app promotion case study

21 Epic Mobile App Marketing Case Studies

By: Gaurav Sharma

Updated On: August 4, 2021

Word Count: 4212 words | Est. Reading Time: 29 mins

As the mobile app market has evolved over the years, competition among app developers has increased as well. The life cycle of an app in this frantic mobile world will be very short if app developers don't come up with new ideas, and optimization/marketing strategies.

And the best way you can learn how to effectively market your app is by learning from successful mobile app marketing case studies. Check out our list of 21 of the most epic mobile app marketing case studies to learn how you can take your app to the next level.

1. App Name: KLM Airlines – KLM Airlines

The main objective of KLM airlines was to get their users to book flights on mobile. The second motive was to create a platform for other mobile marketing techniques such as mobile passbook and location-based notifications. And this could only be achieved by encouraging more consumers to use the mobile app.

Strategy-Driven Solution

KLM launched a campaign for three weeks during which they gave free app access to those who used their mobile booking engine.

Customers received their access in the form of mobile coupons, which they received in their passbooks for Apple phones and in their Google Wallets for Android phones. The location-based notification reminded them to redeem their coupons while they were in the vicinity of KLM lounges.

KLM Airlines saw a 17% increase in visits to their mobile site, which generated 34% more bookings and 38% more mobile revenue.

Key Takeaway

Offers and extra benefits can encourage people to use mobile apps and keep them hooked.

Source:  3DoorDigital

2. App Name: ASDA – British Supermarket Chain

ASDA wanted use technology to develop an app to make grocery shopping easier for people, specifically for busy moms. Their goal was to generate 10% of online grocery shopping transactions through the app.

Before designing the application, they approached their existing customers and asked them what kind of app would make shopping more convenient for them.

Based on customer feedback, they kept the app design simple so that it would be convenient for people from all walks of life.

They included features like “Did you forget?” to show them their frequently purchased items. This reminds users about the items they may have forgotten to order.

It also featured live petrol prices, which allowed customers to check the current petrol prices at their nearest ASDA petrol stations.

ASDA managed to drive more than 2 million downloads for the app. The app even won the IGD Digital innovation award.

Mobile shopping increased to 18% of all grocery home shopping, out of which more than 90% of the sales are contributed by this app. Shopping frequency from mobiles is 1.8 times higher than desktop.

Keep your app simple and user-friendly so that people of all age groups can use it.

Source: TalkingRetail

3. App Name: HotelTonight

HotelTonight needed to find a better way to introduce new potential users to the app in a way that showcased its functionality and use cases. They wanted to make sure that everyone has an incredible experience using the application.

HotelTonight’s motive was to showcase how it can help travelers plan a little less and live a little more.

They introduced a mobile video campaign in which they displayed videos of the hotels and all of the facilities users can enjoy. They wanted users to download the app and engage with it regularly. Mobile was the right solution because the app focuses on spontaneous and impulsive bookings.

Another important area in which they focused was publicity. They had a clear vision of providing customers with incredible experiences. And after those satisfactory visits to the hotels, they saw that people were eager to tell other people about their HotelTonight experiences.

They gave users an incentive to share their experiences to further encourage them to do so. This provided a catalyst for this viral marketing.

They came up with a “tell a friend” marketing program where users can invite friends right from the app by email or through a Facebook or Twitter post. Users received $25 every time a new friend joined HotelTonight. The friend also received $25 when they booked their first room through the app.

The HotelTonight team also used the power of social media and focused on Facebook and Twitter to build their customer base. Facebook provided HotelTonight with the platform to share their content such as videos and announcement of new hotels added to the app. They used both Facebook and Twitter to announce special deals and offers.

HotelTonight's cost-per-download was $0.20. 60% of customers come in through word-of-mouth or social media; 40% from mobile. They went from 0 to 70,071 Facebook fans in just nine months. They achieved 115% ROAS (return on ad spend) within one month. Their app install rate also increased to 326%.

Key Takeaways

Incentivize users for referrals to amp up your word-of-mouth marketing. And use social media to promote your app.

Source:  MarketingSherpa

4. App Name: BNP Paribas Wealth Management

BNP Paribas Wealth Management wanted to better engage with customers and prospective customers by making valuable financial information available through mobile devices.

The bank developed their mobile-first platform foundation software by creating their application for multiple platforms including Apple, Windows, and tablets.

They also created dynamic user segments, which helped them send out relevant, targeted in-app messages and push notifications.

They used pop-up messages within the app, which asked their frequent and loyal users to give the app a rating in the app stores.

They also began a cross-promotion campaign during which they broadcasted targeted push notifications that promoted a different BNP Paribas app called My Wallet. This helped generate free downloads in the Apple App Store and in the Google Play store.

App store ratings increased from 2.5 to 4 for the app. It also generated significant press coverage for the bank, which ultimately resulted in an increase in customers.

It is essential for businesses to think competitively and come up with solutions that are realistic and advantageous to their customers.

Source: Accengage

5. App Name: Guidecentral

To increase app visibility and drive more downloads.

The app switched to a more attractive icon that stood out from other apps in the category.

They also used the keyword “how to” in their app name in the app store because there was a high search volume for the keyword. And they added relevant keywords in the app description and optimized the section by adding their unique selling points and including a call-to-action (CTA).

The icon change along helped them increase their downloads by 700%.

Pay attention to every detail including your icon, description, and images. And make sure that everything is optimized.

Source: SlideShare

6. App Name: Amazon

Need for Change

Until recently, Amazon was struggling to get the top rank under the shopping category. Due to changes in the Google Play store policies, Amazon's app was removed from the Play store and ultimately, Amazon had to rebrand itself.

Amazon needed to relaunch the shopping app and completely rebrand themselves in order to get to the top of the rankings in the app stores.

Optimization Strategy

Keyword optimization played a key role in the success of their new strategy. Simply by adding the keyword “shopping” to the app's name worked wonders for them.

Before adding the word “shopping” to their app name, only 2.12% of the traffic resulting from the keyword went to them. After they added the word “shopping,” that numbers increased to 9.88% of the global traffic, which is almost four times more than before.

Adding the right keywords in the right places can work wonders for your app store ranking.

Source: SimilarWeb

7. App Name: Omvana

Since people have never heard of the name “Omvana,” they are not searching for it in the app store. So the team needed to ensure that their app gained visibility among people who are interested in an app for personal meditation.

Obstacles Faced

For apps like Omvana, the biggest challenge is to attract people who will download their app. They are targeting people who are looking for an app that will help with their meditation. However, these people have never heard of the app. So the biggest challenge was getting this target audience to discover their app in the first place.

The team discovered that people were searching for terms like “sleep,” “meditation,” “binaural,” etc. So they decided to rename the app in the app store from just “Omvana” to “Omvana – Meditate, Sleep, Focus, Relax, Rest & Nap Better with 1000s of Mindfulness, Hypnosis, Meditation and Binaural Sounds.”

This simple ASO strategy helped them increase their downloads by 125%.

Even the simplest things like keywords in title can make a huge difference

Having your app name alone in the app title may not drive visibility, so you need to work with commonly used and relevant keywords.

Source: BenPhilabaum   SensorTower

8. App Name: Trunk Club

Trunk Club wanted to efficiently convert visitors into paying customers through the app. They also wanted to discover the best customers they could focus their efforts on.

Challenges Faced

The crucial challenge faced by Trunk Club were that visitors were mostly in the browsing stage and not in the mental state of buying products. Due to this, the stylist’s time was spent even on those users who were not really interested in shopping. As they have a lot of users who sign up, it really created a mess for the stylists.

In order to save their stylist’s time, they tried a couple of app mechanics that would separate the window shoppers from serious buyers. Requiring credit card details was one such potential option.

Getting the credit card info filled in before buying anything from the Trunk helped generate more productive leads for the stylists to pursue. The users would be charged only when they choose to keep something in their trunk.

40% of their traffic now comes through mobile. Requiring credit card information led to fewer overall conversions, but the users that requested a trunk were more qualified and converted into purchases at a much higher rate.

43% of the users are more likely to connect to the stylists and make purchases. Since stylists have qualified leads now, they offer exceptional services and are now 90% more efficient than before.

Separating window shoppers from visitors who have actual interest in making a purchase drives profitability.

Source: UpSight   Optimizely

9. App Name: MailTime

MailTime wanted to completely overturn the closed mobile messaging industry. They wanted to use localization to ensure that they could make the desired change at different geographic locations.

The app offers an open messaging service and was developed using decentralized email technology. In other words, it is basically an email messenger. They were trying to bring about a disruption to the existing trend of closed mobile messengers. And sometimes, those apps had limitations in terms of geography.

Charlie Sheng, CMO of MailTime has talked about how they aimed for localization from the beginning because it was the only way they could cross borders with their app.

In some languages, the translations would end up being too long. In some cases, the translations didn’t fit the app’s UI design. This happened to the versions in Russian, German, Portuguese, and French.

So the team ended up working with the developer to customize the UI so that it fit the translated phrases. In some cases, the translators had to change the translations so that they fit the UI. This took the team a long time.

MailTime worked extensively to localize their app for different countries. They carefully worked on translations that perfectly fit different cultures. They also had to change the translations so that they fit the UI.

MailTime now supports 12 languages, including Chinese (in which the app is called 简信), Japanese, and Russian. It also supports ten email providers, including all major email services like Gmail, Outlook, Yahoo Mail, and services like Mail.Ru, QQ Mail, and 163 Mail, which are popular in Asia and Russia. They will soon add another seven languages to their service.

MailTime was featured as the Best New App in countries such as Austria, Brunei, China, Cambodia, Germany, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Laos, Macau, Malaysia, Switzerland, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Taiwan, Vietnam, and the Philippines.

It was also featured on the front page of the Productivity Category in the United States. This coverage lasted over three weeks and drove tens of thousands of downloads every day.

Localizing your application can help you increase visibility, as you get exposed to a larger audience. And a larger audience implies an increase in the number of downloads.

Source: OneSkyApp

10. App Name: Marriott

Marriott wanted to drive 500,000 downloads within the first three months of launching their app. They also wanted to make the most of the smartphone as their secret marketing weapon.

A theme was carried out with a very different concept, the concept was that the smartphone, like the smartphone traveler, is overworked and needs a vacation. The smartphone pitches the traveler on the benefits of getting the Marriott app and hence getting them both a vacation.

This concept was popularized across all media. This included mobile, social, display, print, and even hotel properties.

The app was ranked as the number 1 travel app on iTunes on the first day of the campaign. It became the third largest m-commerce sales site of all the time. It was the first travel app to break the top five free apps overall in iTunes. It got 500,000 downloads within the first three months.

Fun and witty messaging helped attract and engage the target audience.

Multi-channel promotions helped ensure that they could reach the audience anywhere.

Source: BeeByClarkMeyler

11. App Name: Presspad

To increase the number of downloads for the app, which would eventually increase revenue.

Presspad didn’t follow a specific strategy other than optimizing their app following the basic principles of app store optimization.

They saw an increase in downloads by 140%, which led to an increase in revenue by 87%.

Sometimes just following the best practices can work for you.

Source: PressPadApp

12. App Name: KFC

KFC wanted to find ways to drive foot traffic to their stores by reaching local passerbys on their smartphones.

KFC started a campaign and used mobile location technology so that they could entice nearby customers to visit their restaurants. KFC worked with an ad company to target consumers to identify and reach the relevant target audience. They found that the most receptive demographic to the location-based targeting were busy parents with families.

The company’s target audience was comprised of young adults. They also targeted busy families whose lives are made simpler in many ways by mobile devices. They used the most accurate location technology so they could reach their target audience at the right time while they were at the right place. KFC delivered relevant offers that would entice these customers to visit the restaurant nearby.

The three-month long campaign helped drive foot traffic by engaging customers who were nearby a KFC store. It also drove a click-through rate that was 40% above the industry benchmark.

Accurate location targeting can help you reach the right audience at the right time.

Identifying your most receptive demographic and reaching them where they are most likely to engage with your business can pay off.

Source:  Youtube

13. App Name: Vodafone's Secret Women App

Domestic violence is rampant in Turkey, where almost one in every three women is a victim of domestic abuse. These victims are afraid to speak out and look for help. Vodafone believed that they could provide help to these women with the use of this powerful technology and created a secret app for them. Now the biggest challenge was spreading the message of this app in secret without any men finding out about it.

This app was hidden within a flashlight app. When a victim shakes her phone, the app would send out a message to three people that she trusts. The alert will also send out details of her location. Vodafone placed ads in products only used by women such as on wax strips and in the labels of women's underwear. Some ads also appeared in the middle of makeup vlogs.

According to their estimate, Vodafone believed that the secret would remain only for ten months, so they updated the app again. With the update, the flashlight app became a mirror application, so it remained a secret once again. They then used the same marketing techniques as earlier to spread messages about the update.

The app has been downloaded by 254,000 women in Turkey, which is 24% of all female smartphone users in the country. There has been more than 103,000 activations for the app. Since it became a lifeline for women who are in danger from their spouses, the app received the Grand Prix award under the media category during the Cannes Lions 2015.

