Why Market to Gamers?
Gaming has become more popular than ever in recent years- and on net, gamers are some of cannabis’s biggest fans. Since the start of the pandemic, both the number of gamers out there and the number of gamers that participate in cannabis consumption have grown exponentially. And not only are there more gamers than ever before, but recent data shows that now, gamers are using cannabis on more occasions throughout their daily life, including while gaming, before meals, and before bed.
This is significant because despite gamers’ enthusiasm for cannabis, and a reported 54% of them using cannabis while gaming, the number of products within the cannabis market geared towards gamers represents a mere 0.2% of the US cannabis market- leaving room for businesses like yours to dive in.
How to Make Your Advertising Stand Out to Gaming Fans
So, how can cannabis brands reach this adult gamer audience while staying compliant? The answer is simple: Twitch. Twitch is an online streaming platform that caters specifically to gamers. As of 2022, there are over 30 million active daily users on Twitch, most recently including notorious cannabis advocate Snoop Dogg as a member of the e-sports team, FaZe Clan.
The unique aspect of Twitch is that compared to other cannabis business social network, Twitch has been very accommodating to cannabis businesses’ messaging. Twitch allows viewers to verify their age and uses ESRB ratings, and Twitch enables creators to mark their materials for mature audiences. Twitch’s policy even goes as far to allow users to smoke cannabis while live streaming as long as they are in a country or territory where it is legal- leaps and bounds above what other platforms have given cannabis users in the past.
While you should only participate in streams of gamers that are compliant in age and region, you can utilize Twitch and the streams of popular gamers, much like you would traditional influencers, to gain exposure and advertise your cannabis business. Some of these streamers, like competitive gamer and cannabis enthusiast KaceyTron, have half a million or more followers, giving you an opportunity to market yourself to gamers. By joining streams and direct chatting with users in a brand-agnostic way, you can gain favor with cannabis-friendly gamers by hosting subscription giveaways, and sponsoring the streams of small-scale creators- the sky is the limit.
In addition, MediaJel provides an entry point to advertise your brand to a compliant 21 and up gaming audience on mobile devices. Tablets and gaming consoles using cannabis programmatic advertising. This includes games such as Solitaire, Sudoku, Wordscapes, Jigsaw, Wordscapes Search, Onnect, Word Stacks, and more. Here is a sample list of seven mobile gaming networks and apps currently within the MediaJel ad network.
IGN
Gamestop
YAHTZEE®
Words with Friends 2
Pac-Man
Sonic Dash
Pokemon Go
So, how will you make your mark within the gaming community? For more information about compliant advertising and how you can transform your cannabis marketing strategy, contact us today.
