Over the last few years, live streaming has grown from a fun pastime into a crucial social feature. Nearly every social media platform now offers some form of video broadcasting to allow users to engage with their audiences in a live environment. Live video streams immediately and engage viewers in ways other content cannot.
Why? It's primarily due to its authenticity, but we will cover many other reasons later in the article.
Now that there are a variety of live streaming platforms, we suggest considering it for your video game influencer marketing strategy. Let’s first take a look at what influencer marketing is.
Influencer marketing is a form of online paid advertising that uses endorsements from well-known personalities to promote brands, products, and services. Influencers can affect their followers' buying decisions because of their authority, position, knowledge, or relationship with them. They have a following in a distinct niche and engage actively with their followers.
Influencer marketing works because their audiences trust them; their recommendations serve as the social proof gaming studios need to connect with potential customers. When brands collaborate with influencers, their marketing messages reach a keen and enthusiastic audience, increasing brand awareness, conversions, and sales. Social media users may not care or know about a game, but because their favorite social media star has endorsed it, they may try it.
We have covered the importance of influencer marketing and how to find the right influencers to work with in our blog How to Pick the Best Game Influencer Marketing Strategy for Your Studio.
There are a few reasons why “going live” is a good tactic for your video game marketing strategy and they include:
Figure 1: Benefits of live streaming. Source: Brandlive Inc.
Almost 80 percent of marketers say that the ability of live video streams to add an authentic element to digital communication is one of its greatest benefits. This is because streaming allows you to drop the corporate veil and connect with your players at a personal level, thus allowing them to participate in their brand story in ways that enhance the customer experience.
If you've been on Steam recently, and particularly if you've been through your discovery queue, you'll notice that devs are increasingly streaming their game to their audience. But you'll also see that influencers are on there too. This form of content helps potential buyers break past the manufactured "buy me!" perfection of your Steam store page and see what the game is like in reality. This is also a good idea if you're in your early stages and don't have a demo. And you don't have to be on/stream on Steam either!
Streaming services are offered by almost every major social media channel. These services are readily available, and in most cases, they are free, making it easier for marketers (and influencers) to reach their target audience. Even better yet, your audience can stream using smartphones, tablets, and computers, allowing them to go live wherever and whenever they want.
When a gaming brand hires an influencer to talk about their game on stream, the content will be viewed by enthusiastic followers who trust the influencer's opinion. This following is difficult to reach in such a concentrated space external to live streaming, so you should make the most of this opportunity.
The save feature on most streaming sites allows users to save the video stream after it has ended. You can share the video on your business page to let people who missed the stream watch it again. The saved videos can also be repurposed and used with other marketing materials.
This will also come with a few more things you'll need to set up, including thumbnails. Read more on generating the best YouTube thumbnails for your videos in our blog here: Top 10 YouTube Thumbnail Maker Tools To Impress Viewers.
Users can interact with the streamers as they create content. This lets you learn what players think of your game in real-time. The consumers also get answers to their questions sooner than on other platforms, which will help them connect with you better.
This feature is not available on any other form of content!
Streaming sites collect a lot of data, and you can use this information to adjust the program content for the next live stream. The captured metrics will show how many people joined your stream and their reaction to the aired content.
Streamers have the full attention of their viewers when they go live. With creative content, you will be able to spread the word about your game virally.
Developers that need to use live streams to scale their influencer marketing efforts can use different channels to connect with the audience they seek. They include:
Twitch is a video streaming platform that focuses primarily on video games. It supports a community of highly engaged users. When a streamer starts their stream, subscribers get notified and can join to watch. As the stream is on, viewers can chat with the streamer and each other and engage with the content that's being shared.
The platform commands a whopping 72.2 percent share of the video game streaming market, making it the industry leader.
Twitch can be used for influencer marketing in different ways, such as the streamer mentioning your game or featuring brand marketing visuals in the background. It can also be used for giveaways, where a streamer highlights what you're giving to potential customers, such as discount codes and brand merchandise.
Learn more in Video Game Marketing 101: Triumph with Twitch Influencer Marketing.
Going live on YouTube transforms ordinary videos into an interactive experience for the viewers. With more than 2,500 new videos added to the platform every minute (source: Wyzowl), broadcasting a live stream is one way to stand out from all the noise and draw a crowd.
Figure 2: Source - Oberlo
YouTube has more than 2 billion active monthly users, making it an excellent avenue for your live stream. Try getting an influencer to stream your game to their subscribers to explain its features and action points rather than just creating a gameplay video. You can also use the live stream to generate a buzz for your game with character reveals, announcements, or even hosting special guests.
Streamers can interact with the audience through live chat, answering users' questions about the game. YouTube Live also provides real-time and post-live analytics that will inform your influencer marketing strategy in the future.
Read more in our blog here: What Is YouTube Super Chat And How To Monetize It?
As the most widely used social media channel globally, Facebook has made it easy for brands to connect with their audience. Its vast features support every social media marketing need, from images, videos, status updates, and live streams. Facebook Gaming, its dedicated platform for gaming, is where users can broadcast themselves playing their favorite games to a highly engaged audience.
Figure 3: Facebook gaming. Source - Facebook
Facebook Gaming has over 800 million users monthly, with 90 million active members of Facebook gaming groups. These numbers make the platform great for your influencer marketing campaign, where you can partner with an influencer to review or do a walkthrough of your game.
By partnering with suitable streamers, your game will reach the right audience, which will grow your brand. Working with the best influencer marketing companies will help you identify streamers who fit your company well.
Instagram is another go-to channel for live video streams. The platform has over 1 billion active monthly users, making it an excellent choice for broadcasting your messages to potential customers. Instagram is a hit with young people, and if this is the demographic you are targeting with your game, then going live on the platform will bring more exposure.
With a limited viewing time — live videos are only available 24 hours after broadcast — Instagram uses FOMO (the fear of missing out) to pull users to live broadcasts. This is useful when launching a game, as an influencer can talk about its features to their audience. It can also be used for a Q&A session with the viewers to answer their questions in real time.
Other streaming platforms that can enrich your influencer marketing strategy include platforms like DLive. DLive is a relatively new platform on the blockchain network, but it has already established itself as an innovative streaming avenue in community building and monetization strategy.
If your marketing strategy doesn’t include influencer marketing, then you’re losing opportunities to convert. But if you don’t have the expertise, then you won’t be able to make your influencer strategy succeed. Get everything you need to know about video game influencer marketing in our ultimate guide here: The Definitive Guide to Influencer Marketing!
Live streaming draws audiences in quickly due to its authentic nature. This makes it an excellent tool for advertising your game. By working with an influencer marketing company, you can select streamers who are a good fit for your game, ultimately giving your partnered promotions a sense of authenticity.
If you need help with your influencer marketing strategy, our influencer marketing software at AtisfyReach can help. We will link you with the best micro-influencers or macro-influencers that are perfect for your campaign through our extensive influencer database.
Are you interested in getting users to your game through influencer marketing? Sign up to AtisfyReach!