Smart placement of ads for your app will ensure that it reaches the desired audience, which is especially important for an app such as this.

Source: DigitalTrainingAcademy   WPP

14. App Name: Starbucks

Although smartphone owners may not hesitate to make large purchases using their phones, things would be much simpler for them if they could complete their purchases with a mobile wallet-style program. The most important reason behind this logic is that entering credit card information can be inconvenient and unsafe.

Starbucks introduced a digital tipping feature called “Shake to Pay.” Using this feature, the users can just bring up a barcode by shaking their phone. Baristas can then scan this barcode to accept the tip using mobile payment.

They also used a rewarding strategy to incentivize their users. Each time a customer makes a purchase through the company’s popular app, they get a star. After collecting a certain number of stars, they can then collect a reward. Under this program, customers can attain a Gold Status when they earn 30 stars within a year. Once they’ve achieved this status, they further get a free beverage or a food item for every 12 stars they earn.

There were 6 million transactions worth $1.5 billion made weekly in the U.S. Mobile payments accounted for 15% of total transactions made in Starbucks-operated stores in the U.S.

Always give multiple payment options to users.

Offer rewards to users for every purchase they make to encourage them to engage with the app.

Source: MBAKnol

15. App Name: CloudOn

To increase downloads and boost store ranking.

Strategy-Drive Solution

CloudOn thoroughly optimized their Play Store listing and placed their main focus on the app title and description. They made changes that would ensure better visibility of the app when people search for relevant keywords. They also used a new set of keywords that they deemed relevant to their target audience.

With these simple tricks, CloudOn made it to the top 10 lists with only changes to keywords and title. CloudOn downloads went up to 201%.

They ranked fifth on the charts with new shiny screenshots.

• • Give much heed to the app title and description.
• • Review your keywords monthly, and change them if need be.
• • The app description should be appealing.

Source: SensorTower

16. App Name: ASDA Price Guarantee App

To simplify the process of saving money for shoppers without burdening internal teams too much.

ASDA came up with the Price Guarantee app, in which customers can enter the details of their shopping receipt to see if they qualify for deals. They will then get money-back vouchers through the app. The app fetches data from a third-party site and outlined eligible discounts according to the customer’s receipt. After developing the app, the team also marketed it online and on television.

There were more than 1,000 downloads a day for the app. ASDA also found that users continued to engage with the app long after their downloaded it.

Creating apps that simplify the lives of customers can ensure long-term engagement with the app.

Marketing the app through multiple channels can give the desired visibility to drive downloads.

Source: PocketWorks

17. App Name: 10bis

To get high install volumes without spending a fortune on app marketing.

10bis started out by identifying a broad range of audiences relevant to their services based on interests and demographic. They then created a Facebook ad campaign targeting these audiences, as they are most likely to download the app and use it. This target audience was comprised of people who have an interest in restaurants and food as well as single people and people who belong to younger age groups.

They also created another campaign in which they used the Custom Audiences feature to target people who have already downloaded the app. The ads were designed to encourage them to use the app by offering special promotions for local restaurants.

10bis managed to get 15,000 app installs and 70,000 app interactions between October 2015 and January 2016 alone. Their ongoing campaign manages to deliver thousands of new users every month. The best part is that these users engage with the app since they are highly relevant.

Carefully targeting highly relevant audiences can help deliver the desired results and achieve engaged users.

Running an ongoing campaign can deliver consistent results.

Source:  DigitalTrainingAcademy

18. App Name: Pokemon Go

To promote their newly-launched video game and achieve installs by highly engaged users.

The team ran a pre-launch promotional campaign using YouTube videos and press releases. They also made announcements about the app’s main features. But these marketing strategies aren’t the only reason for the app’s massive success. The users themselves help spread the news about the app and helped to make it viral.

The app’s design itself is enough reason for many users to download the app. Since the app makes use of location-based services and augmented reality to create a unique gaming experience, it managed to win the hearts of users.

Pokemon Go now has 26 million active users on a daily basis. The average player spends more than 40 minutes a day on the app. In addition to this, the game continues to attract 500 downloads every minute or 700,000 downloads per day.

Offering advanced features can deliver a unique user experience that encourages word of mouth marketing.

Building hype before the launch can help gain traction for your app marketing.

Source: EasternPeak

19. App Name: MakeMyTrip

To achieve overall growth of the MakeMyTrip mobile app.

MakeMyTrip worked with AppVirality to create an in-app referral program. The program rewarded new users who downloaded the app through friend’s referrals. It also rewarded users whose friends downloaded the app through their referrals and gave an additional reward when those friends booked a trip using the app.

MakeMyTrip saw a 20% increase in overall downloads. Their conversions increased by 25% and transaction rate went up by 20%.

Referral programs are a great way to motivate users to promote your app.

Source: AppVirality

20. App Name: Paperclip

To increase the number of app users and achieve long-term growth.

Paperclip decided to use AppSamurai, a self-service mobile advertising tool designed mainly for startups. They used the smart ad campaign feature to target highly relevant users and get them to download the app.

They managed to get a 210% increase in user acquisition rate and a 100% increase in daily sessions. The number of daily active users increased by 250% and the app ranking jumped from 100 to top 25 in the shopping category.

Invest in smart ads that will help you target an audience that is highly likely to download and use your app.

Source: AppSamurai

21. App Name: Sing2Learn

To increase app visibility and drive downloads as well as increase their app store rating.

Sing2Learn worked with a mobile marketing agency to create a PowerPoint presentation about the app and distribute it through multiple online channels. They created and distributed a highly engaging demo video, which also served as a marketing video. The team created and distributed press releases online to raise more awareness about the app.

Additionally, they did thorough app store optimization to ensure that the app had an accurate description along with screenshots and tags. Sing2Learn created a pay-per-click campaign using relevant keywords to further increase visibility. They amped up their social media marketing strategy to raise more awareness about the app. Journalists helped them gain additional exposure.

The app has since been installed more than 13,000 times and received 480 reviews on Google Play. It has managed to get an app store rating of 4.8.

Promoting your app through multiple channels can help you gain significant exposure.

Source: MobileSoftwareMarketing

These mobile app marketing case studies should help you gain a better understanding of the improvement you can see with the right kind of changes in your mobile app marketing strategy. You should now have a clear idea of all of the changes you can make to improve your app growth. Which of these case studies was the most impressive to you? Let us know in the comments.

About the Author

Gaurav Sharma -

CEO/Founder @ Attrock Gaurav Sharma is the Founder and CEO of Attrock , a results-driven digital marketing company. Grew an agency from 5-figure to 7-figure revenue in just two years | 10X leads | 2.8X conversions | 300K organic monthly traffic | 5K keywords on page 1. He also contributes to top publications like HuffPost, Adweek, Business2Community, TechCrunch, and more.

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Case Studies on App Sales: Boost Your Revenue with Real-Life Examples

As someone who has worked in the mobile app industry for several years, I have seen firsthand the importance of app sales for the success of any app. I'm here today to share with you some of the secrets that I've seen worked for many app developers I've worked with.

In today's highly competitive app market, it is crucial for developers to understand what drives app sales and how to optimize their app's performance in order to achieve maximum revenue.

One way to gain insight into app sales is through case studies. By examining the strategies and tactics used by successful apps, developers can learn valuable lessons and apply them to their own apps. Case studies can provide valuable information on everything from pricing strategies to marketing techniques, and can help developers make informed decisions about how to position their apps in the marketplace.

In this article, I will explore several case studies on app sales and share insights into what makes these apps successful. We will examine factors such as app design, user engagement, and pricing strategies, and discuss how these elements can impact app sales. Whether you are a seasoned app developer or just starting out, this article will provide valuable insights into the world of app sales and help you optimize your app's performance in the marketplace.

Understanding the App Market

As an app developer, it is important for you to understand the dynamics of the app market. This includes knowing the key players and platforms that dominate the market. In this section, I will discuss the App Store dynamics and the key players and platforms in the app market.

App Store Dynamics

The App Store is a digital distribution platform for mobile apps on iOS devices. It is owned and operated by Apple Inc. The App Store is the second-largest app store in the world, with over 2 million apps available for download. As an app developer, it is important to understand the App Store dynamics to ensure that your app is visible and easily discoverable.

One of the most important factors in App Store dynamics is the app's ranking. The App Store uses a complex algorithm to determine the ranking of apps. The algorithm takes into account factors such as the number of downloads, ratings, reviews, and user engagement. As an app developer, it is important to optimize your app's ranking to increase visibility and downloads.

Key Players and Platforms

The app market is dominated by two key players: Apple's App Store and Google Play Store. Apple's App Store is exclusive to iOS devices, while Google Play Store is available on Android devices. These two platforms account for the majority of app downloads worldwide.

As an app developer, it is important to understand the differences between these two platforms. Apple's App Store is known for its strict guidelines and rigorous review process, which ensures that only high-quality apps are available for download. On the other hand, Google Play Store has a more open approach, which makes it easier for developers to publish their apps. However, this also means that there are more low-quality apps available on the platform.

In addition to these two key players, there are also other platforms that are worth considering, such as Amazon Appstore and Microsoft Store. These platforms may have a smaller user base, but they also have less competition, which can make it easier for your app to stand out.

In conclusion, understanding the dynamics of the app market is essential for app developers who want to succeed. By understanding the key players and platforms, developers can optimize their app's visibility and increase their chances of success.

Developing a Successful App

As someone who has worked with many app developers and saw how they've launched several successful apps, I can say that I know that the process of creating a new app can be both exciting and daunting. I've heard many stories of them being scared to dip in deep waters for the first time. However, with careful planning and execution, it is possible to build an app that is not only useful but also profitable. In this section, I will share some tips and insights on how to develop a successful app.

Conceptualizing the App Idea

The first step in developing a successful app is to come up with a great idea. The idea should be unique, useful, and ideally, solve a problem that people are facing. To come up with a good app idea, I recommend brainstorming with friends, family, or colleagues. Ask them for feedback and suggestions if you must. You can also research the app market to see what is currently popular and identify gaps that you can fill with your app.

Once you have a solid app idea, it is crucial to validate it by conducting market research. This will help you determine if there is a demand for your app and if it is feasible to build. You can use online tools to conduct surveys, analyze competitors, and gather data on user behavior. This information will help you refine your app idea and make it more compelling.

Design and Development Process

The next step I've seen people do when it comes to creating a successful app is to design and develop it. This process involves several steps, including wireframing, prototyping, and testing. The goal of the design process is to create an app that is visually appealing, user-friendly, and intuitive.

During the development process, it is important to choose the right technology stack and development tools. This will help you build a robust and scalable app that can handle a large user base. You should also consider factors such as security, performance, and compatibility with different devices and platforms.

Once your app is developed, it is time to launch it in the app store. To ensure that your app gets noticed, you should optimize its listing with relevant keywords, a compelling description, and high-quality screenshots. You should also consider running ads or partnering with influencers to promote your app.

In conclusion, developing a successful app requires careful planning, execution, and marketing. You shouldn't rush into putting an app out in the market because you want it to succeed. By following these tips and insights, you can build an app that is not only useful but also profitable.

Launching and Marketing Your App

When it comes to launching and marketing your app, there are a few key strategies to keep in mind. By optimizing your app store listing and implementing effective marketing strategies, you can increase your app's visibility and drive more downloads.

App Store Optimization

App store optimization (ASO) is the process of optimizing your app store listing to improve its visibility and ranking in app store search results. To optimize your app store listing, you should focus on the following elements:

• App title: Choose a descriptive and memorable app title that accurately reflects your app's purpose and functionality.
• App icon: Create an eye-catching and recognizable app icon that stands out in the app store.
• App description: Write a clear and concise app description that highlights your app's key features and benefits.
• Keywords: Include relevant keywords in your app title and description to improve your app's visibility in search results.
• Screenshots and videos: Use high-quality screenshots and videos to showcase your app's user interface and functionality.

By optimizing these elements, you can improve your app's visibility and attract more potential users to your app store listing.

Effective Marketing Strategies

In addition to ASO, there are a variety of effective marketing strategies you can use to promote your app and drive downloads. Some of the most popular app marketing strategies include:

• Social media marketing: Use social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram to promote your app and engage with potential users.
• Influencer marketing: Partner with influencers in your app's niche to promote your app to their followers.
• App store advertising: Use paid app store advertising to increase your app's visibility and drive downloads.
• Content marketing: Create high-quality content like blog posts, videos, and infographics to promote your app and attract potential users.
• Referral marketing: Encourage your existing users to refer their friends and family to your app through referral programs and incentives.

By implementing these marketing strategies, you can increase your app's visibility and attract more potential users to your app store listing. Working with an app marketing agency can also help you develop and implement a comprehensive app marketing strategy that meets your specific needs and goals.

Case Studies: App Marketing Campaigns

As an app broker, I have seen many success stories in the world of app marketing. In this section, I will share with you some of the most notable app marketing campaigns that I have come across.

