The gamification of branded content: a meta-analysis of advergame effects
Zeph van Berlo, Eva van Reijmersdal and Martin Eisend start from the belief that advergames, games built around a brand, are effective because they are engaging, and from the fact that studies of them have reported mixed or non-significant results. They run a meta-analysis of 38 data sets found by a systematic search, covering five outcomes: attitude to the ad, memory, persuasion, choice behaviour and persuasion knowledge. Consumers held more favourable attitudes to advergames than to other advertising, and brand and product information was less likely to be remembered when it came through an advergame. Advergames appeared persuasive and appeared to drive choice behaviour, and they were less likely than other advertising to be recognised as advertising. A meta-regression found that younger consumers seemed more susceptible to the persuasive effect than older ones.
Zeph van Berlo, Eva van Reijmersdal and Martin Eisend start from the belief that advergames, games built around a brand, are effective because they are engaging, and from the fact that studies of them have reported mixed or non-significant results. They run a meta-analysis of 38 data sets found by a systematic search, covering five outcomes: attitude to the ad, memory, persuasion, choice behaviour and persuasion knowledge. Consumers held more favourable attitudes to advergames than to other advertising, and brand and product information was less likely to be remembered when it came through an advergame. Advergames appeared persuasive and appeared to drive choice behaviour, and they were less likely than other advertising to be recognised as advertising. A meta-regression found that younger consumers seemed more susceptible to the persuasive effect than older ones.
Written from the openAlex abstract record read 2026-10-22.
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van Berlo, Z. M. C., van Reijmersdal, E. A., & Eisend, M. (2021). The gamification of branded content: a meta-analysis of advergame effects. Journal of Advertising, 50(2), 179-196. doi:10.1080/00913367.2020.1858462