Posts made by Jonathan2000

Anticipation is an amazing tool that drives curiosity and a sense of excitement to anyone that experiences it. you can use that same feeling to promote your game. For most game developers their process of promoting their game comes after the completion of the game. Developers may release game play and teaser trailers after production, however for most indie developers that have little social media presence this is way too late.

Social media is a great tool to build up anticipation. Instead of releasing promotional content after your game is completed, document your progress on social media as you create it. These videos do not have to be long vlog style videos (although they can be and for platforms like YouTube vlogs are ideal) they can be short 30 second videos that show screenshots with a quick voice over. A good reference to these types of videos are the "My Daily Routine" TikTok videos, these style of videos do well with the algorithm as well.

By documenting your progress as you create your game you give people a reason to tune in every week to see your progress. This also makes them feel like they are apart of the process and it makes people become emotionally invested. Naturally, after you complete your game and release it to the public your viewers will be more inclined to play it as they have a sense of investment into your game. This strategy also has the added benefit of increasing your social media following. So next time when you release another game you have more of an existing audience to advertise to and the cycle continues indefinitely.

Some of you may have heard of SEO (search engine optimization). For those that haven't it refers to a company's ability to rank highly on search engines when keywords that are related to their business are searched on Google or other search engines. This same concept can be applied to the AppStore, most app downloads are a result of direct searches so your ability to capitalize on this fact will aid you greatly in getting more downloads. Here are some proactive actions you can take to get started on AppStore Optimization.

Choose Accurate Keywords
Try your best to choose common keywords that are descriptive of your game when filling in the description box on the AppStore. Your character limit is small so it is important to choose keywords that are descriptive to the function and unique features of your app.

Get People To Review Your Game
Most of you are a part of the Hyperpad discord, and for those who are not you should join! So when you do release an app on the AppStore, make sure to let the discord know and get them to review your app. The AppStore tends to rank apps that are highly rated and frequently rated over those that are not. You should also let your friends and family know when you release a game or app because they will be more inclined to play and rate your work.

Choose The Correct Catagories
The categories you classify your app in are what determine its ability to be discovered organically. Among these categories be sure to choose the primary category carefully as it will determine whether it shows up in the game section or app section in the AppStore. You can also choose a secondary category and this serves the purpose of specifying the type of app you have. For example, if you created a platformer arcade game the primary category should be within games and the secondary should be "platformer".

Tiktok is one of the most popular/fastest growing social media platforms out there. However, it's unique as most of the content that you see comes from your "For You Page" and if you want your videos to be seen by as many people as possible they have to get on there as well. In order to do this, we need to understand how the Tiktok algorithm works. Tiktok is really good at finding videos that fit current trends, that can include videos that share a viral sound, theme and or content. One simple way of incorporating this with your videos is by using a current popular song/sound in your gameplay videos. Of course keep in mind context, playing the new Taylor Swift song while you show off your RPG style game may not be the best use of the sound! However, be creative and look at the other videos under the sound and see how you can also incorporate your gameplay videos with said sound.

The Tiktok algorithm also favours first-hand content. While gameplay videos are great and provide you with a reliable way to put out consistent content; also uploading first-hand videos of you creating your games are worth doing. These "in progress" types of videos will make your overall Tiktok channel seem more personable and relatable to your followers. For all the videos you upload also remember to utilize the proper hashtags. You need to understand who your primary audience is and use the hashtags that they mostly appear under. An easy way to do this is to look at similar videos that your target audience watches and copy those hashtags under your videos.

Once you utilize these tips, if you post quality content the algorithm and your audience should do the rest. The Tiktok algorithm should place your videos on people's "For You Page" that are most likely to view your videos all the way through and once that happens they will continue to see your videos on their "For You Page".

Finally, while TikTok users are no different to other social media users. When you follow someone's social media, you are following them for who they are, rather than for what they post. This also applies to you as a developer, don't just post gameplay videos with the expectation of them getting picked up on someone's "For You Page". Let the audience follow you through your journey of developing a game and let your personality shine through the videos you produce. Remember, your already existing followers are following you because you as a person are worth following, and you produce interesting content that is worthwhile tuning into!

@SplitMindGaming Hi! While there is no native lighting on hyperPad as of yet (soon though) you can still add your own dynamic lighting! Check out this tutorial on our YouTube Channel:

. Hope this helps.

Many of you will recall my previous posts regarding using Facebook and Reddit to post screenshots/progress pictures to promote your game. It is important to note that this method of promotion only works when you are posting consistently on the same Facebook groups and subreddits. Like most things in life, in order to be successful, you must be consistent. Don't rely on a viral post to popularize your game, that only comes after many consistent good quality posts.

It's also important to note that since other people are constantly posting their games as well it is easy for your posts to get lost with all the clutter. However, when you post consistently simple things will be retained by the other member of the group such as your username or the name/characters on your game. So even when you post your games in these groups and you are getting minimal responses don't stop posting! When people see your content consistently chances are they will follow up with you out of sheer curiosity. Think back to the times you click on a YouTube ad simply because you've seen the commercial so many times and it made you curious.

It's a really simple concept but it holds true, be consistent even when it seems redundant.

If you guys are wanting to get as many shares on your game as possible make sure to tag Hyperpad. We use and are active on almost every major social media platform so if you tag us we can re-post your work. Of course, you should also post on your own social media but having multiple accounts re-post your work will increase the likelihood of your projects getting seen.

Even sharing your progress screenshots is encouraged. By posting screenshots of games that are being in the process of being made you create anticipation for your followers, and they are more likely to be more interested in what your creating. This is especially effective when you do this on a consistent schedule such as posting every Saturday for example.

Hyperpad is active on: Facebook, Twitter, TikTok, reddit, youtube, and twitch, so please tag us!!

Reddit is an amazing platform to market your game on. Reddit is very unique as it gives you, the developer the ability to choose subreddits that are filled with like-minded people that will respond well to your games.

From a marketing perspective, it is always easier to market a product to groups that are segmented. Furthermore, segmented groups that are specific to your target demographic have a much higher likelihood to respond to your posts. Think of it this way, you wouldn't market mobility scooters to 20-year-olds. Your efforts are much better-spent marketing towards the elderly. The same concept applies here, if you just rely on conventional social media mediums to promote your project chances are it will fall on many deaf ears. It's always better to market towards a specific target market.

Similar to Facebook, Reddit allows other developers to offer feedback on your work. However, what is special about Reddit is that the community building on Reddit is much higher. Redditors are much more likely to offer their help when asked for it.

Some subreddits to join are r/Gamedev, r/indiegames, r/gamedevelopment, r/gaming, r/devblogs

Hi guys my name is Jonathan and I currently work for Hyperpad as a marketing intern. I will post here regularly regarding how to market your projects to other people as well as anything else marketing related.

As fun as it is to create games, I'm sure you all find it rewarding to see other people play and enjoy your projects as much as you do. Here is one thing you can do to promote your games.

Join indie game development/game development and digital art Facebook group chats!
These group chats are filled with thousands of other developers sharing their own games. By posting here you expose your games to people who are open to playing new games. You will also get valuable feedback on how they like your game as well as improvements for your next project. These group chats are a great way to meet with like-minded developers that can help you with any other future projects. I actually post some of the games on the Hyperpad hub on these group chats and the feedback I get is really positive!

Some group chats to join: indie game creators, indie games developer, game developer, Indie Game promo IDG and Game Developers.