The amount of time consumers spent watching gaming-related videos on YouTube doubled last year, according to a new whitepaper released by Google. Released late last month, the study aims to demonstrate how YouTube is helping videogame marketers increase buzz before the release of blockbuster titles such as Call of Duty.
The study shows that half of the gaming videos viewed on YouTube are promotional tools created by gaming companies, including trailers and gameplay demos.
To demonstrate the popularity of gaming promos on YouTube, Google cited its 2012 Top Trailers leaderboard in which Call of Duty took the top two spots, beating out big studio films like The Dark Knight Rises, Skyfall and The Hunger Games.
The report suggests gaming brands can measure buzz and tweak campaigns in the lead up to a game’s release based on how their promotional content fares on YouTube. It compares the sales of the year’s top games with the views for pre-launch videos related to those titles, drawing a near one-to-one correlation between views and purchases.
Not surprisingly, Google reported that one in three views on gaming videos occurred on a mobile device. Similarly, 32% of game views occurred during prime time TV hours, proving reaching gamers on traditional mediums may be a challenge for gaming marketers.
Jonathan Anastas, vice-president of digital marketing for Activision, the company behind the massively popular Call of Duty series, said digital video is central to his company’s marketing strategy, whether that means promoting a title through a live-action trailer or showing behind-the-scenes or making-of videos to fans.
“It’s incredibly important for us to deeply engage our incredibly large Call of Duty community on YouTube, where we can have a direct relationship with our most passionate fans and reach our target audience where they increasingly go to consume content,” he said.