5 Notable App Marketing Successes

1. pokémon go.

Pokémon Go was a game that took the world by storm in 2016. The game was launched with a unique marketing strategy that involved using augmented reality to bring the game to life. The game was also marketed through social media channels, which helped it to gain a lot of traction.

2. Candy Crush

Candy Crush is a popular game that has been downloaded over a billion times. The game was marketed through social media channels, which helped it to gain a lot of traction. The game was also marketed through in-game advertising, which helped to increase its revenue.

3. Instagram

Instagram is a social media platform that has become incredibly popular. The app was marketed through social media channels, which helped it to gain a lot of traction. The app was also marketed through influencers, which helped to increase its user base.

Uber is a popular app that has revolutionized the way we travel. The app was marketed through social media channels, which helped it to gain a lot of traction. The app was also marketed through referral programs, which helped to increase its user base.

Airbnb is a popular app that has revolutionized the way we travel. The app was marketed through social media channels, which helped it to gain a lot of traction. The app was also marketed through referral programs, which helped to increase its user base.

Analyzing Marketing Techniques

When it comes to app marketing, there are a few techniques that have proven to be very effective. These include:

• Social media marketing
• Influencer marketing
• Referral programs
• In-game advertising

By using these techniques, app marketers can create successful campaigns that help to increase their app's popularity and revenue.

In conclusion, app marketing is an essential part of the app development process. By using effective marketing techniques, app marketers can create successful campaigns that help to increase their app's popularity and revenue.

User Acquisition and Retention

Strategies for attracting new users.

As I've worked with many app developers, I have found that user acquisition is a critical component of app sales for many of them. One of the most effective strategies for attracting new users is to optimize app store presence. This includes creating an engaging app description, using high-quality screenshots, and optimizing keywords for search. Additionally, social media marketing and influencer partnerships can help increase app visibility and attract new users.

Another effective strategy is to offer promotions and discounts to new users. This can include free trials or discounted pricing for a limited time. By offering these incentives, users are more likely to download and install the app, which can lead to increased user acquisition.

Keeping Users Engaged

Once a user has downloaded and installed the app, the next challenge is to keep them engaged. One effective strategy is to provide a personalized experience for each user. This can include personalized recommendations, personalized notifications, and customized content.

Another strategy is to provide regular updates and improvements to the app. This can include bug fixes, new features, and improved user experience. By providing regular updates, users are more likely to continue using the app and become active users.

Finally, providing excellent customer support can help retain users. By responding promptly to user inquiries and addressing user issues, users are more likely to continue using the app and become daily active users.

Conversion Metrics and Optimization

I know that the ultimate goal of any app is to generate revenue, and that's where conversion metrics come in. By measuring the conversion rate, we can evaluate the effectiveness of our marketing strategies and optimize our app to drive more sales.

Understanding Conversion Rate

Conversion rate is the percentage of users who take a desired action, such as making a purchase or subscribing to a service. By monitoring this metric, we can identify areas where users are dropping off and take steps to improve the user experience.

One way to improve conversion rate is to optimize the app's landing page. This can be achieved by using clear and concise messaging, highlighting the app's unique features, and minimizing distractions. Additionally, A/B testing can be used to determine which design elements are most effective at driving conversions.

Keyword and Content Optimization

Keyword optimization is another important factor in driving app sales. By identifying and targeting the right keywords, we can improve our app's visibility in the app store and attract more potential users.

To optimize keywords, we can conduct research on popular search terms related to our app's category and features. This can be done using tools such as Google AdWords or App Annie. Once we have identified relevant keywords, we can incorporate them into our app's title, description, and metadata.

Content optimization is also crucial in driving conversions. By providing high-quality content, we can increase user engagement and encourage users to make a purchase. This can include features such as in-app tutorials, user reviews, and social proof.

In conclusion, optimizing conversion metrics is essential for driving app sales. By understanding conversion rate and optimizing keywords and content, we can improve the user experience and drive organic growth.

Monetization Strategies for Apps

As an app developer, you should understand the importance of monetizing your app to generate revenue. There are various monetization strategies that you can use to make money from your beloved app. In this section, I will discuss two popular strategies: In-App Purchases and Advertising, and Subscription Models and Partnerships.

In-App Purchases and Advertising

One of the most common monetization strategies for apps is through in-app purchases and advertising. In-app purchases allow users to buy additional features or virtual goods within the app. This strategy works well for gaming apps, where users can buy extra lives or power-ups to progress through the game.

On the other hand, advertising is a popular way to monetize apps without charging users. App developers can earn revenue by displaying ads within their app. There are different types of ads, such as banner ads, interstitial ads, and rewarded video ads. App developers can use mobile payment services to collect payments from advertisers.

Subscription Models and Partnerships

Another way to monetize an app is through subscription models and partnerships. Subscription models work well for apps that offer premium content or services. Users pay a recurring fee to access exclusive content or features. This strategy works well for news apps, music streaming apps, and productivity apps.

Partnerships are another way to monetize an app. App developers can partner with other businesses to offer exclusive deals or discounts to their users. For example, a food delivery app can partner with a restaurant to offer a discount to its users.

In conclusion, there are various monetization strategies that app developers can use to generate revenue from their apps. By using a combination of these strategies, app developers can maximize their earnings and provide value to their users.

The Impact of Social Media on App Sales

I have seen firsthand the impact that social media can have on app sales for many app developers I've partnered with. With the right social media marketing strategy, you can capture the attention of potential users and drive downloads. In this section, I will discuss two key ways that social media can impact app sales: leveraging platforms for promotion and user-generated content (UGC) and engagement.

Leveraging Platforms for Promotion

One of the most effective ways to use social media for app promotion is to leverage popular platforms like Facebook. Facebook ads can be targeted to specific demographics, making it easier to reach your target audience. By creating eye-catching ads and targeting the right people, you can increase app downloads and drive sales.

Another way to leverage social media for app promotion is to use influencer marketing. By partnering with influencers who have a large following on social media, you can reach a wider audience and increase app downloads. Influencers can create content that showcases your app and encourages their followers to download it.

User-Generated Content and Engagement

User-generated content (UGC) is another powerful tool for app promotion on social media. UGC refers to content that is created by users, such as reviews, photos, and videos. By encouraging users to create and share UGC, you can increase engagement with your app and drive downloads.

One way to encourage UGC is to create social media contests. For example, you could ask users to share photos or videos of themselves using your app, with the best entry winning a prize. This can generate a lot of buzz around your app and increase downloads.

Another way to encourage UGC is to create a community around your app on social media. By engaging with users and creating a sense of community, you can foster loyalty and encourage users to share their experiences with others.

In conclusion, social media can have a significant impact on app sales when used effectively. By leveraging platforms for promotion and encouraging UGC and engagement, you can increase app downloads and drive sales.

Adapting to Market Trends and Changes

Being in the app and game industry for years, I have learned that staying ahead of market trends and changes is crucial to the success of any app. In this section, I will discuss how adapting to market trends and changes has helped a lot of app developers improve their app sales.

The Role of COVID-19 in App Usage

The COVID-19 pandemic has had a significant impact on app usage. With more people staying at home and relying on their smartphones for entertainment and communication, mobile-first apps have seen a surge in downloads. Many app developers have adapted to this trend by focusing on creating apps that are optimized for mobile devices.

In addition, I have noticed that users are spending more time on social media and messaging apps, which has led a lot of people to also incorporate more social features into their apps. By staying up-to-date on how COVID-19 is affecting app usage, they have been able to make informed decisions about how to improve their apps and increase sales.

Emerging Technologies and User Behavior

As technology continues to evolve, user behavior is changing rapidly. For example, the rise of voice assistants and smart speakers has led to a shift in how people interact with technology. As an app developer, you can try to adapt to these changes by incorporating voice commands and other hands-free features into your apps as well.

I have also noticed that users are becoming increasingly concerned about privacy and security. To address these concerns, make sure you implement robust security measures and make it easy for users to control their data. By staying on top of emerging technologies and user behavior, you will be able to create apps that meet the needs of modern smartphone users.

In conclusion, adapting to market trends and changes is essential for any app developer looking to improve sales. By staying up-to-date on emerging technologies, user behavior, and the impact of COVID-19, you'll be sure to create apps that meet the needs of modern smartphone users and increase sales.

Global Reach: Localizing Your App

It's important for any app developer to understand the importance of reaching relevant users across the world. To achieve that, I have found that localizing an app has been a game-changer for many people. In this section, I will share how localizing an app helped a lot of app developers stand out from the crowd.

Cultural Considerations and Translation

When localizing an app, I realized that cultural considerations and translation are crucial. It's important to ensure that your app is culturally appropriate for the countries you're targeting. This meant that you had to research the cultural norms, values, and beliefs of the countries to ensure that your app wouldn't offend anyone.

Additionally, you can also translate your app into different languages to cater to users who do not speak English. I found that using a professional translation service was beneficial to a lot of app developers as they were able to accurately translate their apps without losing their meaning.

Expanding to New Markets

Expanding to new markets was a daunting task, but it was worth it. I found that by localizing apps, many app and game developers were able to reach a wider audience and increase their app sales. To expand to new markets, they shared that they had to research the countries they were targeting and tailor the app to their needs.

For example, some of them added features that were specific to the countries they were targeting. This helped them stand out from the crowd and attract more users.

In conclusion, localizing your app is essential if you want to reach relevant users across the world. By considering cultural norms and values, translating your app, and tailoring it to specific countries, you can increase your app sales and stand out from the crowd.

Analyzing and Improving App Performance

As an app developer, you should understand the importance of analyzing and improving app performance. It is essential to track app metrics to understand how the app is performing and identify areas for improvement. In this section, I will discuss two methods that can help improve app performance: in-depth analysis of app metrics and iterative design and feature updates.

In-Depth Analysis of App Metrics

To improve app performance, it is crucial to analyze app metrics regularly. It helps to identify trends, understand user behavior, and make data-driven decisions. Some of the essential app metrics to track include app growth, app marketing channels, number of downloads, and downloads within the first few days.

One way to analyze app metrics is by using a tool like Google Analytics. It provides valuable insights into user behavior, such as how long users spend on the app, what features they use the most, and where they drop off. By analyzing these metrics, you can identify areas for improvement and make changes to the app accordingly.

Iterative Design and Feature Updates

Iterative design and feature updates are essential to improving app performance. It involves making small changes to the app and testing them to see if they improve user engagement and retention. By making iterative changes, you'll be able to identify what works and what doesn't work, and make informed decisions about future updates.

One way to approach iterative design is by using A/B testing. It involves creating two versions of the same feature and testing them with different users to see which one performs better. By doing this, you can identify which version of the feature is more engaging and user-friendly and make changes accordingly.

In conclusion, analyzing app metrics and making iterative design and feature updates are essential to improving app performance. By regularly tracking app metrics and making small changes to the app, you can identify areas for improvement and make data-driven decisions about future updates.

How do I boost my app sales in the app market?

Boosting your app sales in the competitive app market is a multifaceted endeavor. Start with a robust app marketing strategy that encompasses both app store optimization (ASO) and a solid digital marketing plan. Focus on keyword optimization in your store listing to improve visibility, and invest in social media marketing to build awareness. Also, consider working with a mobile marketing agency or app marketing agency that can help you fine-tune your strategies and implement effective marketing techniques .

Why are case studies important for app marketing?

Case studies , especially app marketing case studies , play a crucial role in app promotion . They provide real-life examples of successful strategies, helping you understand what might work for your mobile app . Marketing case studies can also offer valuable insights into user behavior and preferences, helping you tailor your app marketing campaigns more effectively. Plus, they are great tools for convincing stakeholders of the effectiveness of a proposed strategy.

What role does app store optimization play in boosting app sales?

App store optimization (ASO) is vital for increasing your mobile app ’s visibility in the App Store and Google Play Store . By optimizing your app’s store listing through strategic keyword placements and compelling visuals, you can improve your app’s download rate. Focus on key elements such as your app title, description, and screenshots. Remember, higher visibility leads to more downloads , which can significantly boost your app sales.

How can I use social media marketing to increase user acquisition for my app?

Social media marketing is an effective tool for increasing your app’s user acquisition . Create engaging content that highlights your app’s unique features and encourages users to download and install the app . Leverage various platforms like Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook, and consider using targeted ads to reach potential app users . Engaging with your audience and responding to their queries can also boost your app's reputation and encourage more installs.

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Mobile marketing campaigns that worked (and what you can learn from them)

Mobile marketing is any activity that promotes products and services via mobile devices, such as tablets and smartphones. It is essential for any business that wants to stay relevant in today’s world. As of 2020, there are already 3.5 billion smartphone users globally. This is expected to grow to 3.8 billion in 2021:

Source: Statista Mobile marketing is a channel you cannot afford to ignore. But there is an art to doing it well. If you want to leave a long-lasting impression and grow conversions, you’ll need to get creative and wow your audience.

