Game plan: Survey finds video game purchases influenced by friends

December 17, 2009

Video gamers ranked friends as the largest influencer of their video game purchasing decisions, a new study finds.

According to the study, word-of-mouth, led by friends, was three times as likely to influence the purchase of video games as traditional forms of advertising and promotion.

The study, released by Waggener Edstrom Worldwide in partnership with the Annenberg School for Communication & Journalism at the University of Southern California and Harris Interactive, also identified a highly influential segment of gamers referred to as “influence multipliers.” These influence multipliers, considered veteran video game players, represented 21 percent of all gamers in the sample, but demonstrated disproportionate influence over the purchasing decisions of their family and friends. The survey suggests that targeting media channels relevant to Influence Multipliers can optimize marketing spending.