But it’s what they’re NOT doing yet that’s the biggest surprise.
In an effort to circumvent a major issue plaguing in-game commerce, (discussed below) Butterfinger, a candy brand owned by Ferrero, has partnered with PUBG Mobile in hopes of boosting sales of both candy bars and virtual items.
The deal will allow those who purchase Butterfinger bars to obtain special in-game digital gear and content. From now through late August, players who buy two Butterfinger bars from grocers or retailers will be offered a redemption code allowing them access to the exclusive digital items in PUBG.
Senior Director of Marketing at Butterfinger, Miguel Zorilla, said, “We are thrilled to bring PUBG MOBILE fans fun new exclusive items… Butterfinger is part of the gaming community, and we are proud to work with great brands like PUBG MOBILE that offer unique and exciting experiences to gamers.”
Anthony Crouts, Senior Director of Marketing at PUBG said, “Our PUBG MOBILE players are always hungry for new in-game content, so we couldn’t be more excited to partner with Butterfinger to offer fans this sweet new experience. This collaboration uniquely incorporates Butterfinger’s distinct design and charm into the PUBG MOBILE world – we can’t wait for our players to start engaging with it.”
While the collaboration may indeed drive sales of Butterfinger bars, and potentially increase PUBG downloads, the avenue taken to increase in-game commerce is rife with potholes.
Namely, it’s nearly impossible for big brands to sell real-world items, in-game.
Right now, as evidenced by this deal, most in-game commerce involves transactions in digital items only. To help drive revenue, brands are selling digital items like fashionable skins and exclusive content access in-game… but not actual real-world items in the game.
Of course, Ferrero and other major companies would love to sell actual items directly to consumers, inside of games. But, the in-game commerce ecosystem, as of right now, doesn’t allow for it.
This is the major issue plaguing the industry. Because companies are unable to sell direct to consumer inside of video games, like is done on the internet, much of the advertising we’re seeing in in-game commerce now, isn’t much more than branding, really.
Of course, branding is quite important and helps drive future sales, but the ability to drive immediate consumer purchases is what the big brands really want…
But can’t seem to get.
However, there could be a solution to this big-dollar problem just over the horizon.
And should this solution be implemented, the in-game commerce market could be worth perhaps a trillion-dollars or more, as traditional eCommerce shifts into gaming.
Now, if you’re anything like the big brands, you’re probably curious about what this potential solution could be, and how it could drastically change the in-game commerce landscape.
If so, it’s all revealed, right HERE.
Or if you’d rather see how to get PUBG digital items when you purchase Butterfinger bars, you can read more HERE
Source: https://investingnews.com/the-office-somehow-we-manage-mobile-game-available-now/