Database Users

[Q] App promotion via AdMob (bad conversion)

Hi guys...
I don't know where else to ask, so I thought maybe some of you guys could help me out.
A while ago I made a free2play online game, and published it on Play Market. After my game was gone frome the Top New Free chart, the downloads has dropped significantly, so I decided to advertise my app via AdMob.
After the game has been promoted to 40K users, I've had... 15 new downloads in total. I'm sure Google would not cheat, as there were lots of others that have promoted their apps this way. Also, the referral link I've been using is working fine as I checked it myself. But I decided to double-check and purchased 5000 banner-clicks from the guys that has an Android app with lots of users. And I've had 3 downloads out of that.
So I was wondering... Is it possible that due to some software, or locale, or hardware, or any other issues, something could prevent people from downloading my game over the refferal link? What could be those issues? Or is this a real conversion rate? If you had used AdMob, what conversion rate did you have?
Any suggestions are much appreciated.

I had a similarly bad experience on admob as well. I wouldn't advise promoting your app there unless you've got extra money to spare.
Also, I've realized that the type of ad you put on there will have an impact. If you choose their standard ad, you will get the benefit of double tap verification and avoid accidental clicks. If you put a custom ad, you will lose that safety feature because a single click will open up the referral link.

Try pay-per-install services
I have the same situation in Admob. My best experience was with AppBrain. You pay for installs not for clicks.

I got the same problem too but eventually solve it by switching from CPM to CPI. However, the incident made me wonder: "should I always depend on Admob?".
So I decide to combine several Ad networks. It works. And I realize something about Admob:
Pros: It is reliable and has huge users database. Admob is backed by Google - a prestigious corporation who tracks every steps of anyone who use its service.
Cons:
- Its eCPM is low (I don't know exactly why but everytime I try another Ad network, they outperform Admob in terms of eCPM. I guess that Admob know it has advantages over competitors when it comes to reputation and users database, so It charge advertisers and publishers more)
- Its ban users more frequently. (Some of my friends' accounts got banned because Google thinks they was cheating, while infact he didn't. It was very difficult for him to reach Google support to recover his accounts).
after combining Admob and with Airpush, Leadbolt, StartApp, ChartBoost, I end up with Adsota - a lesser known ad network. Adsota is an has much higher eCPM, 100% fill-rate, and swift payment, various advertisng forms. You can find it by googling "ads.appota".
Best of luck, mate!

My Journey to a Top app - Boulder Bash

Hey guys I thought I'd make a post of my journey to making my app popular. I am new to android development and have been researching endlessly for more tips and tricks. So, I thought I'd document my journey and the steps I am taking to create a popular game. From my marketing strategies to my statistics. This way others can see what works and what doesn't.​
Basic Info:
App Name: Boulder Bash
App Category: Arcade / Action
App Link: play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.SyntheticStudios.BoulderBash
App Description:
Boulder Bash is a fun action packed game. Boulder Bash is an easy to play game with exciting game play, smash your way to victory by crushing all the boulders that fall. Rack up gold from destroying boulders and purchase upgrades, miners, and cool Visual Effects!! And what exactly is the point? Well, to get filthy stinking rich... why else would you play a game? Rack up as much gold as you possibly can and show off to your friends, or hit a new personal goal. Heck, how much gold can you get?
Feel free to check out the game, rate it, download it. Heck any feedback would be great. I'm still creating new content so just tell me what you think the game needs.
Journey So far:
Day 1: I released the game and throughout the day have been making small changes and bug fixes that I find.
For my marketing strategy I was a little noobish and didn't market before my release. My first goal was to buy some initial advertising
in order to increase my downloads and get the ball rolling. Through my ad campaign I spent 5$ for the first day, keep in mind my budget is insanely low. At the end of the day the statistics from the ad campaign showed around 43 installs.
Stats: Total Downloads so far : 43, Documented Downloads (Google Dev. Console): 0, Ratings: 3 - 5 stars [Not ranked]
Day 2: The google developer console is still behind and still shows 3 5 star reviews but 0 downloads. I need to get much more advertising going on. I spent about 10$ and supposedly got around 100 downloads worldwide. I also decided to start trying to get press for my game. I went to 25 sites that review android apps and games and submitted my app for a free review. So far no responses. At the end of the day I can see 0 downloads in the dev console, but 5 - 5 star reviews.
Stats:Total Downloads so far : 143, Documented Downloads (Google Dev. Console): 0, Ratings: 5 - 5 stars [Not ranked]
Day 3: The google developer console finally updated, it shows my installs at 35/130 which means my advertising is pretty shabby. I have gotten 130 documented downloads and 35 current installs. My reviews are at 11 5- star ratings, which is great! I continued my ad campaign and spent another 10$ which net me around 80 installs worldwide. I stumbled upon some cool android forums and decided to post my game on some of them to help gain exposure. So far my goal to reach top new free has not been reached. I am still trying to gain enough exposure to gain organic downloads.
Stats:Total Downloads so far : 223, Documented Downloads (Google Dev. Console): 35/130, Ratings: 11 - 5 stars [Not ranked]

