First of all, I don’t think this headline is the most appropriate. You can’t generalize, and advertising on TV always involves a very high risk. Nevertheless, at PlaySpace we are very happy because it is working exceptionally well in the first days of this first television campaign. As a result, I want to be transparent and share our experience with you. The campaign has been active for just over a week. Furthermore, we are frankly surprised by the good results. One important thing to keep in mind: at PlaySpace we have spent 3 years testing practically all online acquisition channels (Facebook Ads, Google Adwords, affiliate networks, incentivized traffic, email marketing, SEO, branding, etc.). Therefore, we have enough track record to compare results properly.
First Metrics of Advertising Games on TV
Obviously, it is too early to know if we will recover the investment. Our games are freemium, so retained users need time before they start paying. However, without setting a precedent, I can say we are seeing better metrics than any online campaign we have run. In fact, we have never seen such good metrics in the early stages of any player acquisition campaign. Neither in our games, nor in the industry.
- Visit-to-registration conversion close to 90%. In comparison, the average sits around 30%-60% depending on the platform.
- 1-day retention above 50%. In contrast, the industry average is around 30%.
- Active-user-to-payer conversion ratios similar to those of organically retained users. In other words, TV users match the quality of online users.
Short-Term Results of Advertising Games on TV
In any acquisition campaign, the volume of impact depends on budget and timing. Specifically, the shorter the period and the higher the volume, the greater the impact.
In the case of TV, it demands a lot of investment in very short periods. Consequently, you should see results quickly. In our case, we achieved the following milestones in barely a week:
- First, we broke our concurrent user record (CCU), increasing it by 40%.
- Additionally, we broke our daily revenue record.
- Moreover, we reached the TOP 10 in both the Apple Store and Google Play, in the Casino category and overall.
- Finally, increasing traffic in one game positively impacted all our other games.
Optimization of Advertising Games on TV
During this week, we tested all time slots and all Mediaset channels. As a result, we now know which slots convert best and which offer the best return on investment. We achieved this by reviewing installations in real time as each ad aired, based on our scheduling plan.
Currently, we are optimizing the remaining airings. Our goal: achieve cheaper player acquisition costs than online channels offer. With these metrics, we can therefore calculate ROI accurately and build a scalable acquisition model through television.
Keys to Advertising Games on TV
Each point below deserves its own post. For now, here are the factors that I believe have driven our success so far:
- Clear and concise brand message: Loco Bingo, the craziest bingo.
- Product-market fit: Bingo is very popular in Spain. Essentially, you just need to let the world know your game exists.
- The spot: Very visual, product-focused, fun, with a super catchy jingle.
- Campaign planning: We worked with a great agency that knows channels, audiences, and time slots perfectly.
- Real-time attribution technology: Thanks to this, we can track which installations each spot generates and optimize accordingly.
- Measuring everything: Above all, we know our LTV, ARPU, conversion, and retention ratios. This lets us compare them against TV user metrics.
In conclusion, we still have a lot to learn and improve. But we are very satisfied with the results so far. I will share our evolution in the coming weeks.