Steam is a major platform for game developers to launch and sell their games. However, more than just being on the platform is required. Game developers choose to launch their games on Steam. As time passes, the quantity of launched games is constantly increasing. In 2023, the number of games released on Steam reached an impressive 14,533. While this is excellent news for Steam, it presents a challenge for game developers who desire to release their own games and achieve visibility amongst the vast array of games available on the platform. Knowing which tools to use to effectively distribute your new game and increase sales is important. An effective tool for this purpose is the Steam Wishlist. In this regard, we'll be able to help you understand what it is and why it is important to incentivize the Steam Wishlist during your game promotion.
What is Steam Wishlist?
The Steam Wishlist is a handy feature that allows users to keep track of games they wish to add to their library. To add a game to your Wishlist, simply click the "Add to your Wishlist" button on the game's page, and it will appear in your corresponding tab.
Having a Wishlist on Steam is not only a convenient way to remember games you're interested in but also helps you stay informed about their release. Steam's email notifications and the Steam mobile app are helpful reminders about release dates or discounts on favored games. Additionally, the Wishlist makes it easier to gift games to your friends by selecting from your desired list.
Why do you need to spike Wishlists?
If you are launching a game for the first time or a small indie studio, the Steam Wishlist can be a crucial tool for you. It provides essential information about your potential players and their preferences. Here are three main reasons why you should rely on it:
1. Insights into Player Interest: The Steam Wishlist can help you gather information about a base of interested players, including their location and preferences. This data can be very useful in making adjustments before release, such as deciding on additional localization or considering the preferences of the most interested regions.
2. This is part of the player's journey in funnel, indicating their level of engagement and readiness to make a purchase.
3. Interest Indicator and Sales Estimation: About one-third of players who add a game to their wishlist end up purchasing it, and during sales periods, about 50% of wishlist additions convert into buyers.
4. Visibility to Steam Algorithms: This is a crucial aspect. If Steam algorithms see that people are interested in your game, it will be identified as appealing and recommended to an even larger audience. Moreover, Steam will highlight your game in lists, such as the most anticipated game of the day, week, or month, based on the number of additions to Steam wishlists. Therefore, the more additions your game receives, the broader its reach.
By promoting your game's wishlist on Steam, you gain traction on the platform itself, like SteamDB, and externally. Game bloggers and third-party services assisting marketers and publishers will note it as an anticipated release. In summary, promoting your game's wishlist on Steam is essential.
How many "Steam Wishlists" do you need?
Experts agree that the Steam Wishlist is crucial for promoting games. You can listen to discussions on the Indie Game Business podcast to learn more about this topic. In one episode, the host and Sam De Boeck, Founder of Oro Interactive, talk about the successful promotion of indie games.
*"If you already have a solid foundation, then Steam will augment the effects, they will shoot you up, and if you have like 10K wish list, then you will have a lot of increase. But if you only have like 10 wish lists, Steam knows that this is not really a popular game at this moment, so we won’t be pushing it to the top. For influencers that are talking or playing about the game, I’ll try to make sure that I increase the momentum as much as possible two weeks prior because that’s when Steam kind of assembles like the ranking of the games and the ones with the most momentum get pushed to the top." *Sam De Boeck.
Aiming for around 3000 wishlist additions each day to increase your game's visibility on Steam and for its algorithms to pick it up. It's beneficial to continue receiving wishlist additions even after the initial launch day to maintain a prominent position in the rankings.
How to spike Steam Wishlists?
To successfully launch, you must create a marketing plan that outlines the timing and sets goals for the number of wishlists to be achieved by specific dates.
It is essential to communicate about your game through various channels such as your game page, social media, and influencers if you collaborate with them. However, if you're a new developer and don't have sufficient recognition from players, achieving the initial milestone of 3000 sales can be challenging. Nevertheless, even indie game developers have been able to break through this milestone, so it's all in your hands.
One of the best alternatives is to use specialized services that assist in game promotion, such as Drope.me. With Drope.me, you can promote your game through influencers and receive diverse content, such as streams and videos, along with additions to your game on Steam Wishlist. The action plan is straightforward.
Here's how it works:
1. Create a campaign on Drope.me.
2. Choose the actions (goals) you need. You can select one or several for different objectives. For instance, in addition to adding the game to the wishlist, you can also ask for social media subscriptions, play your game demo, and much more.
3. Influencers who are interested in your campaign apply to participate. After acceptance, they start talking about your game on streams and in videos. Their audience reacts and follows the suggested actions.
4. This way, you gain a lively and interested audience. Most importantly, you only pay for results for specific actions completed, such as adding your game to the Steam Wishlist.
It is essential to have an outstanding product, but even with a standout product, it can be difficult to stand out in a crowded market. Therefore, it is important to explore all available opportunities to become successful. We also suggest checking out other articles that can help promote your game:
Indie Game Promotion: Main steps to plan successful promo
How to promote your game with influencers and creators
Game Promotion Challenges and Ways to Fix Them
