Developer of Ragnarok Rush
The Challenge
A worldwide launch is always a difficult task, full of unknowns and risks. Prior to the game’s release, it’s difficult to both anticipate the demand and create efficient user acquisition flows – as there’s no “real” audiences to target.
Getting enough users to pre-register for a title is among the best indicators of a successful launch, as well as an invaluable cache of data for any user acquisition activity. When you’re aiming for a global launch, these numbers can provide an indication of who your target markets are, which audiences to target in each territory, and what creative directions are the most successful ones.
Moreover, users who wish to download an app prior to its release are more likely to be passionate about it, and convert to paying customers easier than other groups.
Yet while the benefits are obvious, the way of achieving them is decidedly less so. Pre-registration, like any pre-order, has to rely on efficient marketing, as the product itself is not yet available. Finding the right users is a difficult task.
The Strategy
As part of the global launch of its new title, Ragnarok Rush, Gravity approached Bidalgo and decided to explore pre-registration options in order to facilitate success. Bidalgo suggested using Google App Campaigns, which added support for pre-registrations last year. The rationale was that a dedicated product would function better and have more opportunities for optimization than a display network campaign.
Throughout the campaign, Bidalgo specialists had relied on the Bidalgo platform for asset uploads and management. As App Campaigns creates its own ads, an important part of the process was the ability – built into the Bidalgo platform – to understand when the creative assets become stale and it’s time to replace them.
The Outcome: Half the target CPA, High Conversion Rates
Bidalgo was able to attract quality users to Gravity Rush pre-registration campaign at 54.2% of the target CPA set by Gravity. These users have had a 73% higher conversion rate than the first post-launch campaign, which ran within two weeks of the launch.