In this article, I’ll share several creative mobile marketing campaigns that hit exactly the right spot. Hopefully they’ll inspire you and spark some ideas for your own campaign. Let’s get started.

Domino’s Pizza’s Piece of the Pie Rewards

Source: Domino’s

In 2019, Domino’s launched its Piece of the Pie Rewards program ahead of the Super Bowl. The program ran from February to April, and allowed customers to earn points by scanning their pizzas using the Domino’s app.

Each pizza, even if not purchased from Domino’s, was worth ten points. Other purchases of Domino’s products were also worth points. To get a free medium two-topping Domino's pizza, all a user had to do was collect 60 points. Dennis Maloney , Domino’s’ Chief Digital Officer, said this was the first time the company had used AI technology in its advertising.

Domino’s launched this campaign at a time when Pizza Hut, its direct competitor, dominated the airwaves as the Super Bowl’s official sponsor. The stroke of genius? Even if a customer ordered from Pizza Hut, they could still use the app to gain points. This increased brand awareness and encouraged them to interact with Domino’s even as they were ordering from its competitor.

The success of this program hinged upon one universal truth: everyone wants free stuff, especially if it’s pizza. There were clear benefits to the consumer for joining the Domino’s Pizza reward program, with no risk. Once people were part of the reward program, Domino’s could market to these new users by email .

So if you’re starting a mobile marketing campaign, remember to give your customers something they really want. A points system is great because it encourages purchases while giving something back to the consumer. The trick is to create a low barrier to entry, high reward system.

Wendy’s Fortnite/Twitch stunt

Source: Medium

The key to a successful mobile marketing campaign is to pay attention to your audience’s interests and preferred platforms. This was exactly what Wendy’s did when it capitalized on the popularity of Twitch, a live-streaming service for gamers, and the popular game Fortnite.

The campaign started when the fast-food chain, which has a “no frozen beef” policy, joined in with a social media debate on which fictional Fortnite restaurant was better: Durr Burger or Pizza Pit. “We never joined #TeamBurger because Durr Burger is full of freezers and we don’t clown around with the frozen beef. So now we’ll officially declare #TeamPizza and start the real fight, the war on frozen beef,” Wendy’s said on Twitter.

That alone caused quite a stir, with over 1,000 people responding to the tweet. Amongst the responses was this one from DiGiorno, a North American frozen pizza brand:

Source: @Wendys on Twitter But Wendy’s did not stop there. The company created its own Twitch account and live-streamed a story about a red-headed Fortnite character - who happened to resemble the Wendy’s logo - ridding the world of Durr Burger’s restaurant.  The result? Hundreds of Fortnite players helped Wendy’s in its quest.

This stunt offers a great example of how to leverage trends to make your brand relevant. By combining skillful mobile marketing with the enormous popularity of Fortnite, Wendy’s created a hugely successful and memorable campaign. The lesson is clear: keep up with what’s current, and utilize it in your marketing.

Ford’s SMS text marketing campaign

Source: Tatango

In 2011, Ford Motor Company launched an SMS (text message) marketing campaign that resulted in an incredible 15.4% conversion rate .

The call-to-action, printed in newspapers, invited readers to send an SMS to receive more information about car financing options. Respondents were then asked to text the vehicle model they were interested in, their zip code, and their full name to be contacted by a local dealer.

Users had to complete the sequence because if they didn’t, they would receive the same reminder text until they either sent their details or opted out. This campaign was successful because Ford made the barrier to entry so low; what could be easier than sending a single text message?

Be strategic if you decide to use SMS, though. If you do it wrong, you could annoy your potential customer, which will have the opposite effect to the one you’re after. Make sure you give a clear and simple way to opt out.

Uniqlo’s Check-In Chance campaign

Source: Uniqlo

Japanese clothing company Uniqlo was about to launch its yearly sale in 2011 and decided to promote it using Facebook . At the time, Facebook was the most popular social media platform for the company’s young target audience.

The Uniqlo Check-In Chance campaign invited customers to “check in” on Facebook at any of Tokyo’s 62 Uniqlo stores during the sale. They would then be entered into a prize draw to win a 100 yen coupon.

The beauty of this campaign was in its simplicity, and it garnered an astounding 202,479 check-ins. The Uniqlo Facebook page netted 10,000 likes as a result of the campaign, and store footfall rose to record highs. In three days, Uniqlo sold over 10 billion Japanese yen (just under $93,000) worth of clothing.

The lesson? Keep it simple. In addition, offering an incentive such as entry into a prize draw never hurts if you’re trying to get customers to take action.

Burger King’s Burn That Ad

Source: Burger King

Augmented reality (AR) is a medium with tremendous potential for marketing campaigns. Last year, fast-food chain Burger King used AR to great effect in its Burn That Ad campaign.

The campaign, launched in Brazil, urged people to “burn” the ads of Burger King’s competitors using the AR feature in the company’s app. Once the ad “burned down,” the user could claim their prize: a free Whopper from the nearest Burger King restaurant.

While there are some ethical concerns with this campaign, it gets top marks for creativity. It played upon brand familiarity (Burger King’s famous flame-grill) and used it in a new and unexpected way.

The use of AR drove engagement, and the giveaway pulled people into Burger King’s restaurants (where many would buy fries or a Coke to go with that free Whopper). Not only that, but the mobile-based campaign was also used to introduce Burger King’s mobile order system to new users. All this in one clever campaign - you can’t get any more efficient and effective than that!

Don’t be afraid to utilize new technology in your ads, and to get creative to use it in unexpected ways.

Ogilvy Paris and Scrabble’s Free Wi-Fi Campaign

Source: Ogilvy

In 2013, Scrabble set up free Wi-Fi hotspots throughout Paris. With the help of advertising agency Ogilvy Paris, the company focused on putting the hotspots in areas where Wi-Fi connections were notoriously patchy.

The two companies then announced that the passwords to use these hotspots would be given to people who demonstrated their spelling abilities by playing Scrabble through the app.

All users had to do was connect to the Scrabble network. They would then be given seven random letters and tasked with creating a word. Their score was automatically converted into Wi-Fi minutes. Players who shared their word on Facebook could also double their score and their Wi-Fi minutes.

This campaign was built around the idea of playfully encouraging the use of correct spelling, at a time when “text speak” was in widespread use.

The results were astounding: in just two weeks, people played more than 6,000 words and the companies gave away more than 110,000 minutes of Wi-Fi. It was an incredibly successful way to promote the Scrabble brand by playing on its stated mission of “bringing letters and people together”.

Mobile marketing: unlocking powerful opportunities

These six examples only scratch the surface of mobile marketing and the wide variety of powerful opportunities it represents.

With mobile marketing, you have a world of tools and technologies at your fingertips to help you reach your audience. Aside from social media and SMS, there’s also augmented reality, artificial intelligence, games, live chat, live-streaming platforms, and more. The possibilities are endless if you apply a little creativity.

There are three characteristics of a successful mobile marketing campaign: measurability, customer insights, and innovation. In other words, you must have the means to measure the success of your campaign, know your customers , and think outside the box to create something that is truly original.

If you do these things, there’s no reason you can’t create the perfect mobile marketing campaign that will drive engagement, increase conversions, and drive your business forward.

If you want to learn more about CRO, check out Matt's article here on The Definitive Guide to Conversion Rate Optimization.

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6 Commending Mobile App Marketing Case Studies

With the mobile app market evolving over the years, there is a lot of competition among the developers of mobile apps. As a mobile app developer, if you fail to come up with unique ideas and marketing strategies, the life cycle of your app will be bound to be shorter.

Here are a few excellent mobile app marketing case studies that should give you an idea about how to market your mobile app efficiently:

Page Contents

Case Study #1: KLM Airlines

The goal was to get the users of KLM Airlines to use their mobile app to make their flight bookings. They also wanted to provide a platform for mobile passbooks as well as location-based notifications.

Marketing Strategy

They launched a three-week-long campaign wherein free app access was given to people who made use of their mobile booking engine. This access was provided as mobile coupons that were sent to the Google Wallets (for Android users) and Passbooks (for Apple users) of users. Through location-based notifications, KLM reminded the users who were in the vicinity of KLM lounges, to redeem their coupons

KLM mobile site visitors increased by 17 percent. There was a 34 percent increase in bookings and a 38 percent increase in mobile revenue.

You can encourage more people to use your mobile app by giving them offers and extra benefits.

Case Study #2: ASDA – British Supermarket Chain

ASDA wanted to develop a mobile app for busy moms to make their grocery shopping more convenient. They were looking at generating at least 10 percent of the grocery transactions through this mobile app.

They decided to take the opinions of their existing customers on the kind of app that would make their shopping more convenient. They designed the app based on their customer feedback and kept it as simple as possible. They included a ‘Did You Forget?’ feature that showed them the items they had purchased recently so that they don’t forget to order the items that they usually order. The app also displayed live petrol prices to help customers fill fuel at the closest ASDA petrol stations.

The number of app downloads crossed 2 million. The app bagged the IGD Digital innovation award. There was an 18 percent increase in home grocery shopping and around 90 percent of it was made through the mobile app. Mobile app shopping exceeded desktop shopping by 1.8 times.

Make sure your mobile app is simple so that everyone finds it easy to use, irrespective of the age group they belong to.

Case Study #3: HotelTonight

HotelTonight wanted to introduce more potential users to their mobile app by showcasing its usability and functionality. They wanted to enhance the user experience of their app.

They launched a mobile video campaign by uploading videos of their hotels, highlighting all the facilities that the users could enjoy. The idea was to make sure the users downloaded the app and engaged with it regularly.

By providing incredible experiences to their customers, they made sure their customers reviewed and shared their HotelTonight experiences with others. They encouraged them further by launching a ‘Tell a Friend’ Marketing Campaign, through which users could get $25 every time they invited a new friend to join HotelTonight, via Email or Facebook or Twitter post. The friend they invited would also receive $25 upon booking their first room using the app.

HotelTonight leveraged the power of social media to expand its customer base. They used Facebook to share videos and make announcements about new hotels that were added to their mobile app. They also used Twitter to promote their offers and special deals.

70,071 people followed their Facebook page in a span of nine months. They saw a 326 percent increase in their app install rate. Within just one month they managed to achieve 115 percent returns on their ad spends.  60 percent of their customers came through Word of Mouth and the rest through their mobile app.

Word-of-mouth marketing can be very effective if you incentivize your users for referrals. Leveraging social media is a great way to promote your app.

Case Study #4: BNP Paribas Wealth Management

BNP Paribas Wealth Management intended to increase its customer engagement by providing them access to their financial information via their mobile devices.

They created their application for iOS, Android, and Windows and launched their mobile-first platform foundation software.

By creating dynamic user segments, they started sending out personalized, relevant, and targeted in-app messages as well as push notifications to their users.

They encouraged their loyal and frequent users to rate their app, by using pop-up messages in the app.

They also broadcasted targeted push notifications to promote their ‘My Wallet’ app, as a cross-promotion campaign. Through this, they managed to generate a lot of free downloads in Google Play Store as well as Apple App Store.

Their App store ratings went up to 4 from 2.5. They also got adequate press coverage, which increased the customer base of the bank.

Think competitively to come up with realistic solutions that can be beneficial for your customers

Case Study #5: Guidecentral

The objective of Guidecentral was to increase the visibility of their app and achieve more downloads.

They replaced their app icon with a more attractive one so that it would stand out from the rest of the apps.

They used the ‘how to’ keyword in their app name, because of its huge search volume. They optimized their app by adding some relevant keywords, their unique selling points and a call-to-action (CTA), to their app description.

They saw a whopping 700 percent increase in their app downloads because of the new icon

Minor details such as your app icon and app description play a major role in the success of your app. Make sure you optimize everything.

Case Study #6: Amazon

Amazon wished to relaunch its shopping app and rebrand itself to increase its ranking in the App store. The app was removed from the Play Store because of its low ranking, following certain changes in Google policies.

They optimized their app by adding the ‘shopping’ keyword to their app name.

The traffic increased from 2.12 percent to 9.88 percent after they optimized their app using the keyword ‘Shopping.’

One way to increase your ranking in the app store is to add the perfect keyword to your app name

The Bottom Line

The above app marketing case studies may have revealed a few successful strategies to help you achieve more app downloads and increase your customer base. Of course, a well-developed app is a must; but the promotion of the app also plays a major role in the success of your mobile app.

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100,000 Users in a Day: An App Marketing Case Study

by dreamwalkapps | blog

INTRODUCTION

This is a real life app marketing case study that follows the launch of our popular music app, Jam for iPhone (Now Jam:Instant Song Creator ).

Hopefully this case study will provide readers with some useful app marketing tips and strategies. More importantly though, I hope it demonstrates just how important a marketing strategy is and how much thought and effort needs to go into one.

I’ve included the following details in the case study:

• Cost breakdowns
• Marketing plans
• Press releases
• Real results

QUICK SUMMARY

Jam has been downloaded by almost a million users since its launch in 2013. This case study will focus on the first four months. During this time, Jam was downloaded by approximately 290,000 users.

