Marketing Samples

Select one or several examples of marketing materials from real games that will launch soon or have launched in the past.

• Ad
• Video
• Key art
• Website
• App store icon
• Logo
• Packaging (retail)
• Press release
• Press kit
• Other

Discuss ways that marketing materials you select are (or aren’t) effective and why – e.g. 

Importantly, present critical analysis of the materials – not just “this was good” or “this was bad”, but rather specifically *why* materials do or don’t work.  Also, the assignment submitted should not just be a detailed blow by blow description of the content.  Descriptions should only be used to help reinforce areas of the content that are working well, accompanied by exposition that explains why these areas are or are not working well.

You can choose one example and write about it in depth, choose a few different examples and write more briefly about each, or several different kinds of marketing materials for the same game (ad, website, key art, trailer, etc.)  The project is pretty open in terms of the kinds of materials this can cover – could cover social media presence, store pages, other.

Possible resources: Sales charts at Steam, App Stores, Amazon, PlayStation, Xbox, ads you see on gaming websites (IGN, Polygon, GameSpot, etc), YouTube, etc.

Please make sure you don’t select a piece I’ve already covered as an example in class.

Assignment weighting: 10% of class grade

Due October 29

Submit through Canvas

Reduction by 1/2 grade point for each day late

Format

Upper left corner: your name, email address, department and year

Double spaced

Approximately three to five pages (if three pages, doesn’t necessarily need to be three full pages). This doesn’t mean three pages filled with full-page screenshots of course.

Areas your paper should include:

• Screenshot of marketing materials or URL link (e.g. if it’s a video, website)

• Brief description of item and what game it’s promoting 

• Your thoughts on this piece’s top objective(s). Think about the call to action, the stage in the game’s life cycle (pre-launch, launch, post launch). 

  Who is the intended audience for piece? (building interest for the first time and creating an audience interested in the game? continuing to build interest with an audience the game already has [e.g. for a sequel, game add-on]? expanding the audience size for an existing game to new potential players?)

• How effectively you think this piece achieves its objectives and why

 Other areas your paper can include: 

• If you’re selecting several items in a campaign, how well do you think they’re working together 

• Ways you might recommend for improving the piece (this can include your “mark up” notes on the piece)

Grading

Scores of 14.4 or higher = A

Scores of 12.8 to 14.3 = B

Scores of 11.2 to 12.7 = C

Scores of 9.6 to 11.1 = D