mode allowed the brand
Instagram Live and Twitch, Burberry to showcase multiple gamers playing
Spring-Summer Collection 2021 was at once, allowing players to decide
The unexpected Covid outbreak Brand case study the first collection broadcasted on which streams to interact with:
and crisis in 2020 meant that a gaming channel. More than 60K
• show discussion between celebrities
major gatherings and festivals Gaming platforms offer major opportunities to engage Twitch viewers were registered in just
like Rosalía and Bella Hadid
were forbidden. Smaller-scale with mainstream audiences. They also serve new three hours and 2.7K on Instagram
meet ups and celebrations were creative possibilities to showcase products and host Live. As Rod Manley, Burberry's chief • models getting ready and walking
also affected, giving brands little seasonal events. With the pandemic still affecting day marketing officer, explained, "Twitch the forest runway
room and opportunities to raise to day lives, the 'new normal' urges global brands to re- unlocks an exciting new space • musician Eliza Douglas providing
awareness and remain top of where our Burberry community can the soundtrack and multiple views
mind. Gaming platforms came to be digitally transported to feel like of the performance art, produced
the rescue, with forward thinking they have a virtual seat at our live in collaboration with Anne Imhof.
brands leveraging the online show. It is an interactive experience
where guests can connect with both Each stream had a comment section,
universe to host creative events
our brand and each other while multiple opportunities to discuss
and create a 'phygital' experience
augmenting creativity with an personalizing their viewing journey." content, which is usually fragmented
extra level of emotions. on owned accounts (typical content
Burberry Spring-Summer Collection,
for fashion shows includes backstage
the first fashion collection broadcasted
on the gaming platform, triggering photos, runway looks, celebrity
3.9K posts on the social web. endorsements, and more).
Inviting Bella Hadid, Rosalia, and This one-of-a-kind experience and
Erykah Badu, the brand teased the the use of Twitch's features not yet
event 30 minutes before the show. available on traditional social media
To access content and ambassadors platforms, demonstrate how gaming
chat, “squad mode” needed to be platforms can leverage creativity
activated, generating thousands of and increase engagement.
THE NEW AGE OF ESPORTS – THE BRANDS, TRIBES, AND TRENDS DEFINING A NEW OPPORTUNITY A LINKFLUENCE SOCIAL INTELLIGENCE REPORT | 37HOW CAN BRANDS WIN? 9 TACTICS AND 9 EXAMPLES.
05
EXPLOIT GAMING’S SUITABILITY
TACTIC FOR AUGMENTED AND
IMMERSIVE EXPERIENCE
Industry case study
Red Bull has been a long-time In China, several investments which to interact with Pepsi Zero Sugar and
sponsor of professional video game aim to strengthen the interactions KDA between 5-8 November 2020,
players, which makes its latest with players and fans despite the playing with the senses of vision,
esports lab aimed at improving covid restrictions have been spotted. hearing, touch, and smell.
gaming skills a helpful tactic. The Pepsi Zero Sugar, for example,
Sina Weibo discussions reflected
Red Bull High Performance esports partnered with the LOL virtual
the positive experience (90% of the
lab, located in California, is said to girl band group to release their
total discussions about pop up store
"measure, deconstruct, and train limited-edition beverage, with every
Pepsi on Sina Weibo), with customers
key gaming skills – with the goal to can showcasing a different group
sharing photos and descriptions of
enhance the performance of novice member. As part of the campaign,
the pop-up store and the limited
and pro gamers". Beyond immersive a limited gift box with a set of five
edition product. Hashtags such as
‘#开黑听我 我超敢的’ and ‘#KDA女团’
experience, the brand aims to monitor beverages and an interactive stage
all-round gaming skills, and track where customers will be able to hear
were highly associated with the
data to build an experience database the band singing when they open the
brand activation.
with relevant measurements such box were launched. The activation
as eye movements, brain states, became one of the hottest topics
facial patterns, heart rate, galvanic to discuss in the esport community
skin responses, levels of team in China.
communication and even sleep,
To compliment the product launch, a
nutrition and physical regiments.
pop-up store in Shanghai was opened.
All to better understand what goes
Customers and esport fans were able
into a successful play.
THE NEW AGE OF ESPORTS – THE BRANDS, TRIBES, AND TRENDS DEFINING A NEW OPPORTUNITY A LINKFLUENCE SOCIAL INTELLIGENCE REPORT | 38HOW CAN BRANDS WIN? 9 TACTICS AND 9 EXAMPLES.
