Results and Effectiveness

Gaming servers were used by 2,432 players. Campaign reached 1.4m unique users. 60 teams entered the tournament, totalling 387 players. Gaming and mainstream media attended the finals, generating PR worth $550,000. • National NineNews. • ABC show GoodGame. • CBS’s Gamespot described it as ‘the best run Australian tournament to date’ The event video achieved 90,000+ views – the most watched gaming film on YouTube – generating 30,000+ discussion threads and comments on gaming sites. Sales grew +40% on previous quarter, peaking at +66% in the final 2 weeks of the campaign. Unprompted brand awareness doubled from 2% to 4%.

Creative Execution

We set-up and promoted free Alienware branded gaming servers, visible to players searching for online multiplayer games, exposing players to Alienware welcome and in-game messaging. We engaged the best clans by creating the Alienware Clan Challenge – the biggest Call of Duty tournament in Australian history. Dell provided 5 Alienware Aurora machines, an unprecedented prize-pool valued at $30,000. www.alienwarearena.com.au provided the hub where gamers registered, conversed and progressed through the online tournament. 60 teams were reduced through online qualifications, to the best 8, for the Sydney live final. The finals were created in an amazing space at CarriageWorks to create a real life Alienware Arena with spectators stand and gaming den for competitors. Live action was streamed online with commentary from the irrepressible Gamestah. We created a short film of the event that was hosted on YouTube and seeded via PR, media partners and gaming influencers.

Insights, Strategy and the Idea

Alienware, Dell’s gaming PC brand, offers hard-core gamers the best equipment. Our daunting brief was to double Alienware’s sales, from 2.5% of total Dell sales mix to 5%. The tough part was reaching hard-core gamers, who spend so much time gaming they barely consume any other media. To understand this niche audience, we went beyond syndicated research, conducting an online panel of obsessive gamers. We discovered the central role “clans” played in the game-playing lives of the most devoted gamers. Clan battles are their ultimate test and gamers need to be confident their equipment is superior. Alienware is recognised as the ‘Ferrari’ of gaming PCs, so showcasing our machines was a powerful opportunity. Australian gamers were also jealous of their US/UK counterparts, who contest high-profile gaming tournaments and have access to fast, high quality gaming servers. Our strategy: show gamers that Alienware cares as much about gaming as they do.