Mobile App Marketing - How to Effectively Promote your Apps

Tuesday, 13 November 2018

Getting your mobile app online to application stores opens a whole new channel of communication between your brand and your audience. It is a haven, in which your users are always one simple tap away from your app and its content. However, making it available to mobile users, gets you only halfway there – promoting it is even more challenging.

Therefore, you have been certainly asking yourself the following questions.

How can I actually spread the word about my mobile app? How can I escalate my mobile app visibility and grab the attention of my potential audience getting them to use it? 

Competition is fierce in the digital mobile age, requiring some extraordinary marketing efforts from your side if you are expecting users to migrate to your app.

Fear not, for we have compiled an amazing list, containing the best hints, tips and hacks that will help you get started in your tedious task of promoting your iOS, Android or Windows mobile app, in the endless sea of all other apps out there.

 

Rule No 1 – Make your app useful

No matter how hard you will try promoting your mobile app, keep in mind that if it is not something they really need, they are not going to be interested. Emphasise on how useful your app is and the exact way it simplifies the daily life of your target «customer» base. Note that your app does not have to be a plain extension of your website; get creative and come up with ideas that will attract the general public.

 

If you like it, pin it, share it, tweet it – they will come

Social Networks have become a must for app promotion. Start by featuring your just-released app to bring the first interested users and continue entertaining your audience with useful & unique content or important updates. Keep in mind that sending the message once is good, but sending it multiple times is much better. Make sure you don’t spoil everything with inconsiderate copy-pasting and mindless promotion; engage your audience and get their feedback, join in conversations, make yourself share-worthy, be creative, original and interesting.

 

Social Advertising

Using paid social media ads in your app promotion will allow you to target people specifically by interests and demographics – provided that you are fully aware of your target audience. Narrowing down your efforts, to smaller audiences with specific interests will lead to lower advertising costs and more successful outcomes.

 

We are what we share

Take the next big step and let your own app promote itself. App users and people, in general, want to spread any content that makes them laugh, disagree, muse, hope, smile etc. Your audience will make numerous discoveries while browsing your app and nothing is more joyful than sharing them with their friends, colleagues, family or better enough the rest of the world. By integrating Social Share within your App, which is available as an Addon on all Looksomething.com plans, you broaden the app’s visibility and you are virtually allowing your users to express themselves.

 

Social Media is a conversation – happening with or without you

There are numerous Facebook and LinkedIn groups made up of people that closely resemble your audience; find those groups and share your mobile app with them. Describe the core function of your app, the benefit of including it in their daily lives, engage in conversations & debates and comment on interesting content.

 

Find influencers that perfectly align with your brand

Leveraging the power of influencers and their ability to move large numbers of people can be the best way to drive traffic to your mobile app.

So where can you find influencers?

You can easily find content that people are talking about and approach their creator and simply figure how you can help each other. There are various platforms allowing you to do so with some of them being traackr.com, buzzsumo.com, tomoson.com, famebit.com, brandwatch.com etc. If you can get those people genuinely interested in your app and its value, then tweeting, creating a niche article or even recommending it to their followers will be a piece of cake.

A bit of advice though – you should only reach out to influencers that truly value your brand and their values, interests and followers align with your app’s target audience.

 

Apply for mobile app awards

There are numerous organisations that provide awards to innovative mobile apps for their design or their functionality. Apply to all those you think you are a good contender for after doing a complete online research. You can even give us a shout; we will gladly lend a helping hand.

 

Provide insight by commenting on relevant blogs

Guest blogging is a great way to build an audience. Look for niche blog communities and internet space that is relevant to your mobile app. Your posts shouldn’t actually be promotional; try providing some valuable insight instead, while gearing your post in a way that, by the end of it, readers are ready to visit your mobile app’s landing page or download link. Doing guest blogging correctly can lead high-quality traffic to your mobile app.

 

Leverage your website

You will surely wonder - I already have a mobile app; why do I need a website? Well, your users need to know that your app is legitimate and that you are truly invested into it. At one point anyone who is interested in your brand will eventually look for you online and find his way to your website.

Your site itself can become one of the greatest tools in marketing your app. Make sure to have your app prominently featured across your site; skip the bad habit of placing small app logos on the footer. If you are truly investing your efforts on promoting your mobile app, then it should be the first thing your visitors see.

Extra tip: promote your mobile app with smart app banners. Those banners are presented unobtrusively at the top of your mobile webpage in order to inform and encourage users to open your native app or install it if they already haven’t. Learn how to do it here.

 

Feature your mobile app in your emails

Emails still have their charm, provided they are used correctly. Make sure that any email that is sent out, includes a footer featuring your mobile app, redirecting the recipients to the app's download page. This is a really easy way to inform your existing contacts that you have launched a mobile app and it can really drive downloads over time simply by sending emails.

 

Paid ads in mobile app stores

Some app stores allow you to bid for relevant keywords and get featured on particular user searches and terms. That allows you to target narrow audiences and put your app in front of the right people, bidding only for those long-tail keywords that are truly relevant to you.

 

Create a buzz even before launching

Now for this one, you are going to co-create and co-promote your app with people – existing audience, previous business partners, colleagues, family, friends, even that storekeeper across the road that you don’t really like – get everybody involved. Drop emails, ask for reviews, collect useful insight, ask people to share the work – involve them all to your app’s journey. Get backed up by people who want you to succeed and they will help you do it, for free!

 

Feature your app in your blog

Regularly including your mobile app in your scheduled blog posts can be one more promotion strategy you can make use of. You can either create a complete story solely devoted to your mobile app and its benefits, how it can facilitate and make things easy for your audience, while also making sure to include videos & screenshots to help them get a good understanding. What is more, make sure to mention it at the end of every blog post by including a call to action, inviting your readers to download your mobile app.

 

Run giveaways to reach more people

Creating contests within your apps, making sure to also promote the event from your every other channel, will incentivize your audience and those who still haven’t download your app to keep and use it at least until the end of the event. Create a rankings system, allow users to score points by engaging with your app or brand e.g. by sharing the apps or having their friends sign up.

 

App Store Optimization (ASO)

Simply put, ASO is the SEO of the mobile app universe. It is essential if you’re willing to get your app discovered in an already stuffed market with millions of apps. Actually, it is such a big chapter that another guide will be devoted solely to it, in the near future. However, just to get you warmed up we are providing some key ASO points:

• App Name – how unique and intriguing is it?
• App Keywords – make sure to include relevant keywords
• App Description – what does your app really does? How can it really help potential users?
• App Screenshots/ Video – feature your app highlights with screenshots or promo videos
• App Ratings – ask for reviews and reply to them

 

Need any help or got any questions? Feel free to drop an email at [email protected] and we will gladly help!

 

Do you feel ready to begin your journey on the digital mobile world?

We can definitely help you get you started, smoothly and easily!

Browse our iOS, Android & Windows plans, create your mobile app today and grow your business by getting it in front of millions of users in Google Play, Apple App Store and Microsoft Store. We cover all industries; from radio stations and news sites to hotels, cafés, universities and many more.