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How GameNexa Studios used Firebase to grow and diversify their monetization strategy

December 17, 2020

Posted by the Firebase team

Firebase GameNexa logos

The COVID-19 pandemic of 2020 brought changes and challenges for many businesses. During this time, we saw developers use resilience and ingenuity to adapt their apps and business models to these new circumstances. For GameNexa Studios, an app developer and consultancy based in India, one of the biggest challenges they faced this year was to figure out how to evolve their monetization strategy in the face of declining ad revenue. The GameNexa team needed a data-driven approach to diversify their revenue stream across their portfolio so they turned to Firebase. Why GameNexa Studios turned to Firebase With 40 apps and games under their belt serving 5 million monthly users, GameNexa Studios had a well-established monetization strategy, but like many of their peers, it was disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Previously, the company earned most of its income from ads in their free-to-download titles. However, when many of their advertisers slashed their budgets, GameNexa’s ad revenue dropped too. To offset their losses, GameNexa needed to pivot from a one-size-fits-all strategy to a diversified revenue model. But diversifying revenue doesn’t mean bombarding users with more offers and in-app promotions - that could drive people away. The most effective monetization strategies are tailored to user preferences and behavior. So, GameNexa first used Google Analytics and Firebase Predictions to better understand their users and then grouped them into segments based on common characteristics like language, and predicted future behavior, like their propensity to make an in-app purchase. How GameNexa Studios used Firebase to grow revenue After gaining insight into their users, GameNexa used Firebase Remote Config and Firebase A/B Testing to test new ad placement, formats, and different in-app promotions on each segment to find which offer resonated with each group. They also worked on improving their user experience with Firebase Crashlytics and Firebase Performance Monitoring. As a result of these efforts, GameNexa saw a 2.5x increase in revenue from in-app purchases and they were able to bring their ad revenue back up to pre-COVID levels by doubling ad impressions. In addition, by creating customized in-app purchase packs for different audiences, GameNexa increased conversions by 6x. Inspired by their own success, GameNexa now plans on sharing what they’ve learned about the power of data-driven monetization and personalization with other developers through their app consultancy. Read their full story and get more details on how they used Firebase to grow and diversify their revenue in our new case study.

Labels: a/b testing , AdMob , app ads , app monetization , app quality , Crash Reporting , crashlytics , Firebase case study , google analytics , mobile ads , Performance Monitoring , predictions , Remote Config , user retention

How Pomelo Games used Firebase to increase revenue without losing players

September 22, 2020

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Patrick Martin
Developer Advocate, Google

One of the biggest challenges game developers face is figuring out how to improve monetization without compromising their game experience. Many game developers embed ads into their titles, which enables them to offer their games for free and remove the cost barrier of adoption for players - while still generating revenue. In-app advertising can be lucrative, when done effectively and in moderation.

But how do you know what types of ads are best-suited for your game? How do you ensure ads won’t drive away players? These are the exact questions Pomelo Games had. For answers, they turned to Firebase.

Why Pomelo Games turned to Firebase

Pomelo Games is one of the top game studios in Uruguay. They pride themselves on developing unique and polished games that capture players’ imaginations. Their recent release, Once Upon a Tower, “is an easy-to-pick-up, hard-to-put-down, free-to-play game,” says co-founder Jonás Mora. A Play Store Editors’ Choice, the game is beloved for its high-fidelity graphics, as well as the “fairness of its free-to-play mechanics,” says Jonás.

So when the team needed to improve the game’s monetization, they were unsure how to proceed. They were looking for a way to increase revenue without sacrificing the affordability and game quality their players loved.

How Pomelo Games used Firebase to grow revenue

Pomelo Games used Firebase Remote Config and Firebase A/B Testing to test a new ad format: interstitials. They also used Google Analytics to monitor revenue and Firebase Crashlytics to keep an eye on stability.

Although initially opposed to the idea, Jonás and his team discovered that showing interstitial ads to their entire player base led to an average 25% increase in AdMob revenue, and surprisingly, a 35% increase in in-app purchases as well. In both cases, there was almost no negative impact on retention or game stability. Firebase gave Pomelo Games the confidence to try new approaches to grow revenue without driving players away. Read Pomelo Games’ full story and get details on their success with Firebase in our new case study. And learn more about how Firebase can help you build and grow your game, and see what other game studios are using Firebase.

Labels: a/b testing , AdMob , app monetization , app quality , Crash Reporting , crashlytics , Firebase case study , game monetization , game revenue , games , google analytics , mobile ads , predictions , Remote Config , user retention

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