Harry Potter: Magic Awakened
Players explore Hogwarts.
Harry Potter: Magic Awakened
delivers ROAS.
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An Apple Search Ads strategy with multiple placements across the App Store increased both brand awareness and high-quality acquisition while driving return on ad spend that was 571% higher compared with other ad platforms we used.
Capture early interest with a pre-order strategy.
In the 30 days leading up to the game’s release, the NetEase Games team invested in a pre-order campaign with Apple Search Ads to increase discovery and visibility on the App Store. When a customer downloads a pre-order app, it’s automatically installed on their device once the app becomes available. The team captured strong intent and drove awareness during the pre-order phase of their strategy, with search results campaigns focused on keyword expansion and their brand terms.
To further increase impressions and drive downloads, the NetEase Games team also ran ads on the Search tab2 and Today tab. “During pre-order, Today tab ad campaigns drove high impression volume and strong conversion rates,” says NetEase Games Global User Acquisition Director Qiao Xiang. “In fact, this multiple placement approach during pre-order helped drive 30 percent of new player downloads before the app even launched officially on the App Store,” says Xiang.
Boost brand exposure with ads on the Today tab and Search tab.
After the pre-order phase, the team at NetEase Games continued their strategy of complementing search results campaigns with multiple ad placements across the App Store. Featured at the top of the suggested apps list, ads on the Search tab influenced intent before people narrowed in on a search. “With Search tab ads, we increased brand exposure with core audiences and scaled high-quality acquisition at a low cost per tap,” says Xiang.
During the launch and postlaunch phases, Today tab ads offered a prominent placement on the front page of the App Store, reaching millions of people at the beginning of their app discovery journey. Within a month of running the Today tab ads, the NetEase Games team saw a 40 percent increase in brand-related search volume; the tap-through rate on search results campaigns also increased by 243 percent. “At every phase of our launch campaign, ads on the Today tab were a valuable branding opportunity and a powerful way to drive exposure and conversion,” says Xiang.
Optimize performance with insights.
To ensure the ongoing efficiency of their multiple placement strategy at every phase, the team at NetEase Games closely monitored campaign performance. They relied on impression share reports and cost-per-tap performance to inform bidding. To ensure consistent brand coverage and protection, they adjusted bids on both their brand terms and Search tab ads, especially when they launched in-app events. Apple Search Ads also provided insights on local search trends that helped the team better understand key markets and adjust strategies across platforms to improve overall advertising return on ad spend.
Team members found Apple Search Ads Certification helpful in improving campaign performance. “Certification helped us have a more comprehensive and systematic understanding of best practices and advanced optimization,” says Xiang. “We can better analyze and optimize existing campaigns to improve our cost efficiency and overall success. Certification is also an easy and effective way to train new members of our team who start managing Apple Search Ads.”
Company Snapshot
- NetEase Games
- Games category
- Launched in 2001
- Based in Guangzhou, China
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