Convincing the Boss to Invest in Branded Games

Posted by Alistair on 16.10.2025

Convincing the Boss About Games for Consumer Brands

You know branded games can take your next big campaign to the next level. But now comes the real challenge: convincing the boss.

Marketing budgets are squeezed, senior teams are cautious, and every activation needs to tie back to loyalty, retention, or revenue. A ‘fun little game’ can sound like a distraction.

But branded games aren’t frivolous. They’re measurable, scalable, and designed to strengthen customer relationships. They integrate seamlessly with your existing campaigns, and once your leadership team sees the results, they’ll get it.

Here’s how to make the case with benefits and language that speaks to the boardroom. 👇

1. Games create emotional, memorable connections

Customers forget ads that last just a few seconds. But they remember experiences that last up to 20 minutes on average:

Games turn your campaign into a shared moment of joy, not another promotion to scroll past.
They build positive associations, meaning customers connect your brand with fun and rewards.
They’re highly shareable, fuelling organic reach across social media and making for a great talking point among family and friends.

For a household-name retail brand, that kind of recall is gold. It’s how you stay front-of-mind between purchases and put yourself in the right place for when the next purchase comes along.

For retail and hospitality brands, those memorable connections are what keeps your brand top-of-mind between visits, bookings, or purchases, and puts you in the right place when customers are ready to spend again.

"The final product exceeded our expectations. Our branding tied in so well with the game and the character design ended up being incredible. The game surpassed our expectations as it was shared without the spend and how it should be – organically!"

Mark Haslam, Digital Designer, Greene King

2. Seamless brand consistency

Your campaigns are built on polished, consistent storytelling. Branded games extend that into an interactive space:

Tailored game design that reflects your colours, logos, typography, and tone.
Campaign messaging and offers embedded directly into gameplay.
Call-to-action hooks woven into the mechanics – think driving app downloads, loyalty sign-ups, and promoting products.

It’s not an add-on. It’s an interactive layer that strengthens the rest of your campaign.

3. Increase loyalty and retention

Repeat visits drive long-term value. Games incentivise customers to come back:

Leaderboards and challenges spark repeat play.
Voucher codes and unlockable rewards encourage loyalty.
Integration with your loyalty app or CRM keeps customers connected.

Hospitality brands can link rewards to bookings, while retailers can link discounts to basket spend. Either way, it’s about turning one-time customers into loyal fans.

“The engagement was incredible. We’ve never seen numbers like that before! 15% of people played it over 50 times, which is just amazing."

Emily Grice, Global Digital Marketing Executive, Molton Brown

"We saw a significant amount of revenue generated via the offers attached to the game – a new company record in terms of ROI!"

Liam Coulson, Conversion Manager, DFDS UK

5. Perfect for big campaign moments

Halloween, Black Friday, Christmas, Valentine’s Day, summer launches.

Whatever the season, games create the interactive hook your campaign needs.

They offer repeat playability, extend your campaign’s lifespan, give customers a reason to engage before and after the key moment, and turn your activation into something unforgettable.

6. Measurable impact that’s boardroom-ready

Games aren’t just a ‘nice-to-have’. They generate data your team can track, present, and act on:

Game-specific engagement times, repeat plays, and shares.
Voucher redemptions and sales uplift.
New customers, subscribers, and followers.
CRM integration for retargeting and customer journey tracking.
Direct links to app downloads, bookings, or basket spend.

That means you can walk into the boardroom with a campaign that delivers both brand impact and hard numbers.

“We expected to have a few hundred folks play the game, but by the end of the first day we saw a few thousand. The acquisition cost per app download was great too, far exceeding expectations!”

Tom Lockwood, Director of Marketing, Hopdoddy

7. Experiential and digital activations

From in-store activations to product launches or national campaigns, branded games flex to fit the moment.

Set them up on arcade machines or touchscreens to create a buzz in-store or at events.
Launch them online for wide reach, campaign amplification, and community-building.
Tie them into physical or digital promotions to close the loop.
Promote them at POS through scannable QR codes.

It’s about creating an experience your customers can’t help but interact with.

8. Premium experiences that set you apart

The biggest consumer brands don’t just run campaigns – they create moments that last long in the memory. Branded games help you do exactly that:

Tried-and-tested gameplay that puts the player first.
Creative design that brings your brand world to life.
Immersive mechanics that feel like part of the campaign, not an add-on.
Experiences that make an impact and leave a lasting impression on customers.

It’s not about playing it safe. It’s about doing something different by making a bold, memorable statement that your customers will associate with your brand long after the campaign ends.

Ready to make your case?

If you’re planning your next big campaign, we can help you pitch the idea internally. Whether you need data, case studies, creative concepts, or examples from global brands, we’ll equip you with everything you need to get leadership on board.

Book your free discovery call to find out more!

Molton Brown Perfect Match

"The engagement was incredible. We’ve never seen numbers like that before! 15% of people played it over 50 times, which is just amazing."

View case study

Kwik Fit Kwikmas Konga

"The design was fantastic, it looked incredible and went beyond our expectations!"

View case study

SpongeBob SquarePants Kamp Koral

"Peek & Poke met our high creative expectations that an agency will represent our brand and IPs respectfully."

View case study

Hungry Horse Crazy Horse Racing

"It’s not just the ‘magic’ of the games – it’s the quality, consistency, and reliability of the Peek & Poke team."

View case study

Quidco Q4 Multi-Game Bonanza

"The sponsors for the Black Friday Match-3 saw an increase across all metrics we were tracking!"

View case study

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