Solution

We knew that there was a correlation between the high-end racing fan community and the high-end gaming community, but little had been done in this space previously. We created a mobile tournament via Gamesloft title Asphalt 9 – which gamers were able to download for free from the app store.

We then placed BMW Mfest ads into the game promoting the upcoming event and telling users to download the BMW Mfest app for more details.

We enticed gamers and racing fans across the country, via BMW’s social pages as well as via notable racing influencers, to test their mettle not only against the influencers but also against the whole country with prizes and bragging rights up for grabs. Prizes include cash, tickets to Mfest and BMW merchandise.

The influencers created bespoke content not only about the competition, but also about Mfest itself and even reviewed some of the latest M-series cars. They then invited their “fastest fans” to join them at ATK Arena (a Cape Town-based LAN arena) to race against each other and notable sim-driving pros in some top-line racing simulators, for a chance to go to Mfest itself. The event at ATK Arena even included a digitised remodel of the Kyalami racetrack where Mfest would be held.

Content created at this event then was compiled for international esports TV channel Ginx TV.

At Mfest itself we also provided 8 racing simulators for folks at the event to try and see who could post the fastest times of the weekend.

Solution

We’ve proven time and time again that if brands act authentically and add value then gamers are happy to accept them. With this in mind we leveraged the one thing that Debonairs Pizza and gamers have in common – convenience. Everything about Debonairs Pizza speaks to convenience – a product that has free delivery, delivery tracking, online payment, deliver to pin technology, easy to share, no dishes, can be eaten one-handed and can be reheated.

We made sure that we created multiple touchpoints to deliver this message of convenience while adding value to the gaming community. Debonairs Pizza sponsored several leagues, firstly in very casual mobile titles via Arcade X and then in more serious and competitive titles via ACGL. Players were able to compete and win vouchers and prizes such as cash and consoles.

We also sponsored several local esports teams, using them to create content – delivering the message that whether you game casually on mobile, competitively via console or pc, or are even part of a professional esports team – that everybody loves the convenience of Debonairs Pizza, giving you more time to do what you love… play games.

All this content was then amplified via media partnerships with IGN and Gameloft.

Solution

Takealot.com sponsored a Player Unknown’s Battleground (PUBG) league which took place on every  Monday night from 12 March  – 9 April, where a number of professional gamers, key opinion leaders  and influencers participated in the gameplay and shared their experience on their active social media  channels – all while discussing which peripherals (keyboards, headsets etc) they were using.

We also invited some casual gaming influencers (musicians/comedians etc) to play at Orena Gaming Lounge in JHB on some of the latest tech and high-end peripherals and to explain to their followers what a difference good gear made to their performance.

The Orena Facebook and Twitter profiles were utilised to implement paid  media to support the PUBG tournament. The Orena mission is to provide Africans with an additional platform to play  games at a professional level while growing the local gaming industry as a  whole. Content was promoted on a regular basis to ensure that the PUBG  tournament reached as many people as possible, while aiming for high  levels of engagement.

Content pieces that were promoted included: Tournament announcements, influencer announcement and previews, tournament reminders, releasing results, PUBG training with Luca (esports pro), player card previews, game stats

Each week the PUBG SA community voted for the custom game modes they would like to play  alongside the influencers and the most popular was played on the Monday night.

Winners of each round took home KFC vouchers to materialise their chicken dinner wins, but the  overall league winners took home a Steelseries M750 Mechanical gaming keyboard (R3299) for first  place, a Steelseries Arctis 5 headset (R2099) for second place and the third place winner received a  Steelseries Rival 310 gaming mouse (R1299)

Full capacity (with a cap of 600 players) was reached within hours of the Tournament entry being launched with a cap of 600  players. This was the biggest PUBG tournament in South African history, with 1300 mentions and 1134425 impressions.

Takealot managed a 7 to 1 ROI on the spend of this tournament.

Solution

We created a rewards club for those who pre-ordered Farcry 5 from takealot.com as well as those who had pre-ordered similar titles and consoles in the past – to thank them for their loyalty to the site. The first reward was to be invited to an invite-only launch of the game the night before at takealot.com’s offices.

There, not only could they play the game early and receive their copy a day before launch, but they also got to hang out with local celebs, gaming influencers and media. With the games themes of rural America and religious cultism, we themed the entire event as a backyard BBQ with tacos, sliders and beer while guests were entertained by speakers who had actually survived living in a religious cult in America.

Not only did everyone have a great time, but sales of the game exceeded forecasts by over 20%