The app store description is one of the most significant aspects of your app. If you don’t grab potential customers’ attention with your opening sentence or paragraph, they will leave before they read anything else.

How do you write a compelling app store description? What are the signs that yours is effective?

We’re here to help! We’ll share some tips on how to write app store descriptions that are unique and powerful.

Best Practices for Amazing App Store Descriptions

What makes a successful description? Although there isn’t a clear-cut answer, creativity is abundant! Consider some key points if you are writing about your app store page for the first time, consider some key points.

The tone should engage readers and keep them reading so they can learn more about how this product works – you never know what might catch their attention next! Following are some tips for writing a fantastic app store description.

Keep It Short, Simple, and Sweet

The first sentence is usually the most striking, as users can read it without tapping to read more. Instead of using technical terms or industry jargon, use simple language. Let users discover the app’s minor features independently instead of over-describing them in detail. A short list of the app’s main features will be more than enough.

In addition, you should avoid using too many numbers and special characters when describing your application or game, as this will only complicate things for the user. Try to write about your product’s value proposition that will appeal to users and encourage them to download it. Adding clear CTAs will also help!

Focus On Your App’s Features and Also On The Value You Promise

While you can easily list your app’s features on one page and describe how you’ve combined them, people are more interested in its essence.

Make it clear to your users why your app is the best solution for their specific needs and how it will improve their daily lives.  To show users that your mobile app stands out from the rest in your category, you should prove that you designed it exclusively to cater to their needs. You should also never mislead users about your app.

Localize If Needed

If necessary, you can consider localization. Users must understand your description, keywords, app previews, and screenshots. Google Play provides automated translation, but they recommend working with professional translators to avoid mistakes. App Store doesn’t have an automatic translation, but you can add languages and localized metadata to the App Information page. Localization makes it possible to reach a wider audience.

Don’t Overload it with Keywords

Your app description should be filled with only a few keywords. For Google Play Store, stick with SEO best practices and Google Play Content Policies to avoid keyword spamming. Apple also warns app developers against excessive keyword usage in an attempt to improve search results.

Describe the Problem and Solution

Customer-centric products are always one step ahead of others. In some cases, the pain points of the customer are obvious. However, in other cases, you must make your users think about their needs and show how you offer a solution. In cases where issues are not shared or obvious, provide your users with reasons why your app can help them.

Include App Screenshots

Videos and screenshots are fantastic ways to showcase your app. In Apple App Store, the first three images are shown in search results, so make sure to highlight the best features of your app. Each screenshot should be about a different feature and the value it provides. You can upload up to 10 screenshots. In Google Play Store, it’s recommended to add high-quality screenshots showing other supported platforms such as a mobile phone or a tablet.

Be the Consumer, Not the Publisher!

When writing your app’s description, try to adopt a consumer mindset instead of a publisher one. This will help you look at your writing from another perspective. Also, observing how your competitors write their descriptions can be helpful. 

It might not seem like much, but writing a compelling app description can make getting new users much more effortless. Review other apps in-depth and learn how they describe their features; then try to do the same for your own! 

Bonus: Promotional Text and Promo Text

In Apple App Store, a promotional text area appears above the description. Limited to 170 words, promotional texts can be updated anytime, unlike the description. This feature is a way to announce the latest updates, upcoming features, and more. 

In Google Play Store, there’s a promo text for you to write a short, one-line description about your app.

The post What Are The Best Tips For Writing Amazing App Store Descriptions? first appeared on AppSamurai.

View video-related articles, and it will show you the importance of videos for businesses, landing pages, social channels, and even conferences.

But that’s not the end of the debate.

If you look closely, all top-rated apps have a common feature, the video ads, and you will find in all apps from various industries, and these work really well.

But here is the thing:

Videos are ruling the online platforms and landscape as they are more engaging than other forms of content. This is because videos feature a combination of vibrant visuals and top-class sound.

