game marketing

Fully understanding the market demand for a commercial game is essential. Leading with a genre that is in high demand is a great start, but many don’t think to dig deeper and find the gold nuggets that additional market research can reveal.  In today’s episode, we’ll discuss where most people go wrong with their research, how to further validate your game, and identify tips and tricks that will give your game an edge over the competition.  Ep 319 Shownotes:

Diversity takes many shapes. In addition to differences in identity, diversity should encompass a difference in thought, background, experiences, skills. The games industry is experiencing a movement toward expanding and deepening our understanding of diversity and it’s an important conversation we need to have. In today’s episode, we’ll be discussing the value of diversity, how to avoid making mistakes with the best intentions, the benefits it has for all devs and studios, and how having an open mind can create all sorts of opportunities.  Ep 318 Shownotes:

This is Part 2 of the interview with Konstantin Suvorov. As an indie studio, comparing and despairing can be demoralizing, especially when comparing yourself to a AAA studio. However, changing your mindset can make all the difference in how your game studio can outplay and one-up even the biggest AAA brands.  Today we’re going to uncover huge advantages indies have over AAA studios, valuable lessons each side can learn from the other, and unveil how you can combine these strategies and processes, turning your studio into an indie game powerhouse. Ep 317 Shownotes:

As an indie studio, comparing and despairing can be demoralizing, especially when comparing yourself to a AAA studio. However, changing your mindset can make all the difference in how your game studio can outplay and one-up even the biggest AAA brands.  Today we’re going to uncover huge advantages indies have over AAA studios, valuable lessons each side can learn from the other, and unveil how you can combine these strategies and processes, turning your studio into an indie game powerhouse. Ep 316 Shownotes:

The journey to success is different for all of us, regardless of our beginnings. Overcoming challenges, and learning how to pivot are all valuable experiences, but sometimes it’s the humble beginnings that can really pave the way to reaching your destination. In today’s episode, we’ll be discussing one company’s rise to prominence and how their evolution, resourcefulness, and the lessons they learned helped them go from an indie dev underdog to a prominent publisher. Ep 315 Shownotes:

Maintaining productivity for any indie studio is absolutely essential, but studios that transitioned over to a remote setup over the past few years now face new challenges in keeping teams productive and healthy. In today’s episode, we discuss some of these challenges, interesting benefits that come from a remote setup and how the core solution to addressing growing pains of going-full remote is closer than you think. Ep 314 Shownotes:

Collaborating with content creators is one of the most impactful ways to amplify awareness and grow your game’s community. However, structuring programs sometimes can be a struggle when ensuring they support and benefit content creators too.  Today we explore practical strategies your studio can use to amplify your marketing, engage your community and hit goals while simultaneously supporting creators. From discussing crucial aspects of the program’s design to empowering and nurturing creators,  you’ll have all the insights you need to build a killer creator program.  Ep 313 Shownotes:

Exploring ideas and concepts for a new project is always fun, especially when you’re ready to develop a prototype. But sometimes passion, drive, and even opportunity can be a distraction that could easily send you off course.  Today we’re going to dive deep with our guest and discuss their process of exploring concepts, implementing prototypes, and how to keep things on track, even if it means completely trashing some of your work. Ep 312 Shownotes:

We all understand the importance and value an IP has and rightfully so. However, sometimes studios don’t see beyond this, finding it difficult to visualize and unlock their IPs true potential.  Today we’re going to explore creative approaches, simple yet powerful mindsets and other monetization strategies that can unleash your IPs full revenue potential while working towards sustainability. Ep 311 Shownotes:

We all have a tendency to get close to our projects and sometimes miss the forest for the trees, especially when it comes to player feedback.  But even if we don’t, the playtesting process can be cumbersome and even overwhelming, making it a challenge to navigate and understand what actions need to be prioritized to improve the quality of your game.  In this episode, we’ll be discussing how you can crush your playtesting with a ton of valuable insights that not only provide you with clarity but can save you a lot of time, money and frustration.  Ep 310 Shownotes:

Validating any game concept can be a huge challenge for game creators. And if you’re not hitting the target dead on, it can cost valuable time and resources. But just validating a product in a demanding market doesn’t mean it’s enough to stand out.  Usually, this comes down to looking at the whole picture from a different lens. Sometimes, that means distancing yourself from the crowd and taking a roguelike approach to really differentiate yourself. Ep 309 Shownotes:

The world of game marketing is a shifting landscape. Recent years have shown a trend toward short-form content for advertising, communicating and selling video games.   Today we’ll be discussing some of those trends, effective ways to employ them in your projects and other concepts to keep in mind when tackling your marketing.  Ep 308 Shownotes:

Creating effective PR campaigns is a very tedious process. On top of that, executing campaigns doesn’t guarantee results. However, developing a better understanding and streamlining the process can create lots of opportunities to communicate your story and maximize your game’s awareness. We’ll be discussing how using data insights can help make decisions on how and when to execute effective PR campaigns. But also how this information can be leveraged to support all marketing efforts, giving you more confidence and control. Ep 307 Shownotes:

How can ads for video games and for stuff in games be deceptive or manipulative?  What do  they need to consider when targeting kids?  What sort of guidance do they get from governments or their own industry groups?  We chat with Dr. Celia Pontin, former UK advertising regulator specializing in video games.

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A former advertising regulator specializing in video games, Dr. Celia Pontin wrote the UK's formal guidance on how to advertise in-app purchases and loot boxes without misleading people. Celia's doctorate is on the effects of interactivity on interpreting video game narratives and professionally she works with organizations as a research consultant on the evidence base for public health policy in alcohol, gambling, and video games.

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Hosted by Shlomo Sher, Ph.D. and Andy Ashcraft

Production by Carmen Elena Mitchell

Music and graphics by Daniel Sher

By now, most of you should know that this podcast is about the marketing and business of indie games. But another core theme carried throughout the show is empathy.  We’ve talked about this in numerous ways in how it pertains to your audience, but never really defined the different types of empathy and explore the impact it can have across the industry. That’s why I’m really excited about this episode because our guest gives us a full breakdown of what empathy is, how it relates to different cultures and how taking an empathetic approach can vastly level up your studio and even yourself. Ep 306 Shownotes:

Anytime you’re looking for opportunities in the game market, understanding your game’s audience is a great place to start. Unfortunately, the process isn’t usually defined well, making it hard to understand audiences, let alone how to apply their needs to your product design.  Today we’re taking a deeper dive with our guest into exploring this concept of “knowing your audience” further, discovering key ingredients that you can use to create the right product design.

Animation has been connecting people to characters across the world for generations. With animated game trailers rising to prevalence in the indie game community, we’re taking a look at the role they play, as well as some of the outcomes they encourage.

The gaming industry is a global industry that continues to grow at a rapid rate and being interconnected virtually is a main contributor to this. Despite being connected, there are still segregated areas and communities that face multiple challenges when creating a presence and establishing recognition in the industry. Thankfully, our guest today shares how to overcome these challenges, question limiting beliefs and implement strategies that empower game dev communities and promote growth for the industry as whole.

When it comes to finding your game’s fit, identifying opportunities and creating value for players is something we all like to lead with. While important, there are a lot of other essential and core concepts that usually go unchecked, making it a challenge to stand out even if there is market demand.  Thankfully our guest today shares how implementing these concepts can better define your path while learning from insights along the way, helping ensure your game’s fit is in line with the market and your studio.

With the stigma around mental health discussion slowly starting to go away, more and more industries are being tasked with examining their own mental health implications and ways to overcome these challenges.  With games being a high stress environment, we’re taking a look at some ways to manage mental health while working in the industry.