The operation indicators of small games monetized by advertising mainly focus on user behavior, advertising effects and revenue. The following are some common operation indicators:

1. User activity indicators
   • DAU (Daily Active Users): The number of users who use the game every day. Reflects the activity level of the game.
   • WAU (Weekly Active Users): The number of users who are active every week.
   • MAU (Monthly Active Users): The number of users who are active every month. The number of active users maintained for a long time is an important reference for the health of game operations.
   • Retention rate: Usually includes Day 1 Retention, Day 7 Retention, and Day 30 Retention. This shows whether users are willing to continue playing after downloading and opening the game.
2. User engagement indicators
   • Average game time: The average game time players spend playing every day/week, reflecting the attractiveness of the game.
   • Active time: The active time period of players, such as daytime, evening or weekends.
   • User churn rate: The user churn at each stage of the game can help analyze which links lead to user churn.
3. Advertising effectiveness indicators
   • eCPM (earnings per thousand impressions): a common unit of measurement for advertising revenue, calculated by dividing total advertising revenue by the number of ad impressions, and then multiplying it by 1000. It is one of the key indicators for measuring advertising effectiveness.
   • CPM (cost per thousand impressions): the paid revenue per thousand times the ad is displayed, applicable to CPM-based ads.
   • CPI (cost per install): a measure of the cost of acquiring a new user through an advertising channel, usually used to evaluate the effectiveness of advertising.
   • Fill rate: refers to the ratio of ad requests to actual displayed ads, reflecting the sufficiency of ad inventory.
   • Click-through rate (CTR): the ratio of ad clicks to ad impressions, usually used to measure the attractiveness of ads.
   • Post-click conversion rate (CVR): refers to the proportion of players performing a specific action (such as installation, purchase, etc.) after clicking on an ad.
   • Advertising revenue share: the proportion of game revenue that comes from advertising. For ad monetization, this ratio directly reflects the profitability of advertising.
4. User value and profit indicators
   • ARPU (average revenue per user): measures the average revenue of each user in a certain period of time, often used to evaluate the player's ability to pay.
   • ARPDAU (average revenue per daily user): refers to the average revenue of each active user per day, usually used to measure the effectiveness of daily operations.
   • LTV (lifetime value of users): the total revenue that a user can bring to the game during his or her lifetime, including advertising and in-app purchase revenue.
5. Advertising monetization model and channel
   • Advertising type analysis: analyze the performance and revenue of different advertising types (such as banner ads, interstitial ads, rewarded video ads, etc.).
   • Ad impressions: the frequency with which users see ads in the game.
   • Rewarded ad viewing rate: the number and proportion of players watching rewarded ads, which is usually an important source of advertising monetization.
6. User feedback and satisfaction
   • Ratings and reviews: the ratings, number of reviews and their content in the app store reflect the players' acceptance of the game and advertising experience.
   • User surveys and feedback: use questionnaires or embedded feedback functions to understand players' acceptance of ads, whether they find ads annoying, etc.

Through these operational indicators, game developers and operation teams can adjust game design, advertising strategies and user incentive mechanisms in real time to optimize the balance between advertising revenue and player experience, thereby improving overall profitability.

What is the reasonable length of time a user spends on average per day?

The average daily dwell time per user (DAU) varies depending on the game type, target audience, and operation strategy. There is no fixed "ideal" standard, but some reference ranges can be given according to different types of mini-games.

1. Casual mini-games

• Dwell time: Usually around 5-15 minutes

• Reason: The goal of casual games is to provide a relaxing and fast entertainment experience. Players usually play games in their free time (such as waiting for a bus, queuing, etc.), so the duration of stay is short.

• Ideal situation: If the average daily duration of stay can be maintained at 5-10 minutes, it means that players frequently enter the game, but do not feel too immersed, which is suitable for advertising monetization.

2. Core players (light/medium players)

• Duration of stay: Usually around 15-30 minutes.

• Reason: This type of player may play the game in fragmented time and participate in some more complex tasks or challenges. Although the time is longer, because they prefer to complete certain tasks in a short time, the length of stay each time is usually moderate.

• Ideal situation: If the length of stay is around 20 minutes, it means that the game is attractive enough to keep players engaged for a longer period of time.

3. Heavy gamers (deep gamers)

• Duration: Usually 30 minutes to 1 hour or even longer.

• Reason: This type of player likes deep gaming experience and may spend a lot of time on complex challenges or competitions. Heavy gamers are more attracted to game content, so they stay longer.

• Ideal situation: If your game can keep players for 30 minutes or more, it means it has strong appeal, but this is not common for most ad-based games.

4. Ad-based games

• Duration: Usually 5-15 minutes is the ideal range.

• Reason: Mini games that monetize with ads need to maintain an appropriate dwell time to provide sufficient display opportunities for ads (such as interstitial ads, rewarded video ads, etc.), but it should not be too long, because too much game time may cause players to feel tired or ads may interrupt them excessively, affecting the player experience.

