Quick User Acquisition Guide for Mobile App Owners

Blog: NASSCOM Official Blog

user acquisition strategies
A business without a sound user acquisition strategy is like lyrics without melody. Or a pool without water. Or a smartphone without internet connection (Imagine that…).

Even if your product is outstanding and has been revolutionary in providing solutions to people, you can’t expect to meet your goals unless you entice new users to try it out. This is what the “user acquisition” strategy is all about.

It entails the process of bringing new customers to your business. The goal is to create a sustainable acquisition strategy that evolves with new and changing preferences.

Every business niche has a customized pattern of user acquisition. However, user acquisition for mobile apps is the hardest. The cutting-edge competition in this domain calls for a design that can stand out and speak for itself.

Creating an app that users can’t resist downloading already wins you half the battle because nearly half of smartphone users don’t install any app in a month. Also, the average user downloads only two apps each month.

How can you compel your target customers to click the “install” button?

Well, your answer to this worry lies in a well-grounded user acquisition strategy. It will make sure your prospects quickly move through the mobile app marketing funnel to become your dedicated users.

How the App Marketing Funnel Works?

Every app marketing campaign has the same end goal – inspire potential customers to take action. It may include making a purchase, registering for a free trial, or signing up for a product/service updates. I have listed each stage of app marketing funnel below:

Exposure – You try developing awareness through tactics like content marketing and social media
Consideration – You provide leads with trusted content (ratings, reviews, etc.) to guide their decision
Conversion – You try to remove friction (additional clicks, account creation procedures, etc.) to prevent leads from bouncing
Customer Relationship Development – You continue providing value to the customers through updates and feedback messages
Retention – You work out ways to retain the customers for prolonged periods, so they become advocates of your app

Best User Acquisition Tactics

There are various user acquisition strategies that mobile app owners can use. Different approaches work for different apps. However, you need to be creative, mix up the ideas, and come up with an exclusive user acquisition strategy for your app.

Here is a quick rundown of user acquisition strategies you can go for:

App Store Optimization (ASO)

App Store Optimization or ASO is the process of optimizing apps to rank high in search results of different app stores. The goal is to compel incoming leads to convert and install your app.

ASO has two categories:

Search Optimization – It includes the strategic placement of keywords. You understand the relevant keywords that your target audience often uses. However, implementation of this step will fail if you stuff keywords unnecessarily.
Appeal Optimization– It includes the aesthetics of an application. From screenshots to icons and colors, every feature of an app can impact its appeal. You should also localize the app to enhance its appeal for the users.

Remember, ASO is a process that needs constant monitoring. You must tweak it time and again to ensure it matches the bar set by the competitors (and even goes beyond it).

Social Media Marketing

If you aren’t already leveraging social media tools to acquire more customers, you are losing out on millions of prospects. Nowadays, social media is an ideal platform to gain exposure, engage with target customers, and generate more leads.

When reporting about the expected growth of social media users in the future, Statista forecasted that the US would have 257.4 million active social media users by 2023.

You can simply not hope to succeed if you do not allow your users for an easy outreach on social media. Your app needs to have sharing options to get the word out. Enable your users to share their experiences, scores, or anything they have achieved on your application with their friends on social media.

Before you decide on which social platforms you should target for marketing your app, you need to evaluate the nature of your app.

Ask yourself these questions: Have you curated it for young professionals? Is it edgy and cool? Are you working in the gaming zone? Answers to these questions will help you come up with a suitable strategy.

It takes a certain level of planning to get the most out of your social media marketing. Some tips to help you out are:

Investing in ads
Post links to your blog post on social media
Collaborate with influencers
Leverage user-generated content to win the trust of people
Provide remarkable customer service on social media

Social media is the masterstroke of this era. Its importance doesn’t seem to go down any sooner. You must find out ways to publicize your app on the social channel of your choice. Neglecting this aspect will not turn out in your favor.

Content Marketing

Content Marketing is integral to acquiring new customers. It involves providing relevant and original content that gives answers for frequently asked questions by people. The motive of content should be to provide value to the readers. Be it in any form – whether videos, ebooks, webinars, blogs, etc.

Each medium should establish you as a thought leader and reveal your ideas to potential app users. An eMarketer survey revealed that 60% of marketers create at least one piece of content each day. However, it doesn’t mean that you create boring and repetitive content, which the audience doesn’t prefer.

As a mobile app owner who is willing to stand out, you must have the knack of brilliant content creation. It should be such that it speaks to the target users. Tailor it according to trending topics and make sure it relates to your field somehow.

For example, a shoe selling business app cannot discuss issues like recent developments in Machine Learning. That would be absurd and a big turn-off for the customers, right?

Some benefits of content marketing are:

Increased brand awareness leading to higher sales – your content pulls up your name on the search grid
Better and more loyal users – It establishes your brand as an industry thought leader
Cost savings – Great content will reach qualified leads and interested buyers

So get your creative genies at work and come up with content that astounds the prospects users.

Importance of Reviews and Ratings

Your potential customers will take a look at your app reviews and ratings to make their final decision. Even a single bad review may cause them to have second thoughts. Therefore, it is essential to have positive reviews and ratings beneath the mobile app description. You also will have to deal with negative reviews without getting disappointed.

App stores have started incorporating these metrics into the ranking algorithm. Every time a user talks about you in kind words, the store bumps your rank up. Meanwhile, when visitors read these reviews, they feel encouraged to give your app a try.

When you reply to the reviews, potential customers tend to appreciate your responsiveness. Establishing an emotional connection with customers has proven to provide 23% more revenue to app developers.

So,engaging with your users allows you to easily hold them while also making them feel that you genuinely care about their views and concerns.

Verdict – get ‘em to keep ‘em

Letting go of users after a single installation should never be a part of your plan. Your app has to be such that it keeps the user hooked on it. And when you sense their interest faltering, kickoffactivities like discounts, email alerts, and push notifications.

Bear in mind; the high download figure will fall flat in no time if you do not integrate effective strategies to keep users involved.

I hope you will design an outstanding user acquisition plan for your application. Feel free to share your queries and opinions with us.

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