06
ENTER DAILY LIFE VIA
TACTIC GAMIFICATION & INTEGRATED
MARKETING (IMC) RADARLY ANALY TI CS SH OWI N G CO NVERSATI O NS USI N G TH E HASHTAG
# GA M E FU E L , T RI G G E RE D BY M T N D E W A M P GA M E FU EL D RI N K
Today’s esport players are Brand case study
no longer passive. They seek
immersive experiences, enabling Nike’s partnership with Korean Esport collection for the LOL and LPL fans
interaction, learning and athlete Faker generated positive buzz. The to reach a younger market. Harbin
participation. The feeling of immersive campaign which highlighted Beer is planning to create a customized
belonging to something bigger is the physical and psychological effects of beer can with LOL pro players on it.
hard to beat. Brand activations intensive gaming had the potential to reach
In May 2020, Harbin beer and LPL
focusing on mental and physical a global audience and some users expressed
collaborated with one of the most
well being have been gaining regret that the content was in Korean.
popular LOL players, Uzi, to release a
traction online. The values they
The MTN Dew drink, Game Fuel, was a new edition beer. Harbin promoted
champion – skill, positive energy,
collaboration between Call of Duty World the beer via a livestream on one of
fun – resonate well with the League and Team OpTic. Pro players, the leading E-commerce platforms in
audience. hardcore gamers, and everyday players China, JD. The hashtag #哈啤LPL#
helped to develop the product, making it was read 78 million times on Sina
the first beverage designed just for gamers Weibo, and discussed 65K times.
(Twitter). The launch triggered shout outs
By drinking beer, fans showed
with hashtag #gamefuel (16K posts on
support for their favorite players
Instagram, 57K on overall). The release
during the LOL S10. WeChat
continues to cause spikes in conversations
conversations of the LPL and Uzi
relating to Call of Duty league, Twitch
collaborations highlight that esports
Esports and ESL Counter Strike.
is not just for male players, opening
In April 2019, Harbin beer partnered with LPL up the category to female players
in China. The brand released an ICE can and fans, and to a younger audience.
THE NEW AGE OF ESPORTS – THE BRANDS, TRIBES, AND TRENDS DEFINING A NEW OPPORTUNITY A LINKFLUENCE SOCIAL INTELLIGENCE REPORT | 39HOW CAN BRANDS WIN? 9 TACTICS AND 9 EXAMPLES.
07
HARNESS THE VIRTUAL
WORLD TO CHANGE THE
ANALYTICS FROM RADARLY SHOWING TWITCH VIDEOS
TACTIC CONTAINING THE WORD“CHARITY” IN THEIR TITLE
REAL WORLD
Gaming is not only about Brand case study
entertainment. The recent
success of the Z event in France Games Done Quick benefits from the
demonstrates the growing support and partnership with Red Bull,
success of streaming and esport. an established brand among the players
The players raised €170K when ecosystem. Other brands have also
the event launched in 2016, to joined the movement, with Love Your
reach €5.7M during the last wave Melon, whose legitimacy comes from
in October 2020. Charitable its DNA charity dimension, supporting
streaming makes gaming the Gamers For Giving in 2020. Far from the
opposite of solitary or violent - stereotype of a selfish practice, esport
something the industry has been and online gaming are about joining
associated in the past. On Twitch, forces and sharing values. As streaming
videos containing 'Charity' in their gains popularity, and new platforms such
title increased by 84% last year, as Twitch or Discord enter the landscape,
an encouraging figure reflecting the gaming universe becomes part
what gamers care about today. of something bigger: playing for the
common good.
THE NEW AGE OF ESPORTS – THE BRANDS, TRIBES, AND TRENDS DEFINING A NEW OPPORTUNITY A LINKFLUENCE SOCIAL INTELLIGENCE REPORT | 40HOW CAN BRANDS WIN? 9 TACTICS AND 9 EXAMPLES.
08
TAKE YOUR E-COMMERCE
TACTIC STRATEGY INTO THE
G-COMMERCE REALM A N I MA L C R OSS I N G BO O M E D D U RI N G LO C K- D OWN S , WI T H 1 9 M M EN T I O N S O N T H E SO C IA L WEB .
( # A N I MA LC R OSS I N G N E WH O RI ZO N S ) A N D T H E P O P U L A RI T Y O F T H E GA M E O N SO C IA L M ED IA
( # A N I MA LSC R OSS I N G D E S I G N S , # A N I MA LC R OSS I N G CO D E S , # A N I MA LC R OSS I N G O U T FI T S).
During confinement, games like Brand case study
Animal Crossing empowered
users to style their avatar. Social With the ability to create and style their From Chanel to Loewe, Prada,
media conversations relating to own avatars, fashion gamers (and fashion and GmbH:
this activity rose by 850%. insiders) jumped on an opportunity
Generating more than 14.7K views
Released during the pandemic, to organize virtual fashion shows.
on Youtube, this virtual event set the
the game was a creative escape Reference Festival, a Berlin-based fashion
tone and started something new,
for quarantined players. Gamers organization, took Animal Crossing’s fashion
enhancing Animal Crossing players’
were seduced with its cooperative potential one step further to a virtual show
love and growing interest in fashion.
gameplay and trading. As of avatars dressed up in current season
While industry experts praised the
players gather resources and looks inspired by Loewe, Prada, and GmbH.
show for its non-traditional format,
expand their collections, they find The show was created by photographer comments from gamers highlighted
themselves with far more options Kara Chung, who runs the Instagram personalisation and fashion garments.
