A mobile app marketing agency is more than just a service provider. On a strategic level, if you want to grow the mobile and digital elements of your business, a mobile app marketing agency is a strategic partner that can launch you to success. In this post, we’ll look at how you can turn your mobile app marketing agency into your secret weapon in order to reach heights you never thought possible, and leave the competition in your dust.
Mobile Bursts Onto The Scene
With the rise in digital and mobile usage, the business models of many companies have been upended. A dramatic change in the way customers consume goods and services has meant that companies that adapted have thrived, while those who have been slow to adapt have fallen way behind competitors, or disappeared altogether. A great example of this is the newspaper industry. Circulation numbers were initially hit hard by the rise in digital. After all, why would someone buy a physical newspaper, when they could get all their news online, for free? 
This drove leading publishers to take digital – and by extension, mobile – into account. We started seeing websites optimized for viewing on mobile devices. Then came the rise of the app economy, and together with this, the central role of the mobile app marketing agency. If you look at the digital landscape today, companies are leading their offerings with their apps. Taking the news industry as an example again, today leading publishers such as The Wall Street Journal or The New York Times have incredible apps which they aggressively promote. Just like any company in any industry, there has been a realization that business success has become synonymous with mobile success.
It’s Not Easy Out There
Sounds easy, right? Create an amazing app, users will come flocking, and you ride away into the sunset. If only. Today’s app landscape is super competitive. There are millions of apps out there, many of which provide an excellent service, with great user experiences. Within a single category, there can be hundreds of thousands of competing apps, all clamoring for the same user’s attention. What’s more, the primary method of distributing these apps, the app stores, have increased their standards and oversight to ensure only the highest quality apps are in their stores. Both Google’s Play Store and Apple’s App Store have been stringent not only on what can be listed, but where apps rank and how they can be discovered. It’s no longer sufficient to pump a ton of money into a mobile app campaign in order to achieve high ranking. There are multiple conditions to be met (along with little-known tricks) that are necessary for an app to rank highly in the app stores. This point, on discoverability, cannot be emphasized enough. Just like with SEO ranking for Google, if you’re not on page 1 of the app store search results, your chances of being downloaded are dramatically reduced. There is good news though. The fact that there are 2 main app stores (for Western audiences at least) means that if you can conquer these, you are well on your way to success. Users are using these app stores to find you, so what you need to do is make it easy to be found. And once the user discovers your app, you will tell such a compelling story, that the user will be inclined to download your app without checking out the next competitor. How does one ensure this? That’s where the mobile app marketing agency comes in.
The Importance of a Mobile App Marketing Agency
As mentioned previously, standing out amongst millions of apps is a challenge. A mobile app marketing company’s job is to specifically address that challenge. Mobile app marketing companies came into being when companies realized that experts were needed in the field in order to be successful. From algorithms to design trends, things change so quickly in the world of mobile that it can be overwhelming to keep up. 
These rapid changes make it difficult for companies to stay on top of things while still being successful. It’s not only almost impossible to keep up and incorporate changes quickly but also a massive distraction and often an even larger headache. The mobile app marketing company would essentially provide mobile app marketing services to organizations, allowing them to focus on their core business. This is still the mobile app marketing agency’s main role, one with exponentially increasing importance to these organizations. Mobile app marketing agencies are used to promote apps and ensure that key performance indicators are met. This could be in terms of download numbers, engagement stats, retention, CPAs, or any other metrics chosen by an organization. Top mobile app marketing companies provide a whole lot more than this. In fact, top mobile app marketing companies quickly become key strategic partners. They can provide the following mobile app marketing services:
- Involved with the planning and strategy phases of mobile launches
- Give input into the design of mobile apps
- Be used in a consulting role
- Strategize about pre-launch, launch and post-launch activities
- Give key insights into target audiences, markets and competitors
- Design a strategy for the maximum impact
- Use resources more effectively through smart campaigns
- Design and run effective campaigns that meet the goals of the partner organization
When To Engage a Mobile App Marketing Agency
When it comes to mobile app marketing services and mobile app marketing solutions, the question of when to engage a mobile app marketing agency often comes up. There are 4 key occasions where a mobile app marketing agency can add extreme value:
- Planning on launching a new app
- Launching an app
- Optimizing an app campaign’s performance
- App Store optimization
Planning on launching a new app
This phase is quite possibly the point at which the mobile app marketing agency can add the most value. It is during this phase that research and planning can be used effectively to ensure that the foundations of mobile success are there from the very start. This includes research around the business goals of the organization, the target audience of the app and how best to appeal to them, channels to be used, key messages, different markets, what competitors are doing, and unique differentiating factors that will give your app its edge.