As far as benchmarks go, this number certainly puts it in the ‘successful launch’ category but isn’t so big as to push it into ‘unicorn’ territory. This makes it a very useful case study, as the strategies we used are universal and the results are attainable for many app startups.

We worked with an app marketing agency, who were integral in the planning and execution of the Jam marketing strategy.

We had a marketing budget of approximately US$170,000. But, before you dismiss this as not relevant to startups bootstrapping it, consider these three things:

• The majority of those 290,000 users were acquired with just $8,000 of this budget.
• Over 100,000 of these users were acquired overnight
• There is no ‘right’ amount to spend on marketing. Apps with lower budgets have been more successful than Jam and apps with much bigger budgets have failed completely.

$170,000 is simply the budget we had to launch Jam and our strategy was developed around this number.

USER ACQUISITION COSTS

The effective user acquisition cost we achieved was approximately 58 cents per user. The average paid media CPI (cost-per-install) in the US in 2013 was $2.96. If you do the math, our app marketing campaign effectively earned Jam around $688,400 in free installs.

Of course user acquisition cost is not the only metric we use to measure the success of a marketing campaign. Here were our goals of the launch campaign:

• 1 million installs within 12 months
• An engaged and active user base
• Self-sustaining growth (enough revenue and virality to continue to grow the user base on an ongoing basis without spending more money on marketing)

KEY FOCUS AREAS

The Jam launch campaign focused on 4 key areas:

Press Coverage

Social Media

Social media marketing advice is easy to come by, so we won’t focus on that in this case study. It was also the least successful aspect of our campaign and I don’t believe it contributed much to the app’s success, largely due to us starting it too late. Where social media did play a role, I will be sure to mention it.

I’m using a timeline style format for this case study, so you can see when things happened as they happened.

NOVEMBER – Planning Begins

Jam app development took twelve months with a team of three internal mobile app developers and it was ready for beta testing in November of 2012. This is when our Jam marketing efforts officially kicked off. 

We had our hearts set on a Christmas day release.

Most professional marketers will tell you marketing should begin as soon as you decide to build the app .

In my experience though, most app startups operate in stealth mode and the thought of disclosing their precious idea to anyone before the app is finished makes them very nervous. This was certainly the case for us with Jam.

So, less than two months before the public launch date, we reached out to a handful of reputable app marketing agencies and selected one.

DECEMBER – A Strategy Forms

December was spent strategizing, preparing collateral and content, making bookings and getting ready for launch.

We identified early on that Jam was one of those apps that really needed to be seen to be believed.

Jam uses artificial intelligence to create original music based on any vocal input. The user just picks a music style, hits record and sings. Then, within seconds, Jam generates original backing music and allows you to share your masterpiece via SMS, email, social media or to the internal community and charts. 

Over the course of the conference, we serenaded attendees with live Jam demos, ran an iPad giveaway and a took part in the Macworld Media Preview press conference. But, it was Abu the monkey who attracted the most attention, with people queuing up for a photo with Abu on their shoulder. Watch Video.

The Guardian, Star-Telegraph, ABC7, TUAW, MacObserver and others all raved about Jam and our monkey friend. Even Macworld themselves named Jam and Abu one of the highlights of the conference. Needless to say, an apology to Macworld for breaking their ‘no monkey’ rule was never required.

Despite the hype, the attention we got at Macworld didn’t translate into downloads. In all, our user base only grew by about 8,000 and most could be credited to the banner ads we were still running. Macworld also ended up costing more than we anticipated.

WEEK 4 – What next?

Deflated by lacklustre Macworld results and more than half way through our budget, we went back to the drawing board. We’d seen how quickly we could eat through our money and didn’t want to waste what we had left.

At this point we switched off our ad campaigns and just let our social media marketing chug along. In doing so we were able to ascertain our organic baseline.

Without spending anything, Jam organically achieved around 2,000 new installs this week.

The marketing agency floated the idea of attending SXSW in Austin, Texas. A massive music, film and tech festival sounded perfect for our rock star app, so we jumped on it. We wanted to make a big splash and resolved to spend the rest of our app marketing budget on it. A hail Mary of sorts.

Here’s what we had learned so far:

• Free-for-a-day promotions worked really well but you could only run them every so often or get diminishing returns
• Mobile banner campaigns were expensive and getting enough inventory to run big bursts was difficult.
• Events were great for creating a buzz but the hype didn’t immediately convert into new users.
• Advertising in big bursts did help to push Jam to the top of the charts
• Once in the charts, the virality kicked in but it was relatively short lived

One thing we hadn’t tried yet was a celebrity endorsement. SXSW would be our chance.

WEEK 5 – SXSW Planning

With the festival less than a month away, it became our sole focus. We spent the next few weeks coming up with a killer strategy.

We would sponsor the lounge at the SXSW Music Tech Expo, turning it into the Jam lounge. Here we could run live Jam demos to attendees and offer them free drink cards to use at the Jam bar if they installed the app in front of us.

And finally, the highlight of our plan – we’d have a famous rock star make an appearance in the lounge to generate hype.

We threw around a bunch of names and the marketing agency started calling agents. We figured it wouldn’t be hard to find someone, with hundreds of bands and artists already in Austin to perform at the festival.

Fans started moving through the photo booth, every one of them leaving with a smile and posting their Jam-branded photos to Facebook and Instagram. Here’s a video of them in the photo booth (Sorry for the low resolution).

The extra downloads we gained on the day were great but the real impact came in the form of media exposure. 

I’d been interviewed by a few journalists already but on day two, the crowds kicked this into second gear. An Australian journalist from the AFP asked me what Jam was and why it was so popular. I’m not sure he even knew we had a major celebrity signing autographs five feet away. The app got the credit for the crowds and though we didn’t know it yet, his story would soon be syndicated to hundreds of publications around the world.

The final day was mostly spent with journalists who heard about the excitement the previous day and wanted the lowdown.

Among them was a young woman doing a video blog for Fuse TV. She sang a song into my phone and we grooved along to the result. I didn’t know it at the time, but she was mega-famous fashion model Alexa Chung. View the video here .

That day 50 Cent also showed up to sign autographs at the headphone booth next to our lounge. This generated a lot more buzz and we sang more demos.

In total, we gained around 40,000 new users during our time at SXSW, which equated to about $1.34 per user. We attributed about 5,000 of these to event attendees, 5,000 to mobile banner ads and the remainder to media publicity and organic growth.

WEEK 10 – Back to Australia

Our app marketing budget dried up and our engagement with the marketing agency drew to an end.

Alexa’s Fuse TV segment, the AFP syndication and hundreds of other articles and press mentions, turned Jam into an Australian export success story.

We’d only been home for a day when I got a call from the Today Show. We were on air the next morning telling our story and listening to Karl Stephanovic Jamming to a TV audience of almost half a million viewers. Watch Video .

Following our Today Show appearance we were interviewed by a handful of other local news outlets, then things slowed back down.

Our mobile ad campaigns ended and I took over social media management. It was time to assess the impact of the launch campaign. Had we met the goals we set out to achieve?

• 1 million installs within 12 months? – Not yet achieved and not likely within the next 9 months at the current growth rate
• An engaged and active user base? – Yes, our users were very active and engaged
• Self-sustaining growth? – No. The revenue we were bringing in was nowhere near enough to sustain the growth of the product. Nor were our organic downloads.

But, this isn’t a post mortem. The app lived on.

We had just over 280,000 users in total and almost 10,000 were active on any given day. We spent the next few weeks tweaking the features of the app and monetisation model in an effort to improve their experience and generate more revenue.

Organic downloads continued at around 1,500 per week. 

Despite our optimisations, revenue didn’t get much better and we continued to pull in around $300 per week.

After being on the App Store for 4 months our app marketing launch campaign had achieved the following results:

We also achieved:

• 315,000 songs created
• 34,200 songs published
• 1.3 million song plays
• 2,925 in-app-purchases
• No. 1 Music App in 26 countries
• No. 1 Free App Overall in 2 countries
• Top grossing music app in 1 countries
• Featured by Apple in ‘New and Noteworthy’
• 2nd place in the Appy Awards (Runner up to Shazam)

What we learned:

• People love to create and share music. All kinds of people.
• App marketing plans need to cover a much longer period than just a four month launch window.
• It is not about how much money you spend but where you spend it. We had more success with $8,000 of our budget that we did with the remaining $162,000.
• Make sure you have the right app before spending money promoting it. Scale up a profitable app, not one that is costing you money.
• It’s better to get feedback from test users, make iterations and ensure you are build an app people will pay to use before you launch publically.
• Run smaller ad tests and carefully measure the data to ensure you are getting a return from a particular channel before increasing the spend.
• Get social right. We didn’t focus heavily enough on social and it was a wasted opportunity. Social influencers should have played a much bigger role in our strategy.
• Momentum is key, especially early on. Plan marketing activities to bounce off each other to maximise exposure and keep people talking about your app.
• Not all downloads are created equal. Focus your efforts and marketing spend on users that will be engaged in the platform and generate virality and revenue.
• Make the most out of every opportunity. One thing we did really well was media interactions. We said yes to every opportunity and went out of our way to create newsworthy stories.

Where is Jam now?

Jam is still alive and kicking. The user base isn’t as active as it once was and we don’t spend nearly enough time maintaining the platform but it still has a following and people still love making music with it.

It has been installed by just under a million users now and while we never gained much financially from the whole exercise, what we gained in experience and knowledge is priceless.

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40 Detailed Digital Marketing Case Studies [2024]

In the rapidly evolving digital era, the effectiveness of marketing tactics can have a huge impact on the brand’s success. This collection of 40 detailed digital marketing case studies from globally recognized companies offers a deep dive into the tactical approaches and innovative solutions that have reshaped consumer interactions and carved success stories across various industries. From leveraging cutting-edge technologies like augmented reality and artificial intelligence to embracing community-driven initiatives and personalized user experiences, each case study presents a unique challenge faced by the brand, the strategic response implemented, and the resultant impact on market presence and consumer loyalty. These 40 narratives not only highlight the transformative potential of effective digital marketing but also serve as a valuable learning resource for marketing professionals seeking to understand the dynamics of customer engagement and brand growth in the digital era.

Related: Surprising Digital Marketing Statistics & Facts

1. Airbnb – Leveraging User-Generated Content

Task or Conflict:

Airbnb, despite its revolutionary concept, faced significant challenges in scaling trust and global brand awareness. Operating in a highly competitive travel industry, Airbnb needed a cost-effective strategy to resonate emotionally and authentically with potential customers worldwide, without resorting to expensive traditional marketing techniques.

To overcome this challenge, Airbnb capitalized on user-generated content by motivating both parties to share their unique lodging experiences through images and stories on different platforms. They facilitated this by creating hashtags and launching contests to motivate participation. Airbnb’s strategy was not merely about collecting content but about fostering a community-centric brand that values customer experiences and stories as the core of its marketing.

Overall Impact:

• Considerable increase in organic reach across different online platforms.
• Enhanced brand trust and credibility, which translated into increased bookings globally.

Key Learnings:

• User-generated content can serve as an impactful and economical marketing tool.
• Building a brand community can help in enhanced user loyalty and organic brand promotion.

2. Nike – Digital Brand Transformation

Nike faced the challenge of maintaining relevance and connection with its diverse consumer base in a rapidly changing digital landscape. As consumer behaviors shifted towards more digital interactions and personalized experiences, Nike needed to find innovative ways to engage with its audience beyond traditional advertising and retail settings.

Nike addressed this challenge by fully embracing digital transformation with the launch of various mobile applications, such as the Nike Training Club and Nike Run Club, which integrated workout plans, running tracking, and community challenges into their user experience. They also harnessed the power of data analytics to offer personalized product recommendations and tailored fitness advice, thereby creating a more engaging and customized user journey.

• Drastically improved user engagement rates, with millions of downloads and active users on their apps.
• Strengthened brand loyalty and community feel among Nike customers, leading to increased sales both online and in-store.
• Digital tools and apps can significantly enhance customer engagement and loyalty when used to provide value beyond the traditional sales experience.
• Personalization and community building are crucial for maintaining brand relevance in a digital-first consumer market.

3. Tesco – Virtual Store

Tesco was looking to expand its market presence in South Korea without the substantial costs associated with opening new physical stores. The challenge was to reach a tech-savvy and time-constrained commuter population who valued convenience and efficiency in their shopping experiences.

Tesco’s innovative solution was to create virtual stores in subway stations, where busy commuters could shop while waiting for their train. They placed life-sized billboards of store shelves with products bearing QR codes in subway stations. Commuters could scan these codes using Tesco’s mobile app to add items to their virtual shopping cart, making their daily commute time productive for shopping.

• Positioned Tesco as the top online grocery retailer in South Korea.
• Achieved a substantial increase in customer base and online sales, effectively transforming the grocery shopping experience.
• Digital innovations that blend into the daily routines of customers can lead to high engagement and conversion rates.
• Utilizing commonplace technology like QR codes can effectively connect the physical and digital shopping environments, catering to the modern consumer’s desire for convenience and efficiency.

