Not long ago, the term “Gaming Influencer” would often elicit a puzzled “huh?!” rather than a confident “That’s at the core of our GTM strategy.” The rapid evolution of this space has brought us to an era where the notion of a Creator IPO is entirely plausible, akin to what the K-Pop sensation BTS achieved. The shifting landscape of media and the escalating influence of the Creator economy are truly upending numerous industries and strategies. Working with Creators has transcended being a mere marketing channel; it has transformed into a partnership, emphasizing fair value exchange rather than squeezing out the lowest CPM possible. Additionally, collaborating with Creators has become an ongoing endeavor, demanding resources and time to ensure they have the necessary tools to engage their audiences effectively.
Akin to project management, a Creator Program embodies an ongoing set of activities with a clear goal in mind. The specific activities may vary, but the constant objective remains. Growth. In the past, especially in gaming, UA and Community teams were siloed, with distinct responsibilities for growth and engagement. Each team had its own budget, processes, and data to achieve their KPIs. However, with the escalating cost of user acquisition and the maturation of the Creator economy, Games can no longer afford the inefficiencies stemming from these silos.
Loosely defined, a Creator Program encompasses all activities carried out with Creators to enhance a Game’s visibility, growth, and player retention, all at a manageable cost. While numerous Games and platforms assert they are running Creator programs, many are still grappling in the dark, struggling to discern the right steps forward.
At Wehype, we firmly believe that Creator Programs represent just the beginning of a paradigm shift we refer to as Creator Collaboration. Here, a Creator is genuinely regarded as a partner, not merely a commodity. Much like presenting a pitch to a PR agency, a Game should not view Creators as mere resources but should strive to understand what they require to cater to their audience. Creators are not in service to the Game; rather, they are beholden to their audience. This fundamental perspective reshapes how Games and Creators interact.
As previously mentioned, many Games grapple with discovering the right combination of activities necessary to ensure that both the Game and the Creator reach their goals. Drawing from our experience, it’s apparent that most lack one or more essential components crucial for creating an effective Creator Program.
When running a Creator Program through Wehype, we place emphasis on three fundamental collaboration areas, carefully customized to match the Game’s stage and the Creator’s requirements. These encompass Paid, Rewarded, and Supported activations. Unfortunately, many Games overlook one or more of these components, impeding their capacity to fully harness the potential of their relationship with the Creator, particularly in a market filled with fragmented tools, making it challenging to consolidate an effective process.
Now, let’s delve further into each of these approaches and investigate how, when harmoniously combined, they generate substantial value.
Where Creators collaborate with Games through sponsorships, offer a unique value proposition. In this model, Creators have the opportunity to engage in straightforward and transparent partnerships that clearly outline the benefits they’ll receive upfront. Nevertheless, challenges do arise with paid sponsorships. Many Creators don’t meet the necessary requirements leading to a sense of disappointment and frustration. Additionally, most Games lack essential tools making managing paid sponsorships a time-consuming task. This often results in Games sticking with Creators they already know because discovering new Creators can be a laborious and risky process. Additionally, because paid sponsorships are time-consuming and often have fixed budgets, engagement with Creators can become sporadic, where there are periods where there is little direct incentive for a Creator to create content for the Game.
To ensure the success of paid activations, it’s crucial to establish clear criteria for Creators, providing them with the guidance and resources needed to meet the requirements. Games should also invest in the necessary tools to streamline the management of paid sponsorships, making the process more efficient. Embracing new Creators and continuously expanding partnerships can be valuable, fostering a dynamic and ever-evolving Creator Program that ensures ongoing success.
Where Creators earn a share of revenue and offer a distinctive value proposition. In this model, Creators have the opportunity to earn a portion of the revenue generated by their influence and content, creating a direct link between their performance and earnings. The challenge in implementing rewarded activations lies in effectively managing accurate attribution, which involves setting up mechanisms for tracking and distributing revenue. This can be complex and time-consuming, and many Games and platforms lack the essential tools and expertise to execute this type of Creator collaboration efficiently.
Incorporating rewarded activations is paramount for sustained success. They provide Creators with an ongoing incentive to create content for your Game, with their earnings directly tied to their performance. This is the ideal “always on” activity providing Creators with additional incentives to Create content even when there are no paid activations at that given time.
Where a Game supplies Creators with in-game items and content, are another indispensable facet of Creator collaboration. In this model, Games provide Creators with the necessary resources and support to craft engaging content for their audience. This collaboration method often falls under the responsibility of the community team, which typically possesses the most experience in building and nurturing the Creator community. The community team’s expertise in collaborating with Creators ideally equips them to efficiently manage supported activations. However, these teams often work in isolation from other functions and operate with limited budget resources.
Empowering Creators with in-game content and fostering collaboration between the community team and other departments, like growth and user acquisition, through a shared platform, enables Games to fully leverage their Creator program, resulting in a more cohesive approach, and greater impact on user acquisition, LTV, and retention. Combined with other activations such as Paid and Rewarded, Supported activations provide an even more compelling incentive for Creators to evangelize and Create content for your Game.
Paid, Rewarded, and Supported activations each play pivotal roles in this ecosystem. They encourage Creators to excel, equip them with valuable resources, and foster transparent and effective collaborations that can lead to consistent content being created for your game over time. Leaving out any of these components could disrupt the program’s effectiveness, depriving Creators of the necessary motivation, resources, and opportunities for mutually beneficial partnerships. When all three components work in harmony, the Creator Program becomes a potent force, empowering Creators to consistently create their best content while enhancing the Game’s overall success.
At Wehype, our fundamental belief is that the Games that will win are those that wholeheartedly embrace these three fundamental collaboration areas, customizing them to fit their game, creators, and audience. This is precisely why we’ve dedicated the past year to building and enhancing our All-in-One Platform, empowering both Games and Creators with unprecedented collaborative capabilities. With exciting features like Support-a-Creator, Creator Management, Creator Recommendations, Giveaways, and Sponsorships to name a few, this really is the All-in-One platform you need and we are excited to start putting it in the hands of our customers.
Currently, we are in the process of onboarding some early-access customers into the Wehype Platform. If this resonates with your needs, please don’t hesitate to get in touch.
