Game: Dota 2

Category: FMCG

Total broadcast views: 1.734 million

Number of unique viewers: 800,000

Number of teams: 8

Esports brings together many titles and players; a gaming experience that can transcend the borders of the esports industry and esports organizations reaching brands, esports partnerships, esports sponsorships, and taking account of gamers that make the video game industry what it is. However, the gaming industry itself still has its challenges and more and more people to reach. But music remains a shared interest for all of them. It prepares us for victories and defeats, inspires us, and brings fresh ideas. It accompanies us in our virtual campaigns and heavy battles. But that music is different for everyone.

Pepsi appreciates each player’s musical preferences and offers them the opportunity to tune in while listening to their favorite songs that DJs have mixed specifically for the Reshuffle Madness pre-show. Pepsico had approached different esports organizations (such as Riot Games) and the words “Pepsi Esports” do not sound strange to the ears. So, in partnership with WePlay Esports, the music went through!

Because we’re all #musicaddicted!

Reshuffle Madness was held in September, so we decided to extend the summer days a little bit for our audience and decorated the studio in the style of a Thai beach with sun loungers, a bar, and a DJ stand. Each game day started with a pre-show where DJs entertained the audience with fresh sets, highlighting the idea of #musicaddicted.

The summer atmosphere remained hot for the audience during the tournament days!

The WePlay Esports team adhered to this concept when creating the Pepsi tournament integration for Reshuffle Madness.

We had three tasks:

• To remind the audience about the brand and to create an emotional connection through a shared love of music.
• To emphasize that our talents choose Pepsi.
• To increase the number of contacts the audience had with the brand.

First of all, we integrated the Pepsi logo into the bright and exciting graphics on the studio screen with the caption “Pre-show by Pepsi.” The logo was an animated rotating vinyl record. Funny animated people came out of the three colors of Pepsi and showed different kinds of summer activities: white for sailing, blue for diving, and red for building sandcastles.

We also placed drinks in a branded fridge on the bar counter and on the sand among shells and starfish, enhancing the summer vibe!

The icing on the cake was the brand’s logo on the DJ stand, who, as the leading character of the pre-show, was on camera more than 70% of all time. In addition, the Pepsi logo was displayed on the pop-up credits with the name of the current track.

It’s important for us to make the audience feel part of the tournament!

That’s why we allowed the audience to suggest their favorite music to be played on the next tournament day! They would write their wishes in the chat room with the hashtag #musicaddicted, we would put them on the list and randomly choose three songs to be mixed by the DJ before the next broadcast.

This way, we not only let the viewers have an impact on the broadcast, but also emphasized that their tastes mattered to us!

Also, to increase the frequency of brand mentions, we integrated Pepsi’s identity in the pop-up credits and on the Twitch channel, included mentions by talents during the airtime into the script, and made the chatbot display the partner’s message in the broadcast chat on Twitch.

The audience reacted positively to the brand integration into the pre-show: the viewers actively participated in the voting, despite the lack of obvious rewards. We not only managed to emphasize Pepsi’s connection with esports, but also got more than a thousand mentions of the brand in the broadcast and more than 300 messages with the tag #musicaddicted, including those about the desire to drink the cherished can of Pepsi!

More than just Mountain Dew: Pepsi & esports became synonymous!

A partnership that already existed since Warcraft III; Pepsi had connections with games such as League of Legends or World of Warcraft, and Mountain Dew is a beverage well-known to gaming aficionados. All across North America and Europe, teams such as Counter Logic Gaming, SK Gaming, Team Dignitas, among other traditional sports franchises such as the New York Knicks and the New York Rangers, had business with Pepsico. From Doritos to Mountain Dew, Pepsi was associated with quality and entertainment. By associating with this Dota 2 event by WePlay Esports, with such a large viewer base and success, Pepsi & Esports became even more of a team.

Sponsoring esports tournaments is a marketing trend

Pepsico has taken account of the possibilities — the company and its products got even more activations across the community. Their presence on Twitter and being associated with Counter Logic Gaming and Team Dignitas are proof that they’re ready to be partners with the ever-growing young audience; by taking this next step, Pepsico will make sure that they aren’t known for just Mountain Dew, Doritos, or a good energy drink: they’re a company involved with the biggest industry in the world, seizing North American territory and being a fixture in esports business news from CCE. Other brands are following in Pepsico’s footsteps and trying to be partners with this industry. Those are partnerships that showcase what those brands are about.

With WePlay Esports, it became clear that along with this Twitter activity and their famous products, they’re also a brand that respects individual tastes, provides fun and interactive events, and cares about the well-being of their consumers. That’s the whole message! A successful partnership creates a good environment for marketing and audiences, which is exactly what happened.

Keep up with the trends! It’s time to prove yourself in the esports community!

Speak up about yourself, show your benefits, and get in tune with the most progressive user audience together with WePlay Esports. We don’t just integrate the brand into an esports event — we create an emotional connection between the product and the audience. Each new case is a new story in the world of esportainment.

WePlay Esports

WE MAKE THE SHOW, NOT JUST ESPORTS!

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