The brand opportunity of gaming, premium attention & bottom-of-funnel metrics

In a world saturated with screens, notifications and noise, every brand seeks the elusive secret: how to grab users’ attention. True mastery lies not only in capturing this scarce resource, but in knowing exactly when and how to keep this attention once they have it. 

Since the early 2000s, mining attention has become increasingly difficult. According to a Microsoft Study, the average user attention span is now around 8 seconds, making even a goldfish appear more attentive by comparison.

Yet, brands persistently search for the formula to unlock user attention. The solution lies in three key pillars:

• High focus & immersion: Being heard and making sure your message resonates
• Duration & repetition: Engaging with the audience to keep them coming back
• Contextual relevance: Delivering your message at the right moment and in the right environment

Successfully combining these three aspects unlocks what we call the "Attention Ore". A resource crucial to grabbing and retaining gamers’ attention. 

PC gaming holds the key

In the wider advertising landscape, PC gaming emerges as a uniquely powerful platform. With approximately 1.86 billion PC gamers worldwide playing long and immersed sessions, this specific cohort presents brands with countless hours of undivided attention. 

According to media measurement vendor Adelaide, Overwolf’s attention score surpasses social media and streaming platforms, and for good reason. With premium wide screen real estate and headphones on (vs Mobile), PC gaming takes 100% share-of-mind, demanding complete cognitive and physical engagement. Both hands are actively engaged, limiting any second-screen distractions and boosting focus levels. 

In recent years, the concept of “second-screen” has found its place in most households. It is hard to find the younger generations paying attention to just one screen. The traditional concept of watching a film has been altered to ‘watching a film whilst scrolling on social media’. This diluted engagement, caused by ‘half watching - half spending time on the phone’ - though well accepted - has reduced the effectiveness of traditional advertising. 

How advertisers can capture premium attention

To effectively capitalise on this attention, brands must blend organically into gameplay without disrupting the experience. Overwolf achieves this by creating uncluttered ad environments, allowing gamers to enjoy content whilst simultaneously enabling brands to achieve their marketing objectives.

Gamers are hypersensitive to anything that feels out of place. By combining native language specific to a particular game with real-time contextual relevance, brands can ensure that their ads feel like an extension of the game. 

The most effective strategies are those that enhance the moment rather than distract from it. Moment-Triggered Ads are built for this exact emotional resonance. By activating during key gameplay events like wins, losses, or critical milestones, ads arrive at moments of the highest intensity, when players are fully engaged. This isn’t background noise. That emotional sync drives higher recall and deeper connection, turning a well-timed message into a meaningful brand memory. 

Another approach is Rewarded Challenges, opt-in branded quests that can grant players real-world rewards, from in-game items to physical products. These activations flip the ad dynamic on its head: players actively seek them out. And because the rewards are tied to gameplay achievements, they reinforce the gamer’s own skill and encourage repeat engagement.

As a testament to the efficacy of this unique set of innovative in-game ad products, in 2024 Digiday awarded Overwolf with the Best Gaming Ad Tech - another industry signal for how significant the platform is for brands and advertisers.

Attention drives bottom-of-funnel results

Attention is tightly correlated with bottom-of-funnel business outcomes because attention delivers on both quality and efficiency. 

According to Overwolf data, ad placements with higher attention scores consistently outperform in brand uplift and drive greater purchase intent.

Overwolf ad units average 90% viewability and 85% video completion rates precisely due to the unique combination of our first-party data targeting (including Game, GPU, Hardware, ISP) with real-time contextual ad-placement relevance during gameplay.

Media is shifting. The industry is moving toward attention-based marketing, and platforms like Overwolf are already there. Being early to this reformulated approach to advertising ensures premium performance from awareness all the way through to conversion.