This document discusses strategies for growing and retaining mobile game users. It argues that retention is key to growth, as growth depends on acquisition and retention of users. Engagement is also important as it drives retention. The document recommends focusing on core loop design, content cadence, and social interactions to improve engagement. It also emphasizes the importance of network effects, and provides examples of how mobile games can increase social density and connections between players to strengthen retention.

1. Growth Thru Retention & Engagement
MAU 2016

2. 2
• GDC 2010 Social
Game of the Year
• 5M installs in the first
week of launch
• #4 top free mobile
game
• 6 consecutive months
of D/D DAU growth.
• #2 top free mobile
game
• #9 top grossing mobile
game
Hi, I’m Josh

3. 3
DAU or
MAU
(Installs) (Reactivations)
Growth = f(Acquisition,Retention)
Growth
Maximize Acquisition
Minimize Churn

4. 4
0
100,000
200,000
300,000
400,000
500,000
600,000
1
14
27
40
53
66
79
92
105
118
131
144
157
170
183
196
209
222
235
248
261
274
287
300
313
326
339
352
365
378
391
404
417
430
443
456
469
482
495
508
521
534
547
560
573
586
599
612
625
638
651
664
677
690
703
716
729
2 Year DAU (50% D1R)
Retention is king

5. 5
Viral installs = invites * conversion%
Invites = (inviters * invites/inviter) ^ frequency of invitations
Retention is virality

6. 6 Engagement is retention

7. 7 Engagement drives retention
Engagement is the leading indicator of retention
0%
5%
10%
15%
20%
25%
30%
35%
40%
45%
50%
D0 D50 D100 D150 D200 D250 D300 D350
Game X Retention
Primary Driver of Engagement
Content, Cadence,
Polish, Etc.
Core Loop Design Social Interaction

8. 8
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
100%
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
40
45
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70
D1-D60 RETENTION
Post FTUE Pre FTUE %Difference
Improving early retention is easy

9. 9 Core Loop Design – Build Habits
Not all engagement is created equally
Vs.
Similar Engagement
Dissimilar Retention
Hooked (Nir Eyal)

10. 10 Core Loop Design – Build Habits
Hooked (Nir Eyal)

11. 11 Core Loop Design – Build Habits
Hooked (Nir Eyal)

12. 12 Core Loop Design – Build Habits
Hooked (Nir Eyal)

13. 13 The Retentive Power of Networks
Product Defensibility:
• Scale
• Brand
• Embedding (Habits)
• Network Effects
Principle of network effects – each incremental user makes the
product experience better for everyone before her

14. 14 Improving Network FX in Games
• Create more nodes (by adding users)
• Increase node strength (by
connecting users more closely)
SOCIAL DENSITY

15. 15 Examples of Social Density

16. 16 A Zynga Example

17. 17 Thank you!
@JoshLu
me@Josh.Lu
iJLu