Ramadan starts on March 22nd, and during this month, many places will see working hours cut in half and schools out of session. With all the free time, when they aren’t fasting, praying, or reflecting, observers are looking for entertainment, and many of them turn to their smartphones.
As one of the most popular and accessible forms of entertainment, millions of people are playing mobile games, and religious seasons are no exception. Last year, smartphone users celebrating Ramadan increased their shopping, streaming, and digital payment habits, with gaming habits seeing the biggest uptick. Here are three insights to keep in mind about mobile games when achieving app growth during Ramadan 2023:
Mobile gaming doesn’t slow down during Ramadan.
In fact, it picks up! DT’s Ramadan research shows that 51% of observers in EMEA will spend more time playing mobile games during this period. Meanwhile, more than 71% in the APAC region will spend more or equal time playing. Whether it's through in-app promotions or UA campaigns, developers have the opportunity to reach enthusiastic players looking to fill their free time.
Smartphones are the way to go for Ramadan purchases.
An overwhelming majority of consumers in APAC (93%) use their smartphones the most to make online purchases during Ramadan. Most of them (63%) also stated preferring to shop in-app. Brands can advertise in-app and specifically in mobile games to reach their target audiences as they shop for the Ramadan season. Clothing retailers and groceries should especially capitalize on these opportunities because they are the top items that mobile users are looking to buy during Ramadan.
A month of Ramadan allows for campaign optimization.
Because of its month-long time frame, Ramadan gives developers and advertisers the space to optimize their mobile strategy as the weeks go by. More consumers (47%) will shop online during Ramadan rather than before (39%). Brands should look at this time as a marathon rather than a sprint and make sure they are delivering relevant ads to their audiences over the month. Mobile game developers looking to grow their user base should also be optimizing their UA campaigns regularly to ensure they are not missing any growth opportunities.
