The New UA Mix: How Brands Combine Social, OEM, and Programmatic Channels for Sustainable Growth

User acquisition is no longer driven by a single dominant channel. According to analyses from Business of Apps, Singular, Zoomd, AppSamurai, and OEM-focused partners such as AVOW, today’s highest-performing UA strategies combine social platforms, OEM advertising channels, and programmatic inventory within a unified growth framework. This diversified mix helps brands counter rising acquisition costs, protect performance against privacy constraints, and reach user segments that traditional networks no longer efficiently deliver. Why the UA Mix Is Changing Industry reports highlight the same set of forces reshaping how marketers acquire users: Across these sources, the conclusion is clear: relying only on social or programmatic channels no longer produces stable, scalable growth. Social Channels: Still the Foundation Meta, TikTok, Snap, and YouTube remain essential UA pillars. Business of Apps identifies social channels as the baseline layer of user acquisition – crucial for: But social platforms alone cannot sustain growth in an environment of rising CPIs and shrinking signal visibility. As AppSamurai notes, advertisers increasingly pair social with complementary channels. OEM Channels: The Underused but Essential Growth Engine OEM advertising: preloads, on-device placements, OEM app stores, system-UI inventory, has moved from niche to mainstream. According to Business of Apps, OEM partners (Huawei, Xiaomi, Samsung, OPPO, vivo, Transsion and others) provide access to more than 1.5 billion monthly active users. AVOW highlights OEM channels as one of the most effective ways to reach users beyond the touchpoints of standard networks. Industry documentation points to several unique advantages of OEM ads: Case studies from AVOW show that OEM campaigns consistently outperform traditional preload channels and complement established UA sources by unlocking cost-efficient installs and new user segments. AppsFlyer also frames OEM preloads as a way to “move beyond programmatic, search, and social,” providing new growth corridors for brands whose traditional channels have plateaued. Programmatic: The Scalable Middle Layer Programmatic channels: DSPs, exchanges, and in-app programmatic inventory, complete the modern UA mix. Zoomd and AppSamurai describe programmatic as the “connective tissue” of a diversified UA strategy, enabling: Digital Turbine explicitly pairs OEM traffic with programmatic campaigns to reach users from first boot (on-device) and then maintain engagement through targeted in-app ads. Programmatic therefore supports long-term UA expansion, adding flexibility across formats, audiences, and placements. The New UA Mix: A Three-Pillar Strategy Synthesizing insights across all referenced sources, the 2025 UA mix looks like this: 1. Social: Creative learning + scale + high-volume intent capture. 2. OEM: Incremental reach + device-native placements + market expansion into regions dominated by OEM ecosystems. 3. Programmatic: Ongoing scale + retargeting + cost balancing across channels. Singular emphasizes that diversified channels are now essential for performance stability; Business of Apps stresses the need for a multi-channel acquisition framework; and Zoomd positions OEM, social, and programmatic as the core combination for post-privacy growth. Conclusion The new UA mix is no longer an optional strategy, it is the industry standard. By combining social platforms, OEM advertising, and programmatic supply, brands can: As acquisition costs rise and global markets evolve, marketers that adopt a balanced, multi-channel UA portfolio are best positioned to compete and scale efficiently. The New UA Mix: How Brands Combine Social, OEM, and Programmatic Channels for Sustainable Growth User acquisition is no longer driven by a single dominant channel. According to analyses from Business of Apps, Singular, Zoomd, AppSamurai, and OEM-focused partners such as AVOW, today’s highest-performing UA strategies combine social platforms, OEM advertising channels, and programmatic inventory within a unified growth framework. This diversified mix helps brands counter rising acquisition costs, protect performance against privacy constraints, and reach user segments that traditional networks no longer efficiently deliver. Why the UA Mix Is Changing Industry reports highlight the same set of forces reshaping how marketers acquire users: Across these sources, the conclusion is clear: relying only on social or programmatic channels no longer produces stable, scalable growth. Social Channels: Still the Foundation Meta, TikTok, Snap, and YouTube remain essential UA pillars. Business of Apps identifies social channels as the baseline layer of user acquisition – crucial for: But social platforms alone cannot sustain growth in an environment of rising CPIs and shrinking signal visibility. As AppSamurai notes, advertisers increasingly pair social with complementary channels. OEM Channels: The Underused but Essential Growth Engine OEM advertising: preloads, on-device placements, OEM app stores, system-UI inventory, has moved from niche to mainstream. According to Business of Apps, OEM partners (Huawei, Xiaomi, Samsung, OPPO, vivo, Transsion and others) provide access to more than 1.5 billion monthly active users. AVOW highlights OEM channels as one of the most effective ways to reach users beyond the touchpoints of standard networks. Industry documentation points to several unique advantages of OEM ads: Case studies from AVOW show that OEM campaigns consistently outperform traditional preload channels and complement established UA sources by unlocking cost-efficient installs and new user segments. AppsFlyer also frames OEM preloads as a way to “move beyond programmatic, search, and social,” providing new growth corridors for brands whose traditional channels have plateaued. Programmatic: The Scalable Middle Layer Programmatic channels: DSPs, exchanges, and in-app programmatic inventory, complete the modern UA mix. Zoomd and AppSamurai describe programmatic as the “connective tissue” of a diversified UA strategy, enabling: Digital Turbine explicitly pairs OEM traffic with programmatic campaigns to reach users from first boot (on-device) and then maintain engagement through targeted in-app ads. Programmatic therefore supports long-term UA expansion, adding flexibility across formats, audiences, and placements. The New UA Mix: A Three-Pillar Strategy Synthesizing insights across all referenced sources, the 2025 UA mix looks like this: 1. Social: Creative learning + scale + high-volume intent capture. 2. OEM: Incremental reach + device-native placements + market expansion into regions dominated by OEM ecosystems. 3. Programmatic: Ongoing scale + retargeting + cost balancing across channels. Singular emphasizes that diversified channels are now essential for performance stability; Business of Apps stresses the need for a multi-channel acquisition framework; and Zoomd positions OEM, social, and programmatic as the core combination for post-privacy growth. Conclusion The new UA mix is no longer an optional strategy, it is

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