Our new friend Susan made us aware of a recent study sponsored by NeoEdge Networks that claims ads on casual gaming sites substantially lift brand awareness, especially through exclusive sponsorship. According to Brian Morrissey’s coverage of the report in adweek, the study results indicated that when Zappos – who was the ad subject – had full sponsorship of a game, its ads did better than mixed displays. In the end, users had a reported three to five times increase in awareness of Zappos’ new offerings in men’s clothing.

Of course, NeoEdge Networks pays the bills by running ads in casual game environments, so a grain or two of salt is probably a good idea – but the findings seem consistent with our understand of what’s happening in the market. When people get ‘free’ handed to them, wrapped in a brand, they remember the brand. And the more the free thing can be played and interacted with, the longer and deeper the impression created by that brand.

Rival Schools doesn’t create the sort of ad driven games that run on NeoEdge targetted sites, but the study does support our experience that casual game projects exclusively commissioned by and integrated with brand initiatives have emerged as a vialble and cost effective marketing tool.