In our previous article, we analyzed some common features of the top grossing players on mobile games, the fast and furious whales. Although the fast and furious whales make up the smallest percentage of users online, more than half of revenue sales in a game is grossed by them.

Game companies are after these special users because they spend hundreds, thousands, and even millions of USD in a game.

But not all whales are born equal, and it is crucial to identify different types of whales in your mobile games to maximize results. Today, we’ll analyze the second type of whale, the slow whale - a sneaky gamer that requires very special care once identified.

Slow whales can spend tons of money in your game, too, but unlike the fast and furious whales, slow whales take their time. The first time playing a slow whale will spend a small amount of money just to test the waters. Then, they’ll start to spend more once they have been hooked to your game. For slow whales, your strategy should be about retention and your efforts should be focused on sucking them into your game within the first few days.  

Here are some steps to train and retain slow whales effectively. 

Identify  - Unlike the fast and furious whales you have plenty of time to catch your slow whale. However, you have very little room for mistakes in your hunt. By automatically analysing early behaviour of adult slow whales, Game of Whales can identify who is likely to become a slow whale in a very early stage.

Act  - The key to training a slow whale is not as obvious due to the slow whale’s tricky nature. An incentive to make a very big purchase i.e. $100, in an early stage of the game might scare your slow whale off. That is why traditional marketing automation campaigns work best with fast and furious whales and not with slow whales. A slow whale reacts more favorably to game offers that aren’t directly related to spending big at first -they require a more gradual approach to conquer. Over time, you can increase their game engagement and get the big payoffs in the long run!

Maintain -It is very important to understand what the optimal time gap for the slow whale is so that you can encourage them to come back and not spam them away. For some slow whales, you have to manage break sessions that last a few hours and for others, you might need to manage sessions as long as a few days or a few weeks. 

Here's a user who spent less, 

This player did his first IAP after 15 sessions and then waited two weeks to play 41 additional sessions before doing his second IAP. Like a slow whale, he didn’t move too fast between different price points. Even when it’s cost effective to move to the next price point, slow whales will tend to stay in their comfort zone - for this user, the comfortable price point was $60.

The way to encourage slow whales is to understand the behavioural funnel they might match and lead them through it with “in-game incentives” rather than discounts and promotions around spending money.  

Don’t Leave your Slow Whales Behind

Although slow whales might be a little trickier to hunt, there is no denying the potential they hold for your gaming strategy - giving them the right attention can earn you BIG in the long run. Remember that slow whalers are bombarded with ads to other games and are more likely to jump ship to somewhere else compared to the average user. Make sure you keep them in your playing field so that you can maximize your retention efforts. 

To make your whaling efforts easier and more effective, the Game of Whales platform makes sure no whale is left behind. Game of Whales does the entire process of identifying, interacting, and optimizing on potential whales for you, automatically. The AI algorithm technology uses behavioral predictions to identify and motivate all of your whales for you. With minimal efforts on your side, you will have the biggest whales raking in money for you in no time. 

In our next article, we will discuss another type of valuable player. Subscribe to our blog to keep out for our articles and learn how to master all kinds of players in your gaming strategy.

Want to speed up your slow whales to more profit? Create your free account at Game of Whales to boost your whale's revenue today!