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In the Spotlight: Sunday’s Growth Team

You can produce the best game in the world with stunning graphics and captivating gameplay, but it will only go that far without a carefully planned user acquisition strategy. At Sunday, the first part is covered by the in-house production and partner studios, while taking care of boosting the earnings lies on the shoulders of the Growth Team. Today we’ll continue the deep dive into the internal processes of Sunday and get to know the people of the Growth team as well as their methods of work, principles, and motivations.

Meet the Team

This tight-knit international squad is made up of some seriously talented individuals, each bringing their own unique skills and experiences to the table:

• First up we have Vlad, the Head of Growth. A success story of his own, he joined Applike years ago as an intern and climbed all the way up to this leadership role thanks to his immaculate foresight and analytical skills.

• Meet Sagi, our UA manager. This guy’s a multitasking pro, able to think on his feet and communicate clearly even when things get hectic. 

• Then there’s Ehsan, a tech-savvy growth manager. Ehsan has been creating, publishing, and marketing games for almost a decade.

• Next up, we’ve got Hüsamettin, a growth manager with plenty of experience in the mobile gaming industry. This guy’s got a deep understanding of the ins and outs of the biz, and is always willing to share his knowledge with the team.

• Skariah, a BI analyst and developer, is the one to thank for creating all those sweet analytics tools and automated processes to increase the team’s efficiency. 

• Our newest team member Arya, a BI analyst, has already jumped right in, designing an automated LTV prediction model.

• And let’s not forget Su, our Growth intern and a future mechanical design engineer. She keeps surprising the team with her thoughtful and well-considered observations.

The members of the Growth team are fortune tellers of the gaming world, responsible for predicting the success of games and helping to scale them to bring in the big bucks. From providing feedback during the ideation process to analyzing the performance of tests, the Growth team helps Sunday’s game leads and publishing team to know exactly what they’re working with. Is it a top product that’s ready to dominate the market? Or is it a project that might not be worth the investment? Either way, the Growth team is there to properly scale each game and bring in maximum efficiency and benefit. 

But the Growth team’s responsibilities don’t stop there — they’re also responsible for optimizing creatives and monetization. Whether it’s coming up with new ideas for creatives or adjusting in-house mediation to maximize revenue, these gaming gurus are always working to help Sunday reach new heights.

How’s It Growing? Our Recent Achievements

At Sunday, each growth manager is responsible for certain games that they have to know like the back of their hand. At all times, they know what’s happening in the lifecycle of the project, including every running test and its results. This approach has helped Sunday make the recent launches — like the one of Spinner Merge — really smooth or “by the book” as Vlad describes them. 

The Growth team has also had great success with new campaign models for several networks, and has found ways to properly run and scale them without overspending. And they’re not done just yet — they are always working on new ideas and tests to continue improving their growth strategies.

Another major accomplishment for the team has been bringing Sunday’s iOS titles to China. As the world’s largest market for mobile gaming with over 500 million active users, China presents a huge opportunity for Sunday. By releasing our games in the region, we are able to connect with this audience and provide them with top-notch gaming experiences.

In addition to all of this, the Growth team has developed an entirely new BI system specifically designed with an emphasis on software development. This allows them to gather and analyze data in real-time, giving them the insights they need to make informed decisions and optimize their games for maximum engagement and revenue. This is just a small share of the recent wins — the Growth team at Sunday is always striving for success and innovation in the ever-changing world of hyper-casual mobile gaming.

KPIs We Bet on

The key metrics that we focus on include, among others, healthy long-term ROAS (return on ad spend), CPI (cost per install), IPM (install per mille), and LTV (lifetime value). In the past, it was enough for a game to have a high IPM and generate most of its revenue in the first few days after the install, but now it’s becoming increasingly important for games to have a high LTV and strong retention rates up to D45 and beyond in order to be successful.

This is happening because the hyper-casual gaming industry is evolving: the market becomes more saturated and competitive raising the bar for all publishers. Gone are the days of games that are fun for a few minutes and then quickly forgotten. If before, all you had to do was create an entertaining “pilot episode” with a high IPM rate, now you have to think “seasons” ahead with high retention rates and substantial LTV. This change is being driven by the need to adapt to a more challenging market and create better, more engaging games that players will want to keep coming back to. 

As a result, some developers who were used to creating simple, low-quality games are leaving the industry, making way for those who are more focused on creating high-quality hyper-casual titles. Sunday is here to stay and set higher standards. Our Growth team was created with the current shift in mind: we automate and streamline the internal processes and count on our team members who have experience bidding on a large scale. Even when we multiply our monthly revenue, it won’t catch us off guard or disrupt our way to the top.

Sunday’s Growth Team: Our Unbeatable Asset!

At Sunday, we’re all about collaboration and growth. And with our highly skilled and visionary Growth team on board, we’re well-equipped to handle whatever challenges the fast-paced world of hyper-casual gaming throws our way. Our goal is not only to continually expand and improve ourselves, but also to support and promote the growth of our partner studios. If you’re looking to join forces with a team of experts dedicated to maximizing the profit potential of your game, don’t hesitate to get in touch and publish with us!