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How to drive sales with influencer marketing: Insights from Xsolla’s director of creator partnerships
November 15, 2024•7 min
Influencer marketing has become a powerful tool for developers and publishers looking to grow their audience and drive sales. With platforms like Twitch, YouTube, Instagram, and Tiktok driving massive engagement, content creators have the power to significantly impact a game's success.
We’ve built a range of solutions to help developers and publishers tackle these challenges head-on. One of the key tools from our Ad Tech initiative is the Xsolla Partner Network, a performance-based platform that connects developers with a vast network of influencers and content creators. With Xsolla Partner Network, developers can design customizable marketing campaigns, boost player engagement, and increase revenue through personalized, data-driven partnerships.
The impact of influencer marketing on video games
To explore how influencer marketing is evolving in 2024, we spoke with Rix Tran, our Director of Creator Partnerships. With his deep experience in gaming and creator ecosystems, Rix offers valuable insights into the future of influencer-driven campaigns, including how the Xsolla Partner Network platform supports both developers and creators through streamlined partnerships and powerful revenue-sharing models.
Let’s dive into the key trends and strategies shaping the year ahead.
1. What key experiences have shaped your understanding of the gaming industry and partner ecosystems?
Let’s go way back. I’ve been gaming since I first picked up a Nintendo controller, but it was Chrono Trigger that really hooked me. Even as a kid, I was captivated by how a game could feel so immersive and memorable. That’s when I knew I wanted to work in gaming, and I’ve been exploring every genre since.
Why does this matter? Passion—passion for gaming, for what works and what doesn’t, and for learning from both successes and failures. This passion helped me connect with top Twitch creators, not only as fellow gamers but also by genuinely trying to understand how to make their lives easier with tech.
I had a wonderful opportunity to be part of an amazing community of a very large creator at the time who played Fortnite. I started to quickly learn that creators are very close to one another and are a community of their own. In order for me to be successful, I needed to integrate with their community, keep in close contact with them, engage with them, and understand why they watch their favorite creator on a daily basis. I still keep in touch with some of the creators I have worked with because I can easily call them my friends.
2. What insights have you gathered about market demands from developers and creators?
A majority of the time, market demands for developers/publishers are usually to make as many sales as possible to recoup any investments made in the game. I don’t think that will change anytime soon, however, this trickles down into working with creators. The trend is always to work with the largest creators because they have the most eyes and the most reach. Many think this will translate into a lot of sales.
This isn’t always the case. Many successful campaigns run with micro-mid-tier creators because their audiences are much more invested in the creator and creators are more engaged with their audience. You’re more willing to support a friend than you are to support a random famous person.
This isn’t to say that large creators don’t have their place; it just requires a shift in mindset. Campaigns that span creators of different sizes can offer more authentic engagement. However, larger creators often expect flat-fee arrangements and deliverables through representatives, so publishers need to consider what fits their budget and goals best.
3. How does the Xsolla Partner Network address current trends in player engagement and monetization?
We solve this by giving the opportunity to share in the profits of a game. Let’s be honest, revenue share isn’t the most popular way to get a creator involved in a game…if you’re a large creator. Large creators get to their size because of them either getting popular due to personality, virality, timing, or the game that they play is popular. Their audiences come to see them play what they know, so switching things up isn’t easy for them. And unless they’re a variety streamer—which is a super rare type who plays tons of games without losing fans—flat fees are the go-to for big names.
Now back to revenue share and Xsolla Partner Network. Knowing that revenue share isn’t that popular, why would it work for your game? The goal here is to capture the majority of creators out there who haven't solidified their niche.
With our setup, creators only earn if they make sales, so the campaign costs nothing upfront. It’s low risk for game devs, and it gives creators the freedom to promote in the ways that resonate most with their audience, whether that’s through live streams, YouTube videos, IG Reels, or TikToks. There are tons of ways for creators to make content that fits their style and keeps engagement high.
If the creator is successful, that means you will be successful.
4. What specific features does the Xsolla Partner Network offer to its partners?
We have a lot but the most important features I want to point out are:
1. What key experiences have shaped your understanding of the gaming industry and partner ecosystems?
Let’s go way back. I’ve been gaming since I first picked up a Nintendo controller, but it was Chrono Trigger that really hooked me. Even as a kid, I was captivated by how a game could feel so immersive and memorable. That’s when I knew I wanted to work in gaming, and I’ve been exploring every genre since.