Video Ads are awesome, and you can also use them to increase your app downloads and to promote mobile applications. And users are loving them than the other mediums.

Although the process requires some of your time, money, and more effort, all this is worth it in the end. Video ads are also highly popular on YouTube, and rightly so. You can use video ads on YouTube to build a healthy connection between brands and consumers.

Stats About the Video Ads

A recent study by Statista predicts that by the end of 2021, spends on mobile video ads will be four times higher than what it was back in 2015.

Similarly, an infographic circulated by Google shows that mobile video ads have much higher visibility, up to 83%. At YouTube, over half of all the engagements and views are from mobile.

So, all these things can really help you and your mobile app. It is also evident that you can increase your app downloads with YouTube and promote the mobile application via video ads on YouTube.

This read exactly shows you how to do all this stuff in the most effective way.

We will cover the following topics in this read:

Importance of YouTube for Mobile Apps

Since its launch, YouTube has become a popular media channel where you will find millions of users engaged in the videos every day. That’s why it is the best platform to promote your smartphone applications, and you can easily increase your app’s download via YouTube.

All you need to do is add or upload a high-quality video about the app along with its features, or you can use YouTube’s ads service.

However, you need to know how to make an appropriate video that gains user’s attractions and enhances your app downloads.

Below we will discuss some useful and creative techniques that can make a huge difference between an unskillful video creator and a real brand promoter. So, keep these elements in your mind if you want to increase your mobile application’s download via YouTube:

Highlight App’s Prominent Features: Consider the most prominent features of your app and use them in the video in a way that they gain user’s attractions instantly and at a glance. Besides, keep your focus on the issues that your app solves for users.

How does the app work? People like to watch videos about apps to determine how to use it. This significantly enhances the onboarding flow and keeps users engage and even more.

It Shouldn’t be Boring: It’s vital to think from the user’s perspective and maintain your focus on the big picture. If you go into unnecessary details, you simply cannot hit the target.

Try to Keep It Short: Time is money for you as well as for your users. Don’t waste their time and try to keep the ad to the point and short. Similarly, engage your prospects with the video and lure them into discovering other details about the app.

Keep an Eye on Your Competitors: Determine what your direct competitors are doing and perform a thorough analysis to find their plus points and weaknesses. If they are not using a video for their mobile app, it’s a plus for you, and you will have the edge over them.

However, if they are using the video on YouTube for the app, watch it closely and try to analyze it in detail so that you can make a better video than your competitors.

Be Honest with Users and Your Skills: If you are a skilled video creator, you can effortlessly create the one for your app. If you are not, hire a professional and get the desired results.

Don’t Forget to Promote the Video: We understand that you have created the video to promote your app on YouTube, but verify that people are watching it. Similarly, if you have a business website or blog, include the link in the video’s description.

Link to Your Mobile App: YouTube offers amazing services to its users. For example, it allows you to add a link to your mobile app page on the app store in the description box so that users can download the app instantly.

Use optimized Videos Only: Just like the requirement of app store optimization, your app video should be fully optimized for both YouTube, Google, and other search engines.

The process is exactly like the ASO. It is vital for you to pick and add the relevant keywords, especially in the video’s title but keep things natural and try to maintain optimal flow; don’t blindly stuff the keywords.

Similarly, ensure that the video’s description contains the right and relevant keywords for higher rankings in the YouTube search and Google search.

YouTube Ad Types for Mobile Apps

It is crucial to understand YouTube Ads and their types so that you can use the appropriate one for your mobile application. First of all, we will suggest you to enable your video monetization. After that, select only one type of YouTube Ads that you think is the right one for your mobile app.

Here are YouTube ads types that you can use for mobile applications:

Display Ads: Mostly, display ads are displayed on the screen’s right side near the player. However, you can also find them below the player if the viewer is watching on the big screen. Remember that this ad type is only available for laptops and desktop PCs and has dimensions of 300 x 250 or 300 x 60.