Launching an app
Launching an app is not just a matter of setting up a few campaigns and watching your budget slowly run out. A powerful app launch can completely change the trajectory of your app, ensuring that early success breeds even more achievement down the line. Consider, for example, an app that breaks into the top charts very early after launch. This results in a much higher level of organic downloads, fuels even more growth, and results in incredible ROI and other performance metrics.
Optimizing an app campaign’s performance
Campaigns should never just “run”, with a post-mortem after they have finished. A great campaign is constantly being evaluated. There should be tests being performed all the time. In mobile marketing, the smallest change (the colors used in a logo, for example) can have a massive impact. Test often, and continue optimizing. Remember of course to test effectively. The correct A/B testing techniques should be used to ensure app campaign success.
App Store Optimization
A mobile marketing campaign often hinges around one critical step of the app download process: that of the App Store. You can run the most effective campaigns on social media, for example, but when users get to the app listing page on the app stores and aren’t impressed, you’ve just lost a potential user and all the budget you’ve spent to get them there. App Store Optimization (ASO) is a critical part of mobile app success and will be dealt with later in this article.
Services a Mobile App Marketing Agency Provides
A mobile app marketing agency can provide a number of mobile app marketing services. While niche mobile marketing agencies can provide different aspects of mobile marketing (for example, just Facebook campaigns), the best app marketing companies provide an end-to-end mobile app marketing service. 
Mobile app marketing services include:
- Strategy
- Product
- Creative
- ASO
- Media
Let’s look at each of these mobile app marketing services in a bit more detail.
Strategy
Includes everything from consulting, research and planning, to market validation, insights and benchmarks, and support.
Product
A mobile app marketing agency can give incredible insight into using small changes in app design and functionality to massively boost performance when it comes to running mobile campaigns. In an effective partnership between a mobile app marketing agency and an organization, there will be a continuous feedback loop from product to campaign performance, and back into the product.
Creative
Standing out requires creativity. Creativity in design and messaging, but also creativity in terms of creative assets. When a user is scrolling through different apps in the app stores, they will stop and take note when an app listing shows freshness, creativity, and incredible design.
ASO
The ASO service is perhaps the most important of the mobile app marketing services that a mobile app marketing agency can provide. ASO touches every aspect of an app’s marketing strategy, and the correct ASO strategy will ensure all of the parts work together to create a powerful and compelling tool. ASO includes optimizing messages, descriptions, names, logos, screenshots, and a whole lot more, to create the perfect experience for potential users.
Media
Media is a bit like an iceberg. It seems relatively simple to navigate at first glance, but in reality, it can be a massive stumbling block for those unaccustomed to its unique quirks. Media can quickly drain budgets if not used correctly, so a mobile app marketing agency has a critical role to play in ensuring that media is deployed correctly: reaching the right users at the right time, with the perfect message in order to convert them into life-long fans.
Getting The Most Out of Your Mobile App Marketing Agency
As we said before, working with a top mobile app marketing agency is more of a partnership than an outsourced service, like legal work. There should be a connection, communication, and a deep understanding on behalf of the mobile app marketing agency of what the organization is looking to achieve. A great place to start is with the brief. A brief lays out the expectations of both parties, helps define success, and is the northern star of the performance. There is also a lot of preliminary work that can be done by an organization before engaging a mobile app marketing agency, or before embarking on a specific campaign. This includes:
- Setting specific, measurable goals for the campaign
- Creating key metrics such as downloads, retention or engagement rates, etc.
- Researching competitors, positioning, channels
Generally, a campaign should have a small number of specific goals, rather than a large number of broader, more vague ones. This ensures focus across both the organization itself as well as the mobile app marketing agency and will make the key goals more efficiently achievable.
A Case Study: Success With a Mobile App Marketing Agency
What To Look Out For When Choosing a Mobile App Marketing Agency You obviously want the best mobile app marketing agency. The question is, what do you look out for when scouting the best mobile app marketing companies? There are a few ways to ensure that you’re getting the very best in the business, with the experience, knowledge, and most importantly the track record, to ensure your success. Some of the key things to look out for are:
- Clients
- Awards
- Statistics
- Previous work
Clients
Lookout for both big names, as well as exciting up-and-coming names you may be less familiar with. This shows that the company has the experience and the know-how to work with organizations of any size, and is trusted by the biggest in the business, who could choose anyone but went with this particular mobile app marketing agency. Many companies provide mobile app marketing solutions, but it’s the clients of these companies that really show who has played – and succeeded – in the big leagues.
