It takes a lot to stand out amongst the crowd of pro gamers and esports hopefuls -- especially with so much white noise enveloping our industry's social media landscape. This analysis will break down what it takes to build a unique, successful brand and encourage loyal audiences when so many people and organizations are aiming for the same success. Learn how to combat low engagement and PR disasters in this practical panel of gaming community experts.

At the 2019 Inven Global Esports Conference [IGEC 2019], a panel of experts will shed light onto how making a name for yourself through social media is more difficult than it seems, how different esports organizations approach branding differently and how the gaming landscape has its own unique challenges.

In theory, it has never been easier to get noticed if you're looking to make a name for yourself as a player, company, brand, etc. with the popularity of social media reaching an all-time high. The vast majority of individuals in first world countries have smartphones and are constantly connected to the internet and have the ability to receive information in the blink of an eye. In the world of esports, all of the aforementioned statements are even more prevalent. With esports growing more mainstream day-by-day, standing out is easier and harder than ever.

All it takes is a single tweet to go viral and new opportunities can open up. Heck, ask Carter Wilkerson who tweeted about wanting chicken nuggets from Wendys. After receiving 3.5 million retweets and a shoutout from Ellen Degeneres, Carter's life was changed forever.

That being said, with more than 100 million daily active users on Twitter, having your tweets noticed in a sea of information is a challenge in and of itself.

So then how do companies, internet personalities, and esports teams create authentic brands when the amount of people aiming to do so grows each day? This panel of experts works every day to solve that equation.

Emily Gonzalez-Holland and Mateus Portilho, Community Manager and Social Media Manager, respectively, at Cloud9 Esports dedicate their lives to building the brand of one of the largest esports organizations in the world. Through strategic partnerships, calculated marketing plays and a top-tier public relations team, Cloud9 has created a brand synonymous with numerous titles across the industry. By Gonzalez-Holland and Portilho opening up about what has worked for not only themselves but the company as a whole, attendees can learn first hand from the best.

Mychal "Trihex" Jefferson is a professional Twitch streamer and entertainer under the Tempo Storm umbrella who is famous for finishing games faster than almost anyone else in the world. Known as "speedrunning," Trihex has created a career and brand by understanding the ins-and-outs of game design and exploiting it. Why beat Yoshi's Island or Super Mario Odyssey over the course of a few play sessions on your couch relaxing when you can 100% the games in only a few hours? Trihex found a niche within the gaming industry and turned it into a career.

Riley Jamison, the Creative Director and Content Lead for the LA Gladiators, has a unique challenge creating a brand for an esport (the Overwatch League) that is only in its' second year of existence. What do fans like? How does the average Overwatch fan differ from that of other esports? How do you get eyeballs on your team when there are a dozen out there investing millions of dollars to accomplish the exact same goal? Jamison can shed some light on that.

Lauren Gaba Flanagan knows the business of esports better than most as a creative strategist and art director based out of Los Angeles. Previously the Director of Esports at the United Entertainment Group, her expertise when it comes to assisting companies to enter the world of esports and develop a brand that consumers will be drawn to makes her a very unique mouthpiece on this panel. 

Rounding out the panel is Jason Moore, the co-founder and President of the Agency for Professional Esports (APE). APE is a best in class boutique representing top professional gamers in esports. As the former President of Paris Hilton Entertainment, Moore created and managed a billion-dollar global branded business and introduced celebrity based branding as a new marketing formula. APE focuses on building professional gamers into popular-culture branded athletes.

Moderating the panel will be Alberto Rengifo the co-founder of APE.

This panel will take place at 2:00pm in the Crystal Cove of University of California Irvine's Conference Center and should not be missed by anyone who wants to hear from experts in the field of branding on how to stand out. Feel free to check out more of the IGEC panels here: https://www.invenglobal.com/igec/panels.