Overlay Ads: These YouTube ads are semi-transparent, very much similar to images or text. The ads have the dimensions of 468 x 60 or 728 x 90, and these are only available for desktop screens for 20% of your video. Usually, this ad type is displayed on the player’s lower side.

Skippable YouTube Video Ads: These YouTube ads are displayed on the entire video player. Unlike others, they are suitable for PCs, mobile devices, gaming consoles, and TV. These ads are shown during, before, or after the video, and users can close the ad after 5 seconds.

Non-skippable Ads: These YouTube ads have two versions; the long one and the short one. Users cannot close these ads after 5 seconds, and the duration of the ad varies from 15 seconds up to 40 seconds. They can also appear before, during, or after your video on PCs, laptops, and mobile phones.

Bumper Ads: These ads are just like non-skippable YouTube Ads, but these are much shorter. Usually, the duration of the ads is only 6 seconds.

Sponsored cards: As the name states, these ads contain cards that usually appear on the screen’s right side, and you will see them on PCs and mobile devices.

How to Make Effective YouTube Ads (Some Best Practices)

Google follows a simple concept known as TrueView. It is an ad format where you have to pay only when a user views your video for up to 30 seconds or more or clicks the Install/download button. TrueView ads can be an in-stream ad, and usually, these are videos that you will see on YouTube app or video discovery. The ads have small images with three lines of script on the YouTube app.

If you want to design this type of ad for your mobile application, follow these simple steps.

First, you need to pick a campaign type Video – For Mobile Application Installs. Next, you should track app conversions whether you are using an Android app or an iOs app.

Then, pick your Target CPA bidding strategy. Create an ad for each type and keep testing them for one month to determine which the best for your app is.

Because the users can skip these ads just after 5 seconds, it’s vital to keep them engaged from the beginning. Your ad should be creative and appealing so that users view it till the end, and it should encourage users to download your application.

If your target audience is from other countries, ensure that your ads are translated into the appropriate language so that users can read and understand them. To translate the ads, you can use YouTube’s language tool.

Content Strategy Matters for YouTube Ads

This is the most difficult task for many users. The first step is to decide what type of video content is right for your ad and how you will create it. So, here are some content ideas for you:

Content Ideas for YouTube Ads

If you are thinking about what kind of videos you should make, here are some questions that will help you in the process:

• What kind of videos are people using in your niche?
• What types of videos are the most popular for apps?
• Why is your app above the others, and what makes it different?
• Can you show individuals using your mobile application in the ad?
• Can you record interviews of the people that are already using your app?
• Tutorial videos are effective on YouTube. So, you should think about using them if possible.

The chances are that you might already have creative ideas in your mind right now. Right them down on any place, so you don’t forget.

Things to Consider

Before you create a YouTube ad for your app to enhance its download, take a step back and keep these things in your mind when doing so:

• How much time do you have to create videos?
• What is the level of your video production skills?
• How can you offer value to your users? Which features make your app stand above the rest?
• Will your videos be popular on YouTube?

Of course, you don’t precisely know which content strategy will suit you but keep trying and be consistent. And soon, you will get your desired outcome.

Try to realize your strengths and weaknesses, as well as your target audience. Both these things will shortlist the type of content you need to create for your ads.

Promote Your App

Most publishers and developers neglect this feature, but this is the most important factor to work upon. Plus, promotion is the only reason that you are creating video ads.

So, we will advise you to pay attention to these factors while promoting your mobile app:

• Design a beautiful intro or splash screen with the app’s icon or your business logo.
• If needed, add watermarks to your video.
• Discuss your app and its features whenever you find it suitable.
• Design an outro screen that encourages users to download your app.
• Add short links in the video.
• Don’t push users too hard to download the app. Similarly, never go beyond the limits when promoting your app, as it will have a negative impact on the overall customer experience. But ensure that viewers watch your video completely and know that your app is available to download.

