Fearless Media

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am the VP Marketing of AlwaysGeeky Games

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

Our goal at AlwaysGeeky Games is simple - be at the forefront of gaming trends and bring fun and value to our players through innovative blockchain technology.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire Fearless Media to accomplish?

• Grow Awareness
• Attract New Players
• Increase Social Followers

SOLUTION

How did you find Fearless Media?

Referral

Why did you select Fearless Media over others?

• High ratings
• Great culture fit
• Referred to me
• Company values aligned

How many teammates from Fearless Media were assigned to this project?

2-5 Employees

Describe the scope of work in detail. Please include a summary of key deliverables.

Lead the delivery of our go-to-market media strategies, including:

• Paid media
• Social media 
• Organic Social content development and deployment. 

Growth intent is three-fold: 

• Awareness
• New Players
• Social Followers.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What were the measurable outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

• Improve Voxies and Voxie Tactics brand visibility, and brand mentions YOY. 
• 100%+ game download growth. 
• scale TikTok from 0 to 8000+ followers.

Describe their project management. Did they deliver items on time? How did they respond to your needs?

They have superb project management skills, delivering all items on time and exceeding expectations both from a media programming and creative and content standpoint. Response to our fast pace and dynamic needs has been outstanding; enjoy the personal relationships with Cara, Nick, James and Jacqueline!

What was your primary form of communication with Fearless Media?

• Virtual Meeting
• Email or Messaging App

What did you find most impressive or unique about this company?

The creativity of the team and their knack for coming up with tailored solutions for our often unique and urgent needs.

Are there any areas for improvement or something Fearless Media could have done differently?

None come to mind.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

Razer is a gaming lifestyle brand specializing in PC peripherals and laptops - For Gamers By Gamers. I manage digital advertising for the North America region across US and Canada supporting eCommerce sales across third party retailers.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Fearless Media?

Fearless Media is the Agency of Record for Razer US for media buys for all digital marketing activities off of Amazon.com. This includes social media marketing, programmatic advertising, online sponsorships and direct media buys. We were also looking for an agency that can provide media recommendations and insights into the gaming industry.

What were your goals for this project?

We wanted to increase sales and market share across all our business units and reach a more engaged audience to be as efficient with our limited spend as possible. As our product line diversifies, we are also looking to gain brand relevance in new product categories while still maintaining our premium brand experience in our established markets.

SOLUTION

How did you select Fearless Media?

In the beginning of 2019, Razer US went through the RFP process looking for media agencies to respond to a campaign brief relaunching a current Razer product.

Top 3 agency responses were asked to follow up with more details including competitor analysis and strategy recommendations. Fearless presented the most comprehensive analysis and campaign proposal leveraging their gaming industry expertise.

Describe the scope of their work in detail.

After providing campaign direction, timing, and spend, Fearless advises a strategy and recommends advertising partners. After Razer feedback, Fearless will negotiate competitive pricing and placements then upon Razer approval, Fearless manages media buying and planning, execution, and tracking and reporting.

Razer provides the creatives and feedback while Fearless continues to monitor and optimize campaigns during flight. Fearless has also recently began compiling monthly competitor analysis and market research for the Razer team to review and strategize around.

What was the team composition?

Our agency relationship is managed through Cara and Nick. While Nick is our main account manager, Cara is also heavily involved providing industry insights and recommendations.

More recently, Callahan has been brought onto our account to place media and provide in depth analytics. I am sure our account is supported by more than these three individuals but these are the one I have the most contact with.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Can you share any outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

Sales and support to our 3rd party retailers have increased since Fearless began supporting Razer. More importantly, Razer has grown to number 1 in market share for PC Gaming Peripherals in terms of sales and has maintained that positioning for all of 2020 to date. Fearless has also been key in several product launches over the past year which have quickly become Razer top sellers.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

The Fearless team is very easy to communicate with quick responses and frequent updates. Outside of our weekly status call, most communication is done via email.

Despite our time difference, Fearless is always accommodating when scheduling additional calls throughout the week. Our relationship is very collaborative as we both are open to constructive feedback and using it to improve performance.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

While knowledge of the gaming industry was a huge factor in our decision to sign with Fearless, I was not expecting the network of contacts with Fearless to be so wide. Cara seems to know everybody in the space and I am always amazed with how the team is able to negotiate competitive rates and secure added value placements to get the most out of our campaigns.

Are there any areas for improvement?

At this point, Fearless has exceeded my expectations in performance. Over time we begun enlisting Fearless's services to conduct more market research and competitor analysis for the US region as a whole and at the beginning these report took longer to compile than expected but provided some extremely in depth information.