How to balance game time and ad revenue:

• Short time, high frequency: By designing game tasks and challenges, players are encouraged to enter the game frequently and watch ads, but the game time each time is short. This helps to increase DAU while avoiding player loss caused by too long dwell time.

• Ad frequency control: Ensure that the display frequency and dwell time of ads match, and avoid frequent ads interfering with the user experience and causing user loss.

Summary

For small games that monetize with ads, the average daily dwell time of each user is usually in the reasonable range of 5-20 minutes. The specific value depends on the game type, target users and advertising model. A moderate dwell time can balance the player experience and the effect of ad monetization, ensuring the opportunity for ad display while avoiding excessive interference with players, thereby increasing revenue and user retention.

What is the average number of impressions by ad type?

The average number of ad impressions depends on many factors, including game design, user activity, ad type display strategy, and user experience balance. Different types of games and ad models can lead to differences in the number of impressions. Here are some common ad types and their reference ranges for impressions.

1. Rewarded Video Ads

• Frequency of impressions: Usually 1-3 times a day, depending on the game design.

• Reference for impressions: Rewarded ads are usually set as ads that users can actively choose to watch (for example, watching ads to get game props, coins, or other rewards). Therefore, the ideal impression frequency should be 1-3 times per user per day.

• Reason: Rewarded ads appear when players actively choose, so it is not appropriate to frequently interfere with the player experience. Too frequent impressions may cause players to feel bored and reduce their motivation to watch. Maintaining an impression frequency of 1-3 times can usually achieve better monetization results while avoiding affecting the game experience.

2. Interstitial Ads
   • Display frequency: usually once every 10-15 minutes, or during the natural transition phase of the game (such as level end, interface switching, etc.).
   • Display quantity reference: For the display quantity of interstitial ads, it is recommended not to exceed 3-5 times per hour. If the average stay time of the game is short, the display frequency can be appropriately increased; if the player's game time is long, the display interval of interstitial ads can be appropriately lengthened.
   • Reason: Interstitial ads are often displayed at natural interruption locations, such as level end, task completion, or scene switching. In order to balance the user experience, interstitial ads should not be displayed too frequently to avoid excessive interruption of the player experience, thereby affecting retention and conversion rate.
3. Banner Ads
   • Display frequency: usually continuous display, but the display frequency is usually low.
   • Display quantity reference: Banner ads are usually in the form of continuous display and will not interrupt the player's operation. It is recommended that each ad slot be displayed 2-4 times per hour, depending on the loading and refresh frequency of the ad slot.
   • Reason: Banner ads do not interfere with the player's game, so the display frequency is high. However, their display location is relatively hidden, and the click-through rate of ads is usually low. Through a reasonable ad refresh strategy, the display frequency of ads can be maintained without affecting the user experience.
4. Incentivized Ad Tasks (Offer Walls or Incentivized Ads)
   • Display frequency: Usually 1-2 times a day, but this depends on the player's activity and the design of the game.
   • Display quantity reference: This type of ad is usually part of a task or activity, and the display frequency is closely related to the player's participation. If the player needs to complete a task or get rewards through ads, the number of displays can be relatively high, usually 1-2 times.
   • Reason: Similar to rewarded video ads, rewarded ad tasks are often actively chosen by players. If the display frequency is too high, it may cause player fatigue, so it is more appropriate to keep the display frequency moderate.
5. Native Ads
   • Display frequency: Usually 1-2 times a day, or naturally embedded ads according to the content of the game.
   • Reference for display quantity: Native ads are usually more hidden and can be integrated with game content or interface, so the display frequency is relatively low. Too many native ads may reduce the overall quality of the game and the player experience, so the display frequency is recommended to be between 1-2 times/day.
   • Reason: Native ads are seamlessly integrated with game content and are usually more attractive than interstitial ads, but their display frequency should also be moderate to avoid affecting the natural fluency of the game.

Summary: Reasonable number of ad displays
• Rewarded video ads: 1-3 times a day.
• Interstitial ads: 3-5 times per hour, or once every 10-15 minutes.
• Banner ads: Continuously displayed, but refreshed 2-4 times per hour.
• Rewarded ad tasks: 1-2 times a day, depending on player engagement.
• Native ads: 1-2 times a day, depending on game content and ad integration.

Balance of ad display quantity
• Avoid excessive interference: Ad display should be consistent with the natural rhythm of the game and the expectations of players as much as possible. Too frequent ad display may cause player loss or reduce ad conversion rate.
• Optimize user experience: The design of ad types and the number of displays should give priority to player experience, and try to avoid ads interfering with game content, especially in the frequency control of interstitial ads and rewarded video ads.
• Gradual optimization: Adjust the frequency of ad display according to user behavior data, such as through A/B testing to understand the impact of different ad types and display timing on player retention and ad revenue, and find the best balance.

The reasonable number of ad displays should be optimized based on multiple factors such as player game time, ad type, game play and ad revenue goals to ensure that ads are monetized without affecting the overall game experience of players.