How This Sweepstakes Gaming Campaign Cut FTD Costs from $261 to $90 and Scaled 3X
The real trend of this summer is not labubu, it’s a booming Sweepstakes Gaming vertical (no less addictive, though)! Extremely popular in some states of the US, Sweepstakes Gaming is known for being a niche with high earning potential due to an exceptional level of user engagement. These games are taking the US states by storm, which means that it’s high time to catch the moment and cash in.
And this is exactly what one of PropellerAds’ partners, namely, a direct advertiser, is already doing! With a campaign started in March 2025, he has already scaled it 3X and cut the FTD cost almost 3X as well.
Find out more in today’s case study!
For Anyone Joining Late: What Is Sweepstakes Gaming?
Sweepstakes Gaming offers are part of the booming social gaming niche, where players enjoy engaging games using virtual currency. A built-in mechanic gives users a chance to unlock more content and enjoy no-risk entertainment for in-game coins, which have only in-game value and cannot be redeemed in any form of real currency, making this niche legally accessible in most US states.
Such games are usually immersive, which entails high user engagement and repeat visits, meaning great LTV, but it also means that traffic costs can spiral quickly if not managed smartly.
Now you might be wondering, what do we mean by FTD in this case study, if there is no real currency in Sweepstakes Gaming? And that would be justified, so we explain:
In this case, an FTD counted when a user acquired a bundle of in-game coins needed to access more games, where he can compete with other users for digital prizes.
Now that you know all the background, let’s move on to the most interesting part.
How Everything Started
So, on May 26, 2025, our direct advertiser launched a brand-new Sweepstakes Gaming campaign in US. The targeting was well-tuned, the budget was ready, and the product had potential.
But after the first few weeks, the numbers were far from the target:
- $16 per registration (with the goal of $10)
- $261 per First-Time Deposit (FTD) – the target here was $150-$200.
Well, for a competitive vertical like this, these numbers were not too promising, so something had to change! And our advertiser together with his personal manager Petros Sofroniou started testing.
The “Test Everything” Phase
Instead of narrowing down too soon, the team kicked off with Run of Network (RON) campaigns across all ad formats, operating systems, and zones to collect broad performance data and optimize later.
By the end of June, here’s what they knew:
- Android users made up 78% of registrations, iOS 14%, Desktop 8%
- Onclick and Classic Push were leading in conversions
It wasn’t enough to hit the KPIs yet, but the clues were there.
The First Clues Appear
After analyzing test data, our advertiser’s manager revealed that certain US states consistently outperformed others. Specific zones and traffic categories – especially PropellerAds Social traffic type – were delivering far better engagement.
These weren’t just random spikes – they were high-value pockets of traffic waiting for their finest hour to be scaled.
Laser-Focused Targeting
Following his manager’s advice, the advertiser shifted gears and launched hyper-targeted campaigns:
- Focused on top-performing states
- Zeroed in on high-ROI zones
- Targeted the most responsive traffic categories (mostly, PropellerAds Social Traffic type)
They also tested different price models – CPM, SmartCPM, and SmartCPC – to match spend with the placement’s potential.
One surprising discovery? One single zone, when targeted separately, outperformed dozens of others, delivering both volume and quality. Feel the power of testing!
The Numbers Flip
Once the new campaigns went live in early July, performance improved almost immediately:
| Metric | Before optimization | After optimization |
| CPA (registration) | $16 | $8.9 |
| CPA (FTD) | $261 | $90 |
| Avg. Daily Spend | $750 (June) | $2,265 (August) |
The FTD cost dropped by 65%, registrations became almost half the price, and daily spend more than tripled – all of that without sacrificing ROI!
What’s Next?
Here is what Petros Sofroniou, our partner’s personal manager, told us about their plans:
“We continue to work closely with this advertiser, focusing on further reducing the CPA per FTD to consistently meet the target range. Once that milestone is achieved, the plan is to scale significantly by maximizing traffic from the top-performing sources that already deliver quality FTDs – ensuring sustainable growth and long-term profitability.”
The Takeaways
- Start broad, move to precision: the broad testing gave the advertiser the data to identify and scale the best segments.
- Geo targeting wins: state-level targeting proved crucial for cutting costs in US campaigns.
- Zone management matters: in this case, we found out that one high-performing zone can deliver outsized results during zone analysis and management.
- Use price models strategically: mixing CPM, SmartCPM, and SmartCPC allowed better cost control and ROI optimization.
What began as an expensive experiment became a scalable, high-ROI campaign in less than two months with smart testing and optimization.
For this advertiser, hitting $90 per FTD wasn’t just a milestone – it was proof that in Sweepstakes Gaming, a data-driven approach is the real jackpot.
Launch a campaign with PropellerAds – you can do that, too!
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