Influencer marketing platform that connects gaming companies, micro streamers, and their communities

Drope.me

dropeme

Fresh from being recognized as a Runner Up in HackerNoon's Startups of the Year 2023 competition, Drope.me and its founder and CEO, Dima Okhrimchuk, are gaining attention in the gaming industry. Here’s the interview with Dima to discuss Drope.me's approach to influencer marketing in gaming, the factors driving their growth, and his vision for the future of game discovery and promotion. https://hackernoon.com/startups/north-america/north-america-wilmington-ca-usa Tell us how your startup is changing the world. Hi all! My name is Dima Okhrimchuk, I am the founder and CEO of Drope.me. I’m thrilled to be here and tell more about the unique platform my team and I are building! is a game-changer in how games will be discovered and promoted in the near future. We have built the world’s first influencer marketing platform that allows both indie developers and large publishers to engage micro-influencers and their communities at scale and only pay for performance! Our vision is to be the next-gen discovery platform for traditional and UGC games, where influencers and gamers are rewarded for promoting and playing games. Drope.me Influencer marketing has played a bigger role among gaming companies in recent years. With new ATT ad policies, even data-focused mobile gaming companies are starting to tap into this channel. However, if you ever tried launching an influencer marketing campaign, you know how complex, unpredictable, and costly this process may be. The need is here, but no solution on the market would streamline the process of engaging hundreds of influencers simultaneously in pure performance marketing campaigns. There is one now! On the other hand, since we see significant potential in tapping into a huge pool of micro-influencers, we are also creating new revenue stream opportunities for those creators. In our first six months after launch, we paid out over $70K to micro-influencers, with some making thousands of dollars on Drope.me. We are helping small creators get the attention they deserve from gaming brands and get paid for their efforts. What sets you apart from the competition? Two things: a truly unique performance-based model and a focus on smaller content creators and their communities. I would call ourselves a three-sided marketplace since our goal is to help companies engage not just influencers but their communities, too. Although other platforms offer comparable services, none of them provide an opportunity to pay only for results. Since the official beta launch in June 2023, the platform has enabled over 250 gaming companies to grow their revenues and paid out over $70K to micro-influencers. Drope.me helps both indie game developers and large publishers engage thousands of micro-influencers and their communities and, unlike other platforms, only pay for completed actions. These could be influencer actions, such as “Stream and promote a game on Twitch,” “Create a TikTok video,” etc., or community actions like adding the game to the Steam Wishlist or purchasing the game. Also worth mentioning is that Drope.me not only helps micro-influencers earn money by streaming but also engages their audience through unique formats like , where followers can participate and win prizes. This level of support and engagement for streamers and their communities sets Drope.me apart as a platform that genuinely cares about its users. We don’t consider them only as a tool for brands’ campaigns. Our initial goal was to build an equally beneficial platform for influencers and brands. And Drope.me is entirely free for influencers, of course. Community Giveaways What do you love about your team, and why are you the ones to solve this problem? Our team has extensive experience in marketing games and esports. One of the crucial points, in my opinion, is that we are core gamers, and some of us are also streamers. This allows us to understand the industry and its challenges, which we aim to tackle through Drope.me. And I personally spent over 10 years working in corporate finance and tech. After that, I co-founded a CS:GO esports organization in 2020. Although the project was less scalable than we hoped, it led us to pivot toward influencer marketing. Witnessing the preference shift among celebrity streamers and pro gamers, we launched Drope.me to facilitate collaborations with gaming brands. I’ve been closely cooperating with both parts of our TA, developers, and influencers to know everything about their pains and preferences. As a result, we’ve built a truly beneficial platform for the gaming industry. If you weren’t building your startup, what would you be doing? I’d be building another startup :) At the moment, how do you measure success? What are your core metrics? We consider several factors to evaluate the performance of our platform. Our North Star metric is GMV. We have been growing by 30% month over month. We are also looking into how much of that GMV has been generated by the returning customers since it indicates how satisfied they are with the platform and their results. We also pay attention to registering new influencers and the activity of those who have been with us for a