EA and Toyota inked a 12-month agreement to feature the Prius and the Prius Eco-Greenhouse in Monopoly Millionaires, a free-to-play social version of the Hasbro board game. Both models will be virtual gifts within the game. Players can collect the gifts while navigating the board to express their commitment to the environment.
EA released Monopoly Millionaires in February. In the past month, the game has more than doubled its user base to 6.2 million.
For Toyota, the effort is the latest in a series of social media campaigns this year, starting with the "Plural of Prius" effort in early January and another real-time world records-setting event at the end of last month.
For such advertisers trying to cultivate a s ocial media following, inclusion in a game is a popular option. According to developer Appssavvy, it's also an effective one. An analysis by that company — admittedly not a disinterested observer on the subject — recently found that such in-app ads are 11.4 times more effective than a standard banner ad.
That said, Anindya Datta, founder of Mobilewalla, says not every brand could integrate itself into a game the way Toyota is doing with Monopoly Millionaires. "Most products wouldn't fit," he says. "Most need more traditional placements like a banner or a text box."
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