How To Get App Downloads
When it comes to startups, the saying “If you build it they will come” isn’t true. The saying is especially untrue, if you’re building a consumer mobile app. Guys like Semil Shah have pointed out that mobile distribution is 10 times harder than the web. With the web, opening a tab was easy. With mobile there is just a lot more friction. Getting people to download and register to your app (versus the millions of others) is hard, but far from impossible.
Get People To Download Your App
Here’s my top six tips and tricks I learned growing 5by, an iOS/Android app that allows you to find the best curated videos and share them with your friends.
1. Build a solid relationship with your Apple or Google rep
It’s no secret that the iTunes and Play Store are the gatekeepers to a flood of downloads. The first step is to create a good relationship with your Apple/Google Rep. Your goal is to get a warm introduction to one of the reps. Keep them updated on why whatever it is you’re up to is the greatest thing ever. If you’re iOS only, pitch your rep on why you’ve decided to be on iOS. If you’re Android only, do the same with your Play Store rep. If you’re both, try to create some different features on each platform and let your Apple rep know that your iOS app is better than your Android app and your Play Store rep that your Android app is better.
2. Help Apple and Google help you
The best way to get featured is to find out what’s on the Android/iOS roadmap and build features around that. When 5by launched, it was right around the time iOS 7 came out. We made sure we adhered to all the iOS 7 design guidelines and launched right around the time iOS 7 launched. Apple featured us in 50 plus countries in 50 plus spots because they wanted to showcase apps that were utilizing the new OS. Boom. We were able to get thousands of downloads per day.
3. Build with a growth lens
When you’re building your app, you need to look at every screen and ask yourself: Is this optimized for growth? We often do that for other areas of the product development process, like design, and do it with a growth lens. Remember, sometimes the most beautiful products are not at the top of the charts but the ones that are growth engines are.
4. Five-star reviews
Matt Galligan from Circa wrote a phenomenal Medium post that talked about why five-star reviews matter. If your app has a low average rating, you are way more likely to be volatile in the charts. What that means is, if you do get that feature in the app store or a press hit that gets you a lot of downloads in a short amount of time, you’re more likely to stay high in the charts. That means additional organic downloads from people searching in-category (like entertainment or social) can add up to hundreds or thousands of downloads a day.
5. Experiment with paid ads, but forget about Facebook ads
Unless you have a revenue model from Day One, I wouldn’t recommend spending on Facebook ads, but there are still some opportunities for cheap CPIs (cost-per-installs). Unfortunately, Facebook has gotten very expensive with average CPIs in Q4 2014 around 8 to 12 dollars. The good news is that there are other channels, which have a much lower CPI. For example, there are some apps called “App a day” that promote one a day to users. You could do a deal with them to promote your product.
Another cheaper channel is Twitter. Try experimenting with paid advertising because it helps boost rankings and you may find a channel with ridiculously low CPIs.
6. Bet big on emerging platforms
Vine, Snapchat, and Yik Yak are some emerging mobile-first platforms that could unleash a ton of growth if you do it right. With 5by, we have a Snapchat (add us “team5by”), which gives people snaps of the best YouTube videos of the day. People love it because it’s easy to snack on Snaps. We love it because it keeps 5by top of mind.
Bonus: Launch in Canada, New Zealand, or Australia first
You only have one opportunity to launch so do it right. If you launch in Canada, New Zealand or Australia (all English-speaking, culturally similar countries to the U.S.), you can get some early indicators on features and virility. Plus, you can find and fix bugs before a bigger launch.
Happy growing.