The view of successful developers on the process of promoting games
Companies releasing their games to the vastness of app stores cannot afford to leave such an important case to chance. They must know how to attract the attention of users to their developments. Statistics will help you imagine the scale of the market.
In October of this year, the number of applications on the American App Store reached 949,228, of which 174,787 are games. How to distinguish your title among others in the app stores?
According to Adam Saltsman of Semi Secret Software, known for the games Canabalt and Hundreds, the factors of attracting attention that the developer can control are reduced to “differentiation, quality and awareness-raising of ordinary users.” Moreover, they all complement each other.
Of course, the success of Hundreds was to a certain extent due to the popularity of the Canabalt that preceded it. However, there were other reasons that allowed Hundreds to take a prominent place in the App Store. The game itself meets Apple’s marketing strategy, that is, it represents a simple and attractive product.
Todd Fitzgerald from Flurry suggests using statistical data to promote the game and find an audience. Flurry Analytics provides various data about the operation of the mobile application on user devices. This allows developers to conduct targeted marketing campaigns, which can significantly simplify the task of promoting the title.
Releasing Infinity Blade, Chair Entertainment made a bet on technical perfection, which brought more than a positive result. Infinity Blade has become a symbol of the capabilities of Apple tablets and smartphones. The latter quite often uses the title in the framework of events dedicated to the presentation of new devices, thereby providing advertising for both itself and Chair.
Chair representative Laura Mustard also added that developers should “keep in touch with App Store contacts and keep them informed of their plans so that they have time to consider using the above game in various events.”
Chair also uses discounts, cross-promotion and transmedia partnerships with writers and musicians. And all this brings them tens of millions of dollars.
Indie developer Ndemic Creations is able to bring its title Plague Inc. to the top of paid apps in the App Store, despite competition from well-known and large companies.
Game developer James Vaughan (James Vaughan) believes that to get into the tops, it is necessary, of course, to spend a lot of money on advertising and acquiring users. Vaughan advises not to be afraid to use help from larger companies and develop under their wing, as well as find a special niche not occupied by other companies.He also notes that the game should be such that people want to tell their friends about it, because it will provide free advertising.
Of course, do not forget about luck and other factors that cannot be foreseen and controlled. However, these strategies have borne fruit for various developers. Perhaps others will be able to use such a successful experience to promote their as yet unknown games.
Source: gamasutra.com
