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09/05/2011 by
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How CPG CMO’s Can Tap Into Social Gaming?

Why should CMO’s in CPG and Retail care about the trend social gaming? Maybe because the games industry is larger than the movie and music industry together? Or because social gaming can inject intensity into their brand, products and sales?

Mc Donalds Product Placement in FarmVille on Facebook

Off course I could throw some dazzling social gaming numbers at CMO’s, about Zynga and Facebook, but I assume you have read them before. So why not focus at some actionable insights and examples this time?

I hope that you agree with this statement: Without good content, there is no engagement. And without engagement, there is no social and no community. Well, social games can turn your brand or products into experiences that truly matter to consumers.

And you have too understood that most consumers want to be entertained. Not just hammered again and again with lame ads or lousy content…


Off course Retail CMO’s have already started with social media. With i.e. content, contests, promotions and coupons through Twitter, Foursquare, Groupon or added to their Facebook Fanpage. In a ‘Fan First’ world, special offers are provided to fans and followers first.

Once Retail CMO’s have discovered their social VSPOTS, they will mostly immediately engage with influencers and fans, pulling them gently through their funnel towards preference, loyalty and advocacy.

And smart Retail CMO’s will not chose to do that hit and run, but they will also embrace social CRM and create architecture to ignite continuity doing it over and over again.

Retail CMO’s that have not even started their own opt-in e-mail database yet, because they do not have time, FTE’s or content to create and send a monthly newsletter to clients, stop blaming your company’s culture and order the start asap.

There’s only two persons in the company that will be able to change your company DNA: your CEO and you.

CMO’s in CPG companies can tap into social media and social gaming in equally intriguing ways. For example, get your toe in social gaming by launching a product placement in hugely popular social games like FarmVille on Facebook.

McDonalds saw seized success and massive free PR with its Farmville campaign, where users had the opportunity to visit a McDonalds branded farm for only a day. They could plant mustard seed and tomato crops and be rewarded with McDonalds branded products to aid their own farm.

Bing Product Placement in FarmVille on Facebook

Bing by Microsoft was able to get 400,000 new fans in a day with their advertisement through Farmville. The campaign only lasted 24 hours, but in that short time it was able to harness Farmville’s popularity to offer something people want (Farm Cash) while enhancing Bing’s own social strategy.

Okay, I lied. Throwing some numbers. Just for your relevancy.

Social gaming has seen explosive growth in recent years, with 250 million people playing social games every month. Zynga leads the pack with its hugely successful CityVille and FarmVille games on Facebook.

Zynga has just released CityVille, which may attract product placements and advertising from more urban companies like Starbucks or major hotel chains. Zynga has an additional revenue stream which might be very relevant to CMO´s: The sale of add-ons in the game, that enhance the experience of playing the game.

Add-ons facilitate CMO’s. With add-ons CMO’s can easily offer great entertaining social gaming experiences to their targets, without building an expensive social game themselves.

Wouldn’t it be a great incentive if you offered your opt-in database or community some great extra’s in a social game? Probably they will love you for it and tell their friends how great it is to be a customer of your brand: Great energy. Builds excitement. Very light on branding.

The second element
of embracing social games, community-based marketing, is driven by keen insights into your customers behaviors on Retail and CPG created social platforms. The better you know your clients, the better you can engage them with personalized offers, campaigns, products and promotions, that will drive both your brand and business objectives.

Short term campaign approach (1-3 month social media flights):
To be able to monetize your social VSPOTS, we suggest you first take a good look at your approach. For successful social media campaigns you just need social experts with great creativity. This short term approach, similar to campaigns or flights just need great creativity.

Social DNA versus Social Campaigns

Long term program approach (1-3 year social marketing programs):
For long term social marketing programs you will need social experts fuelled not only by creativity but by a smart long term strategy. Long term demands a different DNA from CMO’s and engagement architects at your social marketing agency.

Social Campaigns Versus Social Programs

To fuel social programs these engagement architects will create your strategy programs, including the needed information architectures, systems and processes that will make your long term program (1-3 years) really successful.

Examples of long term programs are i.e.: communities by Coca Cola, Starbucks, Nike or Adidas. These leading brands go way beyond short term campaigns by adding continuity into their programs.

Thirdly and finally, tailored branded social media games or applications. They will help brands to attract and engage people for a long period, by offering easy-to-use entertaining social environment.

It can be a great branded iPhone & iPad App. Or a great social game integrated in Facebook. Some examples of branded social games on several platforms.

Waterslide Extreme on iPhone by Barclaycard

How about ‘Waterslide Extreme‘? This branded iPhone game by Barclaycard recorded over 10 million downloads from the iTunes App Store in about a year.

Or all the smart and fun branded social games consumers can play on Facebook.

Advertizers are more often becoming facilitators as well. But the best toe in the social waters for CMO’s is, when you would ask me: start listening first!

Start your social media monitoring program and gain insights. Listen to what consumers are saying about your brand, products, service and competitors.