Is AppLovin Actually Incremental? 8 Tests, Real Data, Real Results

Key Points

• Apploven (now Axon) is a new advertising platform showing strong, consistent positive incrementality in tests, with conservative attribution (same-day or one-day click-only) leading to actual business impact often 20-50% higher than reported.
• The platform is particularly easy and fast to set up for Shopify stores, with deep pixel tracking. For non-Shopify sites, setup is more technically complex.
• Initial campaign strategy favors starting with a single consolidated campaign for learning, then potentially segmenting by product AOV for better spend control, as bidding and cost controls are set only at the campaign level.
• Creative testing is a major focus, with success found in repurposing various content (creator videos, UGC, images) from other channels, though optimal formats are still being determined.
• The platform is intentionally built with a simplified, controlled feature set (e.g., specific bidding options, no ad scheduling at the ad set level), which advertisers are now requesting to expand.

Summary

The discussion provides an update on the Apploven (rebranding to Axon) advertising platform, focusing on performance learnings and tactical best practices from hands-on use across multiple clients. The key finding from numerous incrementality tests is that the platform consistently delivers positive business results. Its attribution model is intentionally conservative, using only same-day or one-day click attribution, which means the revenue impact measured in the platform is typically lower than the actual incremental lift, which averages around 151%. This consistency builds high confidence in the channel's effectiveness.

From a tactical standpoint, account setup is remarkably streamlined for Shopify stores, taking roughly ten minutes via an app that installs a deep-event pixel and product feed. For non-Shopify platforms, the process is more developer-intensive. Campaign structure initially recommends a single, consolidated campaign to gather learnings over a 14-day period. Post-learning phase, segmentation—primarily by average order value (AOV)—is considered to better control spend distribution, as bidding and cost controls are exclusively set at the campaign level. The platform's design philosophy emphasizes simplicity and control, starting with only cost-per-purchase bidding and later adding ROAS bidding, but it lacks some features advertisers commonly use elsewhere, like ad-set-level scheduling.

Creative strategy is highlighted as a dynamic and exciting area. Practitioners are enthusiastically testing a wide array of content, including creator videos, user-generated content (UGC), still images, and street interviews, often repurposing assets from other marketing channels. While the best-performing content types are still being identified, early results across all formats are positive. The overall sentiment is that Apploven/Axon represents one of the most significant and promising new advertising channel entries in recent memory, having quickly grown to become a major spending channel during the holiday season. The conversation concludes by noting the natural tension between the platform's initial, controlled simplicity and advertisers' growing requests for more granular features and controls.