Rewarded ads

Rewarded ads are a popular fullscreen ad format where users receive incentives for viewing ads.

Ad impressions are opt-in: for example, users can initiate them to get game bonuses or extra lives.

Strong user motivation makes this ad format the most popular and profitable adoption in free apps.

This guide covers the process of integrating rewarded ads into React Native apps. Besides code samples and instructions, it also contains format-specific recommendations and links to additional resources.

Prerequisite

1. Follow the Yandex Mobile Ads React Native plugin integration steps described under Quick start.
2. Make sure that you have the latest version of the Yandex Mobile Ads React Native plugin. If you're using mediation, update to the most recent single build version.

Implementation

Key steps for integrating rewarded ads:

• Create and configure a RewardedAdLoader.
• Set up the parameters for loading ads using an AdRequestParams object.
• Load the RewardedAd object.
• Set the ad's callback functions.
• Display the RewardedAd object.
• Reward the user for viewing the ad.

Features of rewarded ad integration

If the loadAd method returns an error, don't try to load a new ad again. If there's no other option, limit the number of ad load retries. This will help avoid constant unsuccessful requests and connection issues if there are limitations.

Loading ads

To load your rewarded ads, create a RewardedAdLoader object. To do this, call the RewardedAdLoader.create() method.

You'll need the placement ID from the Boost interface (adUnitId). You can also expand ad request parameters by providing information about the user's interests, page context, location, and other additional data. Extra context added to ad requests can greatly improve the ad quality. Read more in the Ad Targeting section.

To load your rewarded ad, call the loadAd method of the RewardedAdLoader class object.

The example below shows how to load a rewarded ad:

let loader = await RewardedAdLoader.create()
    .catch((error) => {
        // Handle error gracefully
        return;
    });
if (!loader) {
    return;
}
let ad = await loader.loadAd({
    adUnitId: 'R-M-XXXXXX-Y', // for debug you can use 'demo-rewarded-yandex'
    targeting: {
        age: '20',
        contextQuery: 'context-query',
        contextTags: ['context-tag'],
        gender: Gender.Female,
        location: new Location(55.734202, 37.588063),
    },
})
    .then((ad) => {
        console.log(`Did load, adInfo: ${JSON.stringify(ad.adInfo)}`);
        return ad;
    })
    .catch((error) => {
        // Handle error gracefully
        return;
    });

Displaying ads

Rewarded ads are an incentivized ad format that allows users to earn rewards by viewing ads. These rewards may include extra lives or the ability to advance to the next level in a game. The reward format is determined by the app itself.

To track a rewarded ad's lifecycle and reward events, set callback functions for the RewardedAd class object.

To display a rewarded ad, use the show() method:

ad.onAdShown = () => {
    console.log('Did show');
};
ad.onAdFailedToShow = (error) => {
    console.log(`Did fail to show with error: ${JSON.stringify(error)}`);
};
ad.onAdClicked = () => {
    console.log('Did click');
};
ad.onAdDismissed = () => {
    console.log('Did dismiss');
};
ad.onAdImpression = (impressionData) => {
    console.log(`Did track impression: ${JSON.stringify(impressionData)}`);
};
ad.onRewarded = (reward) => {
    console.log(`Did reward: ${JSON.stringify(reward)}`);
}
ad.show();

Testing rewarded ad integration

Android

iOS

Using demo ad units for ad testing

Use test ads to check your rewarded ad integration and the app itself. To make sure that test ads are returned for each ad request, you can use a special demo ad placement ID.

Demo adUnitId: demo-rewarded-yandex.

Warning

Before publishing your app in the store, make sure to replace the demo placement ID with the real ID you obtained in the Boost interface.

For the list of all available demo ad placement IDs, see Demo ad units for testing.

Testing ad integration

You can check if your rewarded ads are integrated correctly using the SDK's built-in analyzer. A detailed report with the test results will appear in the log.

To view the report, search for the keyword “YandexAds” in Logcat, a tool for debugging Android apps.

adb logcat -v brief '*:S YandexAds'

If the integration is successful, the following message is returned:

adb logcat -v brief '*:S YandexAds'
mobileads$ adb logcat -v brief '*:S YandexAds'
I/YandexAds(13719): [Integration] Ad type rewarded was integrated successfully

If there are any rewarded ad integration issues, you'll get a detailed issue report and troubleshooting recommendations.

Using demo ad units for ad testing

We recommend using test ads to test your ad integration and your app itself.

To guarantee that test ads are returned for every ad request, we created a special demo ad placement ID. Use it to check your ad integration.

Demo adUnitId: demo-rewarded-yandex.

Warning

Before publishing your app to the store, make sure you replace the demo ad unit ID with a real one obtained from the Boost interface.

You can find the list of available demo ad placement IDs in the Demo ad units for testing section.

Testing ad integration

You can test your ad integration using the native Console tool.

To view detailed logs, call the YandexAds class's enableLogging method.

YandexAds.enableLogging()

To view SDK logs, go to the Console tool and set Subsystem = com.mobile.ads.ads.sdk. You can also filter logs by category and error level.

If you're having problems integrating ads, you'll get a detailed report on the issues and recommendations for how to fix them.

Tips

Ad preloading

Loading an ad may take several seconds, depending on the number of ad networks connected in mobile mediation and the user's internet speed. We recommend preloading ads before displaying them.

Call the loadAd method in advance to instantly show the ad when it's needed.

To begin preloading the next ad immediately after serving the current one, you can link this process to the onAdDismissed event.

If you cache ads on too many screens that are unlikely to be shown, your ad effectiveness could drop. For example, if users complete 2-3 game levels per session, you shouldn't cache ads for 6-7 screens. Your ad viewability could decrease otherwise, and the advertising system might deprioritize your app.

To make sure you're finding a good balance for your app, track the "Share of impressions" or "Share of visible impressions" metric in the Boost interface. If it's under 20%, you should probably revise your caching algorithm. The higher the percentage of impressions, the better.

Additional resources

• Link to GitHub.