In the End

Not all mobile apps are the same, and every app is different. Luckily, you can efficiently promote all mobile apps on YouTube, and you have various ways to do so.

Furthermore, you can design a video regarding your mobile application and upload it on YouTube for users or set a budget for YouTube ads. It depends on your overall budget and promotional strategy. But, without any doubt, you can increase your app’s download with YouTube because it will be in front of millions of people.

The post How to Increase or Improve Your App Downloads with YouTube first appeared on AppSamurai.

If you already have a mobile app or you are about to launch one, you have probably heard of User Generated Content (UGC). Many app owners know this term, but most do not understand its effectiveness and how valuable it can be.

Let’s check out what UGC is and why you should take it seriously. As the name states, User-Generated Content is a form of content (text, pictures, and videos) provided or generated by the consumers of your product.

The tool is effective and can boost your engagement drastically and quickly. The tool keeps users engaged and ensures that others talk about your app.

Furthermore, the tool is even simpler to use and implement, and you can also integrate it into your promotional strategy. It allows others to take photos or create videos and send them instantly to others through their phones.

To give you a better idea about User Generated Content, let’s discuss it below, and by the end, you will exactly know how to promote your apps with user-generated content.

User-Generated Content at a Glance

• It is human nature to share our opinion regarding any subject. So, by giving people something exciting and new to discuss, they will share their thoughts gladly and willingly. Remember that comments bring more comments. It creates a chain reaction, and by handling things smartly, you can easily gain plenty of engagements.
• Have you ever stopped in the middle of the journey or event because you haven’t take a picture? In present times, all of us want to immortalize our feelings by clicking images. The same is applicable to your app, and images relevant to your mobile app will enhance your popularity.
• Almost all of us like to share life events and snippets with others. If you relate or connect that fact with your mobile app, then you are a definite winner.

What Is User-Generated Content?

User-generated content (UGC) can be defined as content drafted and published by guest authors, unpaid contributors, or your fans. The content includes pictures, videos, testimonials, tweets, articles, blog posts, and everything related to content materials. In simple words, it is a type of branding that users do on behalf of the brand.

Some eye-opening stats about user-generated content?

Still not sure about using the UGC for your mobile app? Here are some impressive statistics:

1. Around 76% of social media users think this type of content is more reliable than branded content. About 86% of Millennials state that UGC is a healthy sign of the content quality of a brand.
2. UGC-based ads receive 4x higher click-through rates along with a 50% drop in cost-per-click than the other mediums.
3. You will witness a significant boost in engagement up to 28% when you give users a combination of user-generated content and professional content.
4. Users between the ages of 25-54 like to create and share 70% of UGC.
5. User-generated videos only on YouTube receive 10x more views than the other type of content.
6. 93% of users find UGC helpful and state that it impacts a purchasing decision.
7. 87% of brands utilize UGC to share “authentic content,” and up to 72% believe that it keeps the audience engaged.
8. Sites with UGC witness a 20% increase in returning visitors with an enhanced bounce rate up to a 90% increase on the website.
9. 70% of users trust online reviews and recommendations much more than professionally written content.

Benefits of UGC For Your Mobile App and Business:

Here are some notable benefits of User Generated Content for your business:

It Offers Trustworthy Elements to Your Mobile App

Many studies and stats have proven that 78% of Millennials like images uploaded by real customers over images created by brands.

It Strengthens the Relationship Between Consumer and Brand

Making your audience part of the journey will enhance their trust in your brand. It is not sufficient only to display your app to them; instead, try to connect with them.

Provides Personalization for Each User

Who doesn’t want to get treated well or special? This is possible by using User Generated Content. Everybody from the group contributes and makes this content unique.

It Helps to Boost Engagement

By relating your consumers to your products or campaigns, you can effortlessly convince them to use or purchase your app.

Affordable Than the Others

User-Generated Content is the best and affordable alternative to professional web content. You can also use it as a solution for your app. Plus, you can go creative and create a contest among the users with digital incentives.

