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It won’t be wrong to state that currently, the gaming industry is at its peak. From VCR tapes to PlayStations, the industry has come a long way. The credit goes to developers who have worked hard to introduce new concepts at every step of evolution.
Aaron Ruby states about the developers that they are a bunch of the smartest people of this generation. These are the people who use technology to bring new things to life. As much as we appreciate their dedication, we must also mention that creating games isn’t cheap. If a person is working hard in the field, they deserve some payback, and that’s where we get the concept of monetization.
Developers need to make money through their apps to survive and progress in the industry. Thanks to the advanced tech of today, there are various ways that one can adapt to generate capital from their apps. It’s all about figuring a strategy that works for you.
Let’s run through some ways that you can use to monetize your gaming apps:
- Rewarded Ads
When studying capitalization on games, we discovered that a higher number of rewarded ads emerged in the industry last year. The idea is to gift power-ups, coins, and extra lives to the users in exchange for watching full ads during the game breaks.
Even though the basic motive is to generate money by running ads, some other benefits tag along. For example, it boosts retention and playtime of the users. If you are promoting paid features of your app, it may appeal to the users, and they might go for the purchase.
Keep in mind that ad placement has to be strategic. Back-to-back ads and videos may frustrate the players to the point that they’d instantly discard your app from their phones. Instead, ads must appear after a certain gap. Plus, they should be interesting enough.
- In-app Purchases
This is the most common and proven method of generating income through an app.
The survey by InMobi shows that mobile users are more prone to click on ads in an app than a website. It proves the reliability of this method.
Typically, the model works on the foundation of freemium monetization method. Developers offer a free download of the basic app. Then the premium services and features are available for purchase or through subscription.
Scan through the stores, and you’ll find that many apps generated big money through this method. Games like Candy Crush have capitalized by enticing their users to go for in-app purchases.
- Native Ads
Placing native ads in your gaming app is another strategy that helps you generate money. The best part is, these apps are not intrusive. They blend into the existing content of the app in such a way that it feels completely natural.
It’s common to find such ads on major platforms like Google, Facebook, and Twitter. These apps have a mature system to help developers create and customize their ads.
Native ad strategy is highly popular for its enhanced content and improved customer approach. But you must make sure that the ad should be relevant for the people playing that game. For example, it would be highly irrelevant to place a cosmetic ad in a wrestling game.
Marketing experts strongly prefer to study users before adopting any promotion method. You might have info on all players from the introductory stage. Use it for ad selection but make sure to secure all the information. Cybercriminals may access and exploit this info if necessary steps are not taken to keep it safe. We are all aware of how AirG Spam free algorithms were used by the company to get back to its feet when it suffered.
- Branded Content
Are there any brands who are willing to sponsor content within your game?
It is quite common for brands to pay for product placement within movies. This is now happening in gaming apps, as well. We suggest that you must go for it if there are any such offers present for you in the market.
It will be an additional source of revenue, only if you know how to place their products strategically. Such as making the main character wear sneakers of a certain brand.
But before you go out on the hunt looking for sponsors, you must focus on the contents of your game. Do you have a massive user base? How strong is the retention rate? Who is your audience?
Responding to these questions and incorporating them in your game will help you gain the attention of major brands. They will reach out to you if the game is simply awesome.
- Recommendation Engine
You can also recommend games to the players. By adding a recommendation engine, you’ll be suggesting interesting games by the competitors. It provides you an additional revenue stream.
- Pay Wall
Getting people to try your game is quite easy if it’s available for free. The paywall method allows the user to play a game for a certain period. If you succeed at impressing the players, they might go for buying it once the free period is over.
In case you fail at keeping users hooked, they may not want to continue after the trial period. It can turn out to be an effective monetization strategy if you know how to retain the interest of the users.
Parting thoughts
To progress in the gaming world, you need to have an intense flair for competition. It is hard to ignore how new monetization methods are emerging in the market almost every year. As a developer, you can also rake in big bucks if you succeed at getting the right combination of strategies.
Pushing in too many ads or feedback boxes can be a huge turn-off for the players. So make sure to keep a balance. And lastly, measure, optimize, and repeat regularly to stay in the game.
Author Bio
Audrey Throne has an ongoing affair with the words that capture readers’ attention. Her passion for writing dates back to her pre-blogging days. She loves to share her thoughts related to business, technology, health and fashion.
Find her on Twitter: @audrey_throne
