Playerize secures $1M to find more players for your online game

Playerize, a company that helps game studios find more players for their online and mobile games, raised $1 million in its first round of funding.

“Playerize uses display advertising through blog networks to help find new players for mobile and social games. For example, if a game studio creates a puppy themed game, we would place a display ad on a puppy related website to drive players to the game,” Playerize co-founder Lyal Avery told VentureBeat. Avery noted that Playerize’s main competitors, Nanigans and Ad Parlor, only focus on Facebook ads.

Self-described as the “Google AdWords of game advertising”, Playerize helps game studios increase revenue from online game play and find new players for their games. The company uses direct advertising and search networks to increase player acquisition as well.

Game studios that use Playerize get a real-time dashboard to manage ad campaigns and track how well ads are doing based on conversions and click through rates. The company will also create ads for game studios that don’t have in-house advertising departments.

Playerize plans to use the $1 million to serve more game studios, expand its sales and development teams and secure more traffic sources for ad distribution. It also plans to develop its beta email service, which focuses on player reengagement.

Playerize was founded in 2011 with the help of Founderfuel, a Montreal-based accelerator. Founderfuel launched its first 12-week program in August of 2011 to help teams launch their companies with mentorship and venture capital funding. Playerize graduated from the program with seed funding and closed its series A round about one month later. Playerize is backed by Real Ventures, Rho Ventures, Mike Edwards of Initio Group, David Chamandy of Machkor, Martin-Luc Archambault, Dan Robichaud, and Jason Bailey.