Malpa Games is a puzzle game developer based in Cyprus, known for hits like Word Spells, Word Search Evolution Puzzle, and Word Pizza. When the Malpa team wanted to optimize their user acquisition (UA) strategy and maximize user retention, the Unity Ads team suggested they utilize event optimization.
Aleksandr Sergeev, Head of UA, and Fedor Krivoblotski, UA Manager, explain how they used event optimization to scale their growth, reach high quality users, and boost their day 14 (D14) retention 40% compared to return on ad spend (ROAS) campaigns.
Trying event-based user acquisition
Malpa was looking for new ways to optimize their UA strategy - and since word game players are known for consistent engagement over time, Malpa’s UA strategy is more focused on long-term retention than short term return on investment (ROI).
Malpa had been utilizing the Unity Ads network as part of their growth strategy, so when the Unity Ads team heard Malpa wanted to boost retention, they suggested event optimization.
As Aleksandr explains, “When the Unity Ads team suggested we try out event optimization campaigns, we were completely on board. They explained that event optimization campaigns would enable us to reach high-quality users who complete specific actions in the game - and this seemed like an ideal fit for our goals.”
Deciding which events to target
First, the Unity Ads team guided the Malpa team through the initial optimizer setup. Based on the Malpa team’s KPIs, they determined which events in their game would be ideal to optimize toward - essentially, the quality of users they were most interested in reaching. Generally, Unity Ads recommends choosing an action that the top 5% to 20% of high long term value (LTV) users complete within the first seven days.
As Krivoblotski explains, “We ran a Level Complete campaign to optimize toward users who are more likely to reach a specific level completion milestone. We evaluated each of our games and determined which specific level completed would generate the highest profitability, retention, and ROAS. For some games, this meant reaching level 20, and for others even level 50.”
Scaling up with multiple campaigns
The Malpa team started running campaigns on multiple games. Since each campaign was targeting a different event and reaching different users, they could all run simultaneously - with no user overlap, there were no concerns about cannibalization.
For each campaign, the Malpa team followed recommendations to start with a shallower, upper funnel event like completing level 5 or 10 . This way, they could help accumulate data for the event optimization algorithm, and increase their likelihood to reach their goals for deeper events.
Once the Malpa team saw that they could reach users who complete upper funnel events and maintain performance at scale, they started carefully moving toward events deeper in the funnel. For example, if one game had a goal of level 50, the Malpa team would start with a shallow event, like level 10.
From there, the Malpa team could move to level 20, testing and confirming that targeting level 20 would result in higher ROAS - and continuing this process all the way up to level 50. This way, the Malpa team could strategically get closer to reaching high-impact in-game events, and reach quality users as a result.
Increasing retention rates
By strategically reaching their level completion milestones and ensuring strong ROAS throughout the process, the Malpa team quickly saw their KPIs improve. With event optimization campaigns, they saw 40% higher retention rates than with ROAS campaigns.
By exploring a new way to optimize their UA strategy and targeting deep funnel events to reach their KPI goals, they exceeded their retention goal.
Continuing our partnership
Utilizing a diverse set of campaign types has enabled advertisers like Malpa to successfully expand their UA strategy and optimize toward in-app events. Today, the Unity Ads team continues to work with the Malpa team to monitor campaigns and choose the most relevant events that maximize their retention rate.
As Aleksandr concludes “We look forward to continuing to work with the Unity team and exploring other ways to maximize our growth.”
