Games have always been part of human culture. We use them to learn, relax and escape from the real world. The need to take a break from work, school, the boss, the wife or the husband is something which people across millennia have in common. Games have evolved with tech, and mobile games are all the rage today.
People are spending many hours on their devices, playing, surfing and connecting with others. The challenge for both business and developers is to turn this activity into an opportunity to connect with their potential customers. How can a company propose solutions to your problems if they cannot show you their catalogue?
How can a company propose solutions to your problems if they cannot show you their catalogue or products or services?
Games are very interactive by their nature, but traditional in-game ads are out of context. The experience of an advert coming up in the middle of a game is similar to having your doorbell ring when you are in the middle of a shower. It is annoying, to say the least. In-Game gifts are different; they engage the players through in-game and are context driven interactions. GiftGaming.com is tackling this very issue, turning games into a platform where businesses and gamers can connect.
There are two investment ideas here. First is the crowdfunded seedrs campaign and secondly is the possibility of creating income streams from games. GiftGaming.com CEO Nick Hatter, has answered our questions regarding his company and the ongoing seedrs campaign.
What problem is GiftGaming.com trying to solve?
The problem is in the mobile games market. First, ads suck. They alienate and annoy players, and if they stop playing, game publishers lose any chance of monetising them. And the second is that over 98% of players don’t spend any money on in-game purchases – so lots of unmonetised players.
How big is this problem?
In-game advertising was estimated to be a $7.2 billion market in 2016. 93% of apps use a freemium model, and around 49% of developers use in-app advertising. So a very big problem, and opportunity!
Can you provide more information about the management of the company?
Run by one founder (me) with non-exec advisors and a few outsourced operations. One of our advisors is Brewster Barclay, a highly experienced sales director and the former CEO of Clickstream Technologies PLC (an adtech company). Another is Toby Moore, co-founder of Space Ape Games, and former CTO of MindCandy (maker of MoshiMonsters).
How easy is it to integrate your solution in existing games?
It’s very easy to integrate. Thanks to our patent-pending SDK-less technology, there’s no Software Development Kit required, so giftgaming is platform-agnostic, and it’s simple and easy to integrate. And some games are already using gifts as part of their game design, which makes our solution a natural fit. The story line does not need to change!
How does the interaction between a gift and a player increase brand or product awareness?
Several studies have shown that gifts can improve loyalty, increase spending and improve reviews.
What is the reason for the crowd funding campaign?
The main reason is we have a proven revenue model and wish to our accelerate sales.
What will these funds primarily be used for?
Increasing lead generation through more online marketing and increased presence at mobile games conferences, develop the platform further, and to speed up onboarding of new clients.
What % of the firm will be owned crowd in this campaign?
4.45% for £80,000. And of course, if we overfunded by say 200%, then it would be 8.90% for £160,000. Our previous rounds have been oversubscribed by more than 350%.
Can you tell us more about the valuation of giftgaming?
The valuation is based on a number of data points and methods, including investor feedback, comparables and EV/sales ratio. More information available from our Investor FAQ on our Seedrs campaign: https://www.seedrs.com/giftgaming2
What is the financial situation of GiftGaming?
We are revenue generating and don’t have any debt. As we have a lean team, we have an ultra low burn rate, and we believe we will hit P&L profitability very soon. More information available from our Business Plan on our Seedrs campaign: https://www.seedrs.com/giftgaming2
What is the company structure in terms of ownership at this time?
I own at least 75% – advisors have a few % each, and current investors own around 17%.
Where will the company be in five years time?
I would hope that it would be acquired by a larger company, such as a game technology or adtech firm.
What is the key to making a great game on a mobile platform?
First of all, put the user experience first, and do not make it just about in-app purchases – users will otherwise pick up on this very quickly. Try to design monetisation from the very start and do not add it on as an afterthought.
Due Diligence is essential to any investment visit; GiftGaming.com to learn more about the companies products.