Awards
For a mobile app marketing agency, this is an extremely competitive industry. As more and more companies realize the importance and complexity of app marketing success, the need for a top mobile app marketing agency increases. Awards, therefore, are a great way to objectively assess which companies are truly world-class at what they do.
Statistics
Any mobile app marketing agency can claim they are the best. But do they have the stats to back up this claim? Look for specifics such as “Moburst increased Calm app’s Organic Installs by 36%, and launched them into the Top 10 for their Category”.
Previous work
Have a look at creative work done by the mobile app marketing agency in the past. If there are no examples, this is already a warning sign. If there are examples, take a look at some of the work that has been done. How creative is it, how different, new and fresh? Obviously, different types of campaigns, different channels, and different types of apps will need very different creative approaches, so this needs to be in mind.
Benefits of Working With a Mobile App Marketing Agency
For some companies, there is a temptation to either do their app marketing themselves or to use a mobile app marketing company who might be cheaper, in an attempt to save money. Working with a top mobile app marketing agency will:
- Save money
- Drive much better results
- Ensure you don’t have to stay on top of changes in the industry
- Allow you to benefit from the experience of the mobile app marketing agency
- Provide world-leading assets and support
Save money
In the long run (and more often than not, in the short run too) going with a cheap mobile app marketing agency will end up costing more money and result in less being achieved, than when going with a top mobile app marketing agency. We’ve seen it so many times. A mobile app marketing agency that is inexperienced will throw your budget at your first campaigns in an attempt to show results early, and when it’s time to optimize and really drive quality results, there’s nothing left in the tank.
Drive much better results
By doing things right from the outset like planning together with the mobile app marketing agency, strategizing, and rolling out a campaign together – you will see more results, at a lower cost per result, with more quality evident throughout the process, especially when it comes to end-users. 
Industry changes
Both Apple and Google recently changed their algorithms, and apps that were experiencing incredible performance up to that point, suddenly found themselves being undiscoverable by users. The best mobile app marketing agency was able to let their clients know about the change, educate them in terms of what happened, and give actionable insights into what needs to be done in order to take advantage of the changes.
Benefit from the experience of the mobile app marketing agency
A top mobile app marketing agency has worked with clients across industries and knows exactly what is required, in each vertical, to ensure mobile app success. This includes not only messaging, but the elements like the channels most likely to be successful, creative assets that will be successful, and setting realistic benchmarks and KPIs.
Provide world-leading assets and support
The partnership provided by a top mobile app marketing agency ensures that there is ongoing support provided throughout the entire process. It’s not a case of “give us your app, and we’ll launch campaigns and see what happens”. It’s a process of testing, iteration, feedback, and improvement.
Case Study
Do you want to see just how powerful a partnership with a top mobile app marketing agency can be? Bingo Blitz is a Bingo app in the super-competitive gaming category. It’s a multiplayer bingo and slots app provided by Playtika and is monetized through in-app purchases. Playtika approached Moburst to increase the apps’ visibility, conversion rates, organic download rates and cumulative traffic scores in the U.S. Apple App Store. In such a competitive and aggressive category (bingo and slot games), an analytical but creative approach had to be taken to engage potential app users and differentiate Bingo Blitz from competing apps. First, in-depth research into discoverability was conducted, with hundreds of potential keywords investigated, and only the keywords most likely to attract relevant and interested users were selected. Next, with a mission to improve conversion rates on the app’s App Store listing page, numerous A/B tests were run, comparing the impact of different visual components such as screenshots on user engagement. Customized creative sets were created, staying true to the brand, and performance was then compared over a period of time to determine the winning creative assets. Everything was measured in order to optimize: from conversion rates to exploration rates to instant drop rates. The results?
- Increased Organic Traffic: Bingo Blitz experienced a 41% increase in cumulative traffic for targeted phrases
- Higher Visibility: An increase of 72% in the number of keywords with Bingo Blitz listed in top results
- More Organic Users: 43% increase in Daily Average Organic downloads
- Happier Users: The number of users awarding Bingo Blitz with a 5-star rating in the app store grew by 57%
Your App Marketing Agency Is Your Secret Weapon
By engaging the right mobile app marketing agency for your business, you are providing yourself with the best launchpad possible for mobile success. In today’s competitive business environment, there simply is no success without a strong mobile strategy. When it comes to choosing the right mobile app marketing agency for your business, make sure you get in touch with us at Moburst. We work with the biggest names in the business – from Google to Uber – along with the most exciting young startups. We can’t wait to discuss your business and work together to launch it into the stratosphere of mobile app success!
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