Mobile user acquisition is a way for apps to gain news users by creating advertising campaigns and promotional offers to generate installs. This can be done organically or through paid activities. While organic UA is undoubtedly a fundamental part of any UA strategy, this article will focus on why it is vital to invest in paid user acquisition. And invest wisely at that.
What Is Paid User Acquisition
Paid user acquisition is simply any non-organic activity performed by apps to gain more users. It is a strong mobile growth strategy because it helps increase both apps’ user base and in-app revenues. AppsFlyer reports that apps spent a whopping $83 billion on mobile user acquisition in 2021 alone. This is a 40% YoY increase, driven by a 50% jump in Android and a 26% rise in iOS. That is a massive jump, to say the least, and demonstrates why it is more important than ever to ensure you are spending your money effectively to target high-value users. With that being said we will now explore some key ways to manage your paid user acquisition budget wisely and boost your sales:
Targeting High-Quality Users
One of the best ways to get value for your investment is by ensuring you are bringing high-quality users to your app. While a high volume of users may seem appealing, you want people who not only download your app but interact with it. These are users who generate in-app revenue through post-install events such as purchases, first deposits, or subscriptions, true fans as we like to call them. According to a report by AppsFlyer, apps waste an estimated $57,000 a month due to uninstalls. This shows just how crucial it is to carefully plan your user acquisition strategy so you are bringing in users that hold a lifetime value for your app, and avoid throwing money down the drain.
How can I avoid this happening to me you ask? Well, the answer is simple; forming the right mobile user acquisition strategy that will focus on targeting high-value users. The following steps are some of the ways you can achieve just that:
- Create engaging and targeted ads: Advertisers can evaluate the effectiveness of their ad creatives while executing programmatic app install campaigns, especially through DSPs, to discover which ads drive more conversions and more quality users.
- Select different GEOs: As audiences behave differently, it is critical to track outcomes in multiple countries to improve the performance of user acquisition campaigns.
- Use the Average Revenue Per User (ARPU) as a useful metric to find out how much money you are earning from each user in a selected time period.
Having A Data-Driven User Acquisition Strategy
When it comes to targeting users the stakes are too high to be shooting in the dark. You need to calculate your moves and the best way to do this is by analyzing data from your previous campaigns. The aim is to identify trends and patterns and use these to help you rework and adjust campaigns to better hit the target. Incorporating data into your paid acquisition strategy takes the guesswork out of UA and means you are more likely to increase your ROAS.
Optimize Your Budget Using Machine Learning
When it comes to optimizing your paid UA strategy, machine learning is your best friend. It can effectively identify users that are most likely to register, subscribe, purchase, or other goals that your app may have. Machine learning is a branch of artificial intelligence (AI) that focuses on the use of data and algorithms to imitate the way that humans learn, using its innovative power to learn from the data and improve over time. By doing so it can analyze users’ behavior, identify patterns and connect your app with high conversion users.
