Accelerator Program FAQ

What is the Appodeal Accelerator Program?

It is a new business accelerator for mobile game developers. We provide the necessary tools, resources and mentorship allowing you to scale your apps quickly and effectively while keeping all intellectual property rights and staying 100% independent.

• If you become our Strategic Partner, you get access to UA funding, industry leading tools, and a team of experts to help you with optimizing UA, engagement, LiveOps, monetization, ASO and ad creatives.
• If you prefer to scale your app on your own, we still provide all the tools you may need: you can use our SDK, Business Intelligence tools and Adjust account for free to have full control over your app’s growth.

How does it work?

Anyone can join the Program. If you already have a published app, you can apply here.
We will then need to evaluate your app’s product metrics. For this, you will have to install our toolpack which has everything you need to evaluate metrics and get started with user acquisition.
After installing the tools, you will need to set up a UA campaign on Facebook following these guidelines. Once you’re through with all the steps and get the necessary number of installs, we will evaluate your product metrics and make the decision regarding forming a strategic partnership with you.
If you wish to grow your app on your own, we will share our observations regarding your app metrics and help you decide on the most appropriate tactic.
At each stage, please feel free to turn to Appodeal technical support for help.
You can also request reimbursement of soft launch costs (up to $100) by filling in this form and attaching the receipt.

How much does it cost?

It’s free. You just need to allocate $100 for campaign launch (we will reimburse the sum once the results have been obtained). If the metrics meet our target after the 1st soft launch, you may be eligible for a refund on the 2nd soft launch up to $500. The Accelerator Manager will inform you if you meet the requirements for it.

Why do I need to become an Appodeal Partner?

Appodeal has 7 years of track record helping mobile developers grow their apps with our own mediation solution. We have recently rolled out a tool pack that allows our users to improve monetization and user acquisition as well as manage ad campaigns - all from a single dashboard. This helped their products attain maximum growth levels and get to the top of the app stores even without the help of publishers, who typically keep all the intellectual property rights for the apps.
For those who need help, we are happy to offer funding and assistance from our team of experts (if the app metrics meet our targets).
Over the last year we have had great success with NewPubCo and OpenMyGame studios - their apps are now on top in their categories. We would love to help you as well!

What metrics do you look for in prospective partners?

We typically perform a comprehensive evaluation of overall potential. However, we tend to give particular attention to D1 retention, D3 retention, Average session length and Cost per install. We also seek to assess ARPU optimization possibilities.

Can I do the soft launch with the Android app version only?

Yes, you can. Please note that though you can apply with any type of app, for the purposes of the Accelerator program it’s necessary to soft-launch the Android version. We will be making decisions based on the app metrics that we get from it. It means that we will accept both Android and iOS versions of the app for strategic partnership if the Android version alone meets our target metrics.

I know my metrics already, do I still need to make a soft launch?

You do not have to do this to become our strategic partner. If you can confirm your metrics, and they meet our targets, we can make a soft launch to check them at the next stage. If you know the metrics, provide them in the application form. If your metrics appear to be below the necessary level, but you have been making changes or plan to continue working on the product, you can make a soft launch together with us and re-check the metrics.
If you are growing the app on your own (using the self-service option), you can choose the acquisition strategy yourself, however, we would recommend making a soft launch for project evaluation using our platform and Adjust attribution access.

How is it different from working with a publisher?

We seek to provide developers with all necessary resources and knowledge to empower them to grow their apps on their own. It does not matter if you make it to the Strategic Partnership stage or not, you will still have all analytical tools as well as our knowledge base at your disposal. For our Strategic Partners, we provide UA funding and a team of experts to help optimize UA, monetization, ASO, product metrics, and working with creatives. This said, you still keep all intellectual property rights and a possibility to carry out acquisition on your own. In return, we only take a small share of revenue you get from our profitable UA cohorts.

What apps can participate?

Any free apps with ad or hybrid monetization model are entitled to participate. Of course, if they are in line with our Terms of Service 🙂

What amount of funding do the partners receive?

We reimburse the soft launch costs of up to $500.
If you become our Strategic Partner the amount of the investment will depend on the app metrics and growth potential. If the metrics are good after the 1st soft launch, you may be eligible for a refund on the 2nd soft launch. The Accelerator Manager will inform you if you meet the requirements for it.

What resources do the partners get?

All participants are provided with the following resources by default:

1. Free Adjust account for traffic attribution and analytics via Appodeal reports
2. Growth Package which includes Appodeal mediation and analytics, Adjust attribution (or Appsflyer, if you have an account) and Firebase
3. Consapptor for testing new app ideas
4. Appodeal Business Intelligence for analyzing product, monetization and UA metrics from a single dashboard. Besides the current data, there are forecast metrics available.
5. UA management (launching and managing UA campaigns) right from our dashboard, and betting automation.

How is the revenue distributed between the developer and Appodeal?

Appodeal takes a share of revenue only from profitable cohorts. The amount of share is agreed upon with each developer on a case-by-case basis depending on the app metrics and growth potential.

How do I get paid?

Soft launch cost reimbursement is made to your Appodeal right after you submit the soft launch completion form with receipts attached. After that, you can withdraw the money in any convenient way.
For our Strategic Partners, we determine the payment method individually, choosing the most convenient and effective one for each developer.

