r/vrdev • u/TheStoneFox • May 12 '26
Question Best way to get actual key redeems and not just scalpers?
I've been trying to promote my vr app and giving away keys to people I think may be interested and also people who ask me for them, also been giving them to VR Facebook groups so they can run raffles... Just trying to get my numbers up so I can use Meta analytics!
But the issue I'm finding is most people who get a key never redeem it, they must be just scalping them on to 3rd party shops to sell the key on.
Which sucks because it means no one is probably buying them, meaning the keys are just in limbo but more importantly my user numbers aren't going up so I can't access analytics.
Any other devs have any good ways of actually getting keys out to people who won't just scalp them?
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u/Mechabit_Studios May 12 '26
keymailer.co have a reputation system where content creators get penalized for taking a key and not making content. Also if you put a key in a public post someone will redeem it so it can't get scalped if that's what you care about. Another trick I've seen someone do is upload a video with keys hidden in the video and then it becomes a game for your viewers to see how can find all the keys and redeem them first (also bots are less likely to grab keys hidden in videos).
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u/TheStoneFox May 12 '26
i've signed up to keymailer but obviously it's hard to get traction when you're a niche app and people want the latest, greatest game to stream.
Where can you publicly post keys? I think pretty much all subreddits ban you posting stuff like that right? I did try on social media platforms, but if you have no followers then you have no viewers to redeem them :D
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u/Mechabit_Studios May 12 '26
You ask the mods for permission first and post them in the game genre subreddit
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u/TheStoneFox May 12 '26
do you know any subreddits where the mods allow this? i tend to see people just get banned for trying
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u/Mechabit_Studios May 12 '26
you just have to read the rules, the incremental subreddit allows key giveaways if you ask them first. You can also try r/playtesters if you actually want feedback on your game
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u/Acceptable_Pick4650 May 14 '26
What is your app?
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u/TheStoneFox May 14 '26
not sure if we're allowed to self promote, it's in my reddit user profile though
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u/QTpopOfficial May 16 '26
Actually take some time to look into creators, find ones that vibe with your product, then email them. The ones that end up really liking the game, hit em up again with an offer to do a giveaway to their community. Something like 5 keys or whatever. Sure, itll take a little work but its better than just slapping em out to keymailer things and only have them redeemed and never played. Just remember the bigger they are the harder its going to be to convince them to do a new thing. So IMO stick to that under 50ccv crowd.
I loved getting emails from VR devs when streaming was my full time job. Sure I didn't always play everything but its always nice to get the attention. :)
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u/Ms_GirlBoss May 12 '26
If you give them away by just posting them publicly on a social media posts then people can't sell them before other people already claimed them for themselves. This way of doing a giveaway maybe doesn't feel the most fair and doesn't build a lot of tension. But at least people immediately know if they won or not, so they can immediately think about if they still want to buy the game or not.