When It Comes to In-Game Ads, Are Gamers Interested?

With the gaming industry currently exceeding $300 billion worldwide* (according to Accenture), attributed to 2.7B gamers, we wanted to share insights on mobile, console, and/or PC gamers in the UK, USA, and India to learn more about their daily habits and purchase history. 

While gaming is a large part of their lives, they are not defined by it. When it comes to additional hobbies they enjoy in their free time, you’ll find them leading an active lifestyle, traveling, reading, and even baking. Perhaps not surprisingly, gamers are also active on social media.

When digging into this subject, it was primarily to dispel those myths about gamers that still exist, including the belief they are generally young and male and lacking a substantial household income, and are only playing on consoles and PCs. These days, 60% of new gamers are women and 70% are aged 25 & over. While 79% said it’s important not to interrupt the game they are playing with ads, they are happy to be served, relevant targeted ads that are entertaining.    

The major takeaway that we wanted to share, is that when it comes to advertising to this audience, advertisers may want to rethink their approach! The majority of gamers we reached out to cited a disconnect between what is shown to them in-game versus general advertisements they see daily. 

Almost six-in-ten of our gamers agreed that it seems some brands do not understand them and admitted that they would likely engage more with mobile ads if they were relevant to them. And when it comes to types of brands that resonate with this audience, the below chart outlines that Not All Brands are Created Equal.

Leveraging verified shopper data from this unique audience, we were able to see that gamers have a higher AOV per basket than other shoppers.  And while snacking and game playing are said to come hand in hand, it looks like Lay’s or Walkers chips is a top 3 purchase across all markets, satisfying snack time.   

At the end of the day, our research showcased that top tips to reach this audience include branching away from legacy stereotypes and taking the time to research and understand today’s gamers to secure an authentic brand connection. 

If you’re looking to get your offers noticed to a specific audience, like gamers, make sure you check out our targeting solutions!