Social media tips: If you want to improve your online marketing campaigns and increase your reach among your targeted audience, consider developing a mobile app!
Mobile apps are not just for big-name brands anymore and offer a lot more than just brand awareness.
Small to midsize businesses, techies, and digital marketers are using mobile apps more and more to spread their message both online and offline.
Before getting into details on how to spread the message about your newly developed mobile app through social media channels, first, consider how mobile apps benefit both the end-user and your marketing endeavors, and the fundamental do’s and don’ts of mobile app marketing.
So, in this article, we cover the following ideas:
a. Social media tips and tricks
b. Social media tips for beginners
c. Social media tips for marketing
d. Social media tips for small businesses
e. Social media tips for individuals
Mobile phones are not just for communication anymore, they are today’s preferred method of computing and accessing both online and offline information.
The reason for this is twofold: availability of high-speed internet and mobile application technology.
The following stats speak volumes about just how prevalent mobile apps are today:
The above statistics show that smartphone users, especially young Americans, are spending more time on mobile apps than computers, meaning that mobile applications are the best way to reach people in today’s digital environment.
Today’s mobile apps fill many important functions indispensable for daily human life. They help us organize (contacts, events, personal information), educate, bank, and entertain.
New mobile app trends continue to increase in areas unheard of before due to recent technological advancements – today, you have Progressive Web Apps (PWA), augmented reality apps, and wearables.
The point is, no matter your industry, message, or niche, there is more than likely an audience out there that can get value from your mobile application.
It is not easy to stand apart from the crowd when marketing your mobile app.
During the first quarter of 2019, there were approximately 2.1 million apps available for Android users and 1.8 million apps available for Apple users.
With all that competition, your mobile app should be a little different. It should add some extra value when compared with the other mobile apps on the market.
Successful mobile app development begins with proper planning followed by pre and post-launch marketing campaigns.
Before even thinking about how to market your mobile app, you need to think about developing it in a way that makes it more special than most of the other apps out there.
After you have planned accordingly and have a pre-launch and post-launch marketing campaign, consider the following mobile app Search Engine Optimization (SEO), App Store Optimization (ASO), and Website tips.
Believe it or not, mobile websites are the top source of mobile app installs!
Now, your mobile website does not have to be grand – a microsite or landing page will do. Just be sure to put it up during the pre-launch phase to create a buzz and a sense of expectancy for your app before you upload it to any app store.
Using a video trailer within your website or landing page will give your pre-launch marketing an extra kick and helps users not only find your app but desire it all the more.
A video trailer can also be repurposed and used on social platforms like YouTube or Facebook Ads, and on app stores to get broader multi-channel marketing exposure.
Even if you adhere to all the above tips, any one of the following 5 mistakes during the development process can mean that no amount of marketing will be able to save your initial launch.
Would you start a business without knowing whether the business could produce something people wanted?
You would not!
Then, why would you build an app without having some idea that there was an actual market for it?
If you do not know the audience you are targeting, then you will not know what they want.
You can find your audience by going on social media platforms and other sites relative to your niche or industry and see what they are talking about – what are their pain points and current obstacles?
Once you figure that out, you can examine your competitors’ apps to see what they have already come up with to solve your market’s problems.
If you have discovered a new issue that has not been addressed by your competition, then voila, you have got a good mobile app idea in the making.
Not so fast though!
To make sure that your market is interested in your idea, send them surveys and questionnaires discussing the specific problems you have uncovered and got their feedback on possible solutions.
Do not build a crappy UI (user interface).
The difference between a good and bad mobile app is almost always tied to its user experience.
If users give your app a ‘thumbs down’ right after launch, it is very hard to recoup your reputation even with the best marketing strategy.
Some general tips you can use to ensure that your app design and functionality will be a hit among your users include:
Do not fall into the myth that the more features the better.
Many mobile app developers take this route because they think they will ‘one-up’ their competition by including more features for their users.
More features in and of themselves do not make for a better app!
In fact, users seem to only want 5 main features aside from the main function your app serves – the one that makes their lives easier and solves their specific problems.
These features include:
Therefore, do your best to cut out the ‘extra fat’ and only offer what your users want.
If they happen to desire more, they will let you know after post-launch and you can then add it in.
You don’t have to create your app for every platform to get users to download it, especially if you are creating an app for the first time.
Building an app for multiple platforms helps you reach a wider audience, but it also creates more work for you.
It is simpler to create your app in line with the platform your current customers, audience, or users use.
For instance, if you know through your research that most of your intended users prefer to use an iPhone, then create your app for that platform.
Once you have built an app that your target audience loves, you can then branch out into other platforms to gain a wider reach.
For mobile apps, first impressions are everything
The top 3 reasons mobile apps fail are lack of originality, development failures, and lack of a specified target audience.
Proper audience and competitive research will combat both a lack of originality and lack of a targeted audience but only incessant testing will ensure that there are no development failures during and after the time of launch.
Some major things you need to test for before launching your app include:
If possible bring in an expert to test your mobile app. Third-party testing is usually more reliable and unbiased than in-house testing and testers.