while. We evaluate the number of companies they participate in simultaneously, the number of influencer actions they perform, and the percentage of their audience they bring to Drope.me. What goals are you looking forward to accomplishing in 2024? We plan to expand to working with UGC games, including Roblox and UEFN, and an additional integration on Drope.me. We also see opportunities to streamline the processes of launching and running the campaigns by integrating AI. More on that a bit later. We are also looking for business partnership opportunities with talent and marketing agencies, for example. We have an ongoing referral program that creates mutually beneficial opportunities. recently developed Which trend(s) are you most excited about in 2024? Share your reasons. The rise of AI and UGC. Artificial intelligence is everywhere now, and it’s something that I’m excited but careful about, too. There’s no discussion about its great help in every industry possible, starting from medicine and ending in gaming. But at the same time, we still have lots of things to learn to use and manage properly. There are many confidentiality issues, and adding AI features to every digital product isn’t the best idea either. But I guess when the hype slows down a bit, we can decide how to implement this incredible technology in the best way possible. As for the UGC, it represents a dynamic shift towards player-driven content creation, fostering a more interactive and immersive gaming ecosystem. With UGC, players become creators, generating their content within games. This trend encourages creativity and community engagement and extends the longevity of games as players continuously produce new content. Additionally, UGC provides game developers with valuable insights into player preferences and behaviors, enabling them to tailor future updates and releases to suit their audience better. 2023 had been another crazy year, especially in tech, with layoffs and the Generative AI takeover! Which trend are you most concerned about? Be as brief or as detailed as you like. That has been a tough year for the gaming industry as well. Macroeconomic risks and AI are definitely the factors influencing the landscape in the tech and gaming industries. However, I personally am more concerned with the russian full-scale invasion of Ukraine. I worry whether the Western powers will remain united in their efforts to support Ukraine and the democratic values of Ukrainians. Of course, this is personal since I am Ukrainian, and my family and friends are there. Still, if Ukraine loses, then this will be a major shift in the whole global security system that could lead to the escalation of war conflicts all over the world, and no one will be safe in that new security paradigm. Share your biggest success so far and/or your biggest failure so far. From the recent victories we’re in Drope.me proud about the most is to be Runner Up in the Startup of the Year Awards by Hackernoon. We launched our platform less than a year ago, in June 2023. And after such a short time, acquiring recognition from such a reputable community as Hackernoon is truly unique! Earlier in 2023, we were also #3 Product of the Day and #3 Marketing Product of the Week on Product Hunt! named named But also, we’re incredibly excited about the community-driven initiative we launched at the , Drope.me Indie Game Awards. It aimed to celebrate the year’s best indie games and highlight their achievements to a broader audience. By inviting gaming enthusiasts, players, and streamers to nominate and vote for their favorite indie games, Drope.me fostered community engagement and recognition for indie developers. end of 2023 We got over 700 submissions, partnered with Lorgar and , and organized 34 Drops with 800 participants. The winners were announced live during the Twitch ceremony. We invited five other streamers to join the stream and hosted a fun quiz during the event, which reached a peak of 54 viewers and averaged 40. Indie Games Devel There will be more projects and initiatives like this in 2024. So stay tuned for more! We would love your feedback on HackerNoon as a tech publication! How has your experience been with us? You have an incredibly engaged audience who knows everything and a bit more about the tech industry! We have already shared our story with you before, and the response from the readers was great. Any words of wisdom you’d like to share with us? Don’t be afraid to follow your passion. Even if you don’t have everything figured out but feel that there’s some dream, thought, or project worth pursuing – go for it and see where the path will take you. Be just brave enough to make a first step! Startups of The Year is HackerNoon’s Flagship community-driven event celebrating startups that survived and thrived in 2023. 30,000 startups across 4200+ cities and six continents participated this year to be crowned the best startup in their city. See our global winners announcement . here Companies that blog more get 67% more leads - Jumpstart your company’s blogging journey by purchasing our . Business Blogging Package The 2023 Startups Of The Year is sponsored by: . . The winners will get a free .Tech Domain, a HackerNoon NFT, and a Tech Company News Page. TECH Domains

