What Non-Gaming Apps Learn from Gaming to Scale & Reduce Churn  

With 2.04 million apps on Google Play and 1.92 million on the App Store, the mobile app market is saturated and competitive. How can apps stand out and drive growth? 

The AppsFlyer reports that non-gaming apps increased ad spending on gaming ads by 38%, pushing IAA (in-app advertising) revenue up by 26% YoY.

Why? Because mobile gaming ad formats, like rewarded ads, drive installations and engagement by offering some value in exchange for user actions. 

However, the intense bidding competition within gaming ads makes it harder for non-gaming apps to secure valuable inventory.

This is where adjoe steps in, leveling the playing field by separating gaming and other app category offers, giving access to exclusive ad inventories, and engaging rewarded ads that reduce churn. 

In this article, we’ll explore how rewarded advertising helps non-gaming apps scale and boost retention.

Main Challenges of Non-Gaming Apps

Limited Ad Inventory

As more apps pour into the market, the cost of acquiring new users keeps rising, limiting access to premium audiences. Shopping, finance, fitness, travel, and utility apps are all in the race, competing for the same user attention and the same limited ad inventory.

Staying ahead gets more expensive every year, so app advertisers need better ways to reach users without their acquisition costs exceeding the user’s LTV.   

App Scaling Challenges

Cost per Install (CPI) varies significantly by app category, affecting scaling. As gaming apps can pay higher prices, competing for impressions on the same inventory becomes difficult for apps from other app verticals.      

Factors beyond categories, like geographic regions with higher socioeconomic status and purchasing power, also influence CPI. It makes scaling harder for advertisers across different app verticals, particularly in high-tier markets where user acquisition costs are higher.

This makes bidding on the right inventory, in the right region, for the right price an art that apps need to master.

High User Churn Rate

One of the advantages of gaming apps or dating apps is the ability to quickly engage users with their creation of endless content, new levels, new swipes, etc. Other app categories are missing these elements of constant fresh content that drive user stickiness and daily interactions.           

Apps in categories like AI productivity tools, fitness trackers (after initial enthusiasm fades), or shopping apps (between purchase cycles) can struggle to keep users coming back daily. The lack of interactive engagement loops causes user drop-offs and lower lifetime value (LTV). 

For user acquisition, rewarded ad networks’ campaigns are designed to reward users for continuously engaging with your apps. It can be for ordering an Uber, creating a new bank account, depositing money, transferring money to friends, completing a tutorial on a learning app, etc.       

Beyond Installs: Scaling App Engagement with Rewarded Ads

Rewarded ads offer users rewards in exchange for their time spent or engagement in the app. 

Rewarded video ads fall in this category, but they drive initial app installations and don’t effectively tackle user churn. That’s because the reward is only connected to initial interest or one-event, rather than driving meaningful, deep-funnel engagement with continuous rewards.       

Other formats include offerwalls, which originally rewarded users for completing a single action, but their impact was limited as users often churned after achieving the reward. 

Over time, the rewarding logic evolved from a single-event to a multi-event deep funnel logic, engaging users through progressive stages and incorporating your app into their everyday habits. That evolution was led by the Playtime ad format introduced by adjoe.   

The shift has transformed rewarded ads from a once-risky tactic into a must-have network in your app’s growth strategy,   leading to sustained engagement and user loyalty, along with long-term ROAS for advertisers.

Gaming user acquisition managers (UA) initially sceptical, ended up adopting this model and quickly became one of the top channels for growth, with 82% noting it outperforms their other UA channels. Its performance and significant scale can also work well for non-gaming apps. 

Today, more app verticals are adopting rewarded advertising into their media mix to acquire users who are focused on long-term engagement.        

User flow:

User opens their favourite app → discovers new apps→ sees your app and engages → earns rewards → re-engages to complete more tasks and collect more points.

How do Playtime Rewarded Ads Boost UA Growth? 

Playtime is adjoe’s rewarded advertising format that offers users in-app currency for continuously engaging with the advertiser’s app.

The rewards start rolling in with the first achievable tasks or minutes of engagement. Why? Because it reduces initial churn rates and motivates the user to engage with newly installed app longer and get “hooked” with the app’s purpose. 

Playtime user flow starts only when the user agrees to interact with it. It allows voluntary participation and high user motivation to test your app and continuously engage with it as they earn rewards.    

Exclusive Ad Inventory

Scaling is important, but reaching the right users is what truly matters. You don’t want your user acquisition efforts to just level up the number of installs; you want them to attract users who are truly invested.    

With adjoe Playtime, advertisers get access to exclusive, high-quality inventory across top global apps, with main verticals being loyalty, finance, and reward apps. With 200M+ DAUs across Tier 1 and Tier 2 global markets and an average conversion rate of 80 Installs per Mill (IPM), you not only reach a lot of users but also the right users for your specific app.

Our key tier 1 markets: United States, United Kingdom, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Japan, Korea, and Canada

Playtime also lets you participate in unique seasonal promotions for special moments like New Year’s or Black Friday, when users receive more rewards and publishers are ramping up their investments in scaling their inventories. 

As a result, advertisers can see up to 10 times more installs per day with increased retention rates. See an example of the most recent promotion with Fetch during the Super Bowl, where Playtime drove 80,000 mobile game installs to our advertisers in the first minute and 500,000 in the first hour.

Reduce Churn with Enhanced User Experience 

Playtime offers a high-quality, native user experience, making ads feel personalized and non-disruptive. With contextually relevant ads, Playtime creates a better UX while expanding the user base.

Multi-event rewards, such as milestones or levels, tap into later stages of the user journey, keeping users active and reducing churn through ongoing motivation.  

What can you Reward Users for?

Playtime boosts growth for app categories like finance, e-commerce, education, fitness, entertainment, and loyalty, connecting you with engaged users.

We work with you to identify key milestones that drive lasting user growth, helping advertisers meet ROI goals and diversify UA efforts.

Why Playtime Works for Non-Gaming Apps UA?

Rewarded advertising is a top-ranked user acquisition channel, previously common with gaming apps and now expanding to all app categories. This model provides a win-win: users gain benefits, and apps acquire engaged users who are more likely to be invested.

Recap on Playtime Rewarded ads advantages 

• Exclusive inventory outside gaming gives access to high-intent users outside gaming.    

• High ROAS and reduced churn with deep funnel rewarding logic.

• Lower competition and higher scale credit for dedicated non-gaming ad placement.

Curious how this works for your non-gaming app? Contact adjoe’s dedicated team and build an optimised rewarded ads strategy today.

Let experts help find the right targeting options and inventory for your app.