oh man, dont spend much money like this to advertise your app!

As per the app marketing tips and techniques concern I would like to say that you just visit our website from my profile page, I sure you will get the best resources for app marketing.

I wish you luck - we launched a month ago
Hello SyntheticStudios,
We recently just did the same journey as you hoping to reach that elusive "Top New Free" monicker, to no avail... We actually were spending $40 a day on advertising between myself and my partner, which led us to about 120ish downloads a day (brutal)... We still don't have a magic formula but was able to secure a review from http://www.playandroid.com/... Which they will do for free just given you add their review link to your storefront on google play. Hitting the forums and paying it forward is also a good way to get some exposure, I just always use the signature below. Well it has been a little over a month now for us and we are at 4000 downloads, which is too bad because we have a fairly decent little game.
In the end we didn't achieve the top new free, but that is okay, just damn fun building games! I do wish you luck and I'll definitely check out your game and give you a review! =)

Do you know how much it will cost to reach the top new free?

Your game download is not bad. I spent $200 before on appbrain about max $35 per day. Total installed after campaign ended around 300+ new install only because I target more on US market. For me, I think it is not bad at all for new app because I saw the ranking for keywords jump from 400 to current 82. Ranking in some countries also better.
In the end, my app didn't get into Top Free section for the category. I am still wondering how to get into this section.

stormzm said:
Do you know how much it will cost to reach the top new free?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
My experience is that to be in the top free in the Spanish market has to have around 2000 downloads/day for seven straight days, really hard...

Please help me !

hi guys
i'm new in android development and currently working on my first app
i have too many questions, i googled it but no clear answers and i still puzzled
should i have a specific kind of bank account to receive the money from an add network via wire transfer ? BTW i live in egypt
what is the CPC, CTR eCPM, CPM.....? i saw a lot of abbreviations like those and cant understand
how users can see your app when it just published ? or how user can see the most new published apps ?
any help with ( answers, sharing knowledge, sharing references ...) would be greatly appreciated by me and by every noob like me seeking for answers

