My Niche Online Games Make $20K/Mo [Update]
This is a follow up story for Dilly Dally Games (Mexican Train). If you're interested in reading how they got started, published over 1 year ago, check it out here.
Hello again! Remind us who you are and what business you started.
I’m Christian Tuskes and I’m the founder and solopreneur of Dilly Dally Games, LLC. My flagship product is the game Mexican Train Dominoes, which is available in the App Store, Google Play, Amazon App Store, and on the web. My second game is Play Bunco, which is also available on the web. If you’re interested, you can read my original interview.
My customers are anyone who likes to play casual games, or more specifically, loves to play dominoes or dice. Today, I make approximately $20k/month primarily through ad revenue. I offer a few in-app purchases through the App Store as well. I like to focus on niche casual games other than the usual highly competitive ones, like solitaire.
Tell us about what you’ve been up to. Has the business been growing?
My monthly revenue has increased roughly $3.5k since my original interview all the while my user base has stayed consistent. It’s all because of the ad partner I work with. They’re good with yield management and ad optimization.
I haven't done very much in the way of growth except keep my focus on SEO for the web version of the game. I added a few new minor features but I mostly maintain the product by fixing bugs and keeping the code up to date.
Actually, what has occupied most of my time is the deeper dive I‘ve been taking into the inner workings of the AdTech industry. With data privacy becoming more apparent and the shift from third party data to first party data, I thought it would be a good time to understand the wizard behind the curtain.
Learning more about AdTech has been an eye-opening experience. I didn’t realize how many problems plague the industry from total lack of transparency to fraud. As they say, where there are problems, there are opportunities, so perhaps this path of learning I’m on will lead to some ideas on how to make the industry better.
When things are in flux, don’t worry about missing out or not getting in on the cool new thing. Haste makes waste. Maybe, it’s better to wait for the dust to settle.
What have been your biggest challenges in the last year?
My biggest challenge is feeling guilty about not taking an interest in the newest “cool” thing in technology. I stay focused on the things that interest me and try not to get distracted by shiny objects like AI, crypto, or social media. I find it hard to give a damn about those things (I know, what’s wrong with me?).
So far, I’m disappointed in AI and I don’t understand the hype. Everyone seems amazed by how far it’s come, but I’m surprised how much it can’t do. But, I agree, there’s still plenty of potential. AI just is not “there” yet for me.
Right now, what I find interesting are data privacy and the problems in the AdTech industry like lack of transparency, verifiability, accountability, brand safety, and the funding of mis/disinformation with ad revenue. Ultimately, these issues have a direct impact on my bottom line.
Always think of what is minimally or only absolutely necessary to launch your product or service. Focus on those things.
What have been your biggest lessons learned in the last year?
Sometimes it pays off to sit by and do nothing. When things are in flux, don’t worry about missing out or not getting in on the cool new thing. Haste makes waste. Maybe, it’s better to wait for the dust to settle. I’m thinking of the state of AI in this context. I loosely follow AI, but I’m not betting on any horse yet.
This lesson also applies to the deprecation of third party cookies on Chrome. After several years of a planned phase out, they’re still here.
What’s in the plans for the upcoming year, and the next 5 years?
I’m not entirely certain, but I imagine I will continue down the path of learning about the inner workings of ad technology and data privacy and maybe a brilliant idea will present itself somewhere along the way.
What’s the best thing you read in the last year?
I don’t know if anyone else will find them interesting but here are three books I enjoyed recently.
- Means of Control by Byron Tau - an interesting read about how the government can use commercially available data to surveil just about anyone.
- Your Face Belongs to Us by Kashmir Hill - a scary yet fascinating look into facial recognition technology and how easily available and accurate it is. Basically, we’re all screwed.
- Everybody Lies by Seth Stephens-Davidowitz - a data scientist’s analysis of what people think and feel based on their search data.
Advice for other entrepreneurs who might be struggling to grow their business?
Same advice as the original interview…
Don’t get bogged down by unnecessary things. Always think of what is minimally or only absolutely necessary to launch your product or service. Focus on those things.
Also, don’t fall into the Field of Dreams trap. “If you build it, they will come” is not true! You need to work as hard at marketing as you do the building. Plan for marketing to take time, effort, and some money.
Where can we go to learn more?
If you have any questions or comments, drop a comment below!
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Download the report and join our email newsletter packed with business ideas and money-making opportunities, backed by real-life case studies.
Download the report and join our email newsletter packed with business ideas and money-making opportunities, backed by real-life case studies.
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