[SURVEY INSIGHTS] 17% of Gamers Say They Don’t Make iAPs Right Now Because Money Is Tight (Pt.1)

Is the current state of the economy having an impact on iAPs? If so, how much is it influencing users in their purchasing decisions? Should publishers be worried? Are some genres being impacted more than others?

No doubt the recent surge in inflation has many watching their budget a bit closer - including gamers. 

While we can make assumptions about whether inflation is making an impact on gamers’ decisions to make iAPs, we wanted to go directly to the source to get answers. So we surveyed gamers to find out whether inflation was making them think twice about making an iAP. Here’s what we found out.

Methodology

We surveyed 2,000 mobile gamers, balanced to the US Census. In a couple hours, we had our results.

First, before we take a deep dive into the results, of the gamers who said they make iAPs, 17% of them now say ‘I don’t make in-app purchases at all anymore - money is tight.’ That’s a startling percentage of users who are no longer giving their money to mobile gaming publishers.

So it begged the question. What genres are impacted most and does gameplay frequency matter? Let’s take a look.

Genres Impacted by Current State of Economy

When asked whether the current state of the economy has impacted their in-app purchases, Shooter gamers by far and away seem to be the least impacted. At over 34%, Shooter gamers say there is ‘No change - I make in-app purchases when I want’. They were also the least likely to respond with ‘I don’t make in-app purchases at all anymore - money is tight’, coming in at just under 11%.

Casino gamers on the other hand, at almost 22%, were most likely to not make in-app purchases anymore, closely followed by Casual and Simulation, at 19.41% and 18.84% respectively.

Graph: what mobile gaming genre is most impacted by the current economy

Click here to view these full survey results.

Does Playing Frequency Correlate To Purchase Impact

In a separate but similar survey the data backs up what we’ve identified above. The data suggests that players who play multiple times per day are most consistent with their iAP behavior as compared to those who play less frequently. Those who play less frequently show a much more erratic purchase behavior.

Chart: in-app purchase behavior stays consistent with mobile gamers who play multiple times per day

Implications For Gaming Teams

Is the economy and inflation having an impact on your gamers ability to spend? Absolutely. Is it having as big an impact as many talking heads might indicate? Maybe not. It’s completely plausible that the recent privacy updates are having a much bigger impact on the gaming industry and the revenue you're driving. 

The inability to pull in predefined, well segmented players that are clear matches for your game is likely the bigger reason you’re seeing fewer iAPs and lower revenue vs the state of the economy.

One of the easiest ways to combat this is with early game personalization surveys. You may not be able to pull in only your best fit gamers anymore, but using early game personalization surveys is the next best thing. From day 0, you can start to understand your players more intimately to create a better, more personalized gaming experience.

Forecasting Accuracy

Another big takeaway for gaming teams is the importance of segmenting players by playing frequency to improve forecasting accuracy. When you know what percentage of your players are high-frequency gamers, you can adjust your budget accordingly and mitigate the worry about the uncertainty of your budget.

Conclusion

Regardless of whether the economy and inflation is impacting your gamers’ purchase power or not, there are still ways to get your players to spend. The best way to do that is to understand who they are, what’s motivating them to play your game, what they like and don’t like, and more. With a deeper understanding of your players, you can better craft your offers to make them more attractive and irresistible. The best way to do that is by unlocking player experience insights. Learn more about our Player Insights tool here.

Top game studios are leaning into player experience insights. The more they listen, the better decision they can make. We help AAA mobile game teams unlock feedback from all players – not just the loud ones – while monetizing with brand surveys.

If you’re interested in learning more about what motivates your players to inform your decision making, contact our player experience team here.

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