zezooo16 said:
hi guys
i'm new in android development and currently working on my first app
i have too many questions, i googled it but no clear answers and i still puzzled
should i have a specific kind of bank account to receive the money from an add network via wire transfer ? BTW i live in egypt
what is the CPC, CTR eCPM, CPM.....? i saw a lot of abbreviations like those and cant understand
how users can see your app when it just published ? or how user can see the most new published apps ?
any help with ( answers, sharing knowledge, sharing references ...) would be greatly appreciated by me and by every noob like me seeking for answers
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hello!
Hope this info helps:
Question 1. While you don't need to use a specific bank, you should check with your bank to make sure that they accept international wire transfers. Sometimes this a problem with local bank branches.
Question 2. CPA/CPI: “cost per acquisition/install”; CPC: “cost per click”; CPM: “cost per mille (thousand)”
Each of the above is a tool for measuring the worth of a particular ad campaign. CPA/CPI measures the campaign based on the amount of users who signed up for a service or downloaded an app after seeing an ad. CPC measures the campaign based on the number of users who click on an ad. CPM measures the campaign based on a thousand users who saw an ad.
Most ad networks run on a combination of the above measurement tools, and each is also an effective way of pricing an ad campaign.
CTR is the common abbreviation for “click-through rate”, and it refers to the number of users who click on a link of advertisement. High CTR is always an important goal for advertisers and developers.
For advertisers, high CTR reflects an effective ad campaign that captured user attention. For developers, high CTR is an important factor in earning high revenue and contributes to high eCPM.
eCPM means “effective cost per mille”, and it is used as a tool by app developers when comparing ad-based monetization strategies on the various ad networks. Ad networks with high eCPM (although eCPM does vary from day to day) are usually more successful and earn developers more revenue from ads.
Calculating eCPM is simple:
total earnings/impressions * 1000
(total earnings divided by impressions, multiplied by 1000)​
You can also think about it like this:
CTR*Conversion Rate*Revenue per Conversion*1000
(CTR multiplied by Conversion Rate multiplied by Revenue per Conversion multiplied by 1000)​
If you are still unsure about how eCPM is used, check out this example:
Imagine that you are running two ad types in your app called “Interstitial 1” and “Interstitial 2”.
After a week or so of running the ads, you decide that it is time to evaluate the effectiveness of each ad. After reviewing the data, you see that “Interstitial 1” generated 345 impressions and $1.00 in earnings. “Interstitial 2” generated 740 impressions with $0.60 in earnings.
Based on these numbers alone, it can be difficult to determine which ad type was the most effective. This is where eCPM comes in.
After evaluating the first eCPM formula for each ad type, “Interstitial 1” has an eCPM of $2.89 and “Interstitial 2” has an eCPM of $0.81. “Interstitial 1” wins!​
Question 3. Most app stores have a "New Releases" section or chart. Newly released apps will usually appear on there for a few hours to a full day, depending on the amount of apps released in your category.
If you have any more questions, feel free to PM me and I'll answer them the best I can
Good luck!
Best,
Cassidy Smith
Social Networks Manager at StartApp

You are the best Lady
CassidyStartApp said:
Hello!
Hope this info helps:
Question 1. While you don't need to use a specific bank, you should check with your bank to make sure that they accept international wire transfers. Sometimes this a problem with local bank branches.
Question 2. CPA/CPI: “cost per acquisition/install”; CPC: “cost per click”; CPM: “cost per mille (thousand)”
Each of the above is a tool for measuring the worth of a particular ad campaign. CPA/CPI measures the campaign based on the amount of users who signed up for a service or downloaded an app after seeing an ad. CPC measures the campaign based on the number of users who click on an ad. CPM measures the campaign based on a thousand users who saw an ad.
Most ad networks run on a combination of the above measurement tools, and each is also an effective way of pricing an ad campaign.
CTR is the common abbreviation for “click-through rate”, and it refers to the number of users who click on a link of advertisement. High CTR is always an important goal for advertisers and developers.
For advertisers, high CTR reflects an effective ad campaign that captured user attention. For developers, high CTR is an important factor in earning high revenue and contributes to high eCPM.
eCPM means “effective cost per mille”, and it is used as a tool by app developers when comparing ad-based monetization strategies on the various ad networks. Ad networks with high eCPM (although eCPM does vary from day to day) are usually more successful and earn developers more revenue from ads.
Calculating eCPM is simple:
total earnings/impressions * 1000
(total earnings divided by impressions, multiplied by 1000)​
You can also think about it like this:
CTR*Conversion Rate*Revenue per Conversion*1000
(CTR multiplied by Conversion Rate multiplied by Revenue per Conversion multiplied by 1000)​
If you are still unsure about how eCPM is used, check out this example:
Imagine that you are running two ad types in your app called “Interstitial 1” and “Interstitial 2”.
After a week or so of running the ads, you decide that it is time to evaluate the effectiveness of each ad. After reviewing the data, you see that “Interstitial 1” generated 345 impressions and $1.00 in earnings. “Interstitial 2” generated 740 impressions with $0.60 in earnings.
Based on these numbers alone, it can be difficult to determine which ad type was the most effective. This is where eCPM comes in.
After evaluating the first eCPM formula for each ad type, “Interstitial 1” has an eCPM of $2.89 and “Interstitial 2” has an eCPM of $0.81. “Interstitial 1” wins!​
Question 3. Most app stores have a "New Releases" section or chart. Newly released apps will usually appear on there for a few hours to a full day, depending on the amount of apps released in your category.
If you have any more questions, feel free to PM me and I'll answer them the best I can
Good luck!
Best,
Cassidy Smith
Social Networks Manager at StartApp
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Really you are the best
Thank you very very veryyyyyy much about your excellent informative answer, i really appreciate your answer.
In fact, i have some more Questions
Can i monetize my app by putting an add in each activity from the same add netowrk? and if yes, all impressions for all adds in all activities will have the same (CTR , CPM..... etc) calculations ? or each add in each activity will have its own? and if no, can i make this idea by using different add network apps?
Sorry about my noob questions really this field is very confusing and sorry about my bad English.
Thank you again for your help

