Programmatic Case Study: Achieving 5.45 CPA for a Play-to-Earn Crypto Project
Client: Play-to-Earn Blockchain Gaming Project
Market: Eastern Europe
Channels: Programmatic Display & Mobile Web
Primary KPI: Account Creation (Target CPA: ≤ $10)
The Challenge
The Play-to-Earn segment in Eastern Europe is highly competitive, with performance volatility and strong price sensitivity. The client’s objective was clear: scale new account registrations while maintaining a CPA not higher than $10, ensuring sustainable user acquisition through programmatic channels.
Our Strategy
1. Strategic Geo Allocation (Eastern Europe)
We deployed a tiered country-level strategy across selected Eastern European markets, prioritizing:
• Regions with strong blockchain adoption
• High gaming engagement rates
• Stable conversion-to-registration benchmarks
Budgets and bid modifiers were adjusted dynamically to maintain CPA control while enabling scale.
2. Device & Traffic Filtering
Performance insights quickly revealed device-level differences, so we:
• Prioritized modern Android devices and high-resolution desktop environments
• Excluded outdated operating systems and low-performing browser versions
• Removed placements associated with inflated bounce rates or low registration intent
This allowed us to protect efficiency from early-stage traffic leakage.
3. Motivation-Driven Creative Segmentation
Instead of generic “earn crypto” messaging, we built creative clusters tailored to user psychology:
• Competitive gaming positioning
• Reward-driven messaging
• Early-adopter / Web3 opportunity framing
All creatives were localized for Eastern European audiences and continuously optimized based on Account Creation performance.
4. CPA-Centric Optimization Loop
Campaign decisions were driven strictly by Account Creation data:
• Real-time bid adjustments tied directly to CPA performance
• Immediate suppression of segments exceeding $10
• Budget reallocation toward top-performing geo-device-creative combinations
The Results
• 5.45 CPA achieved (validated via platform reporting and screenshot data)
• Stable performance during scaling phase
• Programmatic established as a controlled, predictable acquisition channel
Why It Worked
Through geo-layered bidding, disciplined device filtering, and performance-driven creative testing, we aligned programmatic buying directly with CPA objectives — delivering scalable growth within strict cost parameters.