BD Network

London

Making Hasbro the MVP at the world’s largest board game convention

How we united and activated multiple Hasbro game properties together for the first time to create a ‘must visit’ experience at Spiel Essen.

After working with Wizards of the Coast (a subsidiary of Hasbro and owner of Magic: The Gathering and Dungeons & Dragons) for two years, we were invited to pitch to deliver Hasbro’s presence at Spiel Essen – the world’s largest tabletop and board games convention.

Hasbro wanted to do something different this time, uniting multiple IPs from their Hasbro Games arm, Avalon Hill Games (another subsidiary) and Wizards of the Coast, presenting these as a ‘One Hasbro’ offering to games fans from around the world.

Our Challenge

Hasbro’s game portfolio ranges from beloved household titles like Monopoly, Cluedo and Twister through to more mature games like HeroQuest, Betrayal and Magic: The Gathering. For years, local teams in Europe had been attending consumer events, supporting individual IPs but with no consistency between markets or brand executions. Hasbro challenged us to define event attendance and demonstrate how brands could be showcased consistently alongside one another.

Our Insight

The world’s biggest board game convention means that every games company is there, vying for attendees’ attention and looking to deliver them as many game trials as possible. There is a functional impact to stand design where the majority of space is given over to cramped banks of tables and chairs to deliver the trial numbers at the expense of theatre and wider brand experience. The result is an overwhelming maelstrom of exhibitors clamouring to funnel guests through a game demo in a space that doesn’t deliver the best brand experience.

We knew that our stand needed to offer more than just product trial to engage attendees. We wanted to immerse them in the IPs and give them something that they couldn’t get anywhere else.

We also wanted to create a haven in amongst the chaos of the event – a space where attendees could dwell and indulge in their favourite past time without having to think about the crowds and appreciate the power of games to bring like-minded people together.

Our Strategy and Approach

Our strategy focussed on two things:

1) Creating a methodology for event attendance that would allow markets to activate multiple IPs under One Hasbro here and in the future

2) Create a stand that would not just unite IPs but create a brand interaction that couldn’t be experienced anywhere else and would make attendees want to stay on stand, rather than just be funnelled through a game demo

Our strategy resulted in the TRI Framework, a three pronged approach to defining and delivering One Hasbro’s brand presence at game fairs and consumer events, focussing on:

Trial – ensuring that players get hands on with the games

Trial was key to converting newcomers and dabblers into players and informed both stand design and experience.

Trial needed to be brought to life in engaging and memorable way that encouraged participation and discovery whilst being accessible and suitable for intended players.

Recall – ensuring that the brand, IP and experienceis memorable

Recall was about being memorable at and beyond the event. Peer to peer recommendation was highly regarded by our audience so we wanted to ensure that stand visitors had reasons to talk about and share their experiences after they left.

Using incentives and shareable experiences (and even product sales) we could drive conversation organically beyond an event. Recall could also be driven through data capture as we looked to continue the conversation with visitors, seeding upcoming events and games to nurture future players

Immersion – delivering an experience that differentiates from competitors

Immersion was identified as a key motivator for our audience.

Using a zonal approach we could bring the rich game worlds to life through the structure, props and Games Masters.

The games worlds would also influence any entertainment, giveaways or content creation in that zone.

Our Solution

To unite the game IPs we refined a consumer facing proposition of NEVER STOP PLAYING. This had a functional angle, as Hasbro’s range of games meant there was plenty to play, but also a more emotive call to action for attendees to never lose their playful side or passion for tabletop gaming.

We then moved beyond straight product trial or brand presence and delivered a more immersive experience that would draw attendees to stand and allow greater reach beyond the event hall. Whilst there was a play arena at the heart of the stand where attendees could trial all games, we ensured that each brand was given its own demo and IP inspired experience as well. These included challenges, tutorials, exclusive product announcements, photo opps and prizes to give attendees reasons to visit the whole stand and engage with IP they may not have considered before.

To maximise ROI and to generate revenue we also proposed that Hasbro’s brand store PULSE was present on the stand to retail products and capitalise on consumer engagement there and then. A large inventory of products available to play on stand was made available to buy at the PULSE store, with QR codes across touchpoints allowing attendees to pre-order or purchase titles not available at the event online.