5 Ways Gaming Content Creators Can Influence Product Sales And Build Consumer Trust

What differentiates gaming content creators and keeps their followers glued to their content is the element of humour that they very thoughtfully insert into their content.

While the global business sector was virtually brought to a grinding halt by the stay-at-home mandate due to the coronavirus-induced pandemic, people started following their passions and got connected digitally to the world. The lockdown ensured that the interest and curiosity around gaming saw a jump, which not only resulted in an unprecedented upsurge in the consumption of gaming content but also witnessed the emergence of a strong creators’ economy. 

As per the latest FICCI-EY report, the viewership of esports saw a remarkable escalation — from 600,000 hours in 2020 to a colossal 2 million hours last year alone. With the rising reach and engagement, India added an unbelievable number of content creators across all age groups and genders, who not only boast a good following but also a deep connection with their followers. 

While millions of these independent creators — such as social media influencers and vloggers — started creating gaming-related content which is fun, interesting yet informative and engaging, it not only ensured a battalion of followers for these creators but also began playing a significant role in helping them find avenues to monetise the content.

The creators, whose bond with the gaming audience began developing, started building a strong relationship and thereby the ‘trust factor’ grew. The creators engage, enhance, and endorse the organic content, establishing a very strong engagement along with reach. 

Content affinity is built by creators through livestreams and updates on gaming news, reviews of gaming products, analysis of games, and various tournaments.

All this while, brands which aim to reach out to the audience in the age group of 18-24, saw a perfect fit, especially for the quality engagement that most of the creators have with their respective audience poll. 
 
According to Kaalari Capital’s recent report, there are around eight crore creators in India. They are getting opportunities to monetise their passion and brands are using them as ‘nano-influencers’ to penetrate micro markets and engage with audiences not only in metro cities but also in tier 2 and tier 3 cities in India.  

While we have been comprehending the boom of the creators’ economy, intricacies as to how content creators are becoming the best bet for the brands for target audience outreach are delved into here in five key steps.

Here are five key steps that content creators should keep in mind to become the best bet for brands to reach out to their target audiences. 

Loyalty and bonding with the fanbase

A gaming content creator’s most valuable asset includes creating a connection through livestreams that resonates completely with their followers. Creators engage and interact frequently with their fans. These interactions make them feel validated and help in developing a strong affinity towards their favourite creators. Livestreams happen to be the most engaging session for the creators to develop immense faith in their fans’ judgements, which is even followed by other creators over various social media platforms. 
 
As per YouGov’s report on ‘The power of gaming influencers’, 12 percent of the gaming influencer fan base does not follow any other influencers. This is a testament to the loyalty between a gaming influencer and his/her passionate fan base. 
 
It’s also about the audience’s trust that brands tend to capitalise on with their investments in gaming and esports creators.

Authentic content

To stand out from the rest, producing original and creative content is a necessity for every gaming creator in today’s day and age. While the content is integral for building a fan base, it is equally important to resonate with the brand’s ethos in the most organic manner.
 
Creators integrate these brand communications into their own lifestyle, behind-the-scenes happenings, their daily conversations and positioning of the brands while they play their favourite games with the fans as well. 
 
The authenticity with which this content is dished out turns out to be a game-changer for brands as, through such creators, they not only get visibility but earn loyalty too.

Interaction 

Content push to the target audience gets next-level amplification when creators ensure interaction and engagement around the same content. For gamers, who have the ability to create discussion and focussed attention, brand communication reaps the benefit. Activities like the unboxing of products, live streaming of activities and creating a two-way dialogue between the gamers and viewers make these gaming influencers and creators value for money from the brand perspective. 

As per industry trends, gaming influencers tend to offer 10-15 percent conversion rate which is usually more than any other creators in the industry. 

Endemic brands benefit the most from this as the audiences watch the creators utilising these products on a daily basis. Non-endemic brands, on the other hand, enjoy the setup of a vast demographic environment built by gaming influencers.

Gaming creators cater to a huge demographic, ranging from students to working professionals and businessmen, and engage diverse age groups from pre-teen to 60 year old. However, what is most interesting to brands is the huge Gen-Z and millennial audience that gamers are connected to, with almost 80 percent of our gamers' audience being in this age group. These creators are able to speak to the Gen-Z sensibilities and build long-lasting influencer-to-fan relationships with them.

Demographic upper hand

The community of gaming influencers is widespread and consists of audiences from all age groups that regularly tune into their content. The majority of these happen to be the key demographic groups that often prove challenging for brands to connect with using traditional media. 
 
The creators have a stronghold on the audiences that brands want to reach out to through their high level of interaction. That's why they are imperative in building a better engagement for any brand. 
 
Endemic brands benefit the most from this as the audience witnesses the creators utilising their products on a daily basis. Non-endemic brands on the other hand enjoy the setup of a huge demographic environment built by the gaming influencers.

Entertainment value

Games are the basic factors that initially attract people and connect them to an influencer but that alone isn’t enough to sustain viewers’ attention in the long run. However, it is the broader entertainment value of these influencers, that they bring into the conversations, which convinces their fans to consistently come back for more.
 
What differentiates gaming content creators and keeps their followers glued to their content is the element of humour that they very thoughtfully insert into their content. This elevates the experience of the audience and gives them a peek into the person that the creator is, beyond the amazing gameplay that they display. Humour gives the audience another layer to enjoy the gamer’s content and connect with them personally.

These are the numerous grounds on which gaming influencers harness their ardent relationship with devoted followers for lending a helping hand to brands in order to boost their sales and impact the growth of the gaming industry.

(The author is the founder and CEO of 8Bit Creatives, an esports consulting and talent agency.)

Disclaimer: The opinions, beliefs, and views expressed by the various authors and forum participants on this website are personal.