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October 08, 2008
The Science of Advergaming
By Ann Stofflet
Ever wonder if placing a branded game on a site produces a measurable impact on the player’s/consumer’s attitude toward your brand?
Well, the researchers at The University of Missouri’s PRIME Lab have studied the effects of advergame themes on consumer attitudes and have discovered that the consumer manifests a strong positive relationship towards a brand when they play advergames with thematic brand connections. “Advergaming” is a term that describes the practice of using video games to advertise a product, organization or viewpoint.
The ‘thematic connection’ is the degree to which the object of the advergame relates to the brand’s product or services. For example, a highly thematic connection would be an online basketball game branded by a sporting equipment company. During the study, participants played two advergames, both with either high or low thematic brand connection.
Kevin Wise, assistant professor of strategic communication at the MU School of Journalism explained,
“While games that related to the brand were not inherently more enjoyable than unrelated games, the transfer of enjoyment from the game to a positive attitude towards the brand was stronger when the game and brand were thematically related. Game enjoyment led to positive attitude toward the brand when a high thematic connection existed between the game and the brand.”
View the full feature here.
Posted by staff at October 8, 2008 10:04 AM
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