What advertising channels are used in the Accelerator?

We recommend making the soft launch via Facebook Ads at Tier 3. We think it is enough to evaluate the product metrics and growth potential for most apps while being the most affordable way to do so.

For our Strategic Partners, our team develops an individual strategy using different UA sources including AppGrowth, our own unique source.

How long is the application process?

To apply for the Accelerator Program, fill in the form. After that, you will receive the soft launch instructions. We typically allow for 2-3 weeks for integration and campaign launch, but if you have any difficulties, reply to our email in your inbox or contact us at [email protected]

How long does the soft launch cost reimbursement take?

After you complete the soft launch and get the necessary amount of installs as required by the instructions, you can submit a cost reimbursement form with receipts attached. The required amount will be transferred to your Appodeal account within 3-5 business days.

What is the typical UA funding for a game selected for your program?

If you become our Strategic Partner, the amount of the investment will depend on your app’s metrics and growth potential. We don't have a minimum threshold, as we always grow budgets for successful projects. Currently, the total UA fund for the successful accelerator projects is $30 million.

What is the Accelerator program roadmap?

The general process is the following:

• Step 1: At first, we have to evaluate Android app version potential from the product side: retention, session length. For that, it’s enough to do the soft launch on Facebook targeting a tier 3 country or any other “cheap” country out of your target markets. If the app metrics don't fit our target metrics, we will provide you with recommendations on improving metrics and compensate UA expenses. If you already have app metrics which you can prove with screenshots from your analytics tool and if these metrics match our targets, we will guide you to step 2.
• Step 2: If the app metrics fit the expected targets at the previous step, we will ask you to launch the same kind of UA campaign as you did previously, but targeting the United States and adding ad sets which we will evaluate separately in our BI. This will help us understand what age group we can target to start effective scaling. Also, at this step we will try to evaluate monetization potential of your app. We will also reimburse you for this launch.
• Step 3: If the metrics fit our targets at the previous step, we will offer you strategic partnership. If you are ok with the conditions, we will develop an individual scaling strategy for your app after signing the contract. And then a dedicated growth team (UA managers, monetization managers, creatives managers etc.) will be responsible for implementing it.

If the metrics don’t match our targets or you want to scale your app yourself using our self-service option, we will still develop a growth plan for your app which will help you reach strategic partnership targets or get an understanding of how to use our tools to achieve significant app growth on your own.

Please be informed that you will be receiving all instructions automatically by email or from Appodeal employees as you pass through these steps. If the instructions ask you to send us some data, please do so, as it will significantly speed up the process of reviewing and proceeding to the next step.
Also, some steps may be adapted for your specific case.

How do I contact the Accelerator team?

You can always reach out to our tech support team at [email protected] or in the website chat regarding any program-related questions.

Can I apply with an alpha or beta version of my game?

To be able to work with us and make a successful soft launch, you must make sure your app is available to all users in any country.

Are there any language or localization requirements?

Your app must support English. It can also support any other languages.

Do I need to prepare my own creatives for the soft launch?

Yes, it is necessary for a successful soft launch. To make this process easier and help you achieve best possible results, we have prepared a detailed guide for preparing ad creatives.

If you are our Strategic Partner, our team will be helping you with preparing and testing different ad creatives.

My application was not accepted for Strategic Partnership. What should I do next?

We do our best to provide detailed feedback after the test: which metrics need to be improved and how it can be done. If it was your first soft launch and you feel you can improve your product and achieve better metrics, we give you a second chance and an opportunity to make a soft launch once again after you make adjustments to the product. The costs for the second soft launch will also be reimbursed. If your metrics are still below our targets after the second soft launch but you see the potential for achieving positive ROAS, you can always start scaling your app on your own, while keeping the access to our Growth Package, our platform, toolkit, guidelines, and tech support.
If after the second soft launch you see that the metrics are still too low, ROI is negative, and you do not see any way to change that, we would recommend switching to testing new ideas. When the new app is ready, you can make a soft launch and get your costs reimbursed again.

How long does it take to integrate Appodeal SDK (Growth Package)?

Normally, it takes no more than 2-3 days. If you have any difficulties, do not hesitate to contact our tech support at [email protected] or in the website chat, we will offer prompt assistance.

How long does it take to hear back from Accelerator after my package has been configured and UA launch was successfully done?

As soon as you have got enough installs for your UA campaign, you can report on the completed soft launch. After that, we will need about a week to check the metrics and provide feedback. If this does not happen, contact us at [email protected].

What platforms are supported by Appodeal SDK (Growth Package)?

Native Android, Native iOS, Unity.

What happens to Growth Package if my app is not accepted?

You can still use the Growth Package to grow the app on your own.

Why do I need to integrate Appodeal SDK (Growth Package)?

Our SDK has everything necessary for successful product growth and metric evaluation: Adjust for traffic attribution, Appodeal for monetization and product metric measurement, and Firebase for additional analytics and using remote A/B testing configurations. Our package not only allows you to run a successful soft launch, but also provides everything you need for future product growth.

Is Appodeal based in Russia or does it have any money transfers through Russia? Is Appodeal impacted in any way due to the sanctions imposed on Russia right now?

No, Appodeal is a United States company and we use a US bank for transactions.