How to Launch and Grow your App - Top 5 strategies for Founders

Now that you’ve developed your app, how do you take it to the next level? How do you market it effectively, grow its user base, build retention, and ultimately create a sustainable revenue stream?

At ShoutEx, we specialize in app promotion and have compiled a list of our top 5 proven strategies to help you achieve success. These strategies are designed to not only drive downloads but also to engage users and keep them coming back. Additionally, we’ve included a few bonus tips that can give your app an extra edge in the competitive market.

1. Product-Led Growth

The best growth comes from having a superior product that users love and recommend. Word of mouth remains the most effective growth driver. Successful apps today, from productivity tools and utilities to casual games, primarily grow through user referrals.

When users genuinely love a product, they naturally become its biggest advocates. This organic promotion often outperforms even the most well-funded marketing campaigns. 

This pattern is evident across various categories in the App Store. Productivity tools like Trello or Notion thrive because users share their positive experiences, recommending them for their functionality and user-friendly interfaces. Utilities like 1Password or CleanMyMac grow because satisfied users trust them and spread the word. Even casual games like Candy Crush or Among Us experience explosive growth primarily through player recommendations.

Build something 100 people love, not something 1 million people kind of like.

Brian Chesky

The takeaway is clear: focus on building the best product for a small, specific group. Trying to appeal to everyone from the outset can dilute your efforts and lead to a mediocre product. Instead, hone in on a niche market where you can solve a specific problem exceptionally well. Once you have a solid user base within this niche, scaling to a broader market becomes more manageable.

2. App Store Optimization

App Store Optimization (ASO) is crucial for driving app growth and visibility. Users searching for apps in the App Store or Google Play Store are highly valuable because they have clear intent and are actively seeking solutions your app provides. This makes them more likely to engage with and retain your app compared to users acquired through other channels.

ASO involves optimizing your app's listing, including the title, keywords, description, and visuals, to improve visibility and attractiveness. Here’s why ASO is essential:

• High-Intent Users: Users who find your app through search are already looking for a specific type of app, leading to higher conversion rates and better user retention.
• Consistent Growth: While ASO might not drive massive numbers of downloads overnight, it provides a steady stream of new users. As more users download and engage with your app, it climbs higher in search rankings, leading to more visibility and downloads.
• Cost-Effective Acquisition: Compared to paid user acquisition strategies, ASO is a cost-effective method for attracting new users. It focuses on organic growth by leveraging the app store’s algorithms.
• Enhanced Discoverability: Optimizing your app’s metadata and visuals improves its chances of being discovered by users.
• Long-Term Benefits: The effects of ASO compound over time, creating a virtuous cycle of organic growth that significantly contributes to long-term success.

Google only loves you when everyone else loves you first.

Wendy Piersall

Focus on ASO to build a strong foundation of organic growth, which can be complemented by other marketing strategies to achieve broader reach and impact. Integrate SEO in your content marketing efforts to enhance your optimization strategy.

3. Content Marketing

Content marketing is a powerful, long-term strategy that can drive substantial and sustained traffic to your app. By creating valuable and engaging content, such as blogs, YouTube videos, and LinkedIn posts, you can establish your brand as an authority in your niche and continuously attract users. Here’s how to maximize the effectiveness of your content marketing efforts:

• Long-Term Investment: Content marketing is a marathon, not a sprint. While it takes time to build momentum, the payoff is substantial as your content continues to attract and engage users over time.
• Diverse Content Formats: Utilize various content formats to reach and engage different segments of your audience. Each platform has its strengths, so leverage them to create a comprehensive content strategy.
• Audience-Centric Content: Focus on creating content that addresses the specific needs, pain points, and interests of your target audience. By providing valuable solutions and insights, you build trust and establish a loyal following.
• SEO Integration: Integrate SEO best practices into your content to ensure long-term visibility and discoverability.
• Consistent Publishing Schedule: Maintain a consistent publishing schedule to keep your audience engaged and to signal to search engines that your site is active and relevant.
• Engaging Storytelling: Use storytelling to make your content more engaging and memorable. Share success stories, case studies, and user testimonials to illustrate the impact of your app.
• Cross-Promotion and Distribution: Promote your content across multiple channels to maximize reach and engagement.
• Analytics and Optimization: Regularly analyze the performance of your content and optimize your strategy based on what resonates most with your audience.
• Collaborations and Guest Contributions: Collaborate with industry experts, influencers, and other brands to create co-branded content.

Not viewing your email marketing as content is a mistake.

Chris Baggott

By investing in diverse, audience-centric content that integrates SEO, maintaining a consistent publishing schedule, leveraging storytelling, and promoting your content across multiple channels, you can continuously attract and engage users. Over time, this sustained effort will establish your brand as a trusted authority, driving substantial organic traffic and contributing to your app’s long-term success.

