Getting monthly app users and increasing usage is the goal of every mobile app developer. What’s the key to seeing huge download numbers and increased usage of your mobile app? It’s knowing what customers need, offering a unique and superior solution for delivering on those needs, and then finding ways to communicate these benefits to current and potential users. In 2018, we launched the Zutobi Learners Test app, and it continues to show sustained growth. Here’s our roadmap for developing and marketing your own successful app.
Getting Monthly App Users Step 1 – Create an App You Would Use
Think about your favorite apps and why you continue to use them. How often do you open them? Which apps have you deleted and why? Which specific must-haves would you demand in an app that was marketed to you? Your focus should always be on your customers’ needs, but as an app developer, you have extensive knowledge about why some apps do well and others fail. Bring these observations to the development process.
Getting Monthly App Users Step 2 – Provide Value
Before you get serious about developing a mobile app, remember that its success will be rooted in its ability to provide value to a targeted user base. Which features you decide to include, how you’ll use technology to ensure those features perform well, and how you’ll market it will certainly contribute to whether the app will take off and see sustained growth. But unless the app serves a specific need in a way that’s better than your competitors, it won’t stand a chance.
Begin by researching your potential users and current competitors. What are competitors doing well and where could you improve or provide a benefit that’s not being addressed? Consider constructing user personas, which will reveal so much about your customers’ attitudes and behaviors relevant to what you plan to offer in your app. These insights will lead to more precise messaging and guide your media strategy when running ad campaigns.
How to Continue to Provide Value
When it comes to getting monthly app users, knowledge about your customers and competitors will inform your long-term strategy for success, but it’s not just a research project for the pre-launch stage. Opinions and behaviors change, and new competitors continue to flood the app stores. Make it your mission to remain curious about your users so that you’ll always be aware of when they’re satisfied by the value you bring or if they decide your app is not as useful as it once was.
Here are two ways to keep up-to-date on whether or not your app is delivering on its promises.
Use Integrated Frameworks to Learn How Your App is Performing
A recent Harvard Business Review report stated that the companies most likely to outperform their competitors are those that integrate many sources of customer and marketing data. Luckily, there’s a wide range of tools that can monitor how your app is performing based on the key performance indicators (KPI) you wish to measure. Use these data frameworks to help you learn what’s going well, what may need tweaking, or what should be scrapped.
Time spent in-app, the number of daily active users, cost per acquisition, and churn rate are just some of the performance metrics you might want to track. By setting performance goals for the different phases of the user journey, you’ll be able to easily rely on these tools to see if you’re hitting your benchmarks. Then use the data to make assessments about what modifications you’ll make to continue providing value to your users.
Discover What is Most Important to Your Customers by Communicating with Them
Not only will you learn about your users’ needs by reaching out to them, they’ll likely view your willingness to talk to them as a sign that you care about your customers and how you can serve them. Here are some ways to start a dialogue with current and potential users.
Use Online Forums and Social Media to Answer Questions and Get Ideas
Use a question-and-answer site like Quora, participate in online industry forums, or use your social media pages to solicit questions and ideas from users. For example, our Zutobi app users let us know that they found it difficult to get through the Victoria Handbook, so based on the feedback they gave us we developed an easier way to help them pass their Victoria learners test. We’re constantly looking for ways to improve our app and bring value to our users.
Address Negative Feedback
Seeing negative feedback or poor ratings on your app listing is dejecting. But use it as an opportunity to let your users know that you’re prepared to actively resolve whatever problem they faced. Look at negative feedback from the perspective of learning valuable information about the user experience that will aid your efforts to keep improving the app. Emphasize in your reply that their feedback has provided a useful service. The way you respond may lead the person to either remove the negative review or, better yet, leave a positive review because of the way you handled their complaint.
Getting Monthly App Users Step 3 – Targeted Marketing for All Phases of the User’s Journey
You’ve developed a breakthrough app that delivers benefits that are superior to your biggest competitor. Now, how are you going to let your target customers know you exist, persuade them to download it, and encourage them to keep using it? You must develop specific strategies that will work to meet your pre-launch, customer acquisition, and user retention marketing goals.
For the pre-launch phase, your primary goal should be to create awareness of your upcoming app. You may want to use your social media pages to introduce the app, hire influencers to spread the word, or pitch your story to industry journalists. Find ways to reach a large portion of your target audience to get them excited about your launch.
Once your app is available in the iOS and Google Play app stores, use app store optimization (ASO) to find the keywords that will push your listing to the top of a user’s app search. Another smart acquisition strategy is to place highly targeted ads on Google or social media using a pay-per-click (PPC) strategy. Incentives and rewards are also effective for getting your current users to share the app with their friends or colleagues.
When trying to bring back customers whose usage has dropped off, consider retargeting ads or push notifications that offer special rewards or incentives to return to the app. Or put an incentive program in place that promises unique benefits for increased app usage.
Keep Your Eyes on the Road(map)!
At Zutobi, we make it possible for our users to easily pass their driver test. We help our students stay on course until they reach their goal. That’s our advice to all those who want to develop a successful mobile app. When it comes to getting monthly app users, focus on customer needs, keep updating to provide value, and use smart marketing to put your app in front of the people who would benefit from using it. Good luck in your travels!
