Are you thinking about establishing an app development startup? There are a couple of things you should know first.
The mobile app market is huge and many people want a slice of it for themselves. That means you’ll face plenty of competition on the app development scene. And not just from other startups. You’ll be up against software houses and digital marketing agencies with teams of in-house developers.
There are hundreds of thousands of app developers out there. That’s why knowing how to stand out in the mobile market is key to your success in the sector. You can do that by building a strong brand that becomes recognizable in the industry and gets associated with quality app development.
Here are 9 tips to help you develop a solid reputation and market your app development services to achieve success on the dynamic mobile market.
1. Know how to market your products
The first thing your potential clients will want to know is the kind of apps you have developed so far. If your apps are popular, you can be sure to instantly become more attractive in their eyes.
Since the competition is high and the market is busier than ever, your apps might easily get lost in the crowd of other apps. To bring out the potential of your product, you need to ensure that:
- your app is receiving enough downloads to bring you revenue
- it’s ranked high enough in the app market to be organically discovered
- it’s being downloaded by your target audience
- has a good usage ratio.
Your marketing model should answer all these issues. Since the app market is changing quickly, you need to rely on proven marketing tactics that bring optimal results no matter what. There is also a number of essential things you should take care of before starting your app marketing campaign. Remember that marketing a product is a long-term process that requires a lot of creativity and energy, but also an ability to plan, organise your work and multitask.
2. Share your brand on social media
Your app development startup needs to be present on social media. That’s how you boost brand awareness and show the personal side of your brand that is bound to attract the right audience to your products – and customers to your app development business.
As an app developer, you should find a way to keep in touch with the users of your apps – and social media can easily serve as a powerful communication channel for that kind of interactions.
Seeing how you provide support to app users, potential customers will consider your brand more reliable on the market. Also, clear communication with users is key for receiving more positive reviews on app stores. And that’s another factor your potential client will take into account when choosing the developer to realize their idea for an app.
3. Build brand awareness
Your app development business needs to have social profiles on all major sites. Make sure to update your profiles regularly and include information about your latest products. Show off your collection of apps and help your target customers learn more about you on a user-friendly, mobile-optimized website.
The core of your marketing on the web is your portfolio of apps. That’s why it’s a good idea to publish some apps in free time to add to your company portfolio and show off your skill set. Great design, amazing user experience and flawless functionality are your main selling points.
4. Invest in ad networks
An affiliate ad company can help you spread the word about your apps through other apps and banners. The click-through rate for advertising apps via that kind of ad networks is decent and can help boost your rating in the app store – and that’s key to the discoverability of your app. Have a look around and try different ad networks to find the one that suits your needs.
5. Don’t forget about SEO
Promoting your apps is a smart move – seeing how well your apps are doing will motivate potential clients to get in touch with you.
SEO is key to boosting the popularity of your apps on app stores. Research your niche to see the most successful apps that are similar to your products. Look at the keywords they’re using in descriptions. Analyze them and emulate that style in your own app descriptions.
You need as many backlinks to your app as you can get. And they better come from quality websites too. But that’s not everything that accounts for the popularity of your app. For example, the app ranking system of Google Play takes into account the number of Google Pluses gathered by your app too.
6. Make organic marketing work for you
Using organic marketing to your advantage is a necessary step on your way to success. Your app development startup needs exposure on app marketplaces. That’s where users search and find apps – including your potential clients who are researching the niche and checking various app developers.
You need to understand how organic rankings work within Google Play and Apple App Store to optimize the exposure of your apps there.
You can improve your rankings in Apple App Store by ad-driven links. In Google Play, rankings are based on app usage – the higher the usage ratio per download, the higher will be your rank.
7. Develop a loyal user base
Nothing speaks a reliable app development brand like a host of loyal users who love your apps and aren’t afraid to tell everyone they know about it. Reward the users of your apps with extra benefits.
Send them push notifications. You can also provide them with discounts on your other products. Make them feel special and they’re bound to stay loyal to your brand.
8. Cross-market your products
Why not self-market your products inside your very own app empire? It’s smart to introduce users of different apps to your other products via internal banners, links within apps, and push notifications.
The existing users who love your apps will be happy to click through and try your other products. That’s how you boost your app downloads and usage per app ratio which is crucial to the exposure of your brand on app marketplaces.
9. Try your hand at contextual marketing
It’s not easy to pull it off, but if you manage to do that, contextual marketing can bring you plenty of benefits. Make the most of that strategy by setting up a physical presence in a popular place where your audience hangs out – for example, a shopping mall. Users passing by that location will receive relevant messages informing them about your products to boost your download rate.
Use these 9 tips to market your apps and your app development startup to increase your brand awareness and attract new clients who will trust your expertise and skill in delivering amazing mobile experiences for their customers.