1.
THE MONETIZATION
PLAYBOOKFor Mobile Games

2.
By definition, a playbook is a set of strategically chosen actions and
best practices that lays out clear objectives in order to achieve a
goal. In game development, a playbook can be employed to achieve
various goals—one of the most sought out being driving monetization.
However, since no mobile game is the same, how do you develop your
personalized playbook?
To start, you need a sophisticated and flexible analytics platform that
has the capability to understand your players at the user-level as well
as the distinctiveness of your game, and be able to take action. As
players are becoming increasingly sophisticated and expectations are
evolving, you need to be able to deliver the right offer, to the right
player, at the right time. Upsight’s Mobile Monetization Playbook will
reveal the tools necessary to achieve this, as well as how to make your
players happy, and ultimately, increase monetization.
WHAT IS A PLAYBOOK?
What is a Playbook? | 2

3.
WHEN TO
THINK ABOUT
MONETIZATION
The answer is, at every single stage! These strategies
can be employed at every stage of development. Right
from the start there is plenty to think about in terms of
monetization, but if you’re already live it’s still not too
late. There is plenty to do with a live product.
Thinking about how your game is going to monetize is
beneficial at every step of the development process, and
how developers think about monetization is unique at
each step including these four:
1. Pre-Production
2. Production
3. First 48 Hours
4. Live-Optimization
When to Think About Monetization | 3

4.
WHEN TO
THINK ABOUT
MONETIZATION
When to Think About Monetization | 4
In pre-production, the game is still malleable and the sky’s the limit. All the more reason to begin thinking about
how your game will monetize. You may not know every item or price point at this stage of the game, but thinking
about monetization now can help you build a strong foundation and help you in answering how your game will
monetize early on.
From a game loop perspective, it’s important to think about how player progress will affect what players will
want to purchase. Does offering an item later in the game make sense if players could use it sooner? What will
players want to invest in each time they play the game? Knowing this, you can begin to ask yourself how you
imagine segmenting your players based on their investment strategies, and ultimately how you will get players
to understand the benefits of your offers.
From an inventory perspective, it’s important to know how much you really have to offer. A simple exercise is
to imagine what a user would do if given a large amount of premium currency for free. What would they spend
it on? How much fun would it bring to the experience? If given the same amount again, would a player be able
to spend it effectively? Understanding the limits of your economy around what players can purchase, and how
often a purchase can meaningfully impact the fun factor of your game is crucial to understanding what is worth
offering down the road and ultimately how your game will monetize.
1. Monetization During Pre-Production
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5.
2. Monetization During Production
When to Think About Monetization | 5
• Make sure the shop provides enough details about purchases
• Celebrate user purchases with a thank you screen
Everyone is in full swing making the game. Now is a good time to:
Ask yourself;
How long are your game sessions? Where are the lulls in the action where ads make sense?
What screens are players browsing when they’re in a state of shopping?
WHEN TO
THINK ABOUT
MONETIZATION
Ensure that the shopping experience is not left until the very end
Stay on top of integrations of ad networks and dynamic offer systems
Implement the right data points to track and qualify users
Develop outstanding and creative offers and ads
Determine the best places for ad and offer placements that don’t
interrupt the flow of the game

6.
WHEN TO
THINK ABOUT
MONETIZATION
When to Think About Monetization | 6
The game is live and users are pouring in. There’s a lot to do within the first 48 hours.
3. Monetization in the First 48 Hours
Review critical early metrics such as the first time user experience (FTUE)
funnel and the initial offer/ starter bundle conversion
Check with regularity your user-level data reporting and ensure you’re capturing relevant KPIs
Listen to early player feedback and respond appropriately

7.
WHEN TO
THINK ABOUT
MONETIZATION
When to Think About Monetization | 7
4. Monetization During Live-Optimization
With the lifecycle of mobile games, it is now just as important to focus on post-development activities as it is on
the game development itself.
Games require critical analysis of its player base to understand how and why players are spending. Reviewing
how each of your player segments are performing can lead to improving offers and an overall increase in
monetization.
Optimizations can continuously be made to the content of offers as well as the creatives that are used. Ads also
benefit from optimizing both their placement and performance. Ensuring the best paying IAP offers and ads
are in the most beneficial places is one of the best ways of improving monetization.