Meet Drope.me, Runner-up of the Startups of the Year in Wilmington, DE, North America

Drope.me এর সাথে দেখা করুন, উইলমিংটন, DE, উত্তর আমেরিকাতে স্টার্টআপ অফ দ্য ইয়ারের রানার আপ

Treffen Sie Drope.me, Zweitplatzierter der Startups des Jahres in Wilmington, DE, Nordamerika

Conozca a Drope.me, finalista de las Startups del año en Wilmington, DE, Norteamérica

Rencontrez Drope.me, finaliste des startups de l'année à Wilmington, DE, Amérique du Nord

विलमिंगटन, DE, उत्तरी अमेरिका में वर्ष के स्टार्टअप के उपविजेता, Drope.me से मिलें

北米デラウェア州ウィルミントンの Startups of the Year で準優勝した Drope.me をご紹介します

북미 델라웨어주 윌밍턴에서 올해의 스타트업 준우승자인 Drope.me를 만나보세요.

Conheça Drope.me, vice-campeão das Startups do Ano em Wilmington, DE, América do Norte

Встречайте Drope.me, занявшего второе место в рейтинге «Стартапы года» в Уилмингтоне, Делавэр, Северная Америка

Wilmington, DE, Kuzey Amerika'da Yılın Startup'ları İkincisi olan Drope.me ile tanışın

