User Opt-In: Why Permissions Lead to Better Engagement

Users are still hesitant to allow mobile app tracking – but why?

A confused user will always say no, and most people find digital privacy confusing. But one thing is clear. App publishers have a lot to gain if they can successfully convince their users to opt in to app tracking. We’re talking about:

• a better app UX due to personalized ads
• higher engagement
• a low user churn rate

So, how can publishers use this opt-in experience as an opportunity to educate and engage users, rather than irritate or alienate them?

Opt-In Models Are an Opportunity (When Used Wisely)

Imagine you are an app user. 

Your primary objective is to consume high-quality app content. You want control over your in-app ad experience, so that you can enjoy this app content without becoming frustrated and closing the app.

The biggest blocker in convincing users to accept mobile app tracking is that they don’t know what it means; they don’t know how they would benefit from it. 

This is where publishers must steer users away from confusion and better education.

Why Do So Many Users Opt In to Playtime?

Guiding users from the top of the funnel (passively viewing an ad) to the bottom of the funnel (engaging with an ad) is difficult in any business. 

Here we’re talking about driving users away from just passively viewing an ad to really engaging with an ad. Add to that the friction app publishers face when convincing users to opt in to app tracking.

adjoe’s rewarded ad unit Playtime has long been leveraging its user opt-in model. Along the way, it has managed to secure an opt-in rate of around 70 percent across diverse verticals and publishers – but how?

It educates users on the value of Playtime and guides them seamlessly through the opt-in process, so that they understand the value of Playtime and are no longer confused by what app tracking entails. All while meeting all global privacy measures such as GDPR and CCPA on Android and iOS devices.

1. Step 1: Users select Playtime’s in-app teaser to earn in-app currency.
2. Step 2: Users see Playtime’s opt-in Terms of Service. They learn about why they benefit from opting in to app tracking – adjoe collects data to help predict the user’s age, gender, and mobile interests to serve the most relevant gaming ads to them. 
3. Step 3: Users see gaming offers on Playtime – when they want to – and only the ones most relevant to them. They can otherwise continue to consume the app’s content as they wish.

This transparency when it comes to app tracking permissions addresses a user’s fear of the unknown. They can enjoy gameplay knowing that their data is for adjoe’s eyes only – and for their own benefit.

Why Should Publishers Prioritize Personalization?

Playtime’s user opt-in means users enjoy not only a better rewarded experience – they enjoy a highly personalized and engaging ad experience.

This is the era for digital personalization. Publishers must somehow get around the term “app tracking” and reframe it so that users recognize it as “app personalization” – something that would be worth sharing their data for. 

Because we know that users are demanding better and more positive mobile experiences. Over 50 percent of users in fact expect to see ads relevant to them. If they want relevant ads, they should opt in to app tracking permissions.

And then it’s up to publishers to deliver a premium personalized in-app experience if they want to stabilize, monetize, and grow their daily active users. 

Once users give publishers the green light with their opt-in permissions, adjoe’s Playtime can deliver a better user experience. How?

• adjoe’s first-party data and machine learning technology predict a user’s age, gender, and mobile interests. Users are next segmented into different audience groups through granular targeting options (demographic, GEO, traffic source, operating system, device type, and mobile interest data).
• These target audience groups then see the ads most relevant to them based on their characteristics. This means they are less likely to see random disruptive ads they will not engage with.
• When they install an advertised game on Playtime and start to play for instant rewards, their usage is tracked by adjoe and they receive the rewards promised to them.

Serving users the ads most relevant to them – and the rewards they’re promised – doesn’t just deliver a better user experience. Their trust in publishers is validated, and they will be less likely to churn. Publishers will meanwhile be able to maximize their eCPMs and ARPDAUs through this increased engagement.

The Opt-In Model Users Can Trust

From a publisher’s perspective, they might think: “More data equals more relevant ads. This means greater engagement and greater revenues.” They wouldn’t be wrong.

App users might however make the following assumptions: “More data equals greater intrusion into my privacy and more ads.” And this comes down to the fact that most users still don’t understand digital privacy.

It’s up to publishers and the ad units they integrate, like Playtime, to help users understand and to counteract their concerns. More data does not mean less privacy – it means greater personalization, more engaging ad experiences, better trust – and greater revenues.