There’s an app for everything these days. You probably have numerous apps installed on your smartphone, each serving a different purpose. But there is one issue — there are too many apps that share similar features.
Presently, there are more than four million applications in Google’s Play Store and Apple’s App Store. And these numbers are increasing at a huge rate . To stand out in this overflowing marketplace, your creation needs powerful marketing and promotion.
How do you go about it? Here’s a quick guide on the many ways you can market your newly launched mobile app.
Optimise your app for app stores
Even before you begin marketing your application, you need to be 100 per cent sure it is ready for display. Little things, like icons, software updates and descriptions, play a big role in the awareness and life cycle of your app, in a store.
Keep a cheat sheet for app store optimisation next to you throughout its development and marketing.
Create a landing page
A lot of apps launching today are an extension of a product or service that has a strong presence on the web. If you’re going against the flow, you will still need some website presence that can be used as a promotional platform.
The best option is to have a landing page that can be used to organically promote your app. Let’s say you’re writing an informative blog article that centres around your app-based product, or people search for the product you offer on Google. If the first point of communication is a landing page, there’s a big chance that searcher will convert into a user.
Make the most you can out of the freedom of expression offered on the landing page. You can provide detailed information about your product and even create a mock version to give users a taste of what they can expect.
For instance : Human, a fitness initiative was launched as an app to inspire people of all ages to stay active for a minimum of 30 minutes every day. To boost awareness about its existence, a landing page was created that explained, in detail, the various features and benefits of using the product.
The landing page included screenshots of the application, a simulator that showed real-time statistics of its usage and various testimonials. Installs hit the 1 million mark, and the app was rated amongst the best in 2014.
Utilise paid promotions
Advertising is the fastest way to create awareness about a product, and it is no different for your creation. Certain third party services enable you to create and promote ‘app install ads’, so keep your finances in check and work out the best possible deals for advertising your creation.
Facebook and Google’s app install campaigns are the best to start with. Here are the steps:
~ Create a campaign with relevant targeting, such as location, audience and budget.
~ Design ad copy creatives with a Unique Selling Proposition.
~ Choose relevant keywords for Google search that the target audience would normally search for.
~ Launch the campaign.
~ Measure the results with important metrics and optimise accordingly.
Get social
If shelling out money for advertising isn’t a good option, try the alternative route with social media promotions. Blogging, hashtagging, and page posts are some of the many techniques you can utilise.
Audience engagement helps build trust and value and works wonders in the long run, provided you have the patience and perseverance while using this marketing method.
Request for app ratings and reviews
One of the quickest ways to increase app installs is to request current users to write reviews and rate your product. App Store algorithms calculate popularity through user reviews and number of downloads, which ultimately push your product to the ‘top charts’. You can implement the review and rating feature in unique ways, such as asking for reviews after using the app multiple times or providing additional features after a the review or rating is done.
Install mobile app tracking
Just like Google’s numerous tools help keep track of a website’s performance or the number of views and clicks on an ad, mobile app tracking tools help you track the number of times your app is installed.
Even when you promote the application through paid advertising, you can use the tracker tools to see from which method of promotion it is benefiting most. Doing so helps manage your ad expenses as well as gives you pointers on how you can enhance user experience.
Do you know any other interesting tricks of the app marketing trade? Share your ideas in the comments below!