Gặp gỡ Drope.me, Á quân Công ty khởi nghiệp của năm tại Wilmington, DE, Bắc Mỹ

来认识一下北美特拉华州威尔明顿年度初创公司亚军 Drope.me

Welcome to HackerNoon’s interview series. This section is curated by our Editorial team to spotlight bold and disruptive startups across the globe. If you’ve been nominated, and answer these questions Startups-Of-The-Year create a brand profile here. Hey Hackers, Drope.me has been nominated in HackerNoon's annual Startup of the Year awards in Wilmington, USA. Please vote for us here: https://hackernoon.com/startups/north-america/north-america-wilmington-ca-usa Read more about us below to understand why we deserve your vote. Meet Drope.me is an AI-enabled influencer marketing platform for the gaming industry. We empower gaming publishers and developers to engage with streamers in performance marketing campaigns. Drope.me At the same time, Drope.me helps micro streamers start monetizing their activity through collaborations with gaming brands. Our unique framework allows Steam, Roblox, and mobile gaming companies to run campaigns with micro-influencers on auto-pilot and only pay for measurable results and AI-verified UGC. We streamline the influencer management process for gaming organizations, saving them time on outreach, terms negotiation, game key distribution, and payments. Although we launched our platform only four months ago, we have had over 80 campaigns with indie devs and mobile pubs. Micro streamers benefit from our platform as it provides them a space to earn and engage with their community, as well as be noticed by gaming companies. By applying for campaigns and completing tasks, streamers earn money, and their viewers can win different prizes (Steam gift cards, in-game items, new games). With monetizing opportunities, bonuses for followers, and creative freedom, Drope.me becomes the ultimate ally for aspiring content creators. My Role My name is Dima Okhrimchuk, I’m the founder and CEO of . I was born in Kyiv, Ukraine, and later moved to Los Angeles, USA. I’m responsible for providing strategic direction for Drope.me, overseeing day-to-day operations, and leading a talented team of professionals. Drope.me Before founding Drope.me, I had worked in corporate finance and tech but soon realized that power suits weren’t my thing. In 2019, I co-founded an esports organization and later launched , a platform that allowed esports players and Twitch streamers to make money by playing with their fans. Organization.GG In February 2022, when the Russian Federation invaded Ukraine, the platform mainly focused on charity initiatives, raising over $60,000 for UNITED24, the government-run fundraising platform initiated by the President of Ukraine. In early 2023, I made a pivot to Drope.me which now focuses on bridging the gap between gaming companies and micro streamers. How We're Disrupting/Improving the Game Marketing Industry There are many challenges gaming companies face when it comes to marketing today. Adapting to changing consumer behavior, rising acquisition costs, and the need for authentic engagement are constant issues. This is where Drope.me comes into play. By connecting gaming companies and micro streamers in performance marketing campaigns, Drope.me is redefining the industry's marketing dynamics. It capitalizes on the authenticity and engagement potential of micro-influencers, who have niche and dedicated audiences, facilitating genuine connections with gamers. We offer a transparent, cost-effective, and efficient way for game developers to tap into influencer marketing, a strategy once exclusive to the gaming giants. This democratization of influencer marketing opens doors for indie developers and emerging gaming brands to establish themselves in a highly competitive sector. In essence, Drope.me is improving the game marketing sphere by enabling more fruitful collaborations that benefit all stakeholders involved. Standing Out from The Crowd When a gamedev, publisher, or gaming marketer needs to use an influencer marketing tool, they will deal with many time-consuming processes. It starts with a search for the right influencer, discussing terms, securing payments, and more. Now, there are many platforms on the market that eases these processes for them: Lurkit, Keymailer, and other. These platforms offer the same services that include game key distribution, the ability to choose how influencers will promote the product, etc. However, none of these platforms offer a performance-based model. It is a crucial factor for marketers who need to track the results of their campaigns and be able to adjust them while they’re still active. And Drope.me is based on the performance. With , game developers can clearly define their goals, collaborate with micro streamers who align with their brand, and track campaign performance in real-time. This level of data-driven decision-making is a game-changer in the industry. Drope.me On the other hand, only a few influencer marketing platforms work with micro streamers, wrongfully thinking that they’re too small for brands. There are streamers on Twitch as of July 2023, according to . And less than 1% are partner streamers who could potentially think of streaming as their main source of income. 