4. Spotify – Data-Driven Personalization

Spotify faced the challenge of differentiating itself in the saturated music streaming market. With numerous services offering similar catalogues of music, Spotify needed to find a way to stand out and retain users in a competitive landscape where user preferences and engagement could make a significant difference.

Spotify’s approach was to harness the vast amounts of data they collected on user listening habits to create hyper-personalized experiences. They developed algorithms for features like “Discover Weekly,” which provides users with a playlist tailored to their tastes every week. This strategy was rooted in predictive analytics and machine learning, aiming to anticipate user preferences and introduce them to new music seamlessly.

• Considerably increased user engagement on the platform.
• Boosted subscription rates as users found more value in personalized content.
• Leveraging user data for personalization can highly distinguish a service in the market.
• Continuous innovation in user experience can drive both retention and acquisition.

5. Domino’s Pizza – Digital Ordering Innovation

Domino’s was striving to enhance sales and streamline the customer ordering process. The fast-food industry is notoriously competitive, and Domino’s needed to innovate to make ordering as convenient and quick as possible for customers seeking instant gratification.

Domino’s revolutionized the digital ordering process by introducing an array of ordering methods, including a pioneering “pizza emoji” text order system and a robust digital platform that works seamlessly across various devices. They also utilized voice recognition and artificial intelligence to predict customer preferences and speed up the ordering process.

• Digital orders rose dramatically to account for a huge portion of total sales.
• The company’s stock price increased due to improved operational efficiency and customer satisfaction.
• Streamlining the customer experience with technology can lead to substantial increases in sales and efficiency.
• Innovative ordering options can set a company apart in a competitive industry.

Related: How to learn Digital Marketing?

6. GoPro – Harnessing Advocacy

GoPro needed to amplify its brand presence and deepen user engagement in a market where consumers are bombarded with countless digital advertisements. The challenge was to make GoPro not just a product but a part of its customers’ adventure narratives.

GoPro’s strategy focused on turning their customers into brand ambassadors by encouraging them to share their thrilling videos and images taken with GoPro cameras. They launched the “GoPro Awards” to incentivize user content submission with rewards, effectively using this content in their marketing campaigns to showcase the camera’s capabilities.

• Enhanced brand loyalty and created a massive repository of authentic user-generated content.
• Fostered a strong community of GoPro users who are engaged and regularly contribute content.
• Encouraging user-generated content can create a vibrant community and provide authentic marketing material.
• Rewarding customer contributions can increase engagement and brand loyalty.

7. ZARA – Agile Social Media Strategies

ZARA faced the challenge of maintaining its fast-fashion leadership while transitioning to a digital-first retail approach. They needed to keep up with rapid fashion trends and consumer expectations on social media, where trends can change overnight.

ZARA employed an agile social media strategy that mirrored its renowned supply chain flexibility. They quickly adapted campaigns and content to reflect the latest fashion trends and consumer feedback, using a data-driven approach to tailor their marketing efforts to real-time insights.

• Increased engagement on social media platforms, driving both online and offline traffic.
• Enhanced brand perception as trendy and responsive among consumers.
• Agility in social media marketing can effectively align with and capitalize on consumer trends.
• Data-driven content adaptation can lead to higher consumer engagement and satisfaction.

8. Slack – B2B Content Marketing

Slack needed to establish itself in the crowded B2B tech market, where differentiation is crucial for capturing the attention of business customers. The challenge was not only to stand out but also to articulate the value of Slack’s platform in streamlining communication across diverse teams and enterprises.

Slack’s strategy involved utilizing high-quality, informative content marketing to address common communication challenges faced by businesses. They created a variety of content types, including case studies, whitepapers, and blogs, which demonstrated how Slack enhances productivity and integrates with various business tools. This approach helped position Slack as a thought leader in workplace communication.

• Successfully established thought leadership in the B2B communications sphere.
• Saw a significant increase in adoption rates among businesses, leading to a larger user base.
• High-value content that addresses specific industry pain points can effectively engage and convert B2B audiences.
• Establishing thought leadership through content is vital for differentiation in the B2B technology sector.

9. Unilever (Dove) – Campaign for Real Beauty

Dove sought to challenge beauty industry norms and redefine what beauty means to women around the world. The brand faced the task of shifting perceptions in a market saturated with idealized, often unattainable beauty standards, to foster a broader, more inclusive definition of beauty.

Dove launched the “Campaign for Real Beauty” by featuring real women with diverse body types, ages, and ethnicities in their advertisements. This strategy was complemented by a series of videos, workshops, and storytelling initiatives that highlighted personal beauty stories, aiming to inspire confidence among women and provoke conversations about beauty standards.

• Successfully shifted consumer perception of beauty, promoting a more inclusive view.
• Strengthened customer loyalty and brand alignment with core values of diversity and authenticity.
• Marketing campaigns that resonate emotionally and challenge societal norms can create powerful brand affinity.
• Authenticity in advertising can lead to deeper customer connections and loyalty.

10. Coca-Cola – Share a Coke Campaign

Coca-Cola needed to rejuvenate its brand and increase beverage consumption among younger demographics globally. The challenge was to create a personalized connection with consumers in a way that felt genuine and encouraged social sharing.

Coca-Cola’s “Share a Coke” campaign replaced the iconic Coca-Cola logo on bottles with common first names and invited people to find bottles with their names or those of their friends and family. The campaign was amplified through social media, encouraging customers to share their personalized Coke bottles online using specific hashtags.

• Revitalized global brand engagement, particularly among teens and young adults.
• Triggered a worldwide trend of personalized consumer goods that led to increased sales.
• Personalization at a mass scale can effectively engage consumers and foster a personal connection with the brand.
• Social media can be a impactful tool for amplifying interactive marketing operations and driving consumer participation.

Related: Design Tools to help you become a better Digital Marketer

11. Amazon – Prime Day Optimization

Amazon sought to boost its annual Prime Day sales and enhance customer loyalty in a market crowded with competing sales events. The challenge was to distinguish Prime Day from other sales and drive both participation and revenue across global markets.

Amazon utilized targeted email marketing campaigns, personalized shopping recommendations, and exclusive Prime member promotions to drive engagement. They also leveraged their massive logistics network to ensure fast delivery, enhancing the customer experience and encouraging repeat purchases during the event.

• Record-breaking sales figures each year, surpassing previous Prime Day events.
• Increased Prime membership sign-ups, reinforcing customer loyalty and recurring revenue.
• Personalization and exclusive benefits can effectively drive participation and customer loyalty during large-scale promotional events.
• Efficient logistical support can enhance customer satisfaction and drive repeat business during high-demand periods.

12. LEGO – Reviving a Brand

LEGO faced a severe decline in sales in the early 2000s, with risks of bankruptcy looming due to outdated product offerings and a failure to engage a new generation of children.

LEGO revamped its marketing strategy by integrating digital experiences with physical play. This included partnerships with popular franchises for themed LEGO sets and developing interactive digital platforms where children could share their creations.

• Successfully reversed the sales decline, returning to profitability.
• Expanded their customer base to include both children and nostalgic adults.
• Combining digital experiences with traditional products can breathe new life into classic brands.
• Strategic partnerships can effectively expand market reach and relevance.

13. Ford – Euro 2020 Sponsorship Activation

Ford aimed to leverage its sponsorship of the UEFA Euro 2020 to enhance its brand visibility and connect with a diverse European audience, amidst a cluttered advertising environment.

Ford developed an interactive campaign that included a virtual reality experience allowing fans to “sit” in a Ford while taking a virtual tour of football stadiums. They also used real-time social media updates linked to game events to engage viewers.

• Increased brand engagement across Europe, particularly during game times.
• Enhanced brand association with innovation and excitement.
• Out-of-the-box advertising can develop unforgettable brand experiences and enhance user engagement.
• Real-time social media engagement can effectively capitalize on event-driven marketing opportunities.

14. IBM – Smarter Planet Initiative

IBM wanted to position itself not just as a technology provider but as a thought leader addressing global challenges through innovation, needing to shift public perception and increase business engagements in new verticals.

The “Smarter Planet” campaign was launched, utilizing extensive content marketing, including thought leadership articles, case studies, and partnerships with academic institutions to demonstrate how technology can solve real-world problems.

• Successfully shifted IBM’s brand perception towards that of a global innovator.
• Increased engagement in new industry verticals, including healthcare and renewable energy.
• Thought leadership can effectively shift brand perception and open new market opportunities.
• Content marketing can be a dominant device for demonstrating product relevance and company values.

15. Adidas – Digital Shoe Launch

Adidas needed to launch a new line of running shoes and wanted to stand out in a highly competitive market, aiming to reach a global audience while highlighting the technological advancements in their product.

Adidas created an augmented reality app that allowed users to virtually try on shoes and participate in a digital scavenger hunt that led them through interactive challenges based on shoe features. This was complemented by influencer partnerships to drive awareness and engagement.

• Generated significant global buzz and high consumer engagement online.
• Achieved high sales volumes immediately following the launch.
• Innovative use of augmented reality can provide engaging and unique consumer experiences.
• Influencer partnerships can amplify reach and credibility in product launches.

Related: Simple Ways to get better at Digital Marketing

16. Pepsi – Refresh Project

Pepsi aimed to rejuvenate its brand and foster a positive corporate image in the face of growing health concerns about sugary drinks. They needed a campaign that would resonate broadly and foster substantial consumer engagement.

The Pepsi Refresh Project was a community-focused campaign that allowed people to submit and vote on projects for Pepsi to fund. The initiative focused on social good and community development, utilizing social media platforms to maximize engagement and participation.

• Improved brand image as socially responsible.
• Created widespread consumer engagement through voting and participation in the campaign.
• Brand alignment with social responsibility can enhance corporate image and customer engagement.
• Interactive and community-focused campaigns can drive substantial consumer participation and loyalty.

17. Samsung – Galaxy Launch

Samsung faced the challenge of launching their new Galaxy smartphone in a market dominated by Apple’s iPhone. They needed to differentiate their product and create a compelling argument for consumers to switch.

Samsung embarked on a comprehensive marketing campaign that highlighted the Galaxy’s superior tech specifications and user-friendly features compared to the iPhone. The campaign included high-profile television ads, social media challenges, and interactive pop-ups where consumers could experience the technology firsthand.

• Successfully increased market share in the smartphone industry.
• Enhanced consumer perception of Samsung as a leader in technology innovation.
• Highlighting product advantages through comparative advertising can effectively influence consumer purchasing decisions.
• Interactive marketing experiences can deepen consumer engagement and brand loyalty.

18. Google – Education Initiatives

Google aimed to expand its influence in the education sector but faced skepticism from educational institutions about the applicability and security of digital tools in educational settings.

Google launched a series of educational initiatives, including Google Classroom, which offered a seamless, integrated platform for managing teaching and learning. They provided robust security features and collaborated with educators to tailor their tools to classroom needs.

• Widely adopted by schools worldwide, becoming a staple in digital education.
• Strengthened Google’s reputation as a valuable partner in education technology.
• Tailoring technology solutions to meet specific industry needs can lead to widespread adoption.
• Collaborations with industry professionals can enhance product design and market acceptance.

19. MasterCard – Priceless Campaign

MasterCard needed to differentiate itself in a crowded credit card market and foster deeper emotional connections with its customers, moving beyond transactional relationships.

The “Priceless” campaign was launched, featuring stories of unique and emotional experiences made possible by MasterCard, emphasizing the card’s role in facilitating priceless life moments. The campaign was supported by partnerships with travel, dining, and entertainment sectors to offer exclusive experiences to cardholders.

• Successfully resonated with customers on a deeper level, strengthening brand loyalty.
• Increased usage of MasterCard for booking experiences and high-value purchases.
• Emotional branding can create deeper consumer connections and loyalty.
• Exclusive partnerships can enhance the value proposition of a product.

20. Netflix – Global Expansion Strategy

Netflix needed to expand its subscriber base internationally but faced challenges related to content relevance and local competition in various countries.

Netflix invested heavily in local content production, creating original series and films that catered to local tastes and cultures. They also optimized their user interface to accommodate multiple languages and cultural nuances, improving user experience globally.

• Significantly increased international subscriber numbers.
• Enhanced global brand recognition and loyalty through culturally relevant content.
• Investing in local content can significantly improve market penetration and customer satisfaction in new regions.
• Cultural customization of product offerings can enhance user experience and brand loyalty internationally.

Related: How  to use AR/VR in Digital Marketing?

21. Volvo – Safety Marketing

Volvo sought to reinforce its position as a leader in automotive safety in a market increasingly focused on electric and autonomous vehicles. The challenge was to communicate Volvo’s longstanding commitment to safety innovation in a way that resonated with modern consumers and differentiated it from competitors.

