NetShort Achieves 400% User Growth Through Effective CTV Advertising Strategies
Discover how NetShort transformed its user acquisition strategy through connected TV advertising, achieving remarkable growth while enhancing monetization and engagement.
Key Facts
- NetShort achieved 400% user growth in six months, indicating strong market demand for CTV content.
- Exceeded D0 ROAS targets by over 50%, revealing effective monetization strategies for new users.
- 87% improvement in CPI suggests efficient user acquisition, enhancing competitive positioning in CTV.
- Localized creatives drove 59% higher ROI, highlighting the importance of tailored marketing in user engagement.
- The campaign established a scalable framework for global expansion, indicating strategic growth potential.
Summary
Summary
NetShort, a fast-growing video content platform, faced challenges in user acquisition costs and sought to expand its reach to higher-value users. By implementing a phased connected TV (CTV) strategy powered by audience and content signals through The Trade Desk, NetShort achieved a 400% user growth in six months while maintaining a stable cost per acquisition (CPA).
Background
NetShort operates in the entertainment industry, specializing in AI-driven storytelling through mobile-first series known as "microdramas." The platform has gained global traction, particularly after originating in China. Before deploying the CTV strategy, NetShort relied heavily on mobile channels for user acquisition, which limited its ability to reach new audiences and manage rising acquisition costs.
Challenge
The primary challenge for NetShort was to diversify its user acquisition strategy to attract users with higher retention and monetization potential. The company aimed to move beyond maximizing app installs to focus on acquiring long-term, paying customers, while facing increasing costs in traditional mobile and social channels.
Solution
NetShort, in collaboration with its agency MadHouse, launched a phased test-and-scale strategy on The Trade Desk platform. The initial phase involved an always-on CTV campaign in the U.S. to establish reach and gather performance data. As the campaign progressed, the team refined their targeting by structuring ad groups based on audience demographics, inventory sources, and device types. They created theme-based campaigns aligned with viewer interests and utilized Kokai’s AI-driven capabilities for audience exploration and optimization.
Results
The CTV campaign resulted in significant growth for NetShort:
- Achieved 400% user growth in six months while maintaining a stable CPA.
- Exceeded first-day return on ad spend (D0 ROAS) targets by over 50%, with peak performance reaching 3-4 times target levels.
- Improved cost per install (CPI) by 87% against campaign goals.
Creative analysis revealed that localized creatives with English subtitles outperformed dubbed versions, yielding a 59% higher ROI and nearly three times the install rate of benchmark creatives. The campaign demonstrated that expanding beyond traditional mobile channels can enhance both audience reach and acquisition efficiency.
Key Insights
NetShort's experience illustrates the importance of integrating CTV into a broader media strategy to access new audiences while maintaining performance. By aligning audience strategies with content affinity and leveraging AI for optimization, businesses can achieve scalable growth without sacrificing user quality.
Customer Testimonial
No testimonial was provided in the source material.
Entities Mentioned
Companies
Technologies
Key Concepts
Definitions
- D0 ROAS
- D0 ROAS measures the revenue generated within a user’s first 24 hours after installing a mobile app relative to media investment.
- CPI
- CPI stands for Cost Per Install, a metric used to measure the cost-effectiveness of acquiring new app users.
- microdramas
- Microdramas are short, vertically filmed episodes designed for mobile-first consumption, often featuring serialized storytelling.
- audience signals
- Audience signals refer to data points that help identify and target specific user demographics and interests.
- performance-driven user acquisition
- Performance-driven user acquisition focuses on attracting users who are likely to generate revenue and engage with the app over time.
Use Cases
- →Testing connected TV as a brand-building and performance channel
- →Establishing a phased CTV strategy for user acquisition
- →Segmenting audiences by demographics for targeted advertising
- →Using AI to refine audience targeting and improve campaign performance
- →Optimizing ad creatives based on performance data
- →Scaling into new markets while improving user experiences
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the main business objective of NetShort?
NetShort aims to expand beyond mobile to reach higher-value users, focusing on acquiring users with strong retention and monetisation potential.
How did NetShort achieve user growth?
NetShort achieved 400% user growth in six months by implementing a CTV strategy that combined audience optimisation and cross-device measurement.
What role did MadHouse play in the campaign?
MadHouse collaborated with NetShort to launch and manage the CTV campaign on The Trade Desk platform, helping to refine audience targeting and improve performance.
What are microdramas?
Microdramas are short, serialized video content designed for mobile-first consumption, which engage users through high-frequency storytelling.
What is the significance of D0 ROAS in this context?
D0 ROAS is significant as it measures the immediate revenue generated from newly acquired users within their first 24 hours, indicating the effectiveness of the user acquisition strategy.