The world is getting louder. And reaching your audience? It’s getting harder.
Artificial intelligence has sped up content creation, allowing users to spit out mountains of content with just a few prompts. As quantity increases, consumers are faced with more and more noise, making it harder to hear the signals they’re interested in amid a deafening sea of sound.
For businesses, cutting through that noise to reach your ideal customer is critical. But each day, the volume grows.
As of July 2023, an average of 2,034 new apps are released on the Google Play Store each day. In January 2023, that average was just 1,121. That’s an 81% increase in daily new apps in just six months.
As AI becomes more sophisticated and more mainstream, that number is likely to jump even higher. So for mobile app developers, a simple question is getting more important every day:
How can I promote and market my new mobile app to reach my audience?
Read below for 6 ways mobile app developers can get their signal through the noise and reach their target audience:
1. Create a microsite
In a world of increasing quantity, developers can win customers by showing they’re serious about quality. A surefire way to stand out is to create a standalone website — also known as a microsite — for new mobile apps.
Microsites are simple, powerful sites that showcase key features of an app. With microsites, simplicity is key. Studies show that the majority of users are far more likely to skim a webpage than read it word for word. App developers can take advantage of this tendency by making microsites easy to scan, and prioritizing content like:
- -Screenshots or videos of app functions
- -Copy that focuses on user benefits
- -Social proof like ratings, reviews and download counts
- -Clear CTAs and links to the Google Play Store
Microsites boost the credibility and legitimacy of new apps. They also send a clear message to potential users: A developer who cares enough to build a unique website for an app cares enough to make that app worth using.
2. Promote your app on social media
Long-standing sales cliches remind you to “meet your customers where they are” and to “strike while the iron is hot.” By using social media to raise awareness about your new mobile app, you can do both.
Since 2017, the number of social media users has surged 79.1%. And unsurprisingly, 9 of every 10 users access social media on their phones, meaning they’re just a few taps and swipes away from the Google Play Store as they post, like and DM.
Mobile app developers should post about their new apps on social media to take advantage of an already-engaged audience — their followers. In addition to posting after the app goes live, developers should use their social media accounts to drum up pre-release excitement ahead of upcoming launches.
Developers should also tailor their content to their target audience’s preferred platform. Facebook remains the most popular social media — especially among older demographics — while the under-30 crowd is drawn toward TikTok, Instagram and Snapchat.
To drive organic traction, developers can post social media content that encourages engagement. Asking questions, interacting in the comments and offering giveaways in exchange for sharing posts can all be effective strategies.
3. Engage in app store optimization
Although users in the Google Play Store might be just seconds away from downloading an app, there’s a good chance they aren’t quite sure what app they want to download. Research shows that more than 8 in 10 users discover apps by browsing app stores or taking recommendations from the app stores themselves.
To win users at key decision-making moments, app developers should commit resources to app store optimization (ASO). A strong ASO strategy can make your app more visible, discoverable and attractive in the Google Play Store, leading to more downloads.
Ranking highly in the Google Play Store requires optimizing a few factors, including:
- -App title
- -App short description
- -App long description
- -App metadata
- -In-app purchase titles and descriptions
Google Play’s algorithm also looks at quantifiable metrics like:
- -Installs and engagement
- -Reviews and ratings
- -User retention
- -App performance
Similar to SEO, winning the ASO game starts with researching and including the proper keywords in your app title, descriptions and metadata. Attracting and retaining users, however, requires more than writing for an algorithm.
Mobile app developers should create a top-of-the-line experience for users. That means designing an app icon that jumps off the screen, personally responding to positive and negative user reviews, and updating the app regularly — even if it’s just to squash bugs.
At its core, Google Play Store rankings are designed to give users a quality experience. By focusing on ASO, mobile app developers can satisfy the algorithm, attract and covert users, and earn a spot high on the rankings.
4. Experiment with split testing
A dedicated ASO strategy puts your best initial foot forward. But earning the best possible conversion rates and downloads requires more than a set-and-forget strategy.
The best way to figure out what works best? Test.
Split testing is a low-cost way to experiment with different headlines, app icons, CTAs, images, descriptions and more to determine which options generate the most downloads.
Mobile app developers can create the best possible Google Play Store listing by tracking the data behind their split testing and cobbling together a listing with the highest-performing options. Beyond simply changing images and writing, developers should consider conducting more in-depth testing by rearranging the order of app features on their listing or promoting different features entirely.
With websites and social media marketing, developers can also test different formats — experimenting with images, videos, carousels and more — to see which content draws the most interest.
5. Consider paid ads
Tried and true, allocating a budget to paid ads can be an effective way for your new mobile app to gain traction. With paid ads, developers have several options, including:
- -Paid ads on the Google Play Store that help apps appear at the top of search results when users search for relevant keywords.
- -Social media options like mobile app install ads that target users based on demographics, interests and behaviors.
- -Mobile ad networks that allow developers to display ads for their apps within other apps.
When running paid ad campaigns, mobile app developers should set key performance indicators (KPIs) to track the success of their ad spend. Relevant KPIs include customer acquisition cost, cost per install and conversion rate.
6. Build buzz through word of mouth
Have you ever heard a friend say, “I knew this band before they were cool?” Human nature is tricky, but simple in one regard — everyone likes the be the first to know about something big.
It’s the same with mobile apps. And for developers, that’s a great trend. Because happy users make great salespeople.
Here’s the data:
- Word-of-mouth recommendations are the primary factor behind 20%-50% of all purchasing decisions.
- People are 90% more likely to buy something when referred by a friend.
- Word-of-mouth marketing results in 5x more sales than paid media impressions.
Mobile app developers should take advantage by making it easy and beneficial for their users to spread the good word about their new app. Many developers design in-app referral programs to incentivize users to invite friends and family to download the app.
The key to effective referral programs is to make the incentive significant enough for users to feel motivated to make the recommendation to others. This could include in-app bonuses like the elimination of ads, the addition of extra features or a reward system tailored to your app.
Boosting your app’s signal
The world is getting louder. But for mobile app developers who create real, useful, user-focused apps, is that really a bad thing?
As the number of apps available in the Google Play Store gets more bloated each day, it creates an opportunity for serious studios to stand out. Developers should experiment with different strategies — creating microsites, promoting apps on social media, engaging in ASO, conducting split testing, exploring paid ads and driving word-of-mouth excitement — and iterate on what works best with their audience.
By following these steps to new app marketing, mobile app developers can produce a powerful signal that cuts through the growing noise, reaches the ears of their target audience and wins more downloads — no matter loud it gets.
