Studies show that more and more internet users think mobile apps are better than websites. They offer convenience, speed, rewards and personalised content; not to mention it’s just more entertaining. What’s not to like?
With an increase in interest, companies are beginning to launch new apps to help gain more revenue and customer retention. But how can you make money with your new app?
Influencer Marketing
Influencers are people on social media that have a dedicated following. They are usually experts in their niche and are therefore a great way to reach a specific audience. With influencer marketing for apps, you can increase brand awareness, achieve long-term partnerships, reach your target audience easily and get more users. All this leads to one thing – making money.
Working with an influencer during the launch of your new app can help to build the hype and get people excited about your business. Whether you launch your influencer marketing campaign during pre-launch promotion, app launch or post-launch promotions, there are benefits to each stage.
If you do your research, set your budget and choose the right influencer for your niche, influencer marketing can be a strong strategy for making money with your new app.
Ads
The most common (and easiest) way to monetise your new app is through in-app advertising. Displaying ads within your app is simple and can mean you get paid from third-party ad networks. This usually only happens when a user clicks on the ad or installs the advertised app, but some networks also pay per impression! There are 4 types of ads that can be displayed by your app:
- Interstitial ads – full-screen pop-ups that are displayed at different times, such as after clicking certain buttons
- Banner ads – displayed at different sizes at the top or bottom of the app screen
- In-app video ads – automatically displayed and used as a reward for the user to gain additional features in the app
- Native ads – integrated to appear as natural elements in the app to promote a product or app
Although ads are a great way to make money through your app, it’s worth noting that this model is only effective with apps that have a large pull of users. For smaller apps, other models may be more suitable.
Subscriptions
By implementing subscription and upgrade models to your app, you can increase the amount of money you make from it. A subscription is great for recurring revenue and is therefore considered the finest and most useful app monetising strategy.
As part of the subscription model, you can choose to offer free content in the app for a limited time, or offer a limited amount of free content before allowing users to pay a subscription fee to gain full access to the app content.
Subscription models are a great way to make money with your new app. It results in more reliable income and more engaged audiences. The Apple store even rewards the app with a higher revenue split to keep the customers for a longer period of time! However, it’s crucial to note that a free trial period is a must and continuously innovating features and content for app users is important to boost the revenue of your subscription-based users.
In-App Purchases
Generally popular for game publishers, in-app purchases are great for making money with your new app. This model allows your users to get a variety of popular in-app purchases in a game, music, movies or other digital goods directly from the app which, in turn, enhances user experience or gameplay. However, in-app purchases aren’t to be used to sell physical goods.
Implementing an in-app purchases model is an interesting way of converting non-paying app users into paying app users without the intrusive commitment of a subscription. Though because of this, you have to keep your users hooked so that they keep paying!
Sponsorships
Although less commonly used than other monetisation methods, sponsorships are a great strategy for making money through your app. With the right app for a targeted niche, sponsorships can be a powerful model.
App sponsorships are more exclusive than other advertisements as they are less random than your usual banner ads. Instead, sponsors may be interested in exchanging payment for a prominent place to promote their business on your app. It’s worth noting that a key enabler of a sponsorship model is the analytics data. To get an app sponsorship, you must be prepared with solid data to sell the value of your potential sponsor using fact-based results.