Activision-Blizzard’s Fernando Machado on Why Gaming Is (Candy) Crushing It as an Advertising Channel

As a child Fernando Machado pictured at top loved videogames to the point of rushing through dinner to get back to them Today as CMO of ActivisionBlizzard the massive global gaming leader recently acquired by Microsoft Machado can spend every waking moment on his childhood dream Listening to Machado speak at the recent 4A39s Decisions 2022 Conference it is clear not one iota of his passion for videogames has diminished making him somewhat unique a qualified CMO who natively and authentically loves his productquotThe games don39t stopquot Machado bursting with enthusiasm emphasized during his keynote quotThe communities are always playingamp8221According to information from Accenture gaming is a 300B industry greater than the global film global music and North American sports industries combined Machado pointed out that globally 40 percent of the global population plays videogames while in the US the percentage is a mindboggling 75 percentActivisionBlizzard games run the gamut from the global phenomenon firstparty shooter Call of Duty to the mostsuccessful MMORPG Massively Multiplayer Online Game World of Warcraft to the everpopular longrunning casual game Candy Crush which ActivisionBlizzard acquired as part of its purchase of King in 2016 Candy Crush which launched in 2012 still has a loyal and active user base of 255mmamp160 amp8220Thatamp8217s a number that can help you as a channel of communicationquot Machado explained quotIt can help you reach people who are truly engagedamp8221Who are these gamers They are likely not who you think they are according to Machado Challenging preconceptions he shared numbers that indicate that there are just as many people age 50plus playing games as there are under 18 and more women are playing than teenage boys Gaming really is a mass market opportunityIt isnamp8217t just the players that are engaged Watching and learning from others playing games on platforms such as Twitch and YouTube Gaming was already growing prior to the start of the pandemic and accelerated even more over the past two years According to stats shared by Machado in 2021 the global games livestreaming audience is nearly 729mmThere are some brands that have recognized the power of gaming Machado provided a few tips for brands that have yet to enter the realmUnderstand where your audience overlaps in the gaming community and what type of games they playUnderstand the game and the community of players that play that specific game Learn what makes them excited and how they interact with each other Machado explained that brands will occasionally approach him with ideas that go counter to what would work with that community and could cause a negative brand experience amp8220The community is very vocal and will come after you in socialamp8221 he warnedBring ideas that will add value to the communityMachado highlighted some recent successful marketing programs which could be expanded to include sponsorships After piloting a Candy Crush competition in the UK in 2020 Candy Crush All Stars launched in the US in 2021 with Khloe Kardashian as the host Celebrities such as Doja Cat and Gronk participated along with social media influencers and TikTok stars Machado sees this streamed competition as a far more effective method of revitalizing the Candy Crush brand and keeping it relevant than an ad or promotionAs this competition moves forward and as ActivisionBlizzard develops more extensions for their properties Machado sees winwin sponsorship and brand integration opportunitiesHe also sees the line between reality and gaming blurring amp8220People talk a lot about the Metaverseamp8221 he noted amp8220We have been creating Metaverse with World of Warcraft Call of Duty and many of our games for years I love when we do things that blur the line between the real world and the virtual world and viceversa I think that trend is here to stay That could be a good way in for brands to engageamp8221As Machado says amp8220we are all gamersamp8221 to the point that the label has lost a large part of its distinction Whether casual games simulation games or mixed reality games they provide a myriad of opportunities for brands to authentically connect Those brands that take the time to understand the game and community dynamics should find it a strong medium to level up with consumersClick the social buttons to share this content with your friends and colleaguesThe opinions and points of view expressed in this content are exclusively the views of the author andor subjects and do not necessarily represent the views of MediaVillagecomMyersBizNet Inc management or associated writers

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Activision-Blizzard’s Fernando Machado on Why Gaming Is (Candy) Crushing It as an Advertising Channel

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