I have a very distinct memory of Christmas Day 2010. I unwrapped a large box to uncover the new Littlest Pet Shop Playhouse along with a selection of miniature animals. To this day, I cannot understate the amount of joy this Playhouse brought me within that moment, and for the years to come.
Like many growing up, I enjoyed an array of games and toys growing up like Tamagotchis, Baby Born dolls, and board games like Monopoly. These activities provide us with unrivalled entertainment as children and even now as an adult, I hold an ongoing nostalgia towards these brands. This is what makes PR for games and toys such a powerful tool.
Over the past weeks, we have discussed what entertainment PR is, and how it can aid with restaurant launches, festivals and events. This week, we will touch on the importance of entertainment PR for building awareness about games and toys and how this can lead to sales which drive brand success.
While the media landscape has changed significantly over the past decade, the fundamentals of creating a successful communications campaign for games and toys remain the same. This is because what makes these products so remarkable is their connection to human touch and experience.
Creating an entertainment PR campaign that leverages relationship and experience management is key to building awareness and driving consumer interaction. If a toy or games campaign has a community-oriented focus, consumers and media will resonate with the messaging and in turn, interact with your product.
Remember, your product is designed to heighten positive feelings of joy, humour, and fun – so first, it’s important to know the targeted user of your product; and what will drive them to buy your product. Don’t forget that in some instances, products for young children will often be bought buy someone older, so you need ensure you are marketing to the buyer as well. Once you have that information, produce some creative ways to share the product with your target audience and retailers.
To put theory into practice, let’s take a deep dive into an Agent99 entertainment PR case study.
In 2020, our client Winning Moves (WM)- licensed makers of Monopoly in Australia challenged Agent99 to help launch a custom Monopoly board that was suitable for the sensitive global environment at the time with COVID-19 and bushfire affected parts of the country.
To inform the creative process, Agent99 and WM extensively connected with retailers and consumers, to create an idea for a board that would be suitable to produce amidst the current climate. After identifying that people were playing more board games and puzzles during home lockdown, WM were keen to create a board that could be used by many at home, but still find a way to ensure they were giving back to the community during a tumultuous time.
As a result, Australian Community Relief Monopoly Board + Puzzle were created.
For this, WM selected 22 Australian communities to appear on the Monopoly board, who were adversely affected significantly by the ongoing COVID-19 and bushfire crises. Knowing that fund-raising was critical to key audiences, WM ensured that $5 from every game and $2 from every puzzle were donated to the Australian Red Cross (ARC) and flowed directly back to local relief efforts. Our carefully integrated marketing plan leveraged mass earned media, paid partnerships, and community engagement tactics to create infectious enthusiasm amongst consumers, engage local and national retailers, driving awareness and sales.
To truly drive engagement with this board game and deliver exceptional results, Agent99 created bespoke media releases to guarantee cut through across regional and urban areas.
Working with the community, we engaged local councillors to drive on-the-ground engagement with Mr Monopoly cut-outs to locally promote within their communities.
Additionally, to connect with children, Agent99 worked with school principals from regional areas to have students design their own Monopoly boards. The most creative were published online alongside the announcement of their town being included on the board and puzzle.
The success of this entertainment PR campaign can be largely attributed to community engagement. By creating a relationship that was authentic to our target audience, we were able to connect them with a fun experience in a difficult time. From a PR perspective, this entertainment PR campaign saw over 2.5 million people reached across 400+ pieces of media coverage.
Entertainment PR had a remarkable impact on this game launch, with boards selling out quickly and creating incredible brand awareness for Winning Moves.
When it comes to building your own Entertainment PR strategy in future, always think about what will deliver value to your brand and get you the eyeballs you want.
If you would like assistance getting your entertainment PR strategy underway or want to build brand awareness for your games brand, please contact us at info@agent99pr.com.
Agent Eva
