Making an app from scratch is no easy task. There are a million hurdles app developers go through before they are satisfied with their finished product. Once you have your finished app in front of you, what then? Naturally, you will need users. It doesn’t matter how great your creation is - if no one knows about it, it’s basically useless.
This is where an online marketing plan comes in handy. In this blog post, we’ve listed 5 tried and tested online marketing techniques that will give your app the attention it deserves.
1. Create your own blog
No one knows more about the app you created than you do. Fill your audience in on the benefits your app provides, and the different features users can access. Get them excited about your product!
Blogs are also an incredibly effective marketing tool because they ensure traffic to your page. If you add various SEO strategies to that equation, you basically have a recipe for success. People will come and spend time on your page and that will boost your brand.
Your blog can be the bridge that connects you to your audience. Don’t be afraid to share personal stories because the more honest and vulnerable you are with your users, the more likely they are to engage with your product.
According to one report, 57% of marketers have vouched for the efficacy of using blog posts for online promotion. These marketers have seen about a 67% jump in engagement. So try it. It’s simple, cheap, and once you get enough traction, you’ll realize one-on-one interactions with your users can be super fun too.
2. Use the power of social media
In today’s day and age, social media marketing is not just encouraged, but also absolutely necessary for a well-rounded and effective marketing campaign. And once again, this doesn’t have to cost you an arm and a leg.
Some people find creating posters and other promotional content for social media intimidating, especially if they have to do it from scratch. But you can actually use professionally designed and completely customizable design templates for social media posts. Just go to a site like PosterMyWall and use their online graphic design tool to create stunning social media posts. This is incredibly cost-effective, provides great results, and is super easy to create. And you don’t even have to work with a professional graphic designer. You can do it all by yourself in minutes.
3. Get reviews for your app
When it comes to how good your app is, consumers don’t trust anything the way they trust authentic and detailed reviews. The keyword here, of course, is “authentic”.
You should gain the trust of your potential users by getting real reviews from other users and app developers. Let them critique every last detail about your app, and then post that to your page. This tells users that you’re not just a self-praising hustler who has no one to vouch for their product.
Of course, with good reviews, there will be some bad ones too. Negative reviews should not be ignored. The key is to filter out anonymous trolls and focus only on constructive criticism. This type of criticism is crucial for helping your app grow in the early stages of its release. The quicker you are with fixing genuine issues, the higher your consumer satisfaction will be.
There are plenty of sites you can go to to get your app reviewed. Websites like ReviewMyApp give completely honest and real reviews that you can then use to increase audience engagement. They tell you what works with your app and what doesn’t, so this is not only helpful to consumers, but to you as well. In the future, you can make updates to your app using the reviews that you got.
You can also have in-person focus groups with a handful of people from your target audience, and get them to review your app. Consumers trust other consumers, and a layman’s opinion can be just as valuable as that of an expert. Focus groups should be incentivized through special discounts (in case of in-app purchases) or perks for motivation.
To incentivize users to review your app, you should add the review option to the app itself. Make it as easy and hassle-free as possible for them. Use sites like Appirator, a popular iOS plugin that adds the review option to your app within minutes. Also, make sure to time the option appropriately - not as soon as the person downloads the app, and not too late either.
4. Start a community
There is no better way to find an audience for your app than to create a platform for like-minded individuals to gather and share their stories. The most popular way to do this in the tech community is through Discord channels. All interested parties, whether it’s consumers or other app developers, can gather on one virtual platform and engage with each other.
As a new app developer, your focus should always be to retain a loyal customer base, and a community group is the best way to do that. People like feeling like they belong to a group, and if they’re made a part of one, they will be far less likely to stop using your app anytime soon.
Share your blog posts, your thoughts, ask for feedback, give advice, and talk to your users all on one beautifully structured platform.
Also, keep a record of your users by creating a subscriber list. Subscribers should be the first ones to get access to exclusive blog posts and deals on your app. You should ask for an email address when people go to your blog or your Discord channel.
All this to say that having a community for your app will help make it grow at incredible rates, especially since word of mouth is a pretty powerful tool.
5. Get an app award
This may sound like a difficult feat to accomplish, but it’s not really. You should submit your app for consideration at award companies like Award Force and Stevie Awards, and if it’s good enough, you should be able to get an acknowledgment of your good work. You must do this early on in the app marketing process because the sooner you have the right credentials attached to your product, the better.
In fact, most people start their marketing after having a number of awards under their belt. Of course, that’s not really necessary but it does highlight the importance of app awards in general.
And there you have it. Promote your mobile app using the simple and effective strategies mentioned above and you should be well on your way to creating the next big internet sensation.
