If you’re a marketing professional for a company providing B2B solutions to the global games industry, you know how crucial media coverage across these platforms can be for reaching potential clients.
Yet, you might be finding it frustratingly difficult to land those valuable mentions. You’re putting in the work, sending out pitches, but you’re just not seeing the results you expect.
You’re not alone in this struggle, and there are clear reasons why your PR efforts might not be hitting the mark when targeting the games industry. But don’t worry, we’re here to help you understand these challenges and provide actionable strategies to overcome them.
In this post, you’ll learn:
- Why your content might not be newsworthy enough for the games industry trade media.
- How to make your content more inventive and cut through the noise.
- The importance of timeliness and newsjacking in securing coverage.
- Why building relationships with journalists is essential.
- How to avoid being overly self-promotional in your pitches.
- Strategies for improving the quality of your media pitching.
- The importance of deeply understanding the games industry’s specific needs and language.
- Why tangible, games-specific proof points are crucial.
Your Content Isn’t Newsworthy Enough to land B2B games media coverage
You might think your company’s news is exciting, but is it truly newsworthy for the games industry trade media?
Journalists have specific criteria for what they cover, and simply announcing something about your business often isn’t enough to grab their attention.
If your pitch doesn’t offer fresh insights or cover topics relevant to their audience – games industry professionals – it isn’t likely to land.
How to fix it
The secret ingredient for your B2B content targeting the games industry is data.
Numbers provide quantifiable proof of trends, industry shifts, or significant events within the gaming landscape. Market reports, especially when well-analysed, can be incredibly valuable to journalists covering this sector.
If you have access to data from your own platform or can commission third-party research, you’ve got a unique asset.
Newsworthy B2B content shines a light on an issue relevant to the games industry, educates readers with valuable insights (backed by data), quantifies announcements like investments or acquisitions, or highlights significant achievements like “firsts” or “fastest growth” within the context of gaming.
Most of all, avoid dull announcements like office moves unless there’s a truly fascinating angle related to your work in the games space.
Your Content Isn’t Inventive Enough
The games industry is crowded, and journalists who cover it receive a huge volume of pitches.
If your content isn’t unique and doesn’t offer real value to their audience – games industry professionals – it’ll get lost in the shuffle.
Simply jumping on a buzzword or hot topic without substance, like the hype around AI in games, will frustrate journalists if you can’t offer unique insights or data specific to its application in gaming.
Rehashing obvious trends also won’t capture their attention; they’re looking for fresh angles and novel perspectives relevant to their readers.
How to fix it
Focus on originality.
Develop pitches with a unique point of view, backed by your own data, expert analysis, or innovative use cases within the games industry.
For example, if you’re in game licensing, analyse how the rise of TV shows such as Fallout or The Last of Us have impacted game sales.
If you work with AI tools, provide data-driven insights on how developers are actually using AI or their attitudes towards it.
Before pitching, it’s essential to research the publication’s coverage and the journalist’s expertise to tailor your proposal and show you’re committed to providing value to their audience.
Remember, substance is key; back your pitch with evidence like industry research, interviews, or your own data to position your company as a trusted authority in its niche within the games sector. Look at your organisation’s unique strengths and data to uncover untapped story angles rivals haven’t covered.
Failing to Capitalise on Timeliness and Industry Trends
In this fast-paced games industry, relevance is key.
You’re missing significant opportunities if you don’t pay attention to timely industry trends, breaking news, and the major ongoing challenges facing companies in the sector.
Simply reacting to news isn’t enough; you need to show how your B2B solution is relevant to the big picture issues games businesses are grappling with right now, such as the future of AI in development, the ballooning cost of creating games, studio downsizing, or the constant pressure to save time and increase efficiency.
How to fix it
Stay hyper-aware of the latest developments in the games space by regularly reading trade publications and specialist newsletters, and following journalists and industry leaders on social media.
This includes reacting quickly to news (newsjacking) and identifying major industry trends.
Understand these trends – whether it’s how AI is being adopted, the economic pressures leading to cost cuts, or the need for tools that boost productivity or retain talent. Then, position your B2B solution as a relevant answer to these problems.
Pitch stories that demonstrate how game companies can navigate these specific challenges and paint yourself as a company that solves problems.
You’ll need to react quickly to news hooks and proactively pitch evergreen angles tied to these significant trends, ensuring you pitch a unique angle that provides real value to the journalist’s audience.
Demonstrating that you’re deeply in tune with the games industry’s current landscape makes journalists more likely to notice you and see you as a valuable source for trend-based stories.
P.S. Our Daily Download newsletter gives you a concise daily summary of all the key things happening in the global games industry.
Failing to Build a Relationship with the Media
Having minimal contact with the games industry trade media isn’t enough to consistently land coverage.
Without cultivating genuine, long-term relationships with the key journalists who cover the business side of gaming, you’re significantly limiting your potential for getting your B2B solution seen.
While securing a single placement is valuable if you can do it, the real power comes from becoming a trusted source that journalists rely on over time.
How to fix it
Think of media relations not as a sprint with one-off interactions, but as a marathon where you nurture connections over time.
By building these relationships, you’ll find journalists aren’t just more likely to respond to your pitches; they’ll also provide valuable feedback on story ideas and might even come to you proactively when they need an expert source or a fresh angle related to B2B solutions in gaming.
