The Gaming Playbook w/ Harry Phokou #37 – Ada Mockute Jaime: Casual Game Marketing in 2025 – Why UGC Beats Ads & TikTok Strategies
In this episode, I sit down with Ada Mockute Jaime, CMO at Nordcurrent (Cooking Fever, Airplane Chefs) to unpack what’s actually working in mobile game marketing in 2025.
From UGC that turns into billion-view ads, to TikTok Lives that really convert to installs, Ada breaks down the tactics casual studios can copy tomorrow to scale faster and cheaper.
We cover:
- How to turn organic UGC into high-performing Spark Ads
- Why TikTok Lives do drive installs (and how to track it)
- What gameplay actually drives views: fast, chaotic clips that hook instantly
- Why Discord isn’t always the right community hub
- Smarter brand collabs: from Puma drops to QR “secret menus”
Whether you’re a marketer, game developer, or just curious how mobile games reach millions of players, this episode breaks down the strategies shaping game marketing in 2025.
Connect with Ada:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/adamockute/
Connect with Harry:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/hphokou/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@hphokou
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hphokou
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This September, I’m excited to be attending the @Live Service Gaming Summit, a must-attend event for anyone building, scaling, or evolving live service games.
From content cadence and monetisation to backend resilience and community building, the summit dives deep into what it really takes to create games that last.
Check out the latest event agenda here: https://www.iqpc.com/events-live-service-gaming-summit/agenda-mc/?utm_source=Harry%20Phokou&utm_medium=External%20Email&utm_campaign=49350.002_LSGSummit_Harry_Phokou_NL_Agenda&utm_term=&utm_content=&disc=&extTreatId=7621796
Use code PHOKOU20 for 20% off your pass
Let me know if you’re attending too, would love to connect!
#LSGSummit #LiveServiceGames #GameDev #GamingIndustry #LiveOps #GameDesign #Monetisation #GamingEvents
Chapters:
00:00 Introduction
01:01 Fresh Perspective on Gaming Marketing
03:35 Biggest Challenges Facing Game Developers in 2025
05:33 What's Actually Working: The Billion-View Strategy
07:31 The Power of User-Generated Content
09:34 Scaling UGC for Any Size Game
11:32 Doing Influencer Marketing Right
14:41 TikTok Live Gaming and Platform Strategy
18:23 Why People Watch Others Play Games
20:06 Mastering TikTok Trends and Timing
23:07 Tracking ROI from Viral Content
24:27 The Mystery of Viral Performance
27:53 Community Building Strategy by Game Type
29:35 Player-Created Communities vs Company-Owned
32:48 Expanding Beyond Mobile: Nordcurrent Labs
36:14 Global Community Management at Scale
37:51 The Brand Partnership Innovation Challenge
40:58 Reimagining Brand Partnerships
43:49 Practical Partnership Implementation
46:03 Breaking Through Corporate Gatekeepers
49:28 The First Success Strategy
51:35 Live Partnership Pitch: Calling Out Ryanair
53:50 Creating Player-Centric Brand Partnerships
56:18 Top 3 Marketing Advice for 2025
58:07 Authenticity in Professional Marketing
59:04 Ways to Connect & Wrap-up
#MobileGameMarketing #TikTokAds #UGC #CasualGames #UserAcquisition