7.6 million Statista The rest are much smaller streamers and typically have followers ranging from a few hundred to ten thousand community members. Drope.me focuses exactly on these influencers because: They have a more engaged community (meaning it’s easier to target the right audience and secure better results). They’re more motivated to collaborate. Campaigns with micro influencers are more budget-friendly than with celebrity streamers. And, we help micro influencers to start earning by doing what they love – streaming. Any streamer can register on our platform for free and without a commission, and after, they’re ready to apply to any campaign they like. After they apply, the brand needs to approve participants. As soon as this happens, influencers can start completing campaign actions (stream a game on Twitch, make a shoutout, subscribe to a Twitter account, and more) and earn money for this. It’s also important to highlight that we offer a streamer a chance to engage and support his audience, too. There’s a special format on Drope.me, called Drops, where streamers’ followers can participate and win different prizes (for example, Steam gift cards, in-game items, new games). None of the similar influencer marketing platforms care about streamers’ followers this way. And we do! Our Predictions/Thoughts on the Influencer Marketing in the Gaming Industry in 2023 In 2023-2024, the game marketing landscape is having a significant shift, with influencer marketing at the forefront of this transformation. As gaming audiences become increasingly discerning, traditional advertising methods are losing their impact. Gamers are looking for authentic experiences and recommendations, and this is where influencer marketing shines. In the coming years, we think that influencer marketing will not only continue to grow but will also become more diverse and nuanced. While mega influencers will still have their place, the real game-changers will be micro streamers and content creators who can forge deeper connections with their smaller, highly engaged communities. We believe that influencer marketing campaigns will focus more on storytelling and immersion. Gaming brands will collaborate with influencers to create narrative-driven content that goes beyond mere product placements. We also foresee the rise of user-generated content (UGC) as a powerful marketing tool. Gamers themselves will become content creators, sharing their experiences and recommendations within their communities. Drope.me is ready to embrace these changes by providing an efficient and accessible platform for gaming companies to connect with micro streamers and leverage these emerging trends. As the gaming industry continues to evolve, Drope.me is committed to driving innovation and empowering gaming brands of all sizes to succeed in this dynamic landscape. What word defines the state of Influencer Marketing in the Gaming Industry in 2023? The state of influencer marketing in the gaming industry in 2023 can be described as "evolutionary." This year, the industry has undergone a significant transformation, evolving from a supplementary marketing strategy into a central driving force for success. Influencers have become integral partners for game marketers, and their roles have expanded far beyond simple endorsements. In 2023, the gaming industry recognizes that influencers are more than just promoters; they are co-creators, storytellers, and community builders. Influencer marketing campaigns have shifted from one-off promotions to long-term partnerships, where influencers actively participate in game development processes, shaping narratives, characters, and gameplay. This evolution has resulted in more authentic and engaging content that resonates deeply with audiences. Moreover, the gaming industry's embrace of micro influencers, who cater to niche audiences, is another hallmark of this evolutionary phase. Influencer marketing in gaming is not just about reach but about building genuine connections and fostering loyalty within communities. Why we decided to participate in HackerNoon's Startup of the Year awards We believe Drope.me should be seen by as many people as possible, we want to tell our story! We’ve been working on our platform for a long time now, and continuing to do so. And HackerNoon, with its passionate audience full of tech and innovation enthusiasts, feels like a dream company for this! We’re beyond excited about being nominated for the Startup of the Year awards and thankful for all the support we receive. Final Thoughts Drope.me has been on a remarkable growth trajectory, consistently achieving important milestones. Looking back at 2023, it was a significant year, but 2024 promises even greater achievements with many exciting initiatives on the horizon. As for 2023, there are several wins our team is most proud of: Drope.me has been as the #3 Product of the Day and #3 Marketing Product of the Week on Product Hunt. recognized We launched , an initiative to support indie game devs with a $10,000 grant. Indie Roadshow We paid $17K to the streamers on Drope.me since June 2023 and launched . Its concept is simple: as streamers encourage their communities to partake in various actions on Drope.me, their leaderboard position ascends. The more engaged their viewers are, the higher their chances of securing the $1,000 top prize. Supporting streamers is one of the main goals of Drope.me! Influencers Leaderboard We signed our first brand ambassador, , to enhance game promotion on our platform and boost brand awareness of Drope.me among the streamers. airiesummer We partnered with a Ukraine pavilion at Gamescom 2023 in Cologne, Germany, and hosted our first-ever mixer for the gaming industry experts (some photos are ). here We’re grateful to the outstanding creators, brands, and industry experts who collaborate with us daily, as they are the driving force behind our success. At Drope.me, we're not just changing the game; we're reshaping the entire playing field. Vote for us today! https://hackernoon.com/startups/north-america/north-america-wilmington-ca-usa

