4 Must-Haves For Launching A Successful Mobile App

An app can be an immensely powerful marketing tool. For those that use it in the right way, an app can support your business and even be a way to draw in a whole new customer base.

It goes without saying that app development can be a complicated process, but it is an effort which is well worth it for the marketing potential it brings to your business. As such, there are a few must-have’s that you need to consider before launching your new app:

1) Create an Online Presence:

Have you ever Googled Snapchat? It brings you to a simplistic website, a mix of the brands yellow and white with the characteristic ghost floating in the middle. There is little info on the site and its main links are those that lead you to download the app. With such simplicity, what’s the point?

Simple: it’s there for the sake of being there. If people do Google the app then the company want to be found, the easiest way to do so is to create a website which although simple does its job beautifully - it prompts whoever may be interested in the app to download it. It’s designed to catch the people who may be interested in downloading the app, but don’t access the app store of their device to do so for one reason or another.

In the same way, you can incorporate your app into your everyday online presence via blog posts, social media announcements, website banners and even an email marketing campaign. Building the profile of your app is important and should be planned before launch.

2) User Acquisition Plan:

User acquisition is not as sinister as it may sound.  The identity of your user base and the way they use your app will mean forming your very own acquisition strategy, which means that the methods by which you gain users will be unique to your business. For example, a game app would have a very different strategy than a shopping app as they have a very different purpose and usability.

However, key components of your strategy - no matter the use or user of your app - may include pre-launch outreaching (press releases, guest posting, affiliate marketing, etc.), pre-launch trials for select users, outreaching to product sites and even simply making your app discoverable in the app store.

Attracting users is key to the success of app, so it is important to create a detailed acquisition strategy and adapt it after launch. It is an ongoing effort throughout the life of your app.

3) Create a Video:

Traditional marketing tools are all well and good, but something extra is needed when it comes to apps. A video is a perfect medium to help demonstrate your new apps capabilities and what it actually does. It can be a simple 30-second video, yet if YouTube ads are anything to go by, then that short period of time is more than enough to draw people’s curiosity.

Your video going viral may be too much to hope for. Added downloads and an extra sense of your company’s branding and personality can be a great asset to launch your app alongside, however.

4) The Internet of Things:

By definition, the Internet of Things is:

“Interconnection via the Internet of computing devices embedded in everyday objects, enabling them to receive and send data.”

In 2017, there is such a thing as a smart fridge. But, with so many objects that have smart capabilities and a number of different uses throughout the home then there are also ways for apps to interact with them.

Buying mascara from L’Oreal, for example, could connect the user to beauty tutorials online. Likewise, it allows the makeup company to better understand their customers and how they use their products. It is a whole new way for brands and customers to indirectly interact which will have a big impact on the future of marketing. As such, it is important to consider the IoT now even if you do not initially utilize it.

IoT is an expensive marketing campaign to consider - currently only being utilized by the biggest brand names in the varying markets. But, for the future of your app and brand/customer interaction, it is a great consideration to make now. As early adopters of this method will be the ones that profit from it the most. Perhaps not a must-have for launching your app right now, but it certainly will be in the future and so good to consider.

Concluding Thoughts:

Apps are a fast-moving industry, the landscape changes on a daily basis. Launching an app in 2017 must be done so with great consideration and planning, as simply putting your app on the various stores is no longer enough to guarantee anyone will download it.

In a saturated market, it is building your online presence, working out where your users will come from and considering the future that needs to be considered pre-launch for a successful app.

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