If you’ve been in the mobile industry for at least a couple of years, you’ll remember when the number of app users was considered the strongest pillar of success. But app marketing success goes beyond just a quantitative measurement. The real success in performance lies in measuring the long-term value of users over a lifetime and in the methods of keeping these users engaged.
According to a study by Localytics, 21% of users abandon an app after only one use. So how do you keep your users engaged? The answer is having the right creative and retargeting strategy.
Before getting into details on how you can re-engage your lapsed users, let’s discuss the reasons for users lapsing in the first place.
Why do the users lapse?
With the dynamic development of the digital advertising industry, ads are now seen everywhere. As a result, there is a high possibility that audiences may feel fatigued. If they are constantly seeing the same ad, there is a strong potential that the messaging will get stale. All of us have seen that one ad over and over again—the one that became very unamusing. What about that television commercial that you used to think was funny but now find annoying because it’s played too often? Well, the same fatigue applies to mobile ads.
Imagine yourself playing a puzzle game. You’ve just passed level fifteen, and an ad pops out featuring the level 10 theme. As you’ve already passed that level, you close the ad and forget about it. But seeing the same ad when you are on level 2 will much more likely command your attention.
Creative Strategy for Puzzle Games
Let’s see how Aarki fights ad fatigue and how we manage to re-engage lapsed users through creative strategies for puzzle games.
The user profile of puzzle game players is unique and well understood. Keep in mind that these users usually don't read gaming magazines or might not surf through the app stores to find new games. For most of them, the primary objective is to kill time; it is not to build up skills or even collect items. With all this said, having the right in-app advertising strategy is the best way to re-engage them.
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General strategies
General strategies encompass the entire lapsed user base. If your objective is to promote your app to the whole lapsed user base, keep these thoughts in mind:
Promote new features of your app
If your app users have uninstalled your app or haven't used it for a certain period, they most definitely don’t know about the new features and updates. Focusing the ad creative on your app’s new features will help make it stand out more, driving interest and increase retention.
- Show unexplored game components
If you have exciting game components in store that may be unexplored by the users because of early abandoning, use them. Show the users that the most interesting part of your app is yet to come.
- Appeal to players' emotions
Show that your audience is important to you by using "we miss you, come back" types of messaging. Make them feel your loyalty.
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Personalization
The ad creative can have a direct impact on the success of your retargeting campaign and running a more targeted creative ad maximizes your match rate. To target the users on a more granular level, Aarki identifies the audiences based on different segments, like days lapsed, purchase level, etc.
The intersection of these segments lets Aarki target more relevant users for the app. Showing a high purchaser who reached level 25 the background and the icon of the same level will work better than showing the level 1 theme, right?
So, if your goal is to target the whole lapsed user base, a general strategy is the right path for you. However, a one-size-fits-all type of ad isn’t always the most effective. If you aim to target specific users and leverage specific solutions, personalization can come into play.