DRUM OMG

Client: HP
Product: OMEN by HP
Title: The Esports Report
Media: Twitch/Facebook/Instagram
Country: UK
Date Of Campaign: 1st June - 31st December

Background: OMEN by HP is HP’s gaming sub-brand - making world class PC hardware and peripherals. The products are as good as their contemporaries’ offering and they are costed competitively. If you own an OMEN by HP product, you can be the best.However, the brand was only established in 2014 so is relatively unknown in the market, where the likes of Dell and Alienware dominate. And although OMEN by HP sells relatively well in the UK, spontaneous brand awareness is virtually non-existent. OMEN by HP’s ambition is to be the number one PC Gaming hardware brand by 2020. Therefore we were challenged to find a big idea that would live throughout 2018 - leveraging the global brand platform ‘Dominate The Game’ and driving spontaneous awareness of the brand and consideration with a PC gaming audience.Esports is a billion-dollar business with a global audience of 300 million fans that all gaming brands are vying to connect with. In the UK, Esports has less traction & gamers are incredibly savvy to brands joining in when they don’t have a credible voice. Gaming is extremely competitive with players wanting to be the best in whatever arena they decide to compete. However, they believe having the best gear does not make you the best. It is the human element of good old fashioned hard work and perseverance. OMEN make excellent computers with striking design but they needed an emotional connection with the audience so they chose OMEN over their competitors.We needed to create a platform to arm gamers with the knowledge and skillful ability to dominate the game, acting in an ambassadorial role where our passion and dedication to be the best matched the audiences own ambition.

Idea: The OMEN Esports Report is a brand-new, live entertainment format for the brand and the first of its kind in the UK.Fronted by popular industry talent Pala Gilroy Sen and Frankie Ward, the action-packed show welcomes industry pros, gaming influencers and championship teams into the studio each month to discuss all things Esports.For those wanting to know the latest goings on, The OMEN Esports Report delivered exclusive news and footage from the gaming world. For those wanting to connect with the sport’s leading names, The OMEN Esports Report offers unique real-time interaction with guests via Twitch chat. For those looking to improve their own gaming skills and strategies, The OMEN Esports Report delivers expert tips, tricks and strategies from leading pros.And for those wanting to see the sport’s lighter side, The OMEN Esports Report features fun, live challenges in which the audience can win awesome OMEN swag.The show aired monthly from June to November 2018, streaming live on Twitch and Facebook from a studio in North London.Each episode was broken down into different segments:- Leading industry guests join Pala and Frankie to discuss the industry’s major talking points - A popular gaming personality participates in the Headshot Challenge- Esports athletes would discuss their top tips and tricks across their specialist game.- Pros win prizes for the audience by participating in the Game-Breaking Challenge Streaming live at 7pm, the show sat in the middle of the 4 hour stream, placed in between two gaming sessions starring the OMEN Squad – a series of gamers sponsored to play by the brand. The show also had an ‘always on’ presence through social cut down content distributed through platforms including Eurogamer, Dot Esports and Digital Foundry, keeping our audience engaged between each new episode.

Results: In Series 1 (6 episodes), we drove mass awareness of The OMEN Esports Report generating more than 240,000 live views and 40m video views of cut-down content. Awareness of OMEN by HP amongst our core audience also increased from 15% to 25%, helping to establish OMEN as a major player in the Esports World. In May 2019, based on the results, The OMEN Esports Report will return for a second series, continuing to educate and inspire an avid PC gaming audience and firmly establishing the brand as a credible voice when it comes to all things UK Esports.