Volvo launched a multi-faceted digital marketing campaign highlighting its historical safety innovations and the integration of advanced safety technologies in its newest models. The campaign used emotional storytelling through customer testimonials and crash-test footage to highlight the life-saving impacts of their vehicles.

• Reinforced Volvo’s reputation as a leader in vehicle safety.
• Increased consumer trust and interest in newer Volvo models.
• Leveraging brand heritage in marketing can strengthen consumer trust and loyalty.
• Emotional storytelling can effectively communicate complex product features like safety innovations.

22. Adobe – Subscription Model Transition

Adobe faced the challenge of transitioning from traditional software sales to a subscription-based model, which was initially met with resistance from its long-standing customer base used to one-time purchases.

Adobe implemented a comprehensive digital marketing strategy that highlighted the benefits of the subscription model, such as continuous updates, cloud storage, and improved collaboration tools. They also offered transitional discounts and bundled offers to existing customers to ease the shift.

• Successfully shifted the majority of their consumer base to the subscription model.
• Achieved a steady increase in recurring revenue and customer satisfaction.
• Clear communication of product value changes can facilitate major business model transitions.
• Offering incentives can mitigate customer resistance to new pricing structures.

23. Patagonia – Environmental Advocacy

Patagonia aimed to enhance its brand commitment to environmental sustainability while driving sales. The challenge was to authentically integrate this commitment into their marketing strategy without appearing opportunistic.

Patagonia’s approach included high-profile environmental projects, such as “Don’t Buy This Jacket,” which encouraged responsible consumption. They underlined the longevity of their goods and their restoration services, reinforcing the brand’s commitment to reducing environmental impact.

• Strengthened brand loyalty among environmentally conscious consumers.
• Maintained strong sales despite the campaign’s call for reduced consumption.
• Marketing activities that align with core company values can connect deeply with users.
• Advocacy and authenticity in marketing can differentiate a brand in a competitive market.

24. Microsoft – Cloud Computing

Microsoft needed to solidify its position in the rapidly growing cloud computing market against strong competitors like Amazon Web Services and Google Cloud.

Microsoft focused on marketing its hybrid cloud solutions, emphasizing security, compliance, and seamless integration with existing on-premise infrastructure. They leveraged case studies of successful deployments in key industries to showcase their expertise and reliability.

• Enhanced market share in the cloud computing industry.
• Built reliance and integrity among enterprise customers.
• Focusing on unique selling propositions such as security and hybrid capabilities can capture a niche market segment.
• Case studies are effective tools for demonstrating capability and building trust.

25. Red Bull – Branding Through Sports

Red Bull faced the challenge of marketing an energy drink in ways that would continually capture the attention of a young, dynamic audience.

Red Bull created a unique brand image focused on extreme sports and adventurous lifestyles. They sponsored athletes, hosted extreme sports events, and produced high-adrenaline content that was shared widely across digital platforms.

• Successfully maintained a vibrant and exciting brand image.
• Increased global brand recognition and loyalty among target demographics.
• Investing in brand-aligned content and sponsorships can improve product identity and user engagement.
• Content that resonates with the brand’s audience can drive both online engagement and real-world participation.

Related: High-Paying Digital Marketing Jobs

26. Oreo – Real-Time Marketing

Oreo aimed to capitalize on real-time events to stay pertinent and appealing in the current social media era.

Oreo’s digital marketing team set up a “war room” during major events like the Super Bowl, allowing them to react instantaneously to live events with clever, themed social media posts. This strategy was highlighted by their famous “You can still dunk in the dark” tweet during a Super Bowl blackout.

• Gained extensive media coverage and social media buzz.
• Enhanced engagement and supporters on social media platforms.
• Real-time marketing can create significant brand buzz and viral potential.
• Preparing to leverage unexpected events can lead to high-impact marketing moments.

27. Toyota – Hybrid Cars

Toyota needed to drive adoption of its hybrid vehicles amidst skepticism about hybrid technology and performance concerns.

Toyota launched an educational campaign that included test-drive events, informational videos, and customer testimonials highlighting the reliability, performance, and environmental benefits of their hybrid models.

• Increased sales and market share in the hybrid vehicle category.
• Strengthened Toyota’s reputation as a leader in automotive innovation.
• Educational marketing can effectively address consumer skepticism and boost product adoption.
• Demonstrating product benefits through real-life experiences can enhance consumer trust and interest.

28. BuzzFeed – Content Virality

BuzzFeed needed to maintain its dominance in the digital media space amid increasing competition from other content platforms offering similar viral-type content.

BuzzFeed optimized its approach to content creation by leveraging data analytics to understand what makes content shareable. They focused on creating highly engaging, visually appealing content tailored to specific audiences and distributed across various social platforms.

• Maintained high engagement rates and growth in readership.
• Solidified its leadership in developing viral content.
• Data-driven content creation can effectively maintain engagement in a competitive market.
• Tailoring content to platform-specific audiences can maximize shareability and reach.

29. IKEA – Augmented Reality App

IKEA faced the challenge of enhancing customer shopping experience and minimizing returns due to size mismatches or style misfit with their furniture.

IKEA launched an AR app that allows users to visualize furniture in their own space before buying. The app, integrated with IKEA’s digital catalog, enables users to see how different furniture styles and sizes fit and look in their actual living spaces.

• Reduced return rates due to size or style mismatches.
• Enhanced customer satisfaction and increased sales conversions through the app.
• Augmented reality can significantly enhance the online shopping experience.
• Providing solutions that reduce consumer uncertainty can lead to higher satisfaction and sales.

30. Canva – Democratizing Design

Canva aimed to make design accessible to non-designers, competing against professional design software that requires significant skills and training.

Canva developed an intuitive, user-friendly platform with drag-and-drop features and an extensive library of templates. Their marketing focused on empowering users with no prior design experience to create professional-level designs easily.

• Rapid growth in user base, including small businesses, educators, and marketers.
• Established Canva as a leader in accessible design tools.
• Making professional tools accessible to a broader audience can capture a significant market share.
• User-friendly design and effective educational marketing can drive adoption and loyalty.

Related: History of Digital Marketing

31. Fitbit – Community-Driven Fitness

Fitbit needed to differentiate itself in a crowded market of wearable fitness technology and engage users on a long-term basis.

Fitbit enhanced its devices with social features that allow users to interact with friends, challenge each other, etc. They focused on building a community around fitness, highlighting a lifestyle rather than just a product.

• Increased consumer engagement and retention rates.
• Strengthened brand loyalty through a community-centric approach.
• Community features in tech products can enhance customer engagement and product stickiness.
• Promoting a lifestyle and building a community can have more impact than concentrating solely on the features.

32. Sephora – Beauty Insider Loyalty Program

Sephora faced the challenge of increasing customer loyalty and repeat purchases in the competitive beauty retail market.

Sephora revamped its Beauty Insider loyalty program to offer more customized incentives, exclusive experiences, and beauty classes. The program utilizes customer data to tailor recommendations and promotions, enhancing the personal connection with the brand.

• Increased frequency of repeat purchases.
• Enhanced consumer faith and contentment with customized experiences.
• Loyalty programs that offer personalized experiences can improve user loyalty.
• Utilizing customer data effectively can lead to more fruitful marketing policies.

33. New York Times – Digital Subscription Growth

The New York Times needed to adapt to the digital age, facing declining print subscriptions and the challenge of monetizing digital content.

The NYT introduced a flexible digital subscription model, which included tiered pricing levels to attract a broader audience. They invested heavily in quality journalism and digital content to provide value that justifies the subscription cost.

• Successful growth in digital subscriptions, offsetting declines in print.
• Strengthened brand reputation as a leading news provider in the digital age.
• Providing high-quality content is crucial for monetizing digital platforms.
• Flexible pricing models can appeal to a broader range of consumers.

34. L’Oréal – Embracing Digital Beauty Tech

L’Oréal faced the challenge of personalizing the beauty shopping experience in a digital environment, where customers traditionally rely on in-store trials before purchasing makeup and skincare products.

L’Oréal invested in augmented reality and artificial intelligence technologies to create a virtual try-on app, allowing customers to see how different products look on their own skin. The app also provided personalized skincare recommendations based on user skin analysis conducted through their mobile device cameras. This technology was heavily marketed through social media and online advertising to drive app downloads and engagement.

• Significantly increased online sales and customer interaction with the brand.
• Enhanced customer satisfaction through personalized and innovative shopping experiences.
• Digital technologies like AR and AI can effectively bridge the gap between online shopping and the need for product trial.
• Personalization in the beauty industry enhances customer satisfaction and brand loyalty.

35. Duolingo – Gamification of Learning

Duolingo faced the challenge of making language learning engaging and retaining users over long periods.

Duolingo implemented gamification strategies in their app, including points, levels, and daily streaks, to make learning languages fun and addictive. They continuously updated their app with new languages and features to engage audiences.

• Significantly increased user retention and daily engagement.
• Expanded globally, ranking among the most popular language learning apps.
• Gamification can make educational content more interactive and improve retention rates.
• Regular updates and new features keep users interested and encouraged in using the application.

Related: Predictions about Digital Marketing Future

36. Warby Parker – Online Eyewear Customization

Warby Parker needed to overcome consumer hesitation about buying prescription glasses online without trying them on first.

Warby Parker introduced a home try-on program where consumers can shortlist five frames to try at home for free before buying. They combined this with a robust online virtual try-on feature that uses augmented reality to simulate the glasses on the user’s face.

• Reduced barriers to online purchases of eyewear.
• Increased user contentment and sales conversions.
• Innovative trial options can overcome traditional barriers to online shopping.
• Augmented reality can effectively bridge the gap between online and offline shopping experiences.

37. Tesla – Direct Sales Model

Tesla aimed to revolutionize the car buying experience but faced legal and market resistance against its direct sales model, bypassing traditional dealerships.

Tesla persisted with its direct sales approach, focusing on educating users about the advantages of electric vehicles through experiential showrooms and interactive displays. They also engaged in legal battles to secure the right to sell directly in various states.

• Established a successful direct-to-consumer sales model.
• More control over brand identity and user experience.
• Direct sales models can provide significant advantages in controlling the brand experience.
• Educational marketing can effectively shift consumer preferences and overcome market resistance.

38. Chanel – Leveraging Heritage in Digital Marketing

Chanel needed to maintain its iconic brand status while transitioning to a digital-first marketing strategy, ensuring they connect with a younger audience without losing their established customer base.

Chanel leveraged its rich heritage by creating digital storytelling campaigns that intertwined its history with modern elements. They utilized high-quality visuals and collaborated with contemporary artists and influencers to remain relevant and appealing across generations.

• Successfully engaged both younger and older demographics.
• Maintained a luxury brand image in the digital marketplace.
• Integrating brand heritage with modern digital marketing can appeal to a broad audience.
• High-quality content and strategic influencer partnerships can elevate brand perception in the digital era.

39. Under Armour – Connected Fitness Strategy

Under Armour sought to differentiate itself from other sports apparel brands by integrating technology into its product offerings.

Under Armour acquired several fitness app companies to create a connected fitness community that tracks and shares health data. They integrated these apps with their apparel and footwear, offering consumers a comprehensive fitness monitoring system.

• Created a unique ecosystem combining apparel, footwear, and digital health tracking.
• Strengthened brand loyalty among tech-savvy fitness enthusiasts.
• Integrating digital technology with traditional products can create a unique market position.
• Building a brand community can improve user loyalty and engagement.

40. Disney – Streaming Service Launch

Disney needed to enter the competitive streaming market controlled by established players such as Netflix and Amazon Prime Video. The challenge was to carve out a niche and attract subscribers to yet another streaming platform.

Disney leveraged its extensive library of beloved classics, along with exclusive new content from popular franchises, to launch Disney+. They marketed the platform with a nostalgic appeal combined with the excitement of new, exclusive releases, utilizing cross-promotions through their theme parks, merchandise, and television networks.

• Quickly amassed millions of subscribers worldwide.
• Successfully established Disney+ as a key player in the streaming market.
• Exclusive content and strong brand heritage can be pivotal in differentiating a new entrant in a crowded market.
• Leveraging existing brand ecosystems for cross-promotion can significantly boost the launch of new services.

Related: Digital Marketing Internship vs. Taking a Course

Closing Thoughts

These digital marketing case studies underscore the transformative power of strategic, data-driven marketing initiatives across a diverse array of industries. By examining these examples, it becomes clear that whether through embracing technological innovations, capitalizing on brand heritage, or engaging with communities in meaningful ways, companies can significantly enhance their market position and forge deeper connections with their audiences. Each case study not only narrates a story of challenge and solution but also distills critical lessons about the adaptability, creativity, and forward-thinking necessary in today’s digital marketing landscape. For businesses aiming to refine their marketing strategies, these insights offer invaluable guidance on harnessing digital tools to foster customer loyalty, drive engagement, and accelerate growth. Ultimately, these narratives celebrate the ingenuity of marketers in navigating the complexities of the digital world and crafting campaigns that resonate profoundly with consumers globally.

