Pankaj Upadhyay

Senior Marketing Manager @ GullyCricket | Driving User Engagement and Retention

New Delhi, Delhi, India

About

Growth and retention marketer with 5+ years of experience across gaming, consumer tech, CRM, and community-led growth ecosystems. My background is a mix of marketing strategy and deep gaming culture involvement — from working on lifecycle marketing and user retention campaigns to professional esports commentary and community engagement. Over the years, I’ve worked across: • CRM & lifecycle marketing • User retention & reactivation • Community building & engagement • Growth campaigns & GTM strategy • Gaming and sports-tech ecosystems At Baazi Games and GullyCricket, I’ve worked on campaigns focused on retention, dormant user reactivation, engagement funnels, and community-led growth strategies. I’m particularly interested in the intersection of gaming, audience psychology, live-service ecosystems, and long-term user engagement. Currently exploring opportunities across gaming, growth, retention, and consumer-tech ecosystems.

Experience

  • Senior Marketing Manager at GullyCricket - Fantasy Cricket
    Dec 2023 - Present · 2 yrs 7 mos

  • Esports - Shoutcaster/Commentator at Freelance
    Jan 2023 - Present · 3 yrs 6 mos

  • Baazi Games (New Delhi, Delhi, India · On-site)
    • Assistant Product Marketing Manager & Community Manager
      Apr 2023 - Nov 2023 · 8 mos

      - Optimized the communication pipeline, resulting in a significant increase in click-through rate (CTR) to - enhance user engagement and conversion. - Negotiated effectively with third-party companies to secure the best rates for SMS, WhatsApp, and other communication channels, leading to cost savings and improved outreach. - Strategically defined user segments and implemented targeted marketing initiatives, boosting revenue and extending user playtime within the app. - Enhanced user experiences by revamping user journeys, employing A/B testing through CleverTap, and streamlining the app's structure, resulting in improved usability and higher conversion rates. - Managed retention ad content and in-app banners to consistently refresh the app's appearance and maintain its attractiveness to users. - Collaborated across diverse teams to ensure the app aligned with market demands, culminating in a notable 4% increase in M3 user retention rates.

    • Assistant Brand Manager Marketing
      Dec 2022 - Apr 2023 · 5 mos

      - Successfully curated engaging content for a sports league, focusing on football and cricket, resulting in a significant boost in user engagement. - Played a pivotal role in assisting with content and design for advertisements, contributing to the overall branding efforts. - Spearheaded the development of marketing communication plans and Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) to ensure consistency and efficiency in brand messaging and operations. - Achieved a remarkable 1.78% increase in click-through rate (CTR) by consistently delivering compelling sports content that resonated with users. - Established and nurtured a highly active sports community, growing it to over 4600 enthusiastic users, fostering brand loyalty and community engagement.

  • Business Development Manager at AlphaZegus Marketing
    Nov 2021 - Nov 2022 · 1 yr 1 mo

    Formulating and executing strategies to drive business growth, including the acquisition of new clients and the optimization of revenue streams. Managed accounts across a wide array of industries, spanning gaming, entertainment, technology, electronics manufacturing, quick-service restaurants (QSR), and the automobile sector.

  • Health and well-being at Career Break
    Mar 2019 - Aug 2021 · 2 yrs 6 mos