Roblox's massive user base and virtual economy provide forward-looking licensing professionals a path to a powerful new revenue stream.
As the digital landscape continues to evolve, licensing professionals are presented with new avenues to maximize brand exposure and engage with highly-coveted younger audiences.
One such avenue that top brands such as Hello Kitty, Stranger Things, and Sonic the Hedgehog have all flocked to and found ongoing success is Roblox, a leading online gaming platform.
Roblox is not one game, but rather a platform with millions of games made by individuals all the way up to professional studios. Think of Roblox as a gaming version of YouTube. Instead of user-created videos like YouTube, Roblox has user-created games.
What's particularly compelling about Roblox from a monetization perspective is its thriving virtual economy. Roblox generated $2.2 billion in revenue in 2022, up 16% from 2021, largely driven by an astounding volume of micro-transactions.
In this article, we break down the top 5 reasons why licensing professionals should explore the opportunity of selling officially licensed UGC virtual items on Roblox, which unlocks a world of possibilities for brand expansion and, more importantly, revenue growth.
1. Tap into Roblox's Massive + Young User Base
Roblox boasts an enormous and highly engaged user base, with 214 million monthly active users around the globe, who typically range from 6 - 24 years old. Every single day, 66 million players come to Roblox and spend an average of 2.4 hours (that's 72 hours a month!) playing games, socializing with friends, and shopping in virtual environments.
By offering officially licensed virtual items on the platform, licensing professionals can tap into this vast, hard-to-find audience with relative ease. This opens up new channels to reach and connect with younger demographics, especially hard to reach Gen Z and Gen alpha, in an immersive and interactive digital environment, where they already spend lots of time.
2. Amplify Brand Exposure and Awareness
Officially licensed virtual items on Roblox provide a unique opportunity to amplify brand exposure and increase brand awareness among a highly receptive audience that's interested in fun, new ways to express themselves.
By creating virtual items that align with a brand's identity and resonate with Roblox users, licensing professionals can organically expand their brand presence and foster meaningful connections with potential customers interested in purchasing both digital and physical items.
The immersive nature of Roblox experiences ensures that the brand message is ingrained within the fabric of gameplay, leading to heightened visibility and recognition.
And when players do purchase branded items and wear them on their avatars, they serve as powerful walking billboards within these virtual environments, influencing other players.
3. Drive Revenue and Monetization
Selling officially licensed virtual items on Roblox presents a lucrative revenue stream for licensing professionals, especially those willing to jump into this space early.
Roblox's virtual economy is robust, with users actively purchasing digital assets using the platform's in-game currency, Robux.
By capitalizing on this ecosystem, which most brands are still trying to wrap their heads around, licensing professionals can monetize their intellectual property and generate substantial revenue through virtual item sales. In addition, the ever-growing demand for virtual items allows for consistent revenue generation and the potential for long-term profitability.
How much revenue are we talking about? Well, as you can imagine, it highly depends on the IP, whether it matches the Roblox community's interests, and how its brought to life on the platform. The more the brand aligns with players' interests and sensibilities, the better it will perform.
Lastly, it's worth keeping in mind that young audiences that are growing up spending real money on digital goods have developed an affinity for this type of shopping experience. As they grow up, the E-commerce industry will certainly adopt gaming-like user experiences that players prefer. The brands and IP that figure out how to win in this new era will drive long term growth for years to come.
4. Foster Brand Loyalty and Engagement
Engaging with younger generations requires immersive experiences and opportunities for personalization. By offering officially licensed virtual items on Roblox, licensing professionals can cultivate brand loyalty and enhance user engagement.
Virtual items that resonate with users' passions and interests provide a tangible connection to their favorite brands, fostering a sense of ownership, identity, and loyalty.
For example, on Roblox you can purchase and dress up in a variety of styles, inspired by the hit animated series Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug and Cat Noir. Your avatar can wear official accessories in a ladybug pattern, carry around cute characters as pets, and even cosplay as the main characters.
For fans of the show, this is a dream come true. They literally get to style themselves as the heroes they enjoy so much. This is today's digital version of playing "dress up" and hanging out with friends.
This heightened engagement translates into increased customer retention and a greater likelihood of higher lifetime value (LTV).
5. Data-Driven Insights and Analytics
Roblox provides licensing professionals with access to a wealth of data and analytics, offering valuable insights into younger consumers' behavior, preferences, and purchasing patterns. It helps active participants understand the future of E-commerce now, not years from now.
By collecting, analyzing and leveraging this information, licensing professionals can make informed decisions about the virtual goods market, refine marketing strategies, and optimize the performance of their virtual item offerings.
What's the right amount to charge for hats versus backpacks? What types of color schemes resonate most with players? How many variations should we offer per item?
These are the types of questions brands who are active in the space will quickly answer and can use to power their growth.
Data-driven insights empower licensing professionals to stay agile, adapt to evolving market trends, and continuously enhance their brand's position within the Roblox ecosystem. And as more gaming platforms emerge and attract players' attention, brands equipped with data will have experience and insight on how to proceed faster than their slower-moving competitors.
Unlike in the physical world, you don't have to wait months to get results and then build new items. You don't have to deal with supply chain issues.
Creating virtual items is fast, taking only a few weeks to create, launch, and monetize.
Final Thoughts
Exploring the opportunity of selling officially licensed virtual items on Roblox is a smart strategic move for licensing professionals that want to expand their brand reach, drive revenue growth, and engage with younger audiences.
By bravely tapping into the vast potential of officially licensed virtual items on Roblox, forward-thinking licensing professionals can unlock a world of opportunities for brand expansion and future success.
Heading to Licensing Expo?
Our team will be at Licensing Expo in Las Vegas June 13-15, 2023. If you'd like to discuss bringing your IP to Roblox, please email us at hello@metaversemarcom.io to schedule a meeting.
Stephen Dypiangco is the CEO of Metaverse Marcom, a strategy and consulting firm helping entertainment and sports brands enter Roblox.