Esports are often overlooked by the general public, but with big brands like Red Bull, ESPN, and Intel onboard, there’s clearly a lot of potential in esports marketing. Here are some foolproof marketing strategies to get you started in the big business of esports. 

Find The Right Audience

It’s silly to assume that gamers all belong in one category. As with more conventional sports, esports is split into several gaming genres, including:

• PvP (Player vs. Player)
• FPS (First-Person Shooter)
• RTS (Real-Time Strategy)
• MOBA (Multiplayer Online Battle Arena)
• MMORPG (Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Games)

As with any other marketing strategy, finding the right audience will help you to communicate with them in the right way, whether through a QR code on posters or through radio ads. As a result, esports teams can sort out the brands they can relate to, and both will have a higher chance of lasting partnerships.

You can also look at demographics to understand who your audience is. While the esports industry is still male-dominated, over 20 to 30% of fans are female. 

Go To The Right Channels

After you have worked out who your esports target market is, you need to find where they are. That way, if you’re planning to sponsor an esports team in the future, you can look for the best of the best.

In most cases, you will find your audience in minor and major video game streaming sites, such as:

• Twitch
• YouTube Gaming
• Hitbox
• Beam
• Azubu
• Bigo Live
• Afreeca
• Gosu Gamers

Find Real Esports Influencers

Influencer marketing is still thriving. You can make use of influencer marketing by choosing streamers who have a huge following to market your brand.

With 19 million subscribers on YouTube and 14 million on Twitch, Ninja is one the biggest streamers. He’s even played Fortnite with Drake. With numbers like that, it’s clear to see why influencers are worth working with. If Ninja is out of your budget, there are others with large, dedicated followings, who aren’t yet playing with Drake. 

Influencer marketing can encourage highly vocal esports teams to come to you for partnerships, sponsorships, ads, and more. It’s a win-win for both parties. 

Start An Esports Team

If you’re working with a tight marketing budget, starting an esports team could work for you. Underrated esports teams who are looking to get sponsorships will work for you and not with you. That means you get esports advertising whenever they stream or engage with their audience and you get to call all the shots.

You can find esports teams to partner up with on sites like:

• Seek Team
• Skillinked
• Team Tavern

By doing this, you can save time on finding esports gamers, and you can spend time working on your marketing strategies.

Sponsor A Team

Starting a team is more cost-efficient, but sponsoring a team through agencies can help you to connect with the most well-known esports teams in the world. Though more costly, you know you’re getting the best in the business.

Some popular esports marketing agencies are:

• Upfluence
• Viral Nation
• Ader
• Flood Interactive
• Knowscope
• Game Influencer
• CheeseCake Digital
• Foreseen Media