8.
Players are savvy shoppers, and as free-to-play matures, so do the
strategies you use to close a sale. Free-to-play sales may happen
virtually, but the rules for closing players on a sale haven’t changed.
In order for players to make a purchase, they must love and trust
your product. Without a sales person to build a rapport, it can be
difficult for players to make a decision to purchase.
It is up to your game, and ultimately the strategies you’ve employed,
to persuade players by helping them understand which of your
products are a right fit for their needs, and ultimately giving them a
clear picture of how your product will improve their gaming experience.
Simply put, these strategies help you sell your product better.
WHY DO I NEED IT?
Why Do I Need It? | 8
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9.
A WORD (OR TWO)
ON ANALYTICS
SOLUTIONS
Since every game is unique, the metrics you track
should be too. Although many analytics providers
supply a standard set of core metrics, it’s critical you
have full flexibility in creating personalized metrics. You
need access to your raw player data in order to create
visualizations that are uniquely tailored to your game.
You should look for three things in an analytics provider:
1. Flexibility
2. Scalability
3. Actionability
A Word (or two) on Analytics Solutions | 9

10.
1. Flexibility
2. Scalability
3. Actionability
A Word (or two) on Analytics Solutions | 10
Flexibility comes in a few different flavors: flexible ingestion, flexible analysis and flexible
visualizations.
• Flexible ingestion is the ability to take in many types of data while still being able to
process it efficiently and properly handle your use cases. This helps ensure downstream
processing is efficient and still fits your business needs.
• Flexible analysis means that you have access to the right type of data for your required
task. For example, if you are a Data Scientist investigating a hypothesis about your soft-
launched game, you might want access to event level data to make a decision. Compare
that to a Monetization Manager who needs to run a campaign on a targeted segment
of their user base, they might need access to user-level aggregate statistics like lifetime
revenue. Both these use cases are very different from an analyst who needs to make
custom reports for internal stakeholders by playing with aggregated metrics broken
down by important dimensions.
• The metrics you track should be as unique as the game you developed. Although
there are loads of basic analytics packages on the market, it’s critical you have flexible
visualizations for creating reports that are personalized to your needs.
Scalability is critical to a successful analytics platform. It’s important to track as much
pertinent information on your users as possible. Your need for a scalable system will grow
with the success of your games.
Actionability means that you can easily leverage your data to affect your users through a
marketing campaign, an alteration to the user’s experience or a targeted ad. Being able to
generate aggregate dimensions on each user is key to extracting value from the data you
are collecting.
A WORD (OR TWO)
ON ANALYTICS
SOLUTIONS

11.
THE ERA OF
PERSONALIZATION
The Era of Personalization | 11
A vast majority of free-to-play games have shops, but
rarely are they treated like a store. It is important to
remember that every player who enters your shop is
unique - a fact that brick and mortar stores know very
well. Not every customer who visits is in the market
for evertyhing you’re offering. And those that aren’t
necessarily interested in your top end price points is
totally fine, there should be something for everyone in
your store.
Virtual shops lack one key ingredient - the sales person.
It is a salesperson’s job to connect personally with
customers, which allows them to qualify them and direct
them to a product that fits their needs and budget. Even
more importantly, they help customers by allowing
them to imagine what life would be like if they were to
purchase the product, which is a crucial aspect to making
the sale.
Right now, it is the player who is their own salesman.
Players are doing their own research on items,
understanding what they do, comparing prices, and
sifting through all the options. Unfortunately there are
many players who won’t go through the trouble of selling
themselves on your product, and they shouldn’t have to.
We can fix the problem by becoming better sales
people, optimizing the store experience and letting
our players just be customers.
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CLICK TO LEARN MORE
“Mobile Marketing Automation”

