Women Playing Games Online Should Be On Marketers Radar Screens

An extensive online games survey to over 2000 people revealed some interesting statistics. Women made up 76 percent of the casual online game market. Of those women, 71 percent were age 40 or older, and 47 percent were age 50 or older.

Many of these casual games are free or based on a low-cost subscription model. While high-involvement online action or strategy games such as World of Warcraft are dominated by a younger male-oriented demographic, the casual game market clearly skews female. A related story in Business Week highlights Skunks, a casual game company whose four male cofounders asked 39-year old Margaret Wallace to be their CEO. Why? Among other things, she represents their target audience.

A comprehensive 116-page 2006 Casual Games White Paper from the International Game Developers Association (IGDA) is a primer on the industry. It reveals some women playing casual games devote up to 9 hours per week to the activity. For marketers, this presents a welcome possibility, because many of these online games are surrounded by advertising units that can be purchased.

The IGDA reports the casual game business has grown by 100% in just two years, and the forecast is for continued exponential increases. Web advertisers have largely ignored this market in the past, but with huge growth rates, and the capability to target specific demographic segments, casual games represent a new marketing opportunity.