Running A Budget Tight Advertising Campaign

I recently joined The Polygon Loft, a small Bristol based studio. Together we launched Double Pug Switch, while we launched the game on mobile devices and PC, our publisher aPriori Digital handled the console launch.

The game was already really deep in the developmental stages when I joined, ideation had all been completed, the majority of programming had been completed and the game was just a few weeks away from entering the compliance testing stage. I was given a modest budget of £1000 to bring the game in front of an audience.

As the new kid on the block we had to carefully consider our brand’s voice on social media, where our asset creation efforts should be pushed, and exactly how precise we should target our adverts. This was our first ever game, so we wanted to try and cast a wide net, but ensure that our advertising actually made an impact on the audience.

The guys at The Polygon Loft actually had this brilliant trailer made awhile back:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sxxd3yAfQtg

I attended several talks hosted by The Tentacle Zone, a workspace in London and hosts of their own zone at EGX Rezzed. They really helped to explain how the social media algorithms seem to work, and crucially how to create an effective customer journey.

My strategy was to use several cheap ads one after another, we then took that data and looked at how it translated. Were the people reacting enjoying the content, were they consistent, did they then follow our social media? And perhaps most importantly, did they then commit to wishlisting the game on Steam or pre-ordering anywhere?

We then looked at what people engaged with the most, gifs, pictures, posts about our inspiration for the game? All this data helps us build a portfolio on our user base, and will help us determine the best advertising routes for future projects.

Together we were able to push the game to the top of the iOS charts in three different territories, apple added it to their “Top 5 New Games”, and even featured it on store. One month after launch and Double Pug Switch has been featured in over 20 territories.

We at The Polygon Loft are currently working on a secret game, be sure to follow our social media channels to keep up to date!