VLTK 1 Mobile app icon

Võ Lâm Truyền Kỳ 1 Mobile

Gamers discover relaunched classic.
VLTK1M boosts reach and revenue.

VLTK 1 Mobile ad on the App Store

One of the biggest gaming titles in Vietnam, Võ Lâm Truyền Kỳ 1 Mobile (VLTK1M), transports gamers to a world of legendary characters, classic swordplay, and epic martial arts battles. The app’s developer and publisher, VNG Corporation, extended reach to new audiences with Apple Search Ads, increasing installs and revenue while improving efficiency.

The Results

109% increase in revenue MoM during the launch period.
12x day 14 return on ad spend during launch period.
20% of downloads driven by Search tab ad placements.

The Challenge

Despite enjoying decades of strong brand awareness as a pioneering PC game, VLTK1M needed to appeal to a new generation of Vietnamese players for the game’s mobile version. Faced with aggressive performance goals, the team wanted to expand app visibility beyond their traditionally male, hard-core player audience. To stay competitive, it was critical to reach younger, more mid-core to casual gamers as well as female players showing interest in similar gameplay on the App Store.

Apple Search Ads is one of our top acquisition channels, attracting players with high intent and delivering positive return on ad spend as well as competitive cost per install.

Phan Viet Nga

Marketing Manager, Game Studio 1 at VNG Corporation

The Solution

Drive awareness and invest in brand protection.

The Game Studio 1 team at VNG Corporation leveraged Apple Search Ads to promote the pre-order of VLTK1M, driving awareness and discovery leading up to the game’s release across Vietnam. As a pre-order app, VLTK1M is automatically installed on the customer’s device once it becomes available. By investing in an Apple Search Ads brand campaign, the team also captured fans searching for keywords related to the game title and the parent company, optimizing costs and ensuring protection of their brand terms.

 

In addition, discovery campaigns with Search Match helped the team find new relevant keywords. With category campaigns, they maximized impressions with role-playing game (RPG) players searching for trending keywords and competitors. The team also increased bids on high-performing keywords and moved these search terms into exact match. “Apple Search Ads helped our brand be present where player intent is the highest,” says Phan Viet Nga, Marketing Manager, Game Studio 1 at VNG Corporation. “We are able to drive as many impressions as possible during the key launch period, driving as much as 30 percent of total iOS installs.

Increase reach and visibility with ads on the Search tab.

With placements on the Search tab, the Game Studio 1 team was able to boost brand awareness with a broader audience and drive downloads of VLTK1M. These ads are featured at the top of the suggested apps list and helped expand exposure as well as influence customers before they narrowed in on a search. In fact, these ads drove up to 20 percent of all Apple Search Ads installs for VLTK1M when the game launched major updates and events in July 2021 and January 2022.

 

“Search tab ads drove incremental installs, and the cost was extremely competitive compared to other display channels,” says Nga. “It is an important complement to search results campaigns and absolutely key to our integrated marketing strategy when we have big launches or updates.” To maximize impressions with as many potential players, the team included all users in their Apple Search Ads campaigns.

Company Snapshot

  • VNG Corporation
  • Games category
  • Launched in 2004
  • Based in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
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