PlayStation: How virtual entertainment has become superior in social media marketing

Most brands we have discussed are promoting products and services outside of the digital world. These brands are molding their products and service to fit the virtual target audience and market but what if your audience, market, and product are fully immersed in the digital world? How does this change your social media marketing strategy? In today’s blog, we will be answering these questions by looking at Sony’s PlayStation personal brand and successful social media strategy.

If you don’t know already, PlayStation is a digital entertainment brand developed by Sony. They are known for their famous home video gaming consoles that have continued to evolve and expand over time. Since their products are based on media and the entertainment side of the digital world, PlayStation has a marketing advantage. The brand knows that its target audience already has an interest in digital media whether they have bought from the brand before or not; therefore, social media is the perfect place to promote its brand and products. This makes for a more likely chance or easier conversion for engagement and sales. However, just because the brand has an initial advantage, does not mean that work does not have to be put into its social media marketing.

PlayStation uses its built-in audience to its advantage to continue to grow its platforms, audience, and conversions which are shown through the brand’s Twitter page. PlayStation has a whopping 27.6 million followers on Twitter along with numerous accounts for different regions of the world like the UK and Brazil. Many of the video games for PSVR and PlayStation have grown a huge cult following and have their own social media accounts like Overwatch and Fortnite.

How do they do it?

PlayStation’s marketing strategy depends on the product it is promoting. For gaming consoles, the brand markets to the entirety of its target audience (17 to 40 yr. old) since their gaming consoles are the main piece of the puzzle: consumers must first have the console to have access or buy any of the additional attachments, expansion packs, or niches video games. For the latest console, the PS5, PlayStation promoted the gaming console as a “hardcore gamer’s console of choice” while emphasizing the elevation of graphics and unique features. This technique increases engagement and sales among its target audience since it implants the message that you will have a better experience and become a more elevated gamer if you buy the PS5.

As for marketing-specific games, the target market can be different depending on the rating of the game: rated M for 17+, E for everyone, T for Teenagers, and E+10 for those over 10 years of age. The most popular video game category and age range is rated M for those over 17 years of age. This is also the most prevalent target market on social media so rated M video games are marketed the most by the brand on social media.

For all of their content across their social platforms, PlayStation posts the same campaigns and promotions including those for a variety of video games. This is different than the segmentation that we have seen done by most of the brands in previous blogs. Other previous brands have used their different social media platforms to target certain parts of their audience and showcase different aspects of their personal brand but PlayStation is targeting the same 17-40 yr. old audience across all platforms since they are promoting the same products to them as well. This strategy is also beneficial because the audience can become aware of the various campaigns and promotions available across the brand which can promote an increase in sales. They also promote the use of their PlayStation Store where all their compatible video games and films are displayed. This takes out the use of third parties and gives more data access to PlayStation about their target audience’s interests and purchases.

PlayStation is very active on all its social media accounts, keeping its target audience engaged and informed on all of the latest updates, game trailers, events, and conversations. They often directly engage with their audience by asking questions, posting polls, and replying to questions and comments. This helps promote a stronger relationship with its customers and shows the interest the brand has in its customers’ feedback. Furthermore, PlayStation has a specific account called Ask PlayStation that is solely for assisting consumers and connecting them to support services. The brand also shares updates and posts from neighboring brands and videogames that they are affiliated with to continue widening their audience, and brand awareness, and make their followers aware of the out-branching segments still connected to the brand and will profit from as well. These techniques and strategies are what continue to engage their digitally immersed target market and convert them into loyal customers.

What are your thoughts on PlayStation's social media marketing strategy and how it compared to the more segmented niche strategy of other brands we have talked about? Do you believe there are Pros and Cons to the brand’s technique? Discuss in the tab above!

References: Complete Marketing Strategy of Playstation - 2022 | IIDE