• by Sarah Mahoney  @mahoney_sarah, June 6, 2011

While it's no news that girls and women are diving deeper into gaming every day, a new ranking from NBCU's shows that brands offering women a way to play are gaining buzz.

"Brands that allow women a chance to game are seeing a big jump in brand chatter," Melissa Lavigne-Delville, VP/trends and strategic insights for women, tells Marketing Daily.

MasterCard, for example, experienced a large jump on the Brand Power Index in April, rising 67 spots from #295 to #228, after announcing participation in "GamesThatGive," in which the brand pledged to donate 10 cents to charity for every minute of gameplay on Facebook. "That's strategic," she says, "since we know women are more involved in cause-oriented activities, and social gaming."