Google Play Promotions

[verysecretsquirrel]

Has anyone here ever successfully run a Google Play Promotion?  I ask because I simply cannot get the blessed thing to work.  Yes, I have tried their technical support.  It is SO helpful to have the content of a help page which I have already read paraphrased for me -- NOT!

Basically, it requires one to upload what they call a CSV file (but which is actually a tab-separated values file with not a comma in sight -- seriously!) which contains the following fields:

"Identifier"  "Title" "Currency"      "Amount"        "Countries"

Well, I have done it and uploaded it and it just tells me `error reading header' (from memory, might have got the exact wording wrong).  I have tweaked everything I can think of to no avail.

So, anyone?  If I can find one person who *has* got it to work, at last I will know that I am not wasting my time trying to make it work for me.

[Tafkal]

I just reduce the price manually. It's much easier.

[Simon Haynes]

Yes, it worked for me. Download their template and add your figures to that. (Pretty sure there's a template?)

[verysecretsquirrel]

I just reduce the price manually. It's much easier.

I don't want Amazon price-matching to kick in.

[verysecretsquirrel]

Yes, it worked for me. Download their template and add your figures to that. (Pretty sure there's a template?)

There is a template. 

If it worked for you, then it's working -- now it's just a matter of me finding out how.  Thanks!

[notthatamanda]

I've never tried but if you really want to try again I suggest the support chat.  I've never had to wait for it and maybe  they can talk you through it step by micro step to get it right and check it for you before you sign off.  Chat support has always come through for me.

[Lynn]

I've also had the spreadsheet work for me. Did some temp price changes once. It's been a while though.

[123mlh]

I had it work for me when I used it in 2014 or 2015. But since then I just put in a new price for each currency with expiration dates rather than bother with the spreadsheet option. When you do that it still shows as old price crossed out with promo price showing.

But I don't think either method will get you around Amazon's price-matching.

(And if you ever opened a .csv file in a really old version of Excel you saw the commas but more recent versions automatically convert the data to columns for you.)

[notthatamanda]

Yeah, like 123mlh said.  Some Kobo promos offer coupon codes at checkout so their customers can get a discount, but it is still on the website at full price.  At any other platform, if a promo reduces the price on the website, odds are the Amazon bots will find it and reduce it, unless you are reducing to free, which Amazon won't price match automatically.