zezooo16 said:
Really you are the best
Thank you very very veryyyyyy much about your excellent informative answer, i really appreciate your answer.
In fact, i have some more Questions
Can i monetize my app by putting an add in each activity from the same add netowrk? and if yes, all impressions for all adds in all activities will have the same (CTR , CPM..... etc) calculations ? or each add in each activity will have its own? and if no, can i make this idea by using different add network apps?
Sorry about my noob questions really this field is very confusing and sorry about my bad English.
Thank you again for your help
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hello,
No need for apologies; I'm happy to help
Yes, you can use multiple ads from the same network throughout your app. Or, if you'd like to try out multiple ad networks (many devs do!), you can use ads from different networks however you would like throughout your app. It's really up to you, and most networks are pretty flexible about letting developers control where the ads show up!
In most cases, a different ad will be displayed every time an adEvent is triggered. Since it is a different/new advertisement, the revenue calculations will be a bit different depending on the agreement that your ad network has with the advertiser (some run CPC campaigns, others run CPI campaigns, etc...)
Also, unless you are using only banner ads, I don't recommend placing an ad in every activity because the user may find it annoying and it could disrupt their experience. This is just a suggestion though You can also test out different ad placements to see which ones your users respond to the most.
If you have more questions, let me know!
Good luck!
Regards,
Cassidy
Social Networks Manager at StartApp

the best answer
CassidyStartApp said:
Hello,
No need for apologies; I'm happy to help
Yes, you can use multiple ads from the same network throughout your app. Or, if you'd like to try out multiple ad networks (many devs do!), you can use ads from different networks however you would like throughout your app. It's really up to you, and most networks are pretty flexible about letting developers control where the ads show up!
In most cases, a different ad will be displayed every time an adEvent is triggered. Since it is a different/new advertisement, the revenue calculations will be a bit different depending on the agreement that your ad network has with the advertiser (some run CPC campaigns, others run CPI campaigns, etc...)
Also, unless you are using only banner ads, I don't recommend placing an ad in every activity because the user may find it annoying and it could disrupt their experience. This is just a suggestion though You can also test out different ad placements to see which ones your users respond to the most.
If you have more questions, let me know!
Good luck!
Regards,
Cassidy
Social Networks Manager at StartApp
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sorry i was too busy in the previous few days because i'm developing my first app
CassidyStartApp said:
No need for apologies; I'm happy to help
Yes, you can use multiple ads from the same network throughout your app. Or, if you'd like to try out multiple ad networks (many devs do!), you can use ads from different networks however you would like throughout your app. It's really up to you, and most networks are pretty flexible about letting developers control where the ads show up!
In most cases, a different ad will be displayed every time an adEvent is triggered. Since it is a different/new advertisement, the revenue calculations will be a bit different depending on the agreement that your ad network has with the advertiser (some run CPC campaigns, others run CPI campaigns, etc...)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I really really really would like to thank you very very much for your informative answer, lady
CassidyStartApp said:
Also, unless you are using only banner ads, I don't recommend placing an ad in every activity because the user may find it annoying and it could disrupt their experience. This is just a suggestion though You can also test out different ad placements to see which ones your users respond to the most.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, i agree with you. i won't bother my first few users with annoying adds (which are too many or/and overlap UI elements....etc) i will take your advice, Thank you
You are one of the best i ever met. i can't ever forget someone helped me while taking my first steps

