In today’s app-driven world, almost every service has a mobile version—be it food delivery, taxi and travel, shopping, games, financial services, or educational products. Modern life without these apps is hard to imagine.

As the mobile ecosystem evolves, in-app advertising is gaining traction and becoming increasingly attractive for brands. In-app promotion, once overlooked, now has tools to analyze efficiency, verify traffic, and develop engaging ad formats using emerging inventory platforms. Given our constant smartphone use, brands must engage in this communication channel.

Here, we answer the most frequently asked questions from advertisers about in-app traffic, programmatic buying, and DSP operations.

1. Why are CPA pricing models not ideal for starting user acquisition through DSPs?

Many advertisers opt for CPA (Cost Per Action) models to protect their marketing budgets, but in-app traffic attribution differs from mobile social media traffic. Using a CPM (Cost Per Mille) pricing model is wiser, as ad exchange bids are influenced by multiple factors like creative formats, advertiser competition, verticals, and audience segments.

Over time, eCPM-based media buying often results in lower eCPI (Effective Cost Per Install), lower eCPA (Effective Cost Per Action), and higher ROAS (Return on Ad Spend). Testing various ad formats, audience segments, exchanges, and apps is more effective through eCPM buying, which keeps campaigns dynamic.

Focusing solely on low CPI (Cost Per Install) might lead to missing out on sources and audiences that offer better LTV (Lifetime Value). Fixed CPI campaigns can make testing premium placements and broader audience segments difficult, leading to higher CPIs and budget “wastage” even if the traffic is high-quality.

Reaching your target CPA is a gradual process that requires patience and time to collect enough data to train the platform and predictive algorithms, ultimately achieving scale.

2. Why is in-app CPI higher than on social media?

While social media effectively targets specific audiences, it becomes challenging to scale over time as those audiences deplete. Initially, CPI might be low, but it’s not sustainable long-term.

In-app advertising offers broader audience reach and scalability as the number of apps grows. DSP algorithms need significant impressions and actions to deliver results at scale. Cheaper installs don’t guarantee good campaign performance, as users often delete newly installed apps without using them. Well-trained predictive algorithms help communicate with relevant users and improve models based on results, not just initial installs.

3. Do we really need a mobile measurement tracker?

For advertisers tracking unit economics, a reliable mobile tracker is essential. Mobile measurement partners (MMPs) allow accurate attribution of ad campaign traffic and highlight which sales funnel stages to focus on.

MMPs help advertisers understand which apps, exchanges, ad creatives, and approaches work best, informing future advertising activities and decisions for optimal app performance.

4. Why focus on post-view attribution in in-app campaigns?

Post-view attribution is crucial, especially as video ads become a primary ad format. Users often watch video ads without immediate action, making post-view attribution vital for understanding campaign performance.

Post-view attribution helps measure conversions hours after ad exposure, especially for formats like rewarded and playable ads, where user engagement is significant. It’s also important in emerging markets where users may not download apps immediately due to connectivity issues.

Set post-view attribution up to 24 hours to gain a deeper understanding of funnel performance and user interaction with ads.

5. What about in-app fraud?

In-app fraud used to be a significant concern, but reliable ecosystem participants now ensure inventory quality. We integrate with major MMPs and their fraud protection tools (e.g., AppsFlyer’s Protect360, Adjust, Kochava, Branch, Singular) and use third-party and in-house fraud detection tools for comprehensive checks and balances.

6. Why buy traffic through DSPs if we have direct access to ad exchanges?

DSPs extend your team and complement user growth efforts. They consolidate efforts by running on integrated exchanges, offering opportunities to test multiple sources simultaneously, freeing you to focus on retention and down-funnel events.

7. What budget should I allocate for testing in-app promotion?

The marketing budget depends on factors like the target country, the advertised app, and other nuances. Media buying teams recommend budgets based on these factors and advertiser feedback, preparing starting budgets tailored to each app.

8. What GEOs are available for targeting?

In-app advertising is available wherever there are smartphone users with mobile internet or Wi-Fi. Targeting can be broad (entire countries) or specific (regions, cities, zip codes). You can exclude locations to focus on areas with the best results.

9. Why shouldn’t you change in-app ad creatives too often?

Frequently changing creatives can negatively affect the algorithm by not providing enough data for proper training and model building. Run ad creatives for a week or two to identify the best-performing apps and categories without losing the opportunity to find optimal solutions.

10. What is the difference between DSPs and ad networks?

Both provide access to in-app inventory, but ad networks limit ads to apps with their SDK. DSPs offer inventory from multiple ad networks in one place, allowing advertisers to test several ad exchanges and benefit from automated media buying and predictive algorithms, resulting in high-quality users and greater traffic scale.

Conclusion

As mobile apps become more popular, their close contact with target audiences leads many brands to shift marketing budgets toward in-app traffic. The advantages for advertisers are clear: broad reach, targeted ads through programmatic buying, and diverse ad formats enhancing ad memorability and incentivizing actions.

However, in-app inventory is not a magic bullet. Achieving goals requires patience, time, and investment in training DSPs and predictive algorithms, viewing it as a future investment.

We hope this article helps brands better understand in-app advertising nuances.