Why does this matter? Passion—passion for gaming, for what works and what doesn’t, and for learning from both successes and failures. This passion helped me connect with top Twitch creators, not only as fellow gamers but also by genuinely trying to understand how to make their lives easier with tech.
I had a wonderful opportunity to be part of an amazing community of a very large creator at the time who played Fortnite. I started to quickly learn that creators are very close to one another and are a community of their own. In order for me to be successful, I needed to integrate with their community, keep in close contact with them, engage with them, and understand why they watch their favorite creator on a daily basis. I still keep in touch with some of the creators I have worked with because I can easily call them my friends.
2. What insights have you gathered about market demands from developers and creators?
A majority of the time, market demands for developers/publishers are usually to make as many sales as possible to recoup any investments made in the game. I don’t think that will change anytime soon, however, this trickles down into working with creators. The trend is always to work with the largest creators because they have the most eyes and the most reach. Many think this will translate into a lot of sales.
This isn’t always the case. Many successful campaigns run with micro-mid-tier creators because their audiences are much more invested in the creator and creators are more engaged with their audience. You’re more willing to support a friend than you are to support a random famous person.
This isn’t to say that large creators don’t have their place; it just requires a shift in mindset. Campaigns that span creators of different sizes can offer more authentic engagement. However, larger creators often expect flat-fee arrangements and deliverables through representatives, so publishers need to consider what fits their budget and goals best.
3. How does the Xsolla Partner Network address current trends in player engagement and monetization?
We solve this by giving the opportunity to share in the profits of a game. Let’s be honest, revenue share isn’t the most popular way to get a creator involved in a game…if you’re a large creator. Large creators get to their size because of them either getting popular due to personality, virality, timing, or the game that they play is popular. Their audiences come to see them play what they know, so switching things up isn’t easy for them. And unless they’re a variety streamer—which is a super rare type who plays tons of games without losing fans—flat fees are the go-to for big names.
Now back to revenue share and Xsolla Partner Network. Knowing that revenue share isn’t that popular, why would it work for your game? The goal here is to capture the majority of creators out there who haven't solidified their niche.
With our setup, creators only earn if they make sales, so the campaign costs nothing upfront. It’s low risk for game devs, and it gives creators the freedom to promote in the ways that resonate most with their audience, whether that’s through live streams, YouTube videos, IG Reels, or TikToks. There are tons of ways for creators to make content that fits their style and keeps engagement high.
If the creator is successful, that means you will be successful.
4. What specific features does the Xsolla Partner Network offer to its partners?
We have a lot but the most important features I want to point out are:
- Revenue analytics & metric tracking. Our partners can monitor each creator’s performance and track metrics with incredible detail. With our upcoming integration with Rainmaker.gg, we'll soon offer live stream metrics, giving an even clearer picture of campaign success.
- Creator digest promotion. We send out a monthly Creator Digest to our most active creators, which promotes your campaign to the right audience.
- Global payment management. Last but not least – and always my favorite – we handle the payments to the creators globally so you don’t have to.
Tap into Xsolla Partner Network
6. What trends do you see shaping the future of the creator economy, and how is Xsolla positioning itself to adapt? I’m seeing a big shift where marketing teams want unique, interactive ways to connect games with their communities. Take Team 17’s recent campaign with QTCinderella—they had her do a cooking stream to promote Overcooked: All You Can Eat. It was a live, hands-on experience that made the promotion feel fresh and fun. If budgets allow, I think we’ll see more of this approach becoming the norm. Another trend is letting creators put together their own packages and bundles for promotions. It gives them more control and makes the campaign feel more personal to their audience. With Xsolla Partner Network, we’re open to working with publishers for these types of unique experiences. Our tech stack and talented engineers and designers are ready to collaborate with publishers to bring these creative ideas to life and make each campaign stand out. 7. How can partners effectively collaborate with Xsolla to maximize their growth potential? It all starts with a conversation. We’re always open to suggestions and ways to improve our products. We also have many tools for developers and publishers that can create unique experiences and extensive internal expertise working with creators. Whether it's leveraging our revenue analytics, creating targeted promotions, or brainstorming new marketing ideas, Xsolla is committed to helping partners succeed: For developers: Sign up or log in to your Xsolla Publisher account to easily integrate campaigns, manage payments smoothly, and launch targeted marketing efforts – all while getting your game in front of more players. For creators: Sign up or log in to your Partner Network account through your social network, join campaigns for games you love, and earn rewards as you promote. You can also schedule a meeting with one of our experts to discuss ways we can grow your audience together.Featured articles
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