This will help you retain the users and save you some time and precious money you could have been paying to professionals.

It Enhances the Brand or Content’s Reach

If you are able to generate word of mouth, your conversion will increase drastically, and no other person can promote your app better than your target consumers.

How to Promote Your App with User Generated Content

Follow these rules when promoting your app through user-generated content:

Design Your Campaign as per Your Users

Create a promotional campaign as per your users. It should be engaging and appropriate to users so that they participate willingly. Remember that not all types of user-generated content are suitable for all audiences.

For example, if you think that your users will not submit images or videos, ask them to submit innovative ideas, letters, artwork, testimonials, poems, and so on.

Utilize Your App as a Base For UGC

The content that you want users to submit must be relevant and compatible with your app. Your app will act as a platform where you will collect all submissions and show them to others. However, you can also integrate social media networks for this purpose.

Request Entries That Are Valid for Future Uses

Even though the promotional campaign for your app is about making users feel special, but it should be beneficial for your brand. You need to gain something tangible that you can use for your future marketing campaigns.

Keep this benefit in mind when promoting your app with user-generated content. You should clearly know what types of entries you need and then ask the same from users.

Set an Appropriate Reward For Your Customers Against Their Efforts

You should offer a prize to encourage customers, but it needs to align with the amount of effort you are asking them for.

If you ask your participants for something valuable that can be used in marketing efforts later on, then they’ll have an incentive to contribute and participate.

Make It Simple to Participate

Even if you are acquiring content from your users in the form of UGC, make their participation in the campaign easy and hassle-free.

Try to keep instructions and terms as straightforward as possible. Similarly, the submission process should be clear easy to navigate on your mobile app.

Avoid any unnecessary subscriptions from the users. It would be beneficial if you use your official business website and social media accounts to promote this UGC-based campaign.

Deal with the Legal Issues:

Before starting a campaign, you must consult your lawyers about two things. First, what rights will you have over the data that participants submit for your campaign? Second, are there any specific laws or rules that can affect the contest?

Best Practices Of User Generated Content

It is very difficult to design a User Generated Content strategy. But at the same time, it is vital for your customers and enables them to catch its spirit.

Don’t let users think that you are only promoting your mobile app. That’s why try to give them valid reasons to socialize with other consumers.

In this regard, here are some best and valid practices that will help you when you want to promote your App via User Generated Content:

Build a Community

This is the secret that no marketer will tell. If you realize the power of spreading the word about your mobile app, it can do wonders for your app. By building a community around your app, you can easily convince them to use the app and request them to share their feelings in the right way with other users.

Be Original

Authenticity is important if you want to make your app stand above the rest. Don’t copy other’s features or campaigns just because you liked them. Instead, go with your skills and think about what value to can provide to your users.

Creativity Is Love

Experiment with new things, features, and other things that are relevant to your mobile app. Know your market and create that they will love to use and want to share with others.

Don’t be dull. Despite all your hard work, if you are still unable to meet their expectations, it’s time to market your app in a new way. If you adopt the same path, you will make things even worse.

Gain the Control

Anyone can lose control when the wave of user responses starts to come. You need to manage things smartly and assist the users timely and adequately.

The Personal Touch Is Vital

Your involvement is vital at all stages during the process as it allows you to make interactive relations with your users.

In the End, It Comes to Emotions

Whether you are creating a funny campaign or an emotional one, you need to seek out users’ passions about the campaign. Keep your focus on their messages and how they are responding to your actions.

Some Successful Examples of User Generated Content

Now that you know User Generated Content and its benefits and best practices let’s see some fantastic campaigns that have used the UGC in a creative way and touched the world.

Owaves is a wellness scheduling app that helps people calculate how much time they consume on a particular activity. The brand designed a UGC campaign known as “Share your O.” The company talked with athletes, past Olympians, or other influencers and convinced them to take part in the competition.

