ESPNMarketing

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Marketing
The ESPN experience
Articulate experience / value proposition
What is the value of ESPN outside of game, for gamers. Ideally would be stronger than “just a marketing platform – from ESPN magazine the value proposition I see is something like Authentic Effort – pushing competitive limits.”

Copy question from IRIS proposal
- Audience in general
- Online Audience - Is there an ESPN “experience” from game engine itself?
- Players of UBO - What are the key value words players should keep after interacting with the game?

is it an athletic experience, a tech experience, a community experience or an adrenaline rush

STAY ON MESSAGE
Community Building
Rule: keep the experience focused on the players and the story arc of the interaction, not about the technology.
20% rule – find active players – get them involved in launch

Leverage key adopters and trend setters
Development Newsletter and
- Bring Players into the development process
- Bring players into the bug testing process and show them the key bugs, launch timetables etc (create an elite band of testers – allow them to invite others)
Promote key players in newsletter – create incentives to be mentioned
- minor league
- pro league – find best players

PR – press articles (LOOK AT CURRENT REVIEWS ON NetAmin)
blogging community
commentators/bloggers
- technology
- sports
- games

Viral marketing –
Create a Live Contest – solicit a team for launch
Create buzz – need hook to get press – use taboo Cuban players for example – consider a bit of scandal, push the edge

Forums – posting area

Operations analytics/controls
Lessons of the Conversion Chain / Acquisition Metrics
Carefully tracking the conversion chain is a key business driver for these online games:
In past experience the chain is like a series of ever smaller sluices off of a river that start with ads, contest or other promotions.
Optimistic conversions might follow a chain like:
1,000,000 Total Impressions
40,000 Visitors
20,000 Initial interactions, testers/10,000 downloaders
5,000 practice/trial/learn controls
<5,000 become player candidates
<1,000 becomre recurring subscribers

Each link in this chain is critical to delivering the final subscriber numbers
The current testing phase is critical to testing key points in the conversion process, while the added uncertainty of subscription fees is not tested

Importance of utilizing the current beta/testing period for building Acquisition benchhmarks


Rule of thumb metrics – expect payment hurdle to reduce audience at least 80%
Need audience of at least 50-100,000 on free game to reach hopeful 10-20,000 subscribers
The key to the business of price points is analyzing conversion rates carefully.
Beginning with marketing, pay per click campaigns, valuing in-house vs exterior ad campaigns. Key expertise will be the marketing channels and tracking acquisition costs.








Should be tracking conversion metrics daily. How many people visit/dowload/practice play.

What should that add campaign be promoting – what is the key experience,

Areas of Concern:
Registration process – best if user can feel like joining a club
Risks of having developers handle the customer communications and “Experience” branding.
Need clear advancement levels as well as Tourney opportunities

Clear Strengths –
• already really easy to join a pickup game
• excellent integration with AI players

Critical Benchmarks
Ease of use, minimal hurdles to first practice – this should probably be free – skills development
Ease of joining for first game – this is excellent already


Pricing Scheme – make value proposition clear of $8 / month – and why would you pay 96 per year – why not price it per game? Ultimate value will be joing ESPN online offerings – 96 per year would be a good value for playing multiple games or a certain number, but a high price point for one – the real goal is to addict them through the game, not through the subscription commitment. The progress goals need to be clear – and the payoff of making that progress. What does it mean to be more powerful in baseball – a much softer scenario than being able to slay a dragon instead of an ogre.




My First Month Reading List if retained
Console Baseball and athletic games
Get Reading from Vladimir Cole
Other MMOG and sports in particular – Get List
Play Current Versions of
• Online Fantasy games and any other MMOG
• simms online.