Now that research and expectations have been established, comprehensive reporting has begun to be delivered in a more timely manner all while continuing to manage and maintain our regular media buys.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the digital marketing manager at a hiring solutions company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Fearless Media?

We wanted to rebrand, launch a new logo, and a new vision. We also wanted to apply this new image to our revenue and lead generation efforts.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

One of the first things we realized together is that we had Bing and Google Ads targeted at an audience that we were no longer our audience. One of the first tasks we asked them for was to repopulate and recreate our Google Ads account to match our new target, along with new keywords.

While it wasn’t a new account, it was treated like one, in a sense. They also manage our Microsoft Ads and Facebook Ads as well. The team assists with copy testing variations and optimizing with paid search.

What is the team composition?

I have one main point of contact, but the president of their company is always available to talk with me too. In total, I work with about four people from their team.

How did you come to work with Fearless Media?

We did an agency search and at first, we didn’t know exactly what we were looking for, necessarily. We scheduled meetings with a number of firms and reviewed their proposals. Fearless was very impressive from our first meeting and we liked their proposal.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve probably spent around $35,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in January 2020, and our work is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement? 

In just the six months or so that we’ve been together, we’ve had to change strategies more than once. Starting the year, we took a broader approach to lead generation with lofty goals, and now we have different goals based on what our sales team can accomplish. We’ve been surpassing our lead goals, overall. From a volume standpoint, we’re absolutely thrilled. From a lead quality standpoint, things are going well too.

How did Fearless Media perform from a project management standpoint?

We have a weekly standup, based on what needs to be discussed. We always hear back pretty promptly. They always handle our requests eloquently.

What did you find most impressive about them?

The team has a high level of involvement. Their leadership is always available for phone calls and that sets them apart from some of the larger agencies out there.

Are there any areas they could improve?

We could use more on the creative side, but I can’t blame them for that since it’s not something we opened our budget to at this point. It’s the most tempting opportunity to improve. Otherwise, there aren’t any glaring weaknesses.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Don’t let the fact that they’re a small agency scare you away. The team turns out top quality, big-city agency caliber work.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

We are a full-service kiosk that specializes in rental and sell through of DVDs and video games. We also have an on-demand service. I am the senior marketing manager of the video games line of business.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Fearless Media?

Our company is well known for its video line of business, but the video games line is relatively hidden. We needed an agency to help us raise consumer awareness through campaign ideas and executional strategies to reach both casual and hardcore gamers.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We have weekly status calls and provide them with our monthly goals. We either give them directives to follow or ask them to innovate initiatives to boost consumer awareness. They find retailers for us to partner with, manage influencer campaigns, and research and develop promotional programs with me.

Right now, we’re working on paid media and influencer socialization programs, which we plan to do more of in 2019. Last year, we had a theatrical release with a companion video game that we wanted to market. They created an influencer activation that ran 8–12 weeks from the theatrical release to the DVD and game release. We gave them a set budget to spend, and they scouted appropriate influencers who were willing to promote our brand and the specific title.

They have an incredible number of diverse connections in the industry and have been very beneficial to our initiatives. They’re very smart about leveraging their network and have found us some great deals as a result. They act as our go-between with the influencer we chose, and they manage some of our social media campaigns on Facebook and Instagram, and our paid media on YouTube.

What is the team composition?

The core team is Cara (President, Fearless Media) and one or two other people. Cara is very involved, which I appreciate.

How did you come to work with Fearless Media?

I think they reached out to us while we were vetting other agencies for this initiative. Of all the agencies we spoke to, Fearless Media was the only one who understood that we were trying to reach all levels of gamer to maintain year-round consumers. Other agencies focused on big releases and hardcore gamers, and we needed to appeal to the casual market as well. The president is also very experienced and well-connected. She listened to our current goals and integrated her past processes that were successful.

How much have you invested with them?

Altogether, we’ve spent $400,000–$500,000 for 2018. We’re in the process of working out the 2019 budget now.

What is the status of this engagement?

We officially signed a contract at the beginning of 2018 but had already been working together since around the end of 2017. The collaboration is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

Fearless Media has been very important to our success, especially since our team is fairly small and highly focused on our specific business line. We're now working together  to find KPIs and metrics that my leadership can agree to. We hope to have those objectives in place in 2019. There aren’t any specific metrics yet, but Fearless Media is completely clear. They support as many ideas as possible and are good researchers.

How did Fearless Media perform from a project management standpoint?

Their project management style is fantastic. They recap every call we have and follow up with any action items we set forth. They’re very patient with our hectic schedule and are very consistent. They’re a great support team and their communication is excellent.

What did you find most impressive about them?

