Having exhausted other avenues to onboard enough qualified truckers to fill the national void, freight carriers are literally running ads on video game platforms. Schneider National is apparently paying a software company to run virtual billboards in the “American Truck Simulator.” The gist of the unorthodox marketing campaign is to entice high-scoring coach potatoes to transition their skills to maneuvering 80,000-pound rigs.
“They asked these new folks, ‘Hey, you’re better than the average student graduate. Where’d you learn how to do this? What we heard a few times was, ‘Oh, I drive in American Truck Simulator,” Schneider executive vice president Rob Reich reportedly said. “That’s really why we wanted to get the billboards out there. ‘Hey, you’re enjoying this. You might enjoy the real thing.’”
The Czech Republic game maker, SCS Software, also produces a Euro Truck Simulator version built on a predecessor called 18 Wheels of Steel. Considered popular within the digital truck driving niche, the American-themed PC game’s streaming service has a following under 10,000. Household name games such as Fortnite and Minecraft attract upwards of 45 million and 95 million, respectively. One has to wonder if coal and lithium mining operations will start running “Hiring” ads in Minecraft.
Sarcasm aside, it’s difficult to fault companies such as Schneider for taking an innovative approach to attracting new truckers. The truck simulator gamers have a legitimate interest in the daily life of CDL professionals. Like any truck transportation professional, they would be required to go through tractor-trailer school, pass safety and competency tests, and likely undergo mentorship under senior drivers.
SCS Software CEO Pavel Sebor indicated the company created new versions after stumbling across the genre. It started with a simple truck driving game that users responded to in a positive fashion. They gravitated to driving through picturesque scenery instead of playing shoot-em-up and carnage games.
“It’s a lot of time that you can spend driving into the sunset or enjoying the countryside,” Sebor reportedly said. “And I think people just enjoy it.”
That may not be what those who try to transition from the imaginary world of video games to rumbling 18-wheelers and heavy traffic experience. For Schneider’s part, administrators tasked with outreach are investing in a novel way to keep their fleets flush with drivers. From the couch to a big rig cab, what could possibly go wrong?”
Sources:
https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2023/06/16/american-truck-simulator-billboard-schneider/
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