In a previous article, we’ve talked about how we don’t believe in bullying your users into clicking your ads. We know from experience that a developer always has much better chance of making money by using honest ad tactics.
That being said, using honest tactics doesn’t mean there’s no strategy needed. There is a very delicate balance between respecting user experience, and having the ads serve their main - and perhaps single - purpose, which is to drive you revenues. So how should we do this?
Keep in mind that when you’re on a CPI (cost-per-install) model like on AdBuddiz, revenues are generated only when the ads convert into installs. Therefore, you need to place your ads at moments when the users are most open to discover the apps advertised. For games, it’s important to pay attention to the emotional state of the player. We recommend placing interstitials in between levels or stages. That way, the player connects fully, with no distraction during the game play. After each level, when he feels accomplished and his mind relaxes a bit, he is more open to diversion. That’s when an ad will get the highest chance of being clicked on.
For other types of apps, we’d recommend putting ads where there is a natural break, like in between pages, after finishing an activity, while an app is loading or just before a user closes the app.
Be mindful also of where you place your first ad. From our experience, we know that 75% (or more) of the advertisers app installs are made by the first 3 ads shown. Our algorithm also ensures that the ads that are shown first are the ads with the closest match to your app, so that the chances of generating an install are highest.
We advise against showing an ad at the very first launch of an app, as it may cause annoyance and frustrate users, putting them off from using or discovering your app right from the get go. A general rule of thumb is to determine how long your average session time is. Placing ads from midway towards the end of the session is more likely to lead to user action (installs); that way they would have had enough time to enjoy your app, and be more receptive to ad contents and downloading other apps.
It’s important to always keep in mind, more impressions doesn’t always lead to more installs (or revenue). Overwhelming the user with constant ads can be plain annoying, and result in lower app satisfaction and usage. As they say, when in doubt, K.I.S.S. - Keep It Simple and Short ;-).