Why should you focus most of your mobile app marketing efforts on social media rather than on other more obvious avenues like the actual app stores you will upload your app to?
Because app users rely on their close circle of friends and family to uncover new mobile applications!
In fact, 52% of mobile users discover apps through their friends, colleagues, and family.
Getting a good, quality app that fits your users’ needs is the first step in a successful mobile app marketing campaign.
Using mobile app SEO, ASO, and having a proper landing page or app website is the second.
The third step, however, is using social media tips to solidify your app as something special among your end-users and separate it from the rest of the 5 million-plus total apps out there, 25% of which are never reused after the initial installation!
Besides reaching more potential users, having a strong social media presence and using it to leverage your mobile app marketing campaigns will also encourage existing users to spend more time on your app, which will lead to higher conversions and therefore more money if you choose to monetize it.
Not only is social media marketing an effective way to gain more exposure for your mobile app but it is also a cost-effective marketing strategy as you can leverage your social media platform of choice to gain free, organic traffic as well as use its paid features to bring in higher reach and ROI.
Now that you know why social media is such an effective tool for marketing your mobile app, let’s look at some specific marketing strategies to use when advertising your app on your favorite social media platform.
Roughly 49% of app downloads are done so through social ads!
This alone should be enough to convince you to give a try to paid ads for social media.
What if you don’t have a large budget for paid advertising though?
You don’t have to spend a ton of money on social media paid ads to reach interested parties.
Running a sponsored post on Facebook, for instance, is relatively simple and cheaper than using Facebook Ads and will help you reach an audience outside your existing one.
Youtube Ads are another great source of paid social media ads as they can run as low as $0.10 – $0.30 per view and you can even brand yourself for free if a viewer skips your ad within the allotted time – you get free views when they do!
As almost every social media platform offers app installments as part of their advertising options it makes to use social ads to increase your app download conversions.
The key to successful paid campaigns on social media is to get as granular as possible with your targeting. This will help you cut down on costs and increase your conversions.
Influencers know their audience so intimately and provide such value to them that they make most of their purchase decisions on their favorite influencer’s suggestions.
Almost 40% of Twitter users say they have made a purchase due to an influencer’s suggestion.
There is a caveat though – influencers cost money!
It is possible sometimes to convince them to give a shout-out about your app to their followers by offering them a free download or some other ethical bribe, but most of the big-name influencers within your niche are going to carry a hefty price tag.
If you don’t have the money to pay a big influencer for a sponsored recommendation, then try micro-influencers in your niche, ones that have anywhere between 1,000 to 100,000 followers. They still hold clout with their audience and are usually more than happy to work with big and small brands alike – even new brands – for a small fee.
If you are confused about which social media platform has the best influencers and micro-influencers, try Instagram. This platform tends to have the most engaging followers of all the social media platforms today.
Third-party testimonials are always better than brand-based advertisements.
90% of consumers listen to online reviews (peer recommendations) and only 33% trust ads.
This is the exact reason why you should ask your current app users, if you have any, to supply user-generated content showcasing your app.
This content can include photos, videos, or written reviews showing how your app improved their lives in some way.
In order to get interested parties to supply personal content about your app, try offering them a free download in exchange for a testimonial.
Sometimes there is no need to ‘bribe’ people to give your app a review as there may already be reviews and ratings about it floating around the web.
Any reviews or ratings about your app will almost always happen after you have launched it, so keep an eye out for app review sites and YouTube channels that rate apps during post-launch.
Are our reviews and ratings as effective in getting people to download apps as user-generated content is?
You betcha!
60% of app users feel that reviews and ratings are the most important deciding factor when considering an app.
Once you spot a positive review or a high rating for your app on any app store, be sure to post it immediately to all of your social media accounts.
You don’t have to stick with just one social media platform when marketing your mobile app. In fact, the more social channels you can leverage for marketing, the better.
Each social media platform has its own distinct features and advantages when it comes to marketing mobile apps.
To give you a better idea of what these are, the following breakdown of Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter is shown below.
Offers various promotional advantages:
Great for promotional “sneak peeks” through videos, snapshots, and stunning images.
You should use a mix of the following stunning visuals to engage viewers and encourage app downloads:
Best used for exchanging ideas, reviews, and offering support.
To be more precise, this platform offers the following marketing capabilities:
Now that you know how beneficial mobile apps can be to your business, message, or promotional activities, it is time to make and market your app.
Follow the dos and won’t’s outlined above when designing and advertising your app and be sure to use social media to market your app before and after you launch it.
Also, don’t forget to use the above 5 social media tips for marketing and make all of your promotional content, valuable, memorable, and authentic.
If you do this, you will get engagement from your audience which will ultimately culminate in a plethora of mobile app downloads.
Author Bio
Joe Peters is a Baltimore-based freelance writer and an ultimate techie. When he is not working his magic as a marketing consultant, this incurable tech junkie devours the news on the latest gadgets and binge-watches his favorite TV shows. Follow him on @bmorepeters
This website uses cookies.