There are many things you can do to make your app a success or a flop, but let us focus on the former. Whether you are an app developer or on the business development/marketing side, there are steps to take to enhance your user experience and encourage more exposure for your mobile app.
Promoting your app takes more than just spraying and praying. There are meticulous methods to strategically putting your brand on the market to show those of your target demographic that the app you created will be worth their time and potentially even their hard earned money.
App Reviews
App review directories are a simple and effective way to get your app's presence shown to the masses. Exposure within your chosen category helps your target market focus on what your app is all about. Websites like Best Mobile App Awards allow developers to submit their app for a chance at taking the top prize in their given category. Awards like these are tremendous for your app’s success and give more credibly when submitting to app directories.
Social Media
Social media can be extremely powerful, especially when utilized correctly. Aside from the potentially viral nature of social media, the best part about it is that it costs you nothing. Take advantage of all of platforms to have at least a basic presence on each.
There are different networks for different niches and markets. Spend more time on those focused on your core market than the others that will be less impactful. For example, a breaking news app would be better off taking full advantage of the short, real-time posts of Twitter rather than having a heavy push in the visually based Pinterest platform.
Free/Paid Apps
It might seem obvious that free apps get more downloads, but not many people think of offering a free version and a paid version. You can think of the free version as getting potential customers in the door and then if they like the product enough they will spend the money to upgrade to the paid version.
Things such as flash sales can create sharp spikes in downloads also, which can propel your app to the popular lists, thus increasing your user base even more. Getting listed on the popular lists will be one of your greatest assets, as studies show users go to the app store to look for apps on the popular lists more than organically searching for an app they already had in mind.
Frequent App Updates
Users leave reviews to share with future potential users. Use that feedback to your advantage and improve your app to make it even better. Freshly updated apps will also move your app closer to the top of the listings which is another added benefit. Users like to know their apps are constantly updating and improving. Update notifications work as another form of advertising, when they show up to the user’s phone. The more times someone sees your brand, the more trust that is instilled, thus the greater likelihood of revisiting.
Use these four avenues to drive your app to success. There is no such thing as an overnight success, so keep the pedal to the medal and you can look forward to constant and steady user base growth.