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• Growth Marketing Case Studies

Growth Marketing Case Studies (2024)

Artem Dogtiev | April 11, 2024

Across all markets and geographies where mobile apps have become one of the economy staples, the question of a mobile app’s growth is an existential one. It’s either you manage to sustain the app’s growth month after month or you go sidelines of the app industry being beat by your competitors. Hence growth marketing is what app marketers doing their best to master and we believe providing case studies will be beneficial for you to analyze what you can do for your mobile app project to secure its growth.

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Top Growth Marketing Agencies

Case Study #1 Airbnb

Today, when you think about traveling and planning a place to stay on your trip, Airbnb pops up in your mind every time as one of the options you consider. The company established itself as an easy-to-use, flexible, safe hospitality provider for tens of millions of people around the globe. Of course, it had its own ups and downs, particularly when COVID-19 hit in 2020, it was struck really badly but it managed to stay afloat and move forward. In this article, I’d like to begin with Airbnb because it’s one of the Silicon Valley’s companies where the top management not only trying to meet their financial bottom line but doing their best to do the right thing for the society, given their scale and impact globally.

Airbnb iOS app listing on the App Store

Source: the App Store

Growth Marketing campaign objective

The story of Airbnb began back in 2007 when Brian Chesky and Joe Gebbia (co-founders of Airbnb) after looking for a place to rent in San Francisco, saw the potential in the idea of essentially renting an air mattress as a bed and breakfast for people to rent. So the objective of their growth marketing campaign was to find a way to scale up this brilliant but hardly scaleable idea.

At the very beginning of its path on the market, when none of raised by 2022 $6.4 billion in funding over 19 rounds was available, the founders – Brian Chesky, Joe Gebbia, and Nathan Blecharczyk had to be really innovative to raise the capital needed for the company to take off. The first $30k was raised essentially by making the platform a part of the US Presidential elections, the company sold cereals branded for Democratic and Republican nominees.

To find the first pool of users for the platform, Brian and his team turned to Craiglist – Airbnb’s users could post ads for their rentals on the popular classified ads platform, which wasn’t actually what Craiglist allowed to do. Back then, circa 2010, Craiglist already had a big pool of users who were placing ads offering their place to rent or looking forward to the one to rent.

The other growth pain to overcome was the poor-quality photos of properties people were offering to rent, to fix it Airbnb’s team began to photograph listed rents using an HQ camera, by now the company employs 2,000 freelance photographers.

Yet another obstacle on the company’s path to growth was people’s fear to let somebody live in their apartments and houses. The introduction of social integration into the platform allowed to mitigate this fear, when people could see previous tenets’ reviews.

And the final piece of Airbnb’s growth to mention – is the referral program that allows its users to share it with their friends and family.

Airbnb has grown to a hospitality platform with a revenue of $8.4 billion (as of 2022), 6.8k employees, 4 million hosts, and 800 million guest arrivals. A combination of a positive personal experience and an easy-to-use referral program led to millions of new users signing up for the platform.

Turning to another superstar in the world of mobile apps and digital platforms used by tens of millions of people around the globe. Let’s see how the world-famous file-sharing platform Dropbox became the absolute leader of the space and what was its growth story.

Case Study #2 Dropbox

When it comes to file sharing, Dropbox is the absolute leader with 17.4 million paying users and $573 million in revenue (Q2, 2022). At one point Apple was trying to buy the company but its team preferred to stay independent and now continues to be the file-sharing platform that connects people using various desktop and mobile operating systems for their computers and mobile devices.

Dropbox iOS app listing on the App Store

Source: App Store

To understand Dropbox’s objective at the beginning of its growth on the market, I need to describe briefly the Internet of 2008, the year the app was launched. An average download and upload speed was an order of magnitude less than today and all solutions for online file-syncing were strictly B2B oriented. Dropbox had to convince people that safe and quick online file-sharing is actually what is available to them and not just big corporations.

It’s interesting to note that to achieve that phenomenal growth that today people refer to when they need an example of hyper-growth, Dropbox spent zero on advertising. Dropbox’s team launched a referral program that allowed users to suggest the platform to other people and as a reward, they got more disk space to store and share more content.

Back in 2008 and for a number of years later, disk space was the most valuable asset to reward people with for helping the platform grow. The basic plan offered by Dropbox provided only 5 Gb of disk space, to get more users had to pay and so there was a really strong incentive for people to find somebody to share the service and get rewarded with more free disk space through the referral program.

Three years after its launch, in 2011 Dropbox could manage to generate $100 million in revenue.

Switching from the file-sharing service that people refer to as the easiest and fastest way to share files to a short-form video world champion of today – TikTok.

Case Study #3 TikTok

A short-form video hosting service owned by ByteDance, TikTok is one of the leading media platforms of today, on par with Instagram and YouTube. Since 2016 the platform grew to a giant with $13 billion in revenue in 2023 and 843 million monthly active users. The story of its phenomenal growth has multiple components I’m going to lay out further, focusing on major contributors.

TikTok iOS app listing on the App Store

Aside from many remarkable marketing feats that are attributed to TikTok, the one that stands out and was the major objective for the China-based owner of the app ByteDance – to succeed in the US market, outside  China, to this day TikTok is one of the very few that succeeded in pursuing this objective. Many Chinese companies have been trying to succeed in North America and Europe but mostly due to cultural differences failed to do so.

Influencers, and specifically top influencers with massive fellowship on TikTok’s major competitive social media platforms such as –  and still are – YouTube and Instagram were targeted as TikTok’s brand ambassadors to break into the US and European market. TikTok spent big budgets on tapping these two biggest media platforms’ potential to introduce the app to the masses in a short period of time. During the massive influencer marketing campaign, Youtube and Instagram influencers created lots of videos with the TikTok app and shared it on their YouTube and Instagram channels.

Creating viral challenges helped the app’s team to build a buzz around the app and drive user acquisition.

Yet another piece of TikTok’s spectacular success was the app itself. The company focused on short-form engaging videos, the content was analyzed via sophisticated algorithms to identify specific subjects that were triggering people’s interest to suggest more of it.

TikTok’s team managed to grow the app’s user base to the first billion users in two years, it’s accessible in 150 countries and in 75 languages, and it’s the 6th most-used social platform in the world. In 2021, it was the most downloaded app with 600 million downloads. The app is most popular with females (57%) and on average its users spend an hour in the app daily.

Switching the gears, from the most popular short-form video-sharing platform on the planet to the B2B app that is crucial for the operations of so many businesses around the globe – Slack app.

Case Study #4 Slack

Launched in August 2013, the instant messaging platform for business has effectively replaced email as a business environment to work on projects, communication between employees, and more.

Slack iOS app listing on the App Store

The uniqueness of Slack’s growth story is that, at the time when its founder Stewart Butterfield was launching the app, there wasn’t such a software category as business communication. Businesses struggled with running projects in email and just didn’t know that the solution was coming. The real objective for the app’s growth campaign was to raise awareness, to show businesses and non-profits that there was a better way.

The solution that Slack’s team came up with included word-of-mouth marketing, accelerating its growth via integrations, and listening very carefully to customer feedback.

The crown jewel of the Slack app was its channels that allowed to keep various topics discussed by business or academic teams separately, making it really simple to manage it and make real progress. The feature was so powerful that the app’s early adopters were really impressed, leveraging that the Slack team built in the feature for Slack users to share the app with their friends and colleagues easily. And this unleashed the power of word-of-mouth to make Slack really popular really fast.

One of the things that teams that develop new apps for collaboration have to address early, and Slack was a great example of that, was integration with other apps. In most cases, business teams use multiple apps to run projects, and integration between these apps is what makes their business run smoothly. Also, these integrations introduced the app to other popular app communities such as Google Drive, Trello, and Dropbox.

No V1 of a mobile app is perfect and the Slack app wasn’t an exception, plus along the way, the team made tweaks that weren’t always welcomed by its user base. Slack has been a very good listener to their users and quickly adjusts the app to address people’s problems with the app.

Today 18 million people use the app daily in 156k organizations around the globe, which generated for the company $902 million of revenue in 2021. For business communication, the app has become what Google became for search or YouTube for video sharing. In December 2020, Slack was acquired by Salesforce for about $28 billion.

Now, let’s move away from B2B apps and turn to the world of one of the most female-beloved apps – Etsy.

Case Study #5 Etsy

Launched 18 years ago, Etsy is a US e-commerce company with a focus on handmade or vintage items and crafts to buy. For many people, the platform has become either an extra income source or sometimes even the prime one.

Etsy iOS app listing on the App Store

Etsy occupies a unique niche being the biggest marketplace for handmade products on the planet. The success of the Etsy platform is deeply connected with the success of its sellers, from very early on the Etsy team was focused on helping their sellers to sell more and meet their bottom line.

To facilitate this objective, Etsy made it easy for sellers to share their Etsy shops on social media. In particular, Pinterest was really instrumental for the sellers, thanks to its focus on visuals and a great appeal for women.

Also, the Etsy team has always been on a mission to build the platform as a place for various individuals and communities to be creative and be rewarded for that.

As of Q2, 2021, Etsy had 4.7 million active sellers and 90.7 million people who check the app daily.

From the world of homemade crafts, people pour their love into and generate extra income, to the world of music with the app that has become a synonym of music streaming – Spotify.

Case Study #6 Spotify

Launched in 2006, Spotify was conceived as a legal music streaming platform at a time when music piracy was still in full swing and Apple’s iTunes, based on a tune-purchasing model, was still fairly new. Sweden-based Spotify’s founders Daniel Ek and Martin Lorentzon believed that was the answer to combat piracy.

Spotify iOS app listing on the App Store

Similar to Slack, Spotify’s team was a group of pioneers of the music streaming field that was later adopted by Apple and today in 2023 considered by everybody to be a default for the music business. Back in 2006, everything about the Spotify app’s growth was a challenge, starting with convincing music labels that streaming tunes was a good idea and that it will beneficial for all parties.

On top of the company’s efforts to convince music labels about the platform’s potential was utilizing the ad-supported model to offer the music streaming service for free and attract people who weren’t ok to pay for subscription services.

Also, Spotify’s team has always been focused on the app’s user experience, carefully listening to their complaints and suggestions, the team has been perfecting the app year-over-year.

Today 433 million people around the world listen to music on Spotify on a monthly basis and 188 million of those are active users. Unfortunately, the platform has never become profitable but as of 2022, it generated €11.72 billion in revenue.

And finally, we’re switching from the top music streaming app on the planet to one of the most successful mobile payment processors – Stripe.

Case Study #7 Stripe

In 2011 two brothers Patrick and John Collison from rural Ireland got the idea that they could make online payment processing a breeze and help lots of businesses to streamline their payments.

Stripe iOS app listing on the App Store

Hands down, back in 2011 the major objective for Stripe as a nascent company was to compete with such online payment processing companies as PayPal and Square that by the time of Stripe’s launch, was only two years on the market.

To take on such well-established players as PayPal and Square, Stripe’s team partnered with many prominent companies such as Xero, Dropbox, Mailchimp, Ramp, DocuSign, and Intercom to integrate their payment processing processor to these platforms and reach out to a wide audience of users on those platforms.

Developing API for developers to integrate Stripe into their apps was another solution to reach the company’s growth objective in the market dominated by PayPal and Square.

By 2022 Stripe became one of the highest-valued privately owned businesses in the US, valued at $95 billion, with about 7,000 employees worldwide, to name just a few the payment-processing platform is being used by Amazon, Google, Lyft, and Uber.

Final Thoughts

So here I presented only the seven case studies highlighting what marketing teams of these popular apps did right to allow these apps to grow quickly and sustainably. One common thread throughout all these cases is that partnerships with established companies, launching an easy-to-use referral program, and listening to your user base very carefully are the major components of these apps’ growth.

Good luck with your app’s growth marketing efforts!

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KaufDA is the ultimate deals app from Germany. Users can look for different shopping deals on groceries, cosmetics, furniture, or electronics and can always be a step ahead in the savings game. Also they can browse for discounts and set up alerts for their favourite stores. Shopping has never been so smooth & easy, all thanks to kaufDA.

Slide on TikTok

NATIVE INFLUENCER CONTENT REALLY MAKES A DIFFERENCE

We faced the challenge of investing our budget more efficiently on TikTok in the US while scaling the spend. We knew that channel was a great opportunity to reach good quality users for SLIDE and proved that good native influencer content really makes a difference.

DISCOVER & CONNECT!

Azar is a South Korean video app that allows you to talk and make friends with people from over 190 countries. You can easily explore new cultures and people from all over the world. Azar let you to meet someone new at the turn of each swipe through live video calls.

OLD CREATIVES VS NEW ADAPTED CREATIVES

In this case study, we are going to show what a big difference it makes if you constantly refresh creatives and how much you can grow the performance of your Google App Campaigns.

Ready to scale with Admiral Media?

Looking to scale your growth? We help our clients increase their conversions and revenue, through impactful digital marketing strategies. Share your goals with us! Let us know your needs, and a senior expert from our team will get in touch.

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