Startups of the Year 2023: Drope.me - An Influencer Marketing Platform for the Gaming Industry 

How To Write Integration Tests in Go Apps

Sassing it up! In today’s tech landscape innovation is . What do I mean by this? It’s harder than ever to create new ideas to start new businesses for new services. This makes innovation scarce. At the same time the successful ideas which come forth are almost always revolutionary in their niche or area, thus making them profitable. both profitable and scarce Businesses are always continuing and evolving. Why? Because the consumers and end-users are growing and changing. Businesses need to adapt. Businesses need to learn. They must succeed. This is already a given for the likes of etc. They have enough monetary reserves to backup their ideas both bad, good and all. They also have established businesses and main products. Lets think about the small-medium enterprise workers.  They are the ones who are still working out their main products. What decisions do they have to make to adapt themselves to their business environment and consumers? Meta, Dell, IBM In terms of consumer/end-user studying the methods are all the same. As an example, a company, both big and small, could get data of target demographic and their habits, analyse how their product fits into their life and work flow etc. That will tell you your end result profit over whatever amount of time you want to. Big enterprise don’t need to worry about their business model or tech stack. On the other hand, small-medium tech enterprises have to be very careful when picking their tech stack and their business model. Are they a SaaS company, like Salesforce? Ad revenue based company, like Meta? Are they basing themselves more off a donation model, like Mozilla Foundation? Let’s not beat around the bush any longer……..SaaS is the future and present of all small to medium enterprise at this moment in time and for the future. SaaS companies are also currently the best way for startups to go and already established enterprises. On had to say about the SaaS market: explodingtopics.com Josh Howarth this “There are insights into the SaaS market: five key There are currently approximately 30,000 SaaS companies. The has the largest proportion of SaaS companies ( ). US around 60% Including repeat users, the US has around SaaS customers. 54 billion has the largest SaaS market share at just under . Salesforce 10% The SaaS market is predicted to reach a valuation of by $307 billion 2026. “ In the past it was almost mandatory, for you, a young entrepreneur to make a new technology or method that does something which people will pay subscriptions for. It was harder at that time to make SaaS companies because of the technological hurdles. Now? It’s hard to find a SaaS company which isn’t already in the niche you want to get into! The solution? Vertical-SaaS! Niche of Niches We know what a SaaS is but what’s a vertical-SaaS? vertical-SaaS as: Staxpayments defines Vertical SaaS is an emerging branch of software solutions tailored to specific industries or niches—as opposed to software for generic business needs like CRM, project management, or accounting (otherwise known as horizontal SaaS) Upon reading that you may think to yourself “wait a minute isn’t that just regular SaaS with specific steps?”. The answer is Yes it is. Regular SaaS companies target your needs and charge you for it. Vertical-SaaS companies target the most specific points of yours to monetize. Whether you’re a business or an individual. YES! An example of a regular SaaS is Spotify, You pay to to easily find music and stream that said music. Let us list 5 examples of vertical SaaS to really drive the message across on what they are and how they operate: This vertical-SaaS is a payment management software. It hyper specialises in construction payments. Textura: This vertical-SaaS helps with money management. Very specifically, it was made for only assisting financial advisors. Riskalyze: This vertical-SaaS helps businesses streamline their operations. However, they very specifically target the businesses regulatory affairs and clinical data. Veeva: This might be the most special on this list. This vertical-SaaS works as a feedback management solution, however, it is a feedback management solution which is specifically made for other SaaS companies. That is right. It is a SaaS that is “ ” off other SaaS companies. Upvoty: Sassing This SaaS works with media photo sizes. They make it so all photos you take are shared at their original quality and specifically their original sizes no matter who you send it too. It’s a vertical-SaaS literally built to handle photo sizes……we end this list with a specific app even among other vertical-SaaS companies. DropEvent: of the vertical-SaaS companies aforementioned above are on the up and up. How do we know this? Well vertical-SaaS startups are the go to for a growing number of young entrepreneurs. Why? because the money and opportunities are there. At the end of 2022 had ALL Fractal Software this to say about vertical-SaaS as an industry: Since January , the total market cap of the Vertical SaaS Index has grown by and Fractal’s vertical SaaS index remains above its pre-pandemic highs. Over the past years, the total LTM revenue of the companies in the index has doubled from 2020 30% 2 $14.9B to $29.5B. Not only did they state this, emphasising an obvious accelerated growth in the industry but they also stated this shortly after: Of the companies that existed in the Vertical SaaS Index in January , only have seen a decline in market capitalization as of . Of the companies whose market cap increased during this time period, the median increase in market cap was . 12 2020 3 November 29, 2022 27% Overall what can we take from Fractal software’s article? It’s that vertical-SaaS companies are ever growing in terms of number and industry power. The ones which will see a decline will regain their previous strength sooner rather than later. As of companies were increasing their average market cap by . Granted this might not be a reasonable estimation as some companies get much greater evaluation than others so this might greatly skew the data. Regardless the smaller companies are still growing, arguably even much more than their SaaS in the industry. 2022 27% normal counter-parts From a personal standpoint I also have reason to believe vertical-SaaS products will work. not just from the various different developers I talk to regularly but even partially because of the content shown through social media. We all get affected by social media but this time it was the good type of affection. It made me realise the power of vertical-SaaS. Who do I specifically mean? On there is a by the name who has over 20 thousand followers. He posts videos talking about the benefits of SaaS and young developers and entrepreneurs getting involved in SaaS building. Unbeknownst to him almost all the SaaS companies he’s made or references are actually vertical-SaaS companies! There is a strong and growing trend of young startup builders building vertical-SaaS companies and it’s only going to grow! TikTok young developer @saasgod Remember if it ain’t SaaS, it wont last!

Vertical-SaaS, The Future of Startups!

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