As documented in the roll-out of CasinoBeats’ slot streaming series yesterday, the prevalence of individual/s honing their craft in such a way and carving out a position of influence across the industry has been booming in recent years.
What may once have been considered a niche and caused potential confusion due to a closure alignment with that of console and PC gaming is no more, with something of an evolution taking hold and slot streaming advancing in continuity with adapting consumer tastes, preferences and demands.
This became even more evident in May when CasinoGrounds.com co-founder and Twitch and YouTube streamer Kim Hultman, also known by LetsGiveItASpin, raised over €45,000 during a 24 hour charity stream to help tackle the COVID-19 pandemic.
One such developer hoping to become more closely aligned with the world of streaming in the not to distant future is Swintt, with the igaming provider keeping a close eye on developments after triumphing to claim SlotBeats ‘Slot of the Week’ crown in July.
“We haven’t dipped our toes into showcasing our games through streamers yet, but it is something I’m looking into,” begins David Mann, business development director of Swintt, when quizzed on the current rise being felt.
“It has become quite prevalent across social media and forums and for a major game release, it’s probably one of the top ways to gain viral coverage to players.
“Streamers are here to stay and I can only see their prevalence and value increasing”
“Many slots released nowadays will certainly have streamers in mind during the development process to produce huge wins and exciting bonus rounds that enable the streamers to crank the excitement to bombastic levels. I’m looking forward to seeing our games on some streams soon – keep your eyes peeled!”
When you take the role of a streamer on face value it seems a relatively straightforward one, however, as slots continually develop in a plethora of ways how could such evolution be replicated when making the step across to streaming.
“Playing a certain type of character has been very popular with video game streamers – like the famous Dr Disrespect – but I haven’t come across the same type of person in slots streaming yet,” Mann continued.
“There is certainly a different type of audience on video games but it could lend well to the slots community. I imagine there will be more influencer streams, or even (call me old school) actual celebrities across streams to engage different audiences and raise awareness of certain operators, game providers and streamers.
“Aside from slots, the streams can also feature commercial tie-in’s with products from other lines of business as well to create a larger branding opportunity,” he said.
Before moving on to address what the future could hold for streaming, particularly in the current climate: “Streamers are here to stay and I can only see their prevalence and value increasing for both operators and game suppliers.
“Anyone can begin streaming, but building the audience and ideally finding a niche is more difficult, so I can see it becoming a more integral part of the business where more companies will be dedicated to delivering valuable streams and content.
“There are already a few focusing on it, but surely there is more to come. If people are going to be forced to spend more and more time at home – which is entirely possible – this increases screen time and this content consumption.”
The increasing popularity of streaming, both from B2B and B2C perspectives, reflects wider changes in society as the role of social media becomes ever ingrained in the psyche and day-to-day lives of many individuals.
“…it’s probably one of the top ways to gain viral coverage to players”
With such a large proportion of business now conducted online, Mann moves on to discuss what else are companies doing to advertise to a new generation of tech savvy players, a topic which become particularly relevant at this given time: “I’m seeing increased social media efforts from many providers to engage players from specific segments, but there are limits on what can be promoted through certain channels.
“Connecting with players directly using a personal approach on forums can also be effective as this creates trust and understanding from brands to players and vice versa, though it can also bring negative comments and grumblings, so it should be utilised with precaution.”
The current health pandemic has had far-reaching effects across a multitude of industries, and as online flourishes, and with it streaming figures no doubt rise, many organisations, documented on CasinoBeats, have seen revenues tumble.
Alongside these inevitable outcomes have been added restrictions imposed by numerous regions in a bid to ensure maximum player protection as online thrives.
To conclude, Mann examines what effect this has had on marketing techniques: “Physical events and exhibitions have obviously taken the biggest hit during the pandemic, and most of those are mainstays in the gaming calendar we all look forward to. Having so many key personnel from so many sides of the business in one place is really conducive for new business.
“We have always maintained a strong presence digitally, through social media as well as partnerships with media companies, and so far we’ve kept this up but it’s hard to replace real-life meetings and events. We’re having to make sure we keep up our digital presence, strong content output and still aim to take physical meetings whenever possible.”