The team's industry understanding differentiates themselves from the competition. Because we’re such a niche field, their experience and willingness to learn and listen set them apart. Fearless Media really understands our goals. They're eager to tackle any challenge.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I don’t have any improvements to suggest, but I’d love them to have even more ideas to move us forward in 2019.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Being as transparent as you can will strengthen your relationship with Fearless Media.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I’m a partner at Aim Assist. We offer consulting services for clients in the video game industry to assist them with marketing direction and brand management efforts.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Fearless Media?

We needed help preparing for the launch of an online game brand.

What were your goals for this project?

We wanted to hit our specific post-launch sales benchmarks and establish a market position to make room for future iterations.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

I’d previously worked with them on similar marketing campaigns, and they generated great results.

Describe the scope of their work in detail.

Fearless Media implemented SEO campaigns and strategies to build awareness. They created a variety of digital marketing assets, assisted with media buying, and helped us build co-marketing relationships. Their team supported all of these efforts and provided performance reports. Based on their findings, they offered detailed recommendations to improve our marketing campaigns and implementation methods. Currently, they’re still supporting our efforts.

What was the team composition?

I work with their principal. They also provide a project lead to manage each specific task.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Can you share any outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

We’re still working on the campaign, but we’ve been successful in implementing their work so far.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

Their always available to help with any element of the campaign. With that level of accessibility, the workflow has been extremely efficient. We follow a timeline that clearly outlines and details our goals for the project.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

I’m most impressed by their versatility and flexibility. They act as a turnkey solution for our entire media campaign.

Are there any areas for improvement?

I can’t think of anything else they could’ve done to improve their services.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

We are an American video game company.

I am the director of global marketing for the company. I manage our marketing teams, which are involved in the day-to-day and long-term marketing for product launches. As a video game company, this involves everything from creating websites to TV commercials, packaging, strategy, and other tactics.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Fearless Media?

Everything we do on the marketing side is consumer-facing, so we needed to get our brands in front of people through advertising efforts.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Fearless Media is our media buying agency, helping us make plans around advertising. Initially, this included online, print, outdoor, and TV. With the advent of social media and with the number of influencers and streamers on YouTube and Twitch, we've also expanded our relationship to include advertising programs for those channels.

The core of Fearless Media's involvement is media-planning, answering questions such as, “How do we reach our gamer audience, and let them know that our game is coming?” Their work involves everything from working with media partners on more robust programs like larger promotions and integrations with TV shows. We have partnerships with websites that broadcast special programming as well as with NFL stars who play our games. We also have an integration with a late-night TV show.

With Fearless Media, we have expanded into all the capabilities that media partners can provide us, and which we can leverage in order to put our games in front of an ever-increasing audience.

Fearless Media hasn't provided creative services in terms of creating ads or other content, but their work is creative in itself. We publish 2-6 games per year, so there have been dozens of games with which Fearless Media was involved.

How did you come to work with Fearless Media?

It was before my time, but I know that Fearless Media's principal was starting her own media buying agency. My organization helped with that process, and the relationship has continued since then.

How much have you invested with Fearless Media?

This information is confidential. However, our biggest marketing expense is media, and we have directed all the effort to Fearless Media over the years.

What is the status of this engagement?

I don't know when my company first started with Fearless Media, but it was before I joined the company in 2010. The relationship is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any evidence that would demonstrate the productivity, quality of work, or the impact of the engagement?

The fact that we're still working with Fearless Media, and have expanded their role, speaks to the quality of their work. We have multiple teams within the organization working with Fearless Media, which is also a testament to their quality.

Our games have been featured on a late-night show and a popular TV drama, as well as being promoted by various soccer and football stars. Fearless Media has been instrumental in terms of our ability to market massive hit and niche games alike. Beyond the games, much of the success comes from our ability to get the word out there and drive interest through advertising.

We've been able to reach a mass-market audience. While we don't use Fearless Media for creative work, they've certainly been instrumental in ensuring that our content is seen on Monday Night Football, in the NCAA tournament or during the season finale of a major TV show, when the show has its most views.

Fearless Media is very good at bringing these big opportunities to us, allowing our company to put creative content in front of large audiences.

How did Fearless Media perform from a project management standpoint?

Fearless Media has had to juggle many things. In 2017, we have 6 ongoing projects, and they will go through all aspects of those projects over time. These are not one-week jobs, but can last for 6 months, and can have a planning stage of more than a year. There are many assets to create, and many things to deliver. There have been hiccups here and there, but, for the most part, Fearless Media has managed things smoothly. Meeting deadlines has been good. Fearless Media is usually waiting for us to deliver creatives.

