Tell me, what do Vans, Sunsilk, Hello Kitty, and Spotify have in common? Can’t get it? Well, all of those brands, as well as countless others, have embraced Roblox games as a way of promoting products and IPs to the millions using the platform. But why have so many companies flocked to Roblox?
The answer is pretty obvious, it’s where the kids are at. With the move from network TV to streaming, and other means of advertising struggling to reach the numbers they once did, brands are looking to see what Gen Z most engages with in an attempt to bring products and product awareness to a new generation. There are plenty of other examples of how the changing shape of media is influencing the change in tack when it comes to advertising and brand awareness, but nothing proves it better than the embrace of Roblox experiences.
It seems that fashion brands are particularly aware of the interest in having representation in the digital space, with Gucci, Nike, and Pansun all accounted for on the platform. A 2022 survey from Roblox and the Parsons School of Design found that three in four of the 1,000 surveyed answered that they would be willing to spend real money on fashion in a Roblox title, while one in four answered that they’ve already spent somewhere in the region of £20-100 on a single piece of in-game clothing. This shows us that it’s not just advertising Roblox is useful for, but selling new products in innovative ways too.
Outside of fashion brands, more and more companies are using Roblox as a way to try and either reinvent their IPs or simply introduce their IPs to a new generation. In the last couple of years, Bakugan, He-Man, Ben 10, Hello Kitty, and more have all played the starring role in their own Roblox experiences. Considering that 84% of Gen Z are playing Roblox, and these games all show up on the discover landing page, that’s some pretty incredible IP placement, even if the kids don’t try the games out.
Companies are also turning to Roblox games for plain old brand awareness, spreading the gospel of its product through a fun-filled experience aimed at Gen Z players. The best examples of this are Spotify Island, Walmart Land, and Chipotle Burrito Experiences, each with over fourteen million lifetime visits.
The latest data suggests that at the end of 2022, the Roblox player count was as high as 58 million daily users, with more continuing to flock to popular titles like Blox Fruits and Brookhaven. Admittedly, the branded experiences still have a way to go to catch up with these original titles, with the most success for a fashion brand so far going to Vans World with 92 million plus lifetime visits, while Ben 10 is the most popular non-gaming IP with numbers in excess of 250 million. Still, when compared with the over fourteen billion visits to Blox Fruits, the most popular game on the platform, there’s a way to go.
All of this information is, of course, important reading for businesses aiming to market products or services to the Gen Z demographic. The big question is whether Roblox can adapt to keep up with the new needs of Gen Z players as they grow older, but there’s confidence from higher-ups at the platform that this is already taking place. Tami Bhaumik, the VP of Civlity and Partnerships at Roblox, is on the record as saying “we’re naturally ageing up as our platform continues to evolve”. Only time will tell if she’s right, but that statement is from 2021, and the platform has only continued to grow since then.
So, whether your business wants a piece of the pie from selling digital products – and it’s a big pie, with Roblox generating over two billion dollars in revenue in 2022 alone – or just better brand awareness with Gen Z, Roblox games are up there with TikTok and Snapchat as the best ways of reaching the youth of today.
If you’re a big Roblox fan yourself, be sure to check out our picks for the best Roblox games, as well as our Roblox promo codes, and Roblox game codes. Included in the latter are Shindo Life codes, Nuke Simulator codes, Pop It Trading codes, and Anime Adventures codes.