Let’s say you’ve just developed what you believe to be the world’s most amazing mobile app. You believe it’s going to be the next Uber or Airbnb. You’re going to become a millionaire – no, a billionaire. Here’s the reality, though: no one is going to use your app, let alone pay you for it, if they have no idea it exists. Read on to learn effective methods for marketing your mobile app.
Acquiring Users
The first step in gaining users is to engage in a marketing campaign. You might be thinking, “But I’m an app developer. What do I know about marketing?” If you want your app to become successful, you’ll need to learn about it.
More importantly, you’ll need to understand how to market your app for an Internet audience. That means gaining an understanding of how search engine optimization (SEO) works. You don’t need to become an SEO expert. However, you need to be aware of what your potential users are searching for and how to ensure they find your app.
Other popular Internet marketing tools are blogs, online forums, and social media. Before you launch a blog or begin writing a lengthy forum post, research where your pool of users “hangs out” online. Are they Reddit users? Will you find them on Facebook? This market research will improve the success of your publicity efforts.
Activating and Retaining Users
Now that you’ve gotten the message out, your next step is convincing users to activate the app. You might think that activating the app is as simple as downloading it and installing it. What if your users don’t know what to do next with your app? Sending out an email automatically with a reminder of how people can use your app is helpful. Also, ask for push permission so that the app will occasionally (and make sure it is actually occasional, and not all the time) remind users to come back.
Once users activate the app, it’s critical to retain them. A significant part of retention is having an app that makes a user’s life easier and is easy to use. Make it a priority to solicit customer feedback, and put it into practice. Frequently updating your app to make it better will improve the user experience.
Earning Revenue
Don’t expect your app to earn you money the first time someone installs it. And remember that customers must have a very compelling reason to pay for it. If your app is charging for something else they can get the same version of for free, you’re not going to make a dime.
There are a few ways in which apps can make developers money. You can charge money for people to subscribe to the app, which is what Pandora does. Another method is to allow for in-app advertising, and you could offer a premium (paid) version without ads. Talk to other developers about referral opportunities. If you can convince your users to install others’ apps, those companies might pay you for it.
The post Mobile App Marketing: What You Should Know appeared first on Merit Solutions.