Rewarded Ads 101: Launch and Scale with Proven Best Practices

The hype is real! This new video is focused on proven best practices for launching and scaling Rewarded Ad campaigns.

Watch the video session above from Tenjin & Adjoe to learn:

1. How to run Rewarded Ads on autopilot

2. What to do when your Rewarded Ad Campaign underperforms

3. When to adjust your bids

Understanding Rewarded Ads

Rewarded ads have emerged as a powerful monetization strategy for mobile game developers, offering users an incentive to engage with advertisements in exchange for in-game rewards. This format has gained significant traction in the mobile gaming industry, providing a win-win scenario for both users and developers.

At its core, rewarded ads allow users to earn virtual currency, items, or other benefits by watching a short video or completing a simple task. This enhances the user experience by offering tangible rewards, while also generating revenue for the game publisher. Compared to traditional ad formats, rewarded ads are often less intrusive and better received by users, leading to higher engagement and retention rates.

The Advantages of Rewarded Ads

Rewarded ads offer several key advantages for mobile game developers:

• Deeper User Engagement: Studies have shown that players are 4-9 times more likely to make an in-app purchase after engaging with a rewarded ad. This deeper level of engagement can translate into increased monetization and retention.
• Improved User Experience: Rewarded ads are a non-intrusive ad format that users actively choose to engage with, leading to higher satisfaction and better retention rates.

• Faster Returns on Investment: Developers can often see a return on their ad spend in as little as 7-14 days, which is substantially quicker than traditional ad channels.

• Adaptability to iOS Changes: The evolving iOS market has pushed marketers to explore new solutions, and rewarded ads have proven to be a valuable alternative in the face of platform changes.

Rewarded Ad Campaign Types

When it comes to running rewarded ad campaigns, there are two main types to consider:

Time-Based Campaigns

Time-based rewarded ad campaigns reward users for the amount of time they spend playing the game. The ad platform’s algorithm manages the rewarding logic, ensuring users receive just enough rewards to keep them engaged without making rewards their sole focus.

This campaign type is well-suited for developers with limited resources, as the ad platform handles the rewarding logic. It’s also a good option for games where tracking in-app events may be challenging.

Event-Based Campaigns

Event-based rewarded ad campaigns reward users for completing specific in-game tasks or achievements. Developers can customize the reward moments to align with key points in the game’s progression, encouraging users to reach higher levels in exchange for greater rewards.

This campaign type offers more flexibility in tailoring the rewards to the user’s progress, but may require more resources from the developer to track and implement the necessary in-app events.

Optimizing Rewarded Ad Campaigns

Effective optimization is crucial for maximizing the performance of your rewarded ad campaigns. Here are some best practices to consider:

Targeting and Segmentation

• Start by focusing on your top-performing markets, such as the United States, Germany, France, the UK, Japan, and South Korea.
• Target a broader demographic initially to gather data and fine-tune your campaigns as they progress.
• Consider excluding non-compatible devices and operating systems at the outset to improve performance.
• Leverage lookalike audiences to reach potential users with similar characteristics to your existing audience.

Budgeting and Bidding

• The required budget for a rewarded ad campaign can vary depending on factors such as the type of game, monetization mix, and the number of target markets.
• Aim to bid as high as possible to ensure your ads are placed competitively and reach the best placements.
• Strive to achieve 150-200 daily installs per campaign during the testing phase.
• Continuously optimize by adjusting bids, splitting age groups, and fine-tuning sources based on performance.

Granular Optimization

Leveraging the ad platform’s granular optimization capabilities is key to maximizing the performance of your rewarded ad campaigns. This includes:

• Adjusting bids based on user age groups and other demographic factors to improve ROI.
• Optimizing the placement of ads across different publishers and sources to identify the best-performing placements.
• Continuously monitoring and adjusting your campaigns to ensure you’re reaching your target KPIs.

Optimizing Creatives for Rewarded Ads

While the placement and rewards offered are the primary drivers of user engagement in rewarded ad campaigns, creatives still play an important role in the overall success of your ads.

When it comes to creatives for rewarded ads, consider the following best practices:

• Avoid using “fake” ads that misrepresent the actual game.
• Utilize video ads, as they tend to perform better than static images.
• Ensure your creatives are localized to the language of your target audience.
• Update your creatives at least once every 1-2 months to keep them fresh and engaging.

Remember, the user’s mindset when engaging with rewarded ads is similar to when they’re browsing an app store, where the amount of rewards and the placement of the ad have a greater impact on their decision to engage. While creatives are still important, they become secondary to the overall value proposition and competitiveness of your ad placement.