Inside a gaming startup’s partnership with Fernando Alonso.
Why landing Fernando introduced new pressures and early roadblocks that Parallel had to solve.
I’m Niru, and each week I tackle reader questions about commercial strategy, partnerships, comms and growth in the sports and entertainment industry. Send me your questions, and in return, I’ll humbly offer actionable, real-talk advice.
Hey everyone!
Parallel Studios announced Fernando Alonso for their gaming partnership last year. Big-name deals appear to be instant wins, but the reality within the startup was more complicated.
Signing Fernando created immediate pressure from stakeholders, questions from leadership, and sky-high expectations from the community. As soon as the press release dropped, Parallel’s team realised landing a superstar doesn’t mean you can relax - if anything, it raises the stakes.
Today’s free newsletter peels back that announcement moment. You’ll see the exact pressures Swish and his team faced when the hype hit, why superstar deals demand new mindsets, and the early challenges that followed.
In a few minutes, you’ll walk away knowing:
Why big-name partnerships create fresh challenges, not just instant solutions.
The early roadblocks Parallel encountered once the announcement was public.
A high-level view of the principles Swish’s team used to adapt—tests, metrics, and split-second decisions.
Real quotes from Swish about what they got right and where they missed the mark.
Let’s jump in.
Big-name deals spark new pressure from day one.
Signing Fernando felt like a victory—until the team realised they now had to deliver on every promise his name implied. Internal stakeholders asked: “What’s our download target?” And leadership wanted a clear ROI timeline.
Swish recalls, “I’m biased, but I knew Fernando could bring attention. The moment we announced, everyone asked: ‘How many downloads will this drive? How many new signups?’ We had to have an answer in real time.”
That shift—from “How do we land him?” to “How do we justify him?”—happens faster than most anticipate. Landing a big name is just the starting line, not the finish.
Momentum fades fast when goals aren’t met.
Once the press release circulated, community chatter spiked. Fans debated why Alonso would play a trading card game. Reddit lit up with brand mentions. Downloads spiked for 48 hours, but then the curve plateaued.
Swish explains, “We hit about 20,000 downloads from his social posts. It was great, but we realised we should have launched mobile first. On PC, it capped out quickly. The initial spike looked good in screenshots, but sustaining that momentum was a fight.”
Suddenly, they faced questions they hadn’t fully anticipated:
How do we keep the community engaged once the initial hype wears off?
Which metrics truly matter—downloads, signups, or active retention?
What if our product can’t deliver an experience that matches the expectations set by his name?
These questions forced a reality check. A superstar’s name can attract attention, but if your product or rollout plan isn’t ready, that attention evaporates just as fast.
Big names require a shift from “celebrity” to “conversion” mindset.
Before signing Alonso, Parallel’s team believed: “He’ll promote, people will download, and everything clicks.” After the announcement, they realised promotion alone wasn’t enough. They had to think in layers:
Immediate Conversion Metrics: Each social post needed a unique attribution link. “We told him, ‘We don’t need just downloads—send us emails, too. Even if they don’t play right away, at least we can retarget.’”
Retention Goals: Getting people to download was one battle. Keeping them playing was another. Swish’s team added retention thresholds. “We said, ‘20 percent of your referrals should play four or five games within a month. If you hit that, you unlock the next payment.’”
Clear, Short-Term Tests: Instead of a full-scale launch, they implemented a small test campaign. “We put a limited budget behind this first partnership, measured conversion rates, and then decided whether to move forward or pause.”
Without that mindset shift, big-name deals become vanity metrics. You need structure underneath the star power.
What Parallel got right—and where they misstepped.
“He acted like an actor,” Swish says of Fernando’s involvement. “He knew his lines, asked for retakes, even asked questions about the game mechanics. That professionalism gave us content we could truly use—high-quality, authentic moments, not just another rushed endorsement deal”
That level of engagement was gold. It created visuals, trailers, and community clips that cut through the noise.
But Parallel also learned hard lessons:
Timing Misalignment: Launching on PC first limited the reach. Had they timed his push with a mobile release, their numbers could have tripled.
Overestimating Immediate Retention: They assumed downloads equaled engagement. They didn’t anticipate how quickly players would drop off if the onboarding experience wasn’t seamless.
Underbuilding Infrastructure: Their attribution setup initially missed tracking a percentage of retargeted users, so they temporarily lost sight of some of the very conversions they needed.
Swish reflects, “We got great content, an engaged superstar partner, and initial buzz. But we missed a few key infrastructure points—like making sure our attribution covered every funnel stage. Those gaps taught us that hype only works when the system underneath can handle it.”
High-level principles Swish’s team used to adapt.
Even as they scrambled to fix duplication and retention issues, Parallel leaned on a set of guiding principles:
Define Success Beforehand: From the moment Fernando’s deal was signed, they drafted a “win criteria” sheet: downloads, signups, retention, and unique attribution. No more guessing.
Run Controlled Tests: Instead of a full campaign push, they ran a smaller ad spend on Instagram and Meta tied directly to his social posts. That tested the true ROI before scaling.
Iterate Quickly: Once the initial test data arrived, they held daily stand-ups to adjust copy, visuals, and targeting. Instead of waiting a week, they updated creatives within 24 hours based on early learnings.
Prioritize Long-Term Engagement: They built retention incentives into the partnership—tiered rewards for players who logged in repeatedly. Retention became as important as downloads.
These high-level principles didn’t solve every problem (they never do). But they allowed Swish’s team to pivot within days, instead of weeks, when metrics slipped.
Landing a big name is just the starting line.
When you see headlines about celebrity partnerships, remember: the real work begins in the hours after the press release, not before. Superstar names stir excitement, but superstar names also amplify your flaws if your product or strategy isn’t ready.
Parallel’s bet on Fernando Alonso gave them user spikes, earned media, and community buzz. But it also revealed holes in tracking, mobile readiness, and retention infrastructure. They came away with a crucial lesson: star power only works when your systems run flawlessly beneath it.
That’s the free version. If you want the full playbook, including:
The exact attribution frameworks Swish implemented to tie downloads to unique links.
How they rebuilt their retention loops within 48 hours of launch.
A step-by-step breakdown of the testing, budget allocation, and ad copy adjustments that saved the campaign.
The complete “win criteria” spreadsheet template they used to align stakeholders and set clear targets.
You’ll get it all in the paid newsletter. Stay tuned—next issue drops with every tool you need to manage big-name partnerships the right way.
See you there,
Niru
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