Retail chain turns an advergame into a holiday shopping moment

Goal 

Standing out during the holiday season can be a challenge for brands, but this past winter, one national retail chain took a bold approach: launching its own advergame to stand out, while tracking performance through QR codes. By blending the creativity and engagement of gaming with the performance-driven needs of retail, this brand delivered a highly successful campaign that captivated audiences and drove measurable results. 

Strategy 

The brand partnered with BrightLine to create a fully customized advergame designed to entice viewers to interact in a fun and engaging way. 

At the start of the :30-second interactive ad, viewers were prompted to choose a gift for a specific type of person—a show fanatic, beauty lover, or rising chef. Using their remote, the viewer clicked through three gift options to find the perfect match

When they selected the correct gift, they won the game and were presented with a QR code that directed them to a landing page featuring a curated selection of holiday gifts—seamlessly bridging the gap between entertainment and shopping. 

Results  

This advergame was a major success, driving exceptional engagement through both remote interaction and QR code scans. Over 1.3 million impressions included at least one engagement, with viewers playing an average of two games per 30-second session. The engagement rate reached 7.88%, exceeding the benchmark for scrollable interactive ads by 13 times. 

The QR code was scanned four times more than a typical QR code on an interactive ad, despite only being displayed after a viewer won the game. The exceptionally high engagement and scan rates made this a standout campaign, providing valuable insights into how audiences interact with shoppable content and commerce-driven experiences.