12.
Large Scale Segmentation | 12
LARGE SCALE
SEGMENTATION
Everyone has heard of minnows, dolphins, whales, and of course, the non-payers. Casinos
have become wildly profitable by serving their customer segments based on spending
behvaior. These same segments in mobile games have helped developers understand and
build profiles on their players, but not every player is the same.
To truly target users with relevant and effective personalized offers, you must be able to
analyze behavior at the user-level and segment users even further. For example, not every
whale exhibits the same player behavior. Breaking whales into further segments allows
you to put the right offer in their hands at the right time, during game play. Ultimately, this
leads to deeper engagement and higher spending.
Whales
Inactive for
3 weeks
Re-engagement
Bonus Offer
Just died to the
Fire Dragon
One-time
special offer on
Fire Resist gear
Trouble beating
the Undead
Dungeon
Offer Sword of
the Paladin at
25% off
Has spent >$20 on
items to customize the
look of their gear
Offer Halloween
themed costume
items at no discount
Has collected
50% of available
mounts
15% off the
Tiger mount they
haven’t purchased
CLICK TO LEARN MORE
“Player Segmentation”

13.
Player Graduation | 13
PLAYER
GRADUATION
It’s one thing to identify and qualify users, but the
true power is in the ability to graduate them to more
lucrative segments. This segmentation process requires a
technology that will gather and analyze your players data at
the user-level, with a high degree of flexibilty without being
stuck having to write queries over and over.
With the power of user-level data in hand, offers can be
tailored to users’ needs and buying power, increasing
chances of conversion. This means being able to focus
more time and energy on maximizing users who have more
potential, therefore leading to higher revenue and happier
more engaged players.
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14.
Improving Your Virtual Sales Force | 14
IMPROVING
YOUR VIRTUAL
SALES FORCE
MAKE A CUSTOMER, NOT A SALE.
KATHERINE BARCHETTI
Traditional sales lessons state that in order for a customer to close on any sale, they must
love and trust the product, and the entity selling it. This translates directly to games in that
players must love and trust in what your purchases will do for their experience in the game,
as well as loving and trusting the game and the company behind it.
Salespeople would traditionally help facilitate this, so in order to bridge this gap, games
must be able to qualify users without intruding on their experience with the product. This
is where segmenting users based on user-level data comes into play. By segmenting and
qualifying your users quickly and flexibly, you can be ready to propose the right offer at the
right time.
Silently prospecting collected data allows for fast and accurate qualification of massive
amounts of players, each of which is given an offer tailored to their specific needs using a
script that is executed perfectly each time. This is the strength of a virtual sales force.

15.
SAMPLE PLAYBOOK
Sample Playbook | 15
Early Whale
Special vip offers
Early Minnow
upsell
Early Dolphin
Bundle offer
New Player
Conversion offer
[ starter kit ]
Mid Whale
Special vip offers
Mid Minnow
Discounted upsell
Mid Dolphin
Bonus offers
Possible Spender
Discount Conversion offer
Rewarded video
Late Whale
Special vip offers
Late Minnow
Deep discount upsell
Late Dolphin
Discounted bonus offers
Non-Spender
Rewarded video
Interstitial ads
PLAYERVALUE
PLAYER PROGRESSION

16.
CELEBRATE THE
BEHAVIOR
Celebrate the Behavior | 16
Every time a player makes an investment in your game,
they should be rewarded and thanked. Make them
feel appreciated! The science behind this shows that
rewarding good behavior creates habits. Conveying the
feeling of celebration using cheering sounds, fireworks,
even confetti, solidifies the value of that purchase. When
all else fails, Just remember, a simple thank you will do.
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17.
Your Tool Box | 17
YOUR TOOL BOX
(THE TOOLS YOU NEED)
Think of your tool box as the foundation of your monetization strategy. By implementing
the following criteria, it will allow you to effectively monetize on your strengths.
By implementing these tools, it will allow you to take advantage of sophisticated
monetization techniques.
Track, analyze and segment users
Strategically position offers and ads
Design a dynamic offer program
Monitor and adjust in real-timeCLICK TO LEARN MORE
“Mobile Monetization in Four Simple Steps”

18.
1 TRACK, ANALYZE
AND SEGMENT
USERS
Identify and Segment Users | 18
It’s important to track, analyze and store unique values
about your players such as spending behaviour,
progress, levels completed, number of virtual good items
purchased, and time spent in the game - just to name a
few. By collecting segmentation data as early as possible,
you’ll equip yourself with a strong foundation of data
that can be leveraged in later initiatives. Tracking and
analyzing player behavior at the user-level is paramount
to delivering an optimal game experience that drives
engagement and revenue.

