A thorough comparison of app marketing between Japan and overseas. Welcoming guest speakers from Mirrativ and All-In, who specialize in the overseas game app markets, to explain the characteristics and trends of overseas game apps making major leaps in the Japanese market.
Revealing a portion of the session held at “TOKYO GAME CONNECT”—an event for app marketers to share the latest knowledge and trends in app marketing.
Skyfall Inc. (Headquarters: Minato-ku, Tokyo; CEO: Tomokazu Hasegawa; hereinafter “Skyfall”), operator of the ad monetization platform “SKYFLAG,” hosted “TOKYO GAME CONNECT” at the Cerulean Tower Tokyu Hotel on Thursday, September 26, 2024, alongside AppsFlyer Japan Ltd., Applibot, Inc., YouAppi Japan Co., Ltd., and UNICORN Inc., where they held a session under the theme “Differences in App Marketing Between Japan and Overseas.”
On the day of the event, guest speakers from Mirrativ, Inc. and All-In Inc. were welcomed to explain user acquisition and community activation initiatives based on real-world examples, while comparing Japanese and overseas marketing methodologies. This sneak peak brings you the event report of the session.
Current State and Growth Factors of Overseas Apps in the Japanese Market
Since 2015, the momentum of game apps coming from abroad has risen year by year, leading to their high current market share within Japan. The discussion explored how overseas game apps achieved such growth in the Japanese market, drawing on real-world examples.
The speakers introduced that the main difference between Japanese and overseas game apps lies in “numerical analysis within marketing.” They explained that within numerical analysis, differences in structures/environments, performance/UA (user acquisition), and community marketing hold the key to growth, outlining the characteristics of overseas game apps based on each company’s actual practices.
Overseas App Marketing Structures and Environments
Comparing the app marketing environments of Japan and overseas, Mr. Kanazawa from All-In explained that there is a prominent tendency overseas to in-house app marketing. Elaborating on the reason, he introduced a key characteristic of foreign app marketing: “While we frequently see cases in Japan where advertising agencies are utilized, outside of Japan it is more common for internal marketers to conduct analysis and operations themselves, and a culture of relying on ad agencies does not really exist.”
(Speaker: Mr. Kanazawa, All-In Inc.)
Furthermore, according to Mr. Kanazawa, while there is a diverse variety of BI tools available—including tools for analyzing creatives and tools for analyzing communities—he shared characteristics seen in the marketing of overseas game apps through practical examples, stating: “Foreign companies utilize BI tools to bridge first-party and third-party data, conducting thorough and exhaustive analysis based on those results.”
User Acquisition Initiatives
Recently, AI has advanced significantly around targeted advertising, reducing the scenarios where humans need to intervene in ad operations. In contrast, the affiliate advertising domain still frequently involves human-driven operations. Addressing this current reality, Mr. Kanazawa from All-In, which runs numerous overseas game app advertisements on “SKYFLAG,” stated, “For marketers, ‘SKYFLAG’ is an advertising product that is truly rewarding to operate,” expressing appreciation for SKYFLAG’s full disclosure of ad distribution placements and its ability to manage and operate campaigns at a granular level using AB testing.
(Modertor: Mr. Ikeda, Skyfall Inc.)
Next, regarding awareness and responses toward ad fraud, Mr. Ikeda—the business manager of “SKYFLAG”—shared the actual situation: “There is a massive gap between Japan and overseas when it comes to the adoption rate of ad fraud detection tools. While the adoption rate sits at around 5% in Japan, it exceeds 30% overseas.”
Community Activation Initiatives
Regarding community marketing, which is an area many foreign game apps are already actively tackling and placing significant effort into, the actual state was explored with Mr. Inoue from Mirrativ, an expert in community marketing who operates the communication platform “Mirrativ.”
(Speaker: Mr. Inoue, Mirrativ, Inc.)
“Comparing users who engaged with ‘Mirrativ’ against those who did not, a massive difference emerged in user retention rates. In one particular case, there was a substantial difference of over 10% in retention,” he shared. He also introduced through real-world examples that “Mirrativ” segmentizes users into categories—such as new users, dormant users, non-paying users, and paying users—and conducts deep, quantitative analysis tailored to each attribute.
Closing Remarks
To wrap up the session, Mr. Kanazawa from All-In called upon the audience, saying, “Instead of just chasing install numbers to fulfill your own KPIs as a marketer, let’s analyze cleanly, correctly, and meticulously for the sake of the product, with the goal of expanding the game’s reach.” Furthermore, Mr. Inoue from Mirrativ emphasized the importance of “analyzing everything quantitatively and deeply.”
About “TOKYO GAME CONNECT”
Conceived as a place to celebrate new connections born through gaming, this event aims to serve as a venue where app marketers can inspire one another, explore the creation of new value, and share the latest knowledge and trends regarding app marketing through multiple sessions.
About “SKYFLAG”
“SKYFLAG” is a reward marketing platform that prioritizes user experience.
It has established a unique model leveraging rewards and provides comprehensive marketing support across monetization, promotion, and research.
・Service Site: https://skyflag.info/
About “Skyfall”
Skyfall operates under the banner of “Creating a world where good things spread,” running “SKYFLAG,” an advertising monetization platform that aligns with the user experience, and “SKYFLAG Research,” a marketing research service that pursues representativeness.
Furthermore, the company operates “Poker Chase,” an authentic Texas Hold’em poker game, and “Pocket Play,” an app where users can earn rewards simply by playing their favorite games.
| Company Name | :Skyfall Inc. |
| CEO | :Tomokazu Hasegawa |
| Address | :(Tokyo Head Office) 19F Midtown Tower, 9-7-1 Akasaka, Minato-ku, Tokyo :(Niigata Office) Nippon Life Insurance Niigata Building 7F, 2-4-10 Higashiodori, Chuo-ku, Niigata-shi, Niigata |
| Business Description | :Marketing Platform Business and App Media Business |
| Number of employees | :190 (As of the end of December 2024) |
| Established | :October 2017 |
| Capital | :79,393,750 yen |
| Website | :https://skyfall.co.jp/ |
