Building Positively Affective Location-Based Advertising: A Study of Pokémon GO Players

Title of the Paper

Constructing Positive Emotions in Location-Based Advertising: A Study on Pokémon GO Players

Bibliographic Information

• Research Domain: Location-Based Games (LBGs) and Advertising Studies
• Keywords: Location-Based Games, Pokémon GO, Advertising, Player Behavior, COVID-19, Player Experience, Memorability, Player Agency, Sponsored Locations, Gamification

Research Background and Questions

• Research Background:
  With the growing popularity of location-based games (LBGs) and the rise of location-based advertising (LGA), understanding how LGA influences players has become crucial. As a globally popular LBG, Pokémon GO has sparked research on various aspects such as health, socialization, and territorial behaviors. However, studies on the player experience and the impact of in-game advertising are almost nonexistent.

• Research Questions and Challenges:

  1. Does advertising enhance the association between Pokémon GO players and sponsored brands?
  2. What forms of LGA are acceptable to players?
  3. Does the level of player engagement affect the effectiveness of LGA?

• Research Motivation:
  This study aims to fill the empirical and theoretical gap in the academic field regarding LGA by conducting in-depth interviews with Pokémon GO players. It explores players' perceptions, attitudes, and interactions with LGA.

Solution

• Research Methods:
  Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 27 Pokémon GO players from the United States to illuminate their lived experiences with LGA. The research design addressed three main aspects: brand recognition, the model of advertising acceptance, and the influence of player engagement on advertising value.

• Innovative Contributions of the Study:

  • Introduced LGA as a mediating factor for player memorability and advertising effectiveness, such as "player agency" and "gamified engagement."
  • Explored the dual impact of combining physical spaces with digital advertising on players' spatial perception and commercial appeal.

• Key Points:

  1. Positive memorability of locations: Points of Interest (PoI) aligned with physical reality enhance players' memories.
  2. Enhanced agency: Well-designed LGA allows players to choose when to interact with ads, avoiding disruption to the gaming experience.
  3. Gamification drivers: Dense PoI placement and in-game rewards strengthen player interactions with businesses.

Research Findings

• Specific Findings:

  • LGA as Virtual Digital Billboards: Ads digitally present brand and geographic information at locations.
  • Enhanced Agency: Well-designed LGA can increase players' sense of freedom in making choices.
  • Memorability Influenced by Physical-Digital Consistency: Players have stronger memories of locations when PoIs align with real-world settings.
  • Interactivity in Games Enhances Memorability: The more gamified and interactive a location is, the more likely players are to remember it.

• Comparison with Existing Solutions:

  • Existing approaches focus more on the formal impact of advertising. This study, leveraging players' lived experiences, directly examines the acceptance of ads and the construction of brand relationships.
  • The study redefines the value of LGA, suggesting that ads are not merely brand displays but can become an integral part of the gaming experience.

• Experimental or Evaluation Results:

  1. Players generally have a high acceptance of sponsored location ads in Pokémon GO, viewing these locations as opportunities for additional rewards.
  2. While sponsored ads benefit brand exposure, actual purchasing behavior is more driven by player needs rather than the ads themselves.
  3. Unpopular ad formats (e.g., banner ads and pop-up ads) are perceived as infringing on player agency, thereby diminishing the gaming experience.

• Limitations and Future Directions:

  • Limitations: Participants were limited to a U.S. audience, and data reflected players' experiences with LGA as of 2022.
  • Future Directions:
    1. Test players' perceptions of LGA across a broader global and culturally diverse audience.
    2. Explore how to enhance LGA's commercial effectiveness while maintaining agency and minimizing disruption.
    3. Investigate LGA design strategies and their variations across different types of LBGs.

Conclusion

This study identifies several key findings regarding location-based game advertising: high-quality ad formats (e.g., sponsored locations) are not only acceptable to players but can also enhance agency and memorability, thereby improving players' positive experiences with both the game and the locations. However, designers must avoid disrupting players' gaming engagement while exploring more innovative advertising formats to boost commercial appeal and conversion rates.