19.
Integrated Dynamic Offer System | 19
INTEGRATED
DYNAMIC
OFFER SYSTEM
By paying close attention to your users’ behaviors and tracking them in the Upsight
dashboard, you will be able to craft personalized offers that they find relevant and valuable.
For instance, if your users haven’t converted yet, it doesn’t make sense to offer them the
most expensive product pack. Instead, you can target this group with an entry-level offer
that contains items necessary for game progression. As users evolve in the game, you will
find opportunities to increase the price of packs in order to increase your ARPPU.

20.
3 STRATEGIC
AD-VANTAGE
Strategic Ad-Vantage | 20
Ads are a great way of monetizing users who flat out
refuse to make a purchase. But just because a user made
a small purchase a long time ago doesn’t necessarily
mean that they should never see an ad again. With
rewarded videos, players can make that choice for
themselves, and if implemented effectively, they will
make that choice over and over again.
With a choice between rewarded and non-rewarded
videos, knowing when to show ads is just as important
as knowing what kind of ad to use. Generally, the 3
best places are at the start of a session, when a player
is unable to make forward progress due to lack of
energy, and when a player leaves the IAP store without
making a purchase. Don’t be afraid to take advantage of
multiple placements throughout the gameplay in order
to increase visibility. Monitor and experiment with your
placements to find the right fit.
CLICK TO LEARN MORE
“The 3 Best Places to Show an Ad”

21.
MONITOR
& ADJUST IN
REAL-TIME
No game is the same, and sometimes the first strategy you implement will
not be as successful as anticipated. In order to stay ahead of the game, you
need to monitor and make adjustments in real-time. For example, if users
are starting to leave your app earlier than planned, adjust your offer strategy
to be time-sensitive and more aggressive with your offers. Making real-time
adjustments like this will ensure you are taking every opportunity to present
your users with relevant offers and continue to iterate on your monetization
strategy.
Monitor & Adjust in Real-Time | 21

22.
Every game is different. Some games are sticky but don’t convert
well. Others have smaller but dedicated spenders. No matter what
your game’s strengths are, or whether you have one strength or
many, there are ways to use these tools to improve your games’
monetization.
WHAT’S MY PLAYBOOK?
What’s My Playbook? | 22
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23.
WHAT’S MY
PLAYBOOK?
What’s My Playbook? | 23
“I have a large volume of players”
Great! Identify your users based on progression and make sure new players
are sticking around
Leverage your volume and help players understand the value of your
currencies through rewarded video
Develop a solid strategy for converting users early
Monitor and adjust early game offers for maximum effect

24.
WHAT’S MY
PLAYBOOK?
What’s My Playbook? | 24
“I have players who are big spenders”
Awesome! Identify your players based on spending tiers and spending patterns
Offer varied discounts, taking into account spending tier
Develop low to no bonus offers targeted at the highest spenders and
more generous offers for the lower tiers
Employ an ad strategy for non-spenders
Monitor high tier purchases and adjust your content pipeline
accordingly

25.
WHAT’S MY
PLAYBOOK?
What’s My Playbook? | 25
“I have a great conversion rate”
Fantastic! Segment users based on what purchases were most effective in converting
them, and by the items they’ve purchased so far
Target new users with offers on your most effective conversion purchases
Target minnows and dolphins with items they’ve yet to purchase
Just because a user converts doesn’t mean they never need to see an
ad again. Employ a rewarded video solution available to all users
Monitor the conversion rate around rewarded videos and the
economy, and adjust payouts accordingly

26.
WHAT’S MY
PLAYBOOK?
What’s My Playbook? | 26
“My players are highly engaged”
Terrific! Segment users based on engagement cycles and time played
Employ non-rewarded videos to maximize monetization on each session
Target IAP offers and specific items personally adapted to a player’s
progression state
Monitor the effect that your ad placements have on player
engagement and retention and adjust if needed

27.
Connect with us:
www.upsight.com|Request a demo
Build your monetization strategy and take action with Upsight’s
comprehensive user lifecycle management platform. With features
like targeted push notifications, virtual good promotions, and
announcements, tied in with user level data and real-time segmentation,
you have the power to build your personalized playbook.