Scaling High-Intent Cash Advance Users Through a Low-Risk Performance Pilot

Outcomes

Overview

A premier cash-advance solution offering consumers fast access to short-term funds in moments of need was interested in entering a partnership with Perform^[cb]’s Outcome Engine. The fintech brand was focused on acquiring high-intent users who would not only complete an initial advance but continue using the service on a recurring basis.

With growing demand for financial flexibility and a favorable economic backdrop, the timing was ideal for this finance marketer to expand its reach among ready-to-convert users.

Goals + Objectives

The marketer wanted to scale new user acquisition, specifically net-new users who would complete a pay advance – but, like many fintech brands, needed to validate traffic quality before committing large budgets to a new performance partner.

While they did not present specific challenges, the objective was clear: find a partner capable of driving high-volume, high-quality users at scale, with minimal upfront risk.

The Funded Pilot: Reducing Risk & Driving Acceleration

To help this finance app confidently launch, Perform^[cb] proposed a $50K funded pilot, structured as:

• – $10K in Perform^[cb]-funded traffic
• – $40K client contribution

The shared investment model demonstrated Perform^[cb]’s confidence in the Outcome Engine’s traffic quality and reduced the financial risk typically associated with testing new channels. This proved instrumental in accelerating the partnership and removing hesitations.

Objectives

The partnership centered around three core goals:

1. Drive net-new users completing cash advances
2. Identify users likely to become long-term, recurring customers
3. Validate Perform^[cb]’s traffic quality at scale through a structured, low-risk pilot

Perform^[cb]’s strong reputation in performance-based user acquisition, paired with the funded pilot, made the test attractive and signaled reliability for the fintech brand.

Strategic Approach

Capitalizing on Market Conditions

Economic trends and consumer behavior signaled strong demand for cash-advance products. Perform^[cb] leaned into known industry seasonality by concentrating spend around pay periods,  specifically the 1st, 15th, and end of each month, when user intent to take an advance historically spikes.

Right Partners, Right Traffic

Perform^[cb] built a custom media mix based on historical performance across similar fintech campaigns. This ensured the campaign launched with proven traffic sources that aligned with the marketer’s quality requirements.

Setting the Foundation for Success

During onboarding, the team implemented:

• – A curated media partner mix 
• – Clear alignment on KPIs and down-funnel metrics
• – Support for creative strategy and testing
• – Compliance guardrails from day one

Execution

Creative & Placement Testing

The finance marketer provided an extensive creative library, allowing partners to quickly test various ad formats. Key findings included:

• – Video creatives produced the strongest conversion rates 
• – A mix of in-app and mobile web placements outperformed single-channel usage

This helped partners optimize quickly and ramp spending without sacrificing performance.

Leveraging VTA for Scale & Compliance

To meet the brand’s compliance requirements while accessing premium traffic, Perform^[cb] implemented view-through attribution (VTA) with a one-hour attribution window. This allowed the campaign to remain active on top-performing sources that rely on VTA signals,  a crucial factor in scaling quality volume.

Layering Funnel Events for Stability

As the campaign matured, Perform^[cb] introduced a Bank Account Connect funnel event. This allowed partners to optimize earlier in the user journey, significantly improving conversion stability and overall scale.

Results

Overall Performance

Since launch, the cash advance brand has driven:

• – 439K+ users who applied for advances
• – 326K+ users who initiated a qualified bank connection
• – 158K+ users who completed a pay advance

Perform^[cb]’s Outcome Engine has become a top paid acquisition partner for this marketer and a leading driver of their core performance event.

Alignment With Initial Objectives

The campaign successfully delivered high-quality, net-new users at scale — exactly the outcome the pilot was designed to validate.

Scalability Unlocked

Introducing a Bank Account Connect campaign allowed partners to optimize to earlier funnel signals, resulting in double the number of advances compared to the first-advance-only setup. This layered-funnel approach created a more efficient and predictable path to qualified volume.

Long-Term Impact

What began as a funded pilot has evolved into a durable, scalable user acquisition engine. This fintech marketer now relies on Perform^[cb] as a primary growth partner in its cash-advance funnel, benefiting from:

• – Consistent delivery of high-quality, ready-to-convert users
• – Expanded optimization opportunities across multiple funnel events
• – A predictable model for long-term user acquisition growth

The combination of VTA, strong partner alignment, and multi-event funnel optimization has positioned the brand for continued success as they scale.

Key Success Factors

• – The funded pilot eliminated early risk and accelerated launch
• – Proven partner mix tailored to fintech acquisition
• – Strong video-led creative performance
• – Pay-cycle spend strategy matched user behavior
• – VTA with a one-hour attribution window maintained compliance and scale
• – Funnel-event layering unlocked broader optimization and higher volumes

Lessons Learned

• – Running with VTA is essential for maintaining access to high-volume traffic sources in the fintech space.
• – Layering multiple funnel events (e.g., Bank Account Connect + Pay Advance) significantly improves scale and conversion quality.
• – Creative testing and variety early on accelerates optimization and produces faster wins.
• – Funded pilots increase buy-in and enable you to test new channels without fear of wasted spend.

With a collaborative approach, data-driven optimization, and a funded pilot that reduced risk, Perform^[cb] helped this fintech brand scale immensely, becoming one of their top-performing acquisition channels. The partnership continues to grow as both teams explore new opportunities to drive quality users at the right time and at the right cost.