“Today, games are a place you go, not just a thing you buy,” said Chris Erb, VP Brand Marketing at EA SPORTS. In the latest Brand Innovator Spotlight, learn how EA SPORTS takes their games beyond the console.
A 24/7 Real-Time Feedback Channel
Customers have always talked about the products they love, but with the help of Facebook, EA SPORTS can finally listen. “At every turn, they are telling us what they like about the games, what they don’t like, what they want to see, what they are excited about,” said Erb. “It’s a 24/7 real-time feedback channel like nothing else.”
To help create loyalty, EA SPORTS offers their fans bonuses like sneak peaks, insider info, and exclusive content. Incentives and positive user experiences keeps fans coming back to engage with the company and each other.
New Platforms
With the rise of social networks and mobile devices, players aren’t rooted to their TVs anymore. EA SPORTS offers games through Facebook, tablets, and mobile devices. These alternative play styles lets the individuals decide how they want to interact.
“Our aim is to deliver fans the ability to engage with their favorite EA SPORTS games whenever, wherever they want,” explained Erb. These game variants complement their respective franchises, allowing the games to fit into the players’ lifestyle. Wherever the player, an interactive sports experience follows.
Offline Still Important
“As pervasive as digital is, there’s still an offline component to acquiring new customers that remains important,” said Erb. Console and TV gaming still go strong, and EA SPORTS plans on keeping this element alive.
This fall, the company plans on opening their first North American EA SPORTS retail store. Located in Charlotte, NC’s airport, this will be the first of hopefully three new stores opening this year.
“It’s important for us to create environments for people to get their hands on our products and experience how much interactive sports experiences have evolved over the past few years,” explained Erb.
And with EA SPORTS keeping their eyes ahead, gamers will see plenty of evolving for many years to come.
