I’ve written a lot of different bits and pieces since I last published a post. All very esports related. Unfortunately, I haven’t posted the drafts for a while and I really have no excuse that’s good enough to explain why.
This one’s very esports inspired (as are most of the things in my life) but sheds a light on how the best teams have developed over the last few years into creative incubators. It’s actually pretty amazing to witness because I’ve now seen it be the case with nearly every top tier team organization and even more so the ‘legacy’ teams.
If you believe all the data, it looks like the bulk of esports revenue will come from advertisers and sponsors. But it’s worth pointing out that sponsorships in esports are still not anywhere near equivalent to their more traditional sports counterparts. Don’t get me wrong, there’s a clear upward trend. I say that relative to scale as well.
4-5 years ago, before I started working in the space, it wasn’t uncommon for team organizations to be on the needy side of the negotiation table. I’m not endorsing the idea that there needs to be a needy side but in this case, it’s definitely applicable. There are still a lot of the less confident teams sitting on that side today and the brands supporting them aren’t going to complain. Paying teams a monthly fee of $1000 USD up to around $5,000 was considered the norm years ago. It was the reason you’d see so many logos slapped onto a team’s jersey and little return in engagement for each of those logos. My Dad always told me “if you pay peanuts, you’ll get monkeys” and although there are some obvious outliers, I totally agree. Smart man.. that Dad guy.
Today, there’s a shift in the once submissive role played by team organizations. The best have been able to assess and assert their value and often times receive a multiple on top of what they themselves first deemed acceptable. From a team business pov, it’s definitely a good thing. I’ve now helped a handful of teams in the space over the last 5 months and it isn’t far fetched to see deals in excess of $100,000 a month. Brands are being bombarded with messaging that portrays the esport consumer as a marketing wet dream. I’m not here to contest the validity of that because I just don’t think there’s enough solid data to support it.. yet.
So… where does the creativity tie in?
Well, without plucking out some completely pointless definition of what a ‘brand’ is from God-gle, I feel like a brand is simply something I personally relate to. Something I actually feel resonates with who I am and what I represent. I know for example that if I want some chocolate, no matter where I am, I’m probably going to end up grabbing the first Cadburys or Hersheys bar that I see. There’s something sincere about those brands that just sync with me.. maybe a childhood memory. I should note that as a baby I was huge. I mean I don’t know how I fit in picture frames as a kid and kudos to my mum for basically carrying around what could have been a baby whale. Anyway..
With brands so much more eager to relate to the ‘esports customer’ than they once were, they expect the often touted ‘golden millennial cash cow’ to snap at their products because of their association with a seemingly popular team. Unfortunately, a lot of teams don’t really know what they stand for, who they are and understand even less who their customers are. If someone can name me an esports team that regularly talks to its user base I’ll strikethrough what I just said but I know that’s not the case. No one can truly KNOW a customer. You can only really know yourself and be confident in your point of view.
In an interview with John Hegarty, the advertising legend behind BBH, he said something I truly think applies to esports teams as much as it does to ad agencies: “they dont really have any special insight on your target customers, they just have knowledge.”
Brands getting involved with esports look to the teams for creativity in communicating their brand to the audience they have knowledge on. Again, I think it’s amazing that a lot of team owners and management have taken on the role of creative advisers. I know that’s really all I did while at Fnatic. Doesn’t sound particularly special, I know. But it really is and I think a lot more teams should foster creative talent within their ranks. The experiences that brands who invest in the space have with teams and influencers will really determine whether this upward trajectory continues.
So to any new, existing or legacy team brands out there.. I’d really encourage you to single out the creative people you have and let them breathe. These might be people who already work with or for you now. Look for those who feel comfortable being wrong, encourage people to disagree but feel confident expressing their point of view. Don’t lose the ones that challenge you because they have a natural preoccupation to think for themselves. Creative people.
Their creativity and ability to really truthfully promote the brands you bring on is what makes this space so special. Don’t let your creative people hide in bush. I know there’s a little league of legends community who know what I referred to there. Terrible stab at creativity but it served a purpose.
Watch any show hosted by Duncan Thooorin Shields when he talks about AlphaDraft, one of his main sponsors. I won’t ruin it. As a viewer I genuinely believe that he’s being truthful in his communication of the brand that’s sponsoring him. I also don’t think that any of that was planned in earlier editions of his shows or that AlphaDraft scripted any of it. They just went with it. He’s naturally creative and when you allow creative people in the space to express that creativity, it will do wonders for the space.
TL;DR (Because some of you just don’t want to read the ramblings)
– Esport sponsorships are no where near traditional sports sponsorships, even in scale
– Teams used to be paid $1K-5K a month just 4 years ago and now it’s not far fetched to see deals in excess of $100K
– More brands are coming to the space and will need teams/influencers to be creative in communicating their brand to the community
– Encourage creative people in the space to flourish. You can’t force people to be creative, look for those in your ranks that challenge you and get them more involved