π #1
There are very different kinds of subscriptions, and the retention tactics/levers are entirely different for each subcategory:
- Content - music, books, video, comics, news, etc.
- Motivation - health & fitness, dating, education
- Utilities - video editors, dropbox etc.
π #2
Subscriptions align users and developers' interests. People will keep paying if you keep providing them value.
Example of Evernote: as you use it more, it becomes even more valuable and that's when the subscription model makes the most sense.
π #3
When looking at retention for your subscription apps, segment your users based on their subscription status (free users, trialists, paying users) and re-engage them accordingly. Because your retention curves are going to look very different depending on subscription status.
π #4
Pay particular attention not only to LTV/ARPPU but also to when the money is coming back.
Yearly subscription: all the revenue for the year comes in on the first day.
Monthly subscription: maybe a higher LTV but you need to "finance" the cash flow several months ahead.
π #5
Iterate on your paywall itself but also optimize on what happens before users reach the paywall and all the communication before you show prices. How people reach the paywall can have at least as much impact.
π #6
Don't measure only the impact on your initial funnel, but also the long term impact. Measuring only the impact of paywall changes on trials and uplift is risky because forcing the conversion too much can hurt both long term LTV (renewals, refunds) and user retention.
π #7
Try to focus a lot on the experience you provide to free users. Focusing only on paid subscribers can have a negative impact on organic and ASO. You don't want to ignore 90-95% of your users.
π #8
Communicate clearly and carefully about the free trial. You might even want to avoid focusing too much on the free trial in external communications because it might create more bad reviews and worst retention from users that only want "free".
π #9
FB Value Optimization is rarely a good fit for subscription apps (vs. app event optimization) because you have low variance between users: they are either paying, or they are not. You do not have whales.
That's all, folks!
I won't lie, mining βοΈ long-form resources to extract mobile growth insights π takes time.
π In yesterday's #growthgems newsletter I shared insights from the recent "Understanding, Optimizing and Predicting LTV in Mobile Gaming" GameCamp webinar
Read the 15 #LTV π from this 100 min video in the twitter thread below π
π 1/15
Chart your creatives on a X axis and check your D3/D7/D28 ROAS to quickly spot outlier creatives (both good and bad) so you can act on that (by reallocating spend for example).
π 2/15
A benchmark comparing ROAS (e.g. D7/D28) for each week (X axis) with success thresholds allows you to evaluate your UA strategies.
Read the #ASO#ASA insights from the 56 min video in the twitter thread below π
π #1
Apple will tell you "do not use search ads data for ASO" because the timeframe of the trend they are reporting is short term. You can not use a short timeframe for ASO because it takes 2-3 weeks to get your keywords fully indexed.
π #2
Apple will still index you for 2 to 3 weeks after an update. If you have good rankings already, you can do keyword metadata optimization every 30 days and have a solid view of how an optimization performed.
Read the #UA#creatives insights in the twitter thread below π
π #1
HopSkipDrive uses the same brand feeling and emotional value across channels but what might differ is the goal of each campaign. Example: Twitter for retargeting/re-engagement and Facebook for conversion.
π #2
Try to take a portfolio-based approach to creative testing and understand that you're adding something new to the mix. Some channels do not have a "clean" way to A/B test (e.g. TikTok) but even if there is it might not give you results of what will happen "live".
15 mobile #growthgems π from "Mobile Marketing for Card Games" with Josh Chandley (Wildcard Games) @eniac, Jonathan Lau (Weee!) and @jokim1
Watch this 52:14 discussion directly...Or start by reading the main #mobilegrowth#UA#creatives insights in the twitter thread below π
A way to test creatives at a lower cost is to start in India with a small budget to filter them out first, then move to Canada and deploying the best-performing onesΒ in the US.
π #2:
For games that have a strong organic demand, it makes sense to pay attention to ASO and also to potentially try preloads on devices as well as try low cost/quality channels. Examples: Gin, Rummy, Solitaire, Tetris.
π #1
Tag the ids within each ad creative: not one id per creative but an id for each "element": light/dark background, team id, player offer, CTA, etc. Add granularity of tagging for each concept so you can really understand what drives results. [DraftKings]
π #2
Yousician did a live op with paid content unlocked (e.g. Jimmy Hendrix songs) and people playing these songs for free for a limited time ended up converting (subscribing) at a 40-50% higher conversion rate. [Yousician]
10 mobile #growthgems π from "How We Scaled from 80k to 6m Users" by Jordan Gladstone (Director of Marketing at Dave - Banking App) at @apppromotion APS WFH USA
ππ Twitter thread below
π #2
Then start filming other people to be able to show the app more. It helps figuring out which messaging works as well as test different thumbnails (e.g. empty gas), showing or not the app (showing the app works better), actors, locations, etc.
π #3
Something that has worked well for Dave is responding to Facebook comments on their ads "as Dave" (they now have a style guide with what Dave likes). It allows for ads to look more organic and creates more engagement, leading to lower CPMs.