Users who participated in the campaign and shared their videos about their activities won the $100 voucher or gift cards. The final outcome was amazing, and the app enjoyed a more than 120% increase in downloads and daily actions.

Blizzard Entertainment is also among the brand that designed its campaign using the UGC strategy. The brand during the launch of their mobile game “Heroes of the Storm.” 

The campaign was well-designed and inspired people to upload their own content with a gaming avatar. The makers offered their fans trailers of their new game during a spectacular live event on the release day. And the whole campaign was immensely popular and highly successful.

Coca-Cola utilized User Generated Content in their popular campaign “Share a Coke” back in 2011 when UGC was not that popular.

The company put different labels on the bottle with human names. This unique idea was so successful that the brand immediately generated another campaign named “Share a Coke and a Song” with lyrics of famous songs on bottles.

Coca-Cola also join forces with Shazam and encouraged users to scan the lyrics displayed on the bottles and upload them on the Shazam app.

After that, users had to record a digital lip, make a short video, and upload the clip on social media using the popular hashtag #ShareaCoke. Fans enjoyed a music concert organized by Coke in Houston for their efforts.

Final Thoughts

If you want to achieve success, you need to move things and promote your mobile app with User Generated Content. An inspiring UGC campaign can make a massive difference between a successful brand and an average one.

Try to make users talk about your new app, and you will get two elements that are vital for any app and its success: user procurement and user retention.

The post How to Promote Your Mobile App Via User Generated Content first appeared on AppSamurai.

Over the years a number of mobile games have taken the world by storm; these games keep changing the trends. From Flappy Bird to Crossy Road and the ever-reigning Candy Crush, these games do not joke. However, there is a game currently sailing in uncharted waters and has become endearing to people in the mobile app industry. This game, called Candy Royale is a real-time strategy game which makes use of cards like MOBA uses various units, but primarily for the destruction of opponent’s crown towers; while protecting your own towers with the cards available in your deck.
Clash Royale is a game that inculcates the style, character, and theme of Clash of Clans in a unique genre. The game, no doubt a strategy game, tries to mix the aura of collectible card games with a MOBA style, combined with a single screen approach that moves at a fast pace.

The game has a playfield split into two sides, with players trying to defend their castle from each other. A winner emerges when one player destroys the castle of another; or when the time is up; the win goes to the player who has been able to destroy the most opposing buildings.

Brilliant Idea

Developed by Supercell, Clash Royale is a mobile game based on an internal prototype called The Summoners; created before the launch of the company’s 2012 big hit- Clash of Clans. Just like their previous game; Clash of Clans; it did not take long for Supercell’s mobile game; Clash Royale to become huge in the industry. The card-based real-time game is a top grossing app in the App Store, with over 70,000 reviews. The company, known for releasing games with clearly high standards has made several millions of dollars in profits from a number of games from 2015 till today.

How Clash Royale Did It

It is tough to live up to standard when you have a successful predecessor, but things can get a bit easier if you utilize your predecessor’s success. This is exactly what Clash Royale did. The game used Clash of Clans success, as the natural path for users to come through, thereby utilizing the game’s success and applying it to a different type of game.

Business Model

Developed by Supercell, Clash Royale brought a different kind out ‘outside the box’ concept to the mobile game industry. They found a number of ways to attract users while generating income in the process. The company developed a one of a kind competitive play the industry has never had. As an offshoot of the company’s previous hit, Clash of Clans; this new game allows the company to monetize and grow in several ways.

Social Marketing

Firstly, the company recognized the importance of the social environment. They added a prominent social element to the game, Clash Royale. This they did by allowing players to have the option of belonging to clans of up to 50 people and these clans members have the option of socializing with each other, donate cards to one another and band together.

Players even receive bonuses like golds for every card they donate to a clan. This only means that joining a clan gives players an advantage. This is a very brilliant concept by Supercell because these Clans will only help grow the community of Clash Royale users and widen