As casual gaming titles continue to proliferate, the “freemium” business model is rapidly gaining traction among game developers and publishers. The Freemium Blog defines “freemium” as a business model in which a company gives away a core product for free and generates revenue by selling premium products to a small percentage of users. In an interview with Charlie Rose, Wired magazine’s Chris Anderson elaborates, “If a small group of customers is willing to pay for premium content, that’s enough cash to support everyone.” In the digital world, consumers have shown that they are willing to make direct payments for the content they like, creating increased engagement for brands and a much more sustainable business model than advertising. The trick, of course, is knowing which content to offer for free and which to offer at a premium.
As the freemium business model matures, so will the strategies and best practices associated with monetizing content, making a comprehensive content strategy arguably as important as engineering the game itself. Developers and publishers that factor key criteria such as audience, the gaming context, and monetizable assets into their marketing and communications strategy can create a more engaging brand experience from the initial trial to an eventual purchase.
A look at recent developments in the freemium gaming model shows how content strategy can help developers and publishers master the marketplace.
Casual Gaming Is on the Rise
Farmville. Mobsters. Bejeweled. Casual games are a billion-dollar industry creating huge brand awareness in the pop culture consciousness. A recent PopCap Games study estimated the social gaming population at approximately 100 million in the US and UK alone. Out of 5,000 gamers studied, 95 percent reported playing games like these multiple times per week and, in the US, 68 percent of respondents reported playing daily.
Unlike console gaming, the casual gaming footprint extends across several platforms. Growth in mobile gaming on smartphones, and specifically the iPhone platform, has created a gaming gold rush as developers seek to monetize their games through mobile apps. Gaming market research firm DFC Intelligence projects the iPhone gaming industry to be worth $2.8 billion by 2014, representing nearly a quarter of the portable games market.
With so many users, casual games have the potential to net huge profits for publishers and developers who can appeal to users’ interests. Gaming brands need to clearly, consistently, and continuously communicate their value to their most receptive audience to stand out from the competition. At the same time, developers and publishers need to ensure they are attracting and engaging high-value consumers with their games.
Content strategy offers a structured approach to connecting the gaming brand experience with target audiences in a compelling way. But what is content strategy?