4. Influencer and Creator Marketing

Influencer marketing has evolved into a sophisticated and powerful strategy for reaching and engaging your target audience. By partnering with influencers and creators who resonate with your ideal users, you can leverage their established credibility and reach to promote your app effectively. Here’s how to maximize the impact of influencer and creator marketing:

• Strategic Partnerships: Identify influencers and creators who have a strong connection with your target audience. Their endorsement carries weight and can significantly influence their audience’s perceptions and behaviors.
• Aligning Incentives: Create win-win scenarios where both your app and the influencers benefit. This ensures influencers are genuinely motivated to promote your app enthusiastically.
• Authentic Promotion: Encourage influencers to share their genuine experiences with your app. Authentic stories and testimonials resonate more with audiences than scripted promotions, leading to higher trust and conversion rates.
• Focus on Stories Over Static Posts: Sponsored stories on platforms like Instagram tend to perform better than static posts. Utilize features like swipe-up links, polls, and Q&A sessions to drive direct engagement and downloads.
• Leveraging Multiple Platforms: Diversify across various social media channels such as YouTube, TikTok, Twitter, and niche forums where your audience hangs out.
• Data-Driven Decisions: Track and analyze the performance of your influencer campaigns. Use this data-driven approach to refine your strategies and optimize future campaigns.
• Long-Term Relationships: Building long-term relationships with influencers can be more beneficial than one-off promotions. Influencers who repeatedly feature your app become brand advocates.
• Creative Collaboration: Involve influencers in the creative process to create more innovative and authentic content.

Don’t build links. Build relationships.

Rand Fishkin

Influencer and creator marketing is a powerful tool for driving app growth. By strategically partnering with influencers who align with your target audience, creating authentic and engaging content, and leveraging data to optimize your campaigns, you can significantly enhance your app’s visibility and adoption. Focus on building meaningful, long-term relationships with influencers to establish your app as a trusted and valuable solution within their communities.

5. Paid Online Marketing

Paid online marketing can be a powerful tool for driving growth, especially in the early stages of your app’s lifecycle. However, it’s important to approach it with a strategic mindset, recognizing both its potential benefits and limitations. Here’s how to make the most of paid online marketing while avoiding common pitfalls:

• Strategic Use: Treat paid online marketing as a tool for strategic learning and validation rather than a primary growth driver.
• Initial Growth Boost: Paid campaigns can provide a significant boost in visibility and downloads, particularly when you’re launching your app.
• Testing and Learning: Start with small budgets to test various aspects of your app’s marketing. Track key metrics to refine your approach and optimize your campaigns for better performance.
• Iterative Feedback Loop: Use insights from your paid campaigns to iterate on your app’s features and messaging.
• Avoid Over-Reliance: While paid online marketing can drive substantial growth initially, it often leads to diminishing returns over time. Integrate it into a diversified marketing mix.
• Diversified Marketing Mix: Combine paid marketing with organic strategies like ASO, content marketing, influencer marketing, and social media engagement.
• Retargeting and Re-engagement: Use paid marketing for retargeting campaigns to re-engage users who have shown interest in your app.
• Budget Management: Carefully manage your marketing budget to maximize ROI. Focus on channels and campaigns that deliver the best results.
• Long-Term Brand Building: Consider allocating part of your budget to brand-building activities to enhance your brand’s image and awareness over time.
• Compliance and Transparency: Ensure your paid marketing efforts comply with platform guidelines and regulations.

On average, 8 out of 10 people will read your headline copy, but only 2 out 10 will read the rest.

Brian Clark

Paid online marketing is valuable for initial growth and validation. Use it strategically to test, learn, and iterate, but avoid over-reliance to prevent diminishing returns. By integrating paid campaigns into a diversified marketing mix and focusing on long-term brand building, you can achieve sustainable growth and maximize the effectiveness of your marketing efforts.

Bonus Promotional Strategies

In addition to the top 5 strategies listed above, consider these bonus tactics:

• Organic Social Media: Use platforms like Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok to engage your existing audience and test content and messaging.
• Public Relations: For apps with broad appeal, PR can be powerful. Prioritize media outlets that directly address your niche audience for more targeted reach.
• Paid Offline Marketing: Effective for apps targeting specific geographical areas. This can kickstart organic growth within localized areas.

It takes 20 years to build a reputation and five minutes to ruin it. If you think about that, you’ll do things differently.

Warren Buffett

Start Promoting Your App

Launching and growing an app requires a multi-faceted approach. While word of mouth is crucial, combining several strategies ensures robust and sustainable growth. Begin with a great product, use paid online marketing to test and iterate, leverage content and influencer marketing, optimize for app store search, and pursue strategic partnerships. Diversifying your growth strategies will make your app's growth more resilient and less vulnerable to market changes.

At ShoutEx, we specialize in providing digital marketing services tailored for startup founders looking to promote their apps. Whether you need help with content creation, influencer partnerships, app store optimization, or paid marketing campaigns, our expertise can help your app see the light of day. Talk to us if you have an app that needs to break through and succeed in the market.