13 Jul E3 2017 on Social Media – How Did Brands Interact with Gamers?
As many of my coworkers will tell you, video games are an area that is very near and dear to my heart. Being a passionate video gamer, the most exciting time of the year for me is the Electronic Entertainment Expo, better known as E3. This huge convention runs for several days during the summer and allows game developers, publishers, and big companies (like Microsoft and Sony) to show off what they have in store for the gaming industry in the upcoming year. Well, E3 2017 has just passed, and I’m going to be breaking down some of the highlights of how brands used social media to drive home the conversations of these big announcements to gamers who could not attend in person.
Active Channels and Conversations:
There are several social media channels that brands utilized this year to engage with their fans all around the world tuning into the E3 coverage.
Facebook saw some huge interactions from fans – 41 million posts, likes, and comments to be exact. 17 million people were said to be talking about E3 during the course of June 9th to the 15th. Brands like Bethesda, Electronic Arts, Ubisoft and Nintendo took advantage of features like Facebook Live to announce game releases and interact live with fans at home.
E3 Highlight Video from Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/E3Expo/videos/10154650032408015/
Twitter has long been an excellent platform for conventions, and E3 is no exception. Users used standard convention hashtags like #E3 and #E32017 to follow all the live coverage of the convention. Brands also utilized their own branded hashtags like #BethesdaE3 and #UbisoftE3 to announce games and content that was solely focused on them at the center. Users could also follow several E3 accounts, like the main one (@E3), to stay up-to-date on all the happenings each day. Big channels like IGN, who cover a lot of the video game news in the industry, teamed up with Twitter to livestream the coverage of E3 this year on their platform.
We were so preoccupied with whether or not we could, that we didn't stop to think if we should. Pirates vs. Dragons #teampirate #teamdragon pic.twitter.com/GF9O14ghD8
— E3 (@E3) June 15, 2017
Twitch
Twitch is a lesser known social platform, but in the gaming community is very well known. Twitch is a leading social video platform for gamers, boasting 9.7 million daily active users and 2+ million unique streamers per month. This channel was alive and buzzing for E3, with many top streamers offering all day coverage of the convention on their respective channels. Some brands even partnered with streamers, like Electronic Arts, to have them stream some game play of their newest game to their audiences.
Winners on Social:
If you were to look at the conversation breakdown, Sony, Microsoft and Electronic Arts lead the conversations. On Facebook alone, they broke the charts as compared to other brands with number of people talking about them. This could be in part due to the fact all three of these brands did a fantastic job of taking advantage of live streaming capabilities on Facebook and Twitch. They combined the social platforms really well with their big announcements and timed everything perfectly to generate huge conversations with people at the convention at back home.
http://www.adweek.com/digital/e3-week-drove-41-million-facebook-posts-likes-and-comments/
So, as you can see, E3 can be huge for companies and brands in the gaming industry. This is the perfect time of the year to get your name out there, build awareness for your games and products, and build loyal fans who are excited to purchase your products when they officially launch. You want to take advantage of this time to drive the hype for a game and get those gamers to pre-order your content before it releases. And social media can be a huge tool if used correctly to drive those fans to try out your game.
Interested in this subject of social media and gaming? Check out this “Social You Should Know” for some additional facts about gamers and Twitter. Also, feel free to give us a call if you’re looking to explore livestreaming and Twitch as routes to bring your social media to the next level.