for designing their island. account @animalcrossingfashionarchive,
and stylist Marc Goehring of 032C. Few comments on the animal
“We firmly believe that games and crossing show by Reference festival:
interactive initiatives have business “We met through a mutual friend,
curator Evan Garza, who had contacted "These are amazing! I really wish I
relevance. They are key to offering
the both of us for an Animal Crossing could have the code for the neon
an innovative and personalized
green / black dress for the girl with
shopping experience, which is piece on Art Forum. We connected on a
bangs and long hair. Is it available
what customers, millennials, and call right after and thought it’d be a fun
somewhere? I love it SO MUCH!"
gen-Z are increasingly asking for.” way to collaborate!” Chung and Goehring
– Yoox president Paolo Mascio, told Vogue. "Nowhere near as good as sims ones"
Speaking to GQ magazine
THE NEW AGE OF ESPORTS – THE BRANDS, TRIBES, AND TRENDS DEFINING A NEW OPPORTUNITY A LINKFLUENCE SOCIAL INTELLIGENCE REPORT | 41HOW CAN BRANDS WIN? 9 TACTICS AND 9 EXAMPLES.
09
USE NON-GAMING CONTENT
TACTIC TO BRING NEW COMMUNITIES
INTO THE GAME
Luxury fashion brands excelled at Brand case study
forging partnerships with games
to bring interests from the real The popularity of Instagram accounts such as
world into the game, resulting @NookStreetMarket, @CrossingTheRunway,
in both a more fun and diverse @AnimalCrossingFashionArchive, who share
game environment, and fresh designer outfits from Animal Crossing avatars,
exposure for the brand in a totally underlined how gaming platforms can generate
new occasion. positive and far reaching conversations about
fashion. The online figures for traditional formats,
including offline fashion week, only confirm the
growing potential of the gaming category. In
September/October 2019, women fashion week
celebrities accounted for 60% of social media
conversations, not leaving much space for
collection-related discussions. Since then, content
on animal crossing "outfit of the day" (#ootd) and
fashion trends are much more visible, thanks to
users' willingness to express their creativity and
styles online.
Examples adjacent show the Animal Crossing
'looks' from @crossingtherunway, generating
discussion about Valentino Autumn/Winter 2020
shows (number 12 and 58).
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SEXISM IN GAMING: WHAT CAN BRANDS DO TO HELP?
Sexism in
gaming: What
can brands do
to help?
THE NEW AGE OF ESPORTS – THE BRANDS, TRIBES, AND TRENDS DEFINING A NEW OPPORTUNITY A LINKFLUENCE SOCIAL INTELLIGENCE REPORT | 43SEXISM IN GAMING: WHAT CAN BRANDS DO TO HELP?
Esports is no longer a
boy's club. It's time to
stop treating it like one.
Like traditional sports, video gaming and
esports has been historically male-dominated,
and women have been forced to pretend to be
males, or to accept sexist behaviors from their
male peers.
While female players are aware of their
perception in gaming and are eager to discuss
sexism, misogyny, and gender discrimination,
some female players have been intimidated
out of the game due to the high level of stress
created by sexist behavior.
In response, many female esport players have
shared their experiences of discrimination and
pushed for visible discussion and equality in
the gaming community. They point out that
despite the fact that many gamers defend
gaming as an equal playing field (often based
on the assertion that unlike traditional sports,
there is no physical advantage to being a man),
women still face claims that female players are
just not as good.
Female gamers/players are giving support and
standing for each other in the US/UK:
THE NEW AGE OF ESPORTS – THE BRANDS, TRIBES, AND TRENDS DEFINING A NEW OPPORTUNITY A LINKFLUENCE SOCIAL INTELLIGENCE REPORT | 44SEXISM IN GAMING: WHAT CAN BRANDS DO TO HELP?
Consequently, female esport players have
organized their own communities and events
+ Wonder women of the gaming world In China, there are many forum-based
Hosting talks about women in gaming organizations, which are online clubs
and hangouts for female players. Best
+ Valorant Ignition Series event
represented by groups on douban.com,
The first all-women Valorant tournament
they have a forum style structure, where
+ Esport virtual camp every member is encouraged to post in the
Coaching from esport professionals group, and the group is run and maintained
by one super admin and several admins.
+ Female Empowerment Through Esports
These groups do not exclude men, but
(#FETE) event require members to leave their sexism at the
Supporting women in esports door (see intro of 'league of female gamers'),
+ All-female Team Bumble, partnering and all forms of harassment, including
with the online broadcasting platform dating requests, are forbidden (see intro
Caffeine of 'Cutiepies for LOL').
Encourage women to join the gaming
community
Did you know?
+ #InternationalWomensDay
Cheering and supporting women in the Unlike men, whose top three gaming
Hearthstone scene categories by order are action games,
simulation games and action adventure
+ GIRLGAMER Esports Festival games, women’s top games are
The first esport festival to celebrate simulation games, action games,
women in video games and RPG games.
THE NEW AGE OF ESPORTS – THE BRANDS, TRIBES, AND TRENDS DEFINING A NEW OPPORTUNITY A LINKFLUENCE SOCIAL INTELLIGENCE REPORT | 45You can also read