As companies, we're in communication at least daily, either via email or through the phone. I talk to Fearless Media's team at least once a week and know that my teams are also on the phone on a regular basis. We don't use any specific project management tools.

What did you find most impressive about Fearless Media?

Fearless Media's principal is a relentless worker, and she has built a good team. She is definitely a client first business owner, bending over backward to make sure that we're taken care of and happy. In many ways, we view Fearless Media as a part of our team, given that we work closely and have many conversations. Fearless Media understands our business and what we're trying to do. There's a level of service within their organization, which isn't always found with larger ones.

Are there any areas Fearless Media could improve?

There is an opportunity to implement more collaboration tools. We rely heavily on email and phone calls, and there is software which could probably make our work more efficient. All the benefits that can come from working with a smaller agency, including the personal attention and extra care, can offset some of the advantages that a large conglomerate can bring, like buying power or additional processes and structure.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

Versus Evil is an independent video games publisher with games on all the major platforms, such as Xbox, PlayStation, PC, and mobile. As a publisher, we provide all levels of marketing services, including PR, media buying, general creative services, quality assurance, localization, distribution, sales, and so on.

I am the founder and general manager of the company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Fearless Media?

As a small publisher working with various outlets, our challenge is finding the right target market for our advertising efforts. We don't have dedicated staff for this, so it was important to find the right partner.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Fearless Media provides a full suite of services. They've been able to buy our ads with third-party companies directly, and have performed research and brand-building based on our sales and reach objectives. Fearless Media also helps provide guidance around those decisions. Whether we're looking at cost-per-install or cost-per-acquisition campaigns, whether we're performing straight branding, or are reviewing our budget, Fearless Media is a great advisor.

Depending on our spend, we can affect reach and programs. Fearless Media can look at our budget and at what we're looking to achieve, and sometimes determine that a certain route won't yield a good return.

How did you come to work with Fearless Media?

I have been working with Fearless Media for many years, and have known their founder for some time, since before starting Versus Evil. Fearless Media has an unparalleled expertise regarding video game advertising, so it was an easy decision to make.

I know that there are other agencies in the market, and I have talked to a couple of them, but the relationship with Fearless Media boils down to trust. They can tell it like it is, which is what I look for in a partner.

How much have you invested with Fearless Media?

This information is confidential.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with Fearless Media in September 2013, and our first game was published in January 2014 with Fearless Media's help. We’ve worked on around 12 projects so far.

Our needs change along with the market, but we continue to use Fearless Media for any sort of buying and planning. They're a great strategically and an excellent resource for ideas. Whether we're spending money or not, Fearless Media's involvement is tremendous.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any evidence that would demonstrate the productivity, quality of work, or the impact of the engagement?

Fearless Media's team has always built us something which tracks above or well above the norm regarding industry standards and general campaign efficacies. This is what Fearless Media constantly strives for, and they've executed on it very well.

Fearless Media has put together programs which align us with other media partners, creating a tremendous amount of value. We know that we're spending a certain amount of money because of Fearless Media's ability to put partners together. We've gotten a lot more than what we paid for.

Because of our relationship with Fearless Media, we feel that our dollars are extended overall, covering any service fees charged by the agency.

How did Fearless Media perform from a project management standpoint?

Fearless Media has been expanding its team over the last couple of years, and the members have always been great, new or old. Fearless Media is diligent about following up and is good at communicating.

We're a small team, so we tend to run crazy at times; it's nice to have the stability of a partner who is managing the work. We have regularly-scheduled updates, and Fearless Media provides reports. If they identify a risk, they will tackle it. Our trust in Fearless Media's ability to do this is a part of the overall project management success.

What did you find most impressive about Fearless Media?

They cross-over into many different areas, but I find that Fearless Media's expertise around video games puts them in a well-placed position against any other agency in the industry. They're also experienced, which allows the team to cut through sales aspects, getting down to what our media partners are looking for.

Fearless Media has adapted to how the industry has changed, which includes the prevalence YouTube and Twitch personalities. Fearless Media can provide the talent for augmenting our team, which has been very valuable too.

Are there any areas Fearless Media could improve?

I can’t think of anything.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

Gearbox Software is a video game developer, and Gearbox Publishing is our sister company that publishes video games. I am the brand manager.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Fearless Media?

When we first approached Fearless Media, we were publishing our first console game, and we were looking to promote the game with an advertising agency as a small test.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Now, Fearless Media works with us on the publishing side to handle our media buying and provides some creative services for our advertising and promotions of the games we’re publishing. In full, they’ve done media planning, media buying, creative services for all the banners, pre-roll videos, and placements of those creatives. Fearless Media also does performance tracking and analysis after the campaigns. The first project was a small pilot, and now we are planning our second project which is a much larger product we’ll be working on this year.