App Monetization

Hi,
I would like to Introduce Ogury Ltd, a relevance based ad network dedicated to monetizing android apps in the utmost appealing way to your users and yourself.
Our founders have 6 years in the advertising business and during this time revealed there was a flaw in the mobile advertising market; the ads displayed are not relevant enough to the individual user, which has led to a lower click through rate and a lower CPM. This being noticed, they created Ogury.
Our solution shows only very high quality and global ad campaigns, which are relevant to your user regardless of where they are located in order to ensure they stay satisfied. We offer a guaranteed CPM of $15, the highest in the market. The reason we can afford to pay you such a high CPM is because our click through rate is very healthy. We work along side other ad networks as a top up service to maximize your revenue!
Integration of our SDK only takes 20 minutes and can be done very easily, not to mention we have an incredible tech team prepared if you have any questions. The Interstitials we show are full page and have two opt out options so your active users will not be aggravated.
We look forward to hearing from you

Ogury said:
Hi,
I would like to Introduce Ogury Ltd, a relevance based ad network dedicated to monetizing android apps in the utmost appealing way to your users and yourself.
Our founders have 6 years in the advertising business and during this time revealed there was a flaw in the mobile advertising market; the ads displayed are not relevant enough to the individual user, which has led to a lower click through rate and a lower CPM. This being noticed, they created Ogury.
Our solution shows only very high quality and global ad campaigns, which are relevant to your user regardless of where they are located in order to ensure they stay satisfied. We offer a guaranteed CPM of $15, the highest in the market. The reason we can afford to pay you such a high CPM is because our click through rate is very healthy. We work along side other ad networks as a top up service to maximize your revenue!
Integration of our SDK only takes 20 minutes and can be done very easily, not to mention we have an incredible tech team prepared if you have any questions. The Interstitials we show are full page and have two opt out options so your active users will not be aggravated.
We look forward to hearing from you
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Do you have any examples of advertisers that you guys consistently work with? With so many options for networks out there, there need to be more data points on average eCPMs by genre/geo and fill rates as integrating a new SDK is time consuming..

What is your payment policies? I am using Adsota - they pay me every 30 days no matter how much I earn.

Hey guys!
Saw that thread about your network http://forum.xda-developers.com/monetization/mobile-ad-networks/one-month-ogury-ecpm-25-t2882858 There were some weird things, but still have some questions: 1) How do you guarantee $15 CPM (how do you provide "healthy CTR" and what does it mean) 2) How does you payout system works, do you charge any fees and how does Ogury earn? 3) Do you support video ads?

$15 guaranteed CPMs sound pretty amazing.. can you elaborate a little more on how that works?

Ogury are real monetisation experts

Hi,
I would like to give you a quick advice by mentioning Ogury, a mobile monetization company. I started having their solution in my apps three months ago.
I was contacted by one of their Publishing Managers with who I decided to have a Skype call in order to have an idea of their services. Thanks to this I discovered that Ogury is offering the highest CPM on the market by having an innovative way to show ads, paying attention to what the single user likes.
What I really appreciate of their approach is their constant feedback. I am not that kind of person who likes to waste his time on trying to reach people in order to have explanations. I then found what I was looking for: Ogury team is professional and gives fast responses.

Specific eCPM and Payment policies?
Can you tell me more about your eCPM? and What is your payment policies? I am using Adsota - they pay me every 30 days no matter how much I earn - which is important to me.