Upbit's new user acquisition campaign combined WEBTOON IP, premium banners and B2B cookie purchases within a single channel.
Bitcoin Pizza Day (May 22) commemorates the first real-world purchase made with Bitcoin, when two pizzas were famously bought using the cryptocurrency. To celebrate the occasion, Upbit, one of Korea's leading digital asset exchanges, partnered with NAVER WEBTOON to launch a special campaign, leveraging WEBTOON's extensive user base and media reach.
* Cookies refer to a coin-like in-app currency used to view or purchase paid WEBTOON content.
Campaign at a Glance
Objective
Attract new Upbit users
Strategy
Purchase WEBTOON cookies through a B2B partnership and leverage them as a key marketing asset → launch premium ad placements featuring creatives based on WEBTOON IP
Key differentiator
By combining storytelling-driven advertising to capture attention with cookie rewards to encourage participation, the campaign naturally connected new user acquisition with brand building
Strategy 1. Maximize conversion by leveraging WEBTOON's user base
To drive active participation from WEBTOON users, Upbit focused on "cookies" — a reward that any WEBTOON fan would love to have. New users simply entered an event code in the Upbit app to receive a cookie voucher, creating a seamless participation journey while adding the fun of completing a mission.
Strategy 2. Bring cookie promotions to life through the WEBTOON universe
Upbit integrated its Bitcoin Pizza Day campaign into the universe of four popular WEBTOON titles through storytelling-driven "Branded Story" ads. By naturally embedding the campaign message into each title's narrative, the campaign minimized ad fatigue and drove higher user engagement.
Strategy 3. Eye-catching creative assets
The resulting Branded Story IP was extended across key user touchpoints, including image banners within the app where users discover content, as well as video creative assets. In particular, splash ads and full-screen pop-ups displayed at app launch maximized reach among NAVER WEBTOON users.
Key Results
Splash Package + pop-up
25M+
Reach via the app's main placements
Branded Story (PPL)
1%↑
4 titles' CTR exceeded 1%
Non-skip ad
99%↑
Video view-through rate (VTR)
The Splash Package, strategically placed at key moments in the user journey — from app launch to content discovery — generated over 20M banner impressions, delivering both massive reach and strong brand awareness.
The Branded Story placements across four collaborative titles each achieved a CTR of over 1%, demonstrating that storytelling-driven advertising integrated into each title's narrative encouraged engagement without disrupting the reading experience. Non-skippable video ads recorded a CTR exceeding 6% and a view-through rate of over 99%.
Insights
Driving attention through WEBTOON IP storytelling
By seamlessly integrating Pizza Day messaging into the universe of the WEBTOON titles, the campaign transformed advertising into fun content, capturing attention without disrupting the reading experience.
Maximized reach with premium placements
High-impact placements including splash ads and full-screen pop-ups at app launch maximized reach at the most critical moments, and the same creative was extended into non-skippable video ads.
Driving conversions through B2B cookie rewards
Cookie rewards were connected directly to the sign-up journey, turning the WEBTOON channel's reach and engagement into new user acquisition.
How about bringing the universe of WEBTOON titles into your brand campaign? A familiar promotion can become a fresh experience, and that added layer of storytelling can capture the attention of new users.
Thank you.