Editorial on the Research TopicIncluding the audience in Integrated Marketing Communication and branding: social media, gaming, and beyond
In 2025, the long-awaited indie game Hollow Knight: Silksong was released for digital download. Audiences generally praised video game developer Team Cherry's new title, which was nominated for “Game of the Year” by the Video Game Awards.1 The intrigue and the game's attractive price drew many players to experience the game's grueling difficulty. Frustration led to feedback from gaming communities and content creators alike. Many gamers begged Team Cherry to dial the difficulty down. Based on the feedback, small changes were made to improve progression and accessibility via an in-game patch after initial release.2 It's now commonplace in gaming communities to have an active voice, and developers are increasingly responsive, making changes to improve their products.
Drawing inspiration from gaming communities, contributions to this topic explore audience involvement in media and branding contexts. While the articles in this Frontiers in Communication Topic titled, “Including the Audience in IMC and Branding: Social Media, Gaming and Beyond” navigate the named contexts, the human contributions to Integrated Marketing Communication (IMC) remain central. This collection explores consumer contributions through interactive platforms, and the communication tactics brands use to facilitate interaction and integrate feedback. Feedback loops, sharing, and trust within digital media environments have created a network of consistent engagement, even after customers have already purchased the original releases.
Influencers and content creators act as “opinion leaders” by helping to voice community concerns when issues arise. Members of an influencer's community can discuss solutions on their channel (e.g., Discord, Twitch.tv). Then, influencers express these thoughts on their accounts. It's not uncommon for game developers to watch the content, listen to feedback, implement changes, and even reward content creators for their assistance. This cyclical process can foster brand loyalty, as community members can see that game developers value their communities' opinions. Thus, when new releases or downloadable content (DLCs) are released, influencers are offered early access beta tests to review their product, and the cycle restarts.
This manuscript proposes a model to help visualize the cyclical hyper-personal feedback loop between brands, consumers, and opinion leaders (Figure 1). The life-cycle consists of four stages. First, brands need to build audience enthusiasm for their product through awareness. Brands need to be in the same interactive channels as their audiences. Second, desire occurs when consumers find interest in the product through means of conversation. A brand needs to listen and be part of the conversation. Third, feedback from the audience will be provided, so brands need to take action to demonstrate they are moving forward with influencers' and audience feedback. Lastly, loyalty can occur with trust between the brand and influencer/community, as all parties feel heard. As new products launch, the faith between the two parties can translate to sales. These tenets are expressed below through the lens of the modern video game industry.
Brand influencer co-creation cycle.
Diagram labeled “Brand Influencer Co-Creation Cycle” showing four connected circles in a cycle: 1. Awareness, 2. Desire, 3. Action, and 4. Loyalty, each with supporting activities outlined for gaming brand engagement.
A basic tenet of media planning research exemplifies the first step of the cycle: be present where your customers are. Ease of use, initial delivery, and approachable interface on widely shared platforms can create initial interest and promote sharing (Peng et al.). Whether a brand is new or releasing a new product, its deliverables need to be approachable. The ease of use extends to influencers upon and before initial release to increase interest.
Brands benefit from active consumer participation. Gamification can increase brand loyalty by fulfilling social needs (Zhang et al.). Content creators leave reviews, discuss uses, and convey their expectations and feelings. Understanding consumers' emotional states fosters deeper relationships. For instance, television content can shape consumers' emotions about an advertised brand, creating a halo effect (Bettiga and Noci). Moreover, listening to Key Opinion Leaders (KOLs) and encouraging interactivity can lead to stronger purchasing intentions (Tran and Uehara). Opinion leaders' motivations and narratives bolster their credibility (Rodriguez-Hidalgo et al.) which enhances branding. By listening to consumers and understanding how their platform experiences connect to brand perceptions, marketers can enhance trust.
Brands should do more than just listen, brands should also act on feedback, demonstrate shared values, engage authentically, and boost engagement through symbolic content which can strengthen purchasing intentions (Limna et al.). Offering resources to improve user experiences, like video game patches, proves that a developer values improving the user experience. These actions not only enhance the perception and relevance of the current release, but also subsequent releases.
When audiences feel understood, trust and loyalty follow. Consistency in branding while emphasizing innovation can also enhance brand value (Zhang). Brand connections are strengthened when a brand's identity is aligned with an audience's ideal branding (Crawford and Jackson). Ultimately, loyalty develops through authentic connection. Through gaming, players interact continually after the release by developing theories concerning the lore of the game, attempting to complete the game in the fastest time possible, discussing character “builds” and how to optimize the game, etc. As these conversations continue, brands earn attention through ongoing player-game engagement.
As new products are introduced, the cycle restarts. KOLs can be offered exclusive access or products before release. Featuring reviews and testimonials before release helps companies make changes before issues come on release. Brands obtain strong earned/paid media from KOL reviews on their channel. Moreover, brands demonstrating their ability to listen and implement changes based on feedback build digital communities with shared values, which is a determinant of customer loyalty (Tahat et al.) that could ultimately drive sales.
The author(s) declared that this work was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.
The author EC declared that they were an editorial board member of Frontiers, at the time of submission. This had no impact on the peer review process and the final decision.
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Edited and reviewed by: Steven Bellman, University of South Australia, Australia
A yearly video game awards show that recognizes topics like story, music, gameplay, and the game of the year.
A video game patch is software used to fix bugs, balance gameplay, add new features, etc. Patches can be automatically downloaded via game updates, thus changing specific components of the game.