You can build these meaningful connections by consistently providing value-added content and positioning yourself as a helpful industry resource.
Share relevant research or data that genuinely benefits their audience, even if it doesn’t directly promote your business. Journalists, like Chris Dring at The Game Business, often appreciate data-led insights.
Being responsive and accessible is also key; when a journalist reaches out, respond promptly and provide complete answers, connecting them with experts from your team as needed. Make their job easier by giving them news under embargo a couple of days before you go public, allowing them enough time to prepare their coverage.
The more helpful you are, the more likely they’ll return to you for future stories.
It’s also essential to take the time to understand what topics specific publications and individual journalists covering the games industry prefer or tend to avoid. Consider offering exclusive access to interviews with your leadership, early looks at product announcements, or custom data reports to make them feel special and incentivise them to see you as a preferred source.
Finally, don’t underestimate the power of engaging with journalists on social media platforms like X and LinkedIn; these provide a more casual way to build rapport outside of formal pitching.
Your Content’s Too Self-Promotional
This is a major pitfall in B2B marketing.
Your content shouldn’t be solely focused on promoting your company or solution. Pitches that lack substance and creativity and are purely self-promotional are unlikely to get coverage in the games industry trade media.
Ultimately, Journalists are under pressure to create content that informs and entertains their audience; if your pitch doesn’t align with their needs, it’ll likely be ignored. Journalists can easily spot when a story is just a veiled advertisement.
How to fix it
Put yourself in the journalist’s shoes. What kind of stories are they looking for, and what resonates with their game industry readers?
Create pitches that serve their needs, not just your own.
Even better, ask them directly about the stories they’re looking for. Understanding their priorities helps you tailor your approach and increases your chances of coverage.
Remember, journalists want stories that inform, educate, and inspire their audience; your job is to find the newsworthy angles and insights about your B2B solution’s impact on the games industry that make their job easier and boost your brand simultaneously.
Talking about your company on any level is generally a big no-no in our book.
Good B2B marketing boils down to one simple thing: Identify your clients’ problems and create great content for the media that solves those problems.
Poor Quality Pitching
Even with a great story about how your B2B solution benefits the games industry, a poorly executed pitch can cause journalists to overlook it.
Common mistakes include generic or poorly written pitches, pitches that are irrelevant to the journalist’s coverage area, not targeting the right contacts, forgetting essential assets like images or data, and burying the main point.
Any of these missteps can give a busy journalist an easy reason to dismiss your pitch.
How to fix it
Approach media pitching with the same care as you do your content.
Treat each journalist like a VIP by understanding their interests and tailoring your concise and compelling pitches to their needs.
Best practices include offering exclusives, referencing their previous work to show you’ve done your research, avoiding jargon, including only essential information and data points about your solution’s relevance to the games industry, and providing high-quality assets in preferred formats.
You should also do some benchmarking and research your competitors’ coverage to help shape your pitching approach.
Improving your pitching quality is key to breaking through the noise and securing valuable B2B media coverage within the games industry.
Not Deeply Understanding the Specific Needs and Language of the Games Industry
Not all solution providers are native to the game industry and may be new to the space.
You might understand your B2B solution inside and out, but if you don’t have a deep grasp of the specific technical, creative, financial, and operational challenges faced by game developers, publishers, and other companies in this ecosystem, your pitches will miss the mark.
Using generic business language or failing to address pain points specific to game creation, publishing, or live operations means your message won’t resonate with industry professionals or the journalists who write for them.
How to fix it
Immerse yourself in the games industry beyond just the trade news headlines.
Attend industry events (virtually or in person), follow game developers and publishers on social media, read reports on game development trends, and understand a game’s lifecycle.
Learn the jargon, understand the different roles within a studio, and listen to the specific challenges they talk about.
Tailor your pitches to speak directly to these needs and use language that demonstrates you understand their world. Show how your solution solves a games industry problem, not just a generic business problem.
Lack of Tangible, Games-Specific Proof Points
While data is powerful, journalists and their games industry audience are often looking for concrete examples of how a solution works in practice within their industry.
If you can’t provide specific case studies, testimonials, or success metrics from known game developers, publishers, or other relevant game companies, your claims can feel abstract or less credible. Generic business wins outside of gaming won’t have the same impact.
How to fix it
Actively work with your sales and customer success teams to identify games industry clients who have seen tangible results from your solution.
Develop detailed case studies that highlight the specific challenge they faced in the games industry, how your solution helped, and the quantifiable results achieved.
Secure testimonials or quotes from key contacts at these companies that you can share (with their permission). Offer journalists the opportunity to speak directly with these clients.
Providing real-world examples within the games context makes your pitch much more compelling and demonstrates the genuine value of your B2B solution to this specific market.
Parting thoughts
Securing valuable B2B media coverage in the games industry requires moving beyond simply sending out announcements.
You’ll need to shift your perspective from an internal focus to understanding what truly matters to journalists and their games industry audience.
Success isn’t about the number of pitches you send; it’s about the quality of your approach.
You’ll significantly increase your chances of landing media coverage by deeply understanding the industry, building genuine relationships, crafting newsworthy and inventive content backed by data and proof points, solving problems, capitalising on trends, and refining your pitching.
Focus on providing real value – educating and informing – and you’ll be well on your way to landing the coverage your company deserves.
