5 ways to make money from mobile games

Building an outstanding game is a big challenge, but making money from that game is a bigger challenge. There are many ways to earn revenue in front of you, but not all of them work in 2020. That is why we have compiled a list of the best methods of making money from mobile games in 2020. If you use these methods correctly, you can maximize your revenue from your games.

5 top methods of making money from mobile games in 2020

Let's go straight to the point. Here we read the best strategies for making money from mobile games in 2020.

1. In-game ads

Certainly one of the best methods of making money from mobile games in 2020 will be in-app advertising. This method has been proven as a highly effective method for game designers. Players can enjoy a free mobile game while designers earn revenue through the ads displayed in the game. Advertisers too will be happy because their ad is shown and they acquire new users. In fact, in 47 percent of cases, users will not forget in-game ads. This is a stamp of confirmation of these ads' effectiveness. In addition, in research conducted by Ipsos it is observed that 50 percent of users enjoy seeing ads in games.

In research conducted by Ipsos it is observed that 50 percent of users enjoy seeing ads in games.

In 2020, the emphasis will be on user experiences. Users do not want to see intrusive or irrelevant ads. In addition, if a user is bombarded with a large volume of ads, it will have a negative effect on user experiences. Therefore in 2020 game designers must reach a balance between the quality and quantity of ads. Also, choosing the right advertising networks and using ad mediators correctly will maximize the amount of revenue you earn from your ads. (I will explain about ad mediators later in the text so continue reading) Designers must also act very smartly about the advertising formats they use. This point brings us to the next strategy you should apply.

Watch an ad, get a reward; a win-win game!

Ads that grant rewards in exchange for being shown, just like rewarded videos, are one of the most effective advertising formats in 2020. These ads are especially effective in mobile games. The main idea of these ads is that the user watches this video ad in exchange for receiving rewards in the game, and this has made this type of ad popular among gamers. In fact rewarded videos have the highest rate among other advertising formats. Alongside all of this, in-app videos overall have very brilliant results. Research has shown that the feedback of in-app video ads is 56 percent greater than banner ads.

2. Mobile ad mediators

Mobile ad mediation is one of the most effective monetization techniques based on in-app advertising. These mediators help game publishers earn more revenue from their ads. Ad mediation technology has advanced and been upgraded over the years. Every day more publishers and advertisers use this method. There is no doubt that this will be one of the top methods of making money from mobile games in 2020.

Here we will see how this system works. To increase ad revenue, mobile game publishers must work with several advertising networks. However, the more the number of these networks increases, the harder tracking and managing them becomes. This is where ad mediators get to work. Ad mediation platforms allow you to manage several advertising networks at the same time in one place. They are in fact intermediaries between you, the publisher and the advertising networks. Another of this system's advantages is that you create only one software development kit (SDK) instead of several SDKs for each advertising network.

3. Monetization through data

Making money through data is a suitable alternative to in-app advertising that deserves its place among methods of making money from mobile games. This method is very suitable for games that have a large number of daily active users. Making money through data means collecting and transferring information from a mobile game to a data bank. Usually, the data banks are advertisers, sellers and various companies such as telecommunications companies. It should be borne in mind that making money through data is not the collection of users' personal information. Only information such as device type, country and screen size is collected.

In fact, making money through data functions similarly to ad mediators. The more data banks you deal with, the higher your revenue will be. Just as there are ad mediation platforms, there are mediators that allow you to collect data through only one SDK. Of course, the more daily active users you have, the higher your data revenue will also be. Just remember that you will need more than 50000 daily active users to make money this way.

4. In-app purchases

If you currently have many fans and are known in this industry, it seems logical to ask users to pay money for your game. If you are an indie game maker and this is your first project, a paid game will probably not be a good idea, but that does not mean you cannot make money from your game. If you want to make downloading your game free and alongside that monetize your game, in-app purchases are the best way for you. According to AppAnnie, by 2022 users will spend as much as 156.5 billion dollars in app stores.

According to AppAnnie, by 2022 users will spend as much as 156.5 billion dollars in app stores.

This way, players can play for free. Once they are hooked on your game, they will pay you money for more features such as coins or extra lives and things like these. A point that is very important for monetizing with this method is to act very smartly on pricing. Usually the best method is to offer both cheap options and expensive options. As a game maker you must make it clear from the beginning that there will also be extra payments in the game. That way you will not be known as a game maker who intends to deceive users.

Here we read some of the views of Jovan Milenkovic, founder of KommandoTech, on in-app purchases: "I think the growth of virtual goods will continue and in-app purchases will be one of the best ways of making money through apps in 2020. For a long time people have been busy spending money they have earned with difficulty in the real world on virtual money. This goes back to a time when even smartphones did not yet exist. Now that credit cards are directly linked to accounts and buying in-game upgrades is done with just one click, making money through in-app purchases has become much easier."

You can always count on competitive players who are willing to spend whatever is needed to play at the highest levels of the game.

You can always count on competitive players who are willing to spend whatever is needed to play at the highest levels of the game. In whatever form it may be, whether an extra life, special items or additional content, for the majority of players spending an amount on these items does not seem hard. Even if it is only a beautiful piece of armor for the player's style or points in the players' community that has no real benefit inside or outside the online game. In other words, in-app purchases and virtual goods have a strong presence today and in the future too will be one of the best ways of making money through mobile games.

5. Paid games

Paid games are one of the methods of making money through mobile games that has been placed last on the list. If you are a known mobile game publisher with a large number of fans, paid games seem an attractive idea. For example, Minecraft, which is a paid game for mobile and is still present on the list of top games in its genre in the app store. Also, some players do not like in-app purchases and prefer to pay an amount from the start in order to avoid ads or paying for more features and coins and diamonds.