We provided them with some working source files including the box art, key art, screen shots, and the base version of trailers we made. They cut those up for the different placements they were doing. Fearless Media made all different size web banners, site skins, pre-roll video cuts, and made sure all that was compliant with ESRB [Entertainment Software Rating Board] advertising guidelines.

How did you come to work with Fearless Media?

We had a reference from our PR manager who introduced us to the president of Fearless Media. They came and pitched for the first project, and they won. We were impressed with the amount of information and insight Fearless Media was able to provide us with. They provided great insights on the planning and buying process as well.

How much have you invested with Fearless Media?

We expect to cross the multi-million dollar investment mark with Fearless in 2017.

What is the status of this engagement?

We began working with them in August of 2016, and the first project was completed in October 2016. We are continuing to work with them on a second project.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any evidence that would demonstrate the productivity, quality of work, or the impact of the engagement?

Fearless Media is super knowledgeable, and the quality of their work is great. They found a lot of opportunities to leverage the assets we already had, and they optimized those.

We had one piece of key art for this campaign, and they were able to turn it into several modules on social media. They chose to freshen up the creative work instead of presenting the same thing over and over again.

Because the project was done so quickly, we weren’t able to implement much conversion tracking. We will have that in place for the next project. However, when the campaign was running, we did see a noticeable improvement in sales.

How did Fearless Media perform from a project management standpoint?

We worked with 2 account managers. They are very responsive and on time. The first project had a very tight deadline, and they were able to meet that deadline. There were times when our team was delayed, but they could make it work anyway.

We communicated via email and phone calls. If we weren’t able to get them what they needed for a specific placement, they were able to reschedule that placement.

What did you find most impressive about Fearless Media?

They really went out of their way when we ran into issues. We’re pretty new as publishers so when working with media partners, we don’t have established relationships. One of the Facebook accounts we wanted to start running advertisements from, had a copyright infringement ban which didn’t allow us to upload native videos. We emailed Fearless, and in a half hour, they had us connected with the Facebook rep to get that ban removed. They really seem to care and pay attention to detail. That’s great for us because we’re a small team working in a fast-paced industry.

Are there any areas Fearless Media could improve?

No, we feel Fearless Media will be a great partner in the future.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your organization.

We are a company that provides publishing services to independent developers across digital distribution games like Steam, Xbox1, PlayStation 4, and on consoles such as Apple TV and Android TV.

What is your position?

I am Senior Vice President of Marketing and head of the marketing department.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What business challenge were you trying to address with Fearless Media?

Fearless Media places for us what we coin, nonperformance based media. The performance based media side includes things such as our user acquisition campaigns which we run internally.

All other media campaigns are run through Fearless. When we promote a video, a Facebook page, posts or anything on Twitter - all of that will go through Fearless as well as any sort of editorial advertising if we’re doing editorial sites.

SOLUTION

Please describe the scope of their involvement in greater detail.

They have creative ideas. They don’t just come to the table with a media plan. They come with a whole suite of content ideas and ways to complement what we’re doing on the traditional media side and user acquisition side. They bring a lot more to the table and they’re always surprising us.

How did you come to work with Fearless Media?

I worked with the Chief Executive Officer [CEO] when she was with a different media agency and then she broke out on her own. It’s a small industry within New York. We had kept in touch and when I was looking for a media agency at my new job at Tilting Point, I knew her company was the one we were going to go with.

Could you provide a sense of the size of this initiative in financial terms?

It’s between $200,000 and $1,000,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

It’s an ongoing relationship. We’ve been with them for two years. We have an additional media plan for December and January which is being organized by Fearless and our team.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any statistics or metrics from this engagement?

We are satisfied. We had a recent campaign that, through no fault of theirs, is not performing well. Fearless Media offered free services that were four times the value. They work very hard to keep clients happy and they made a strong impression on us when things were going badly. If something is not performing, they go to bat for you.

I don’t have statistics. They’re constantly reinventing themselves and improving. The media landscape shifts a lot and they are always up to date. They are always adding relevant staff to keep up with market changes. They are extremely focused on over-delivering and over-fulfilling for the client.

What distinguishes Fearless Media from other providers?

The main thing is the personnel. They hire the best people they can find. They take the extra time to find the right staff. When you work with an agency, you want to work with an agency that has that same ethos and mindset as your firm. They go out of their way to make sure they’re bringing the best people to work on your account.

Is there anything Fearless Media could have improved or done differently?

I have no comments offhand. I think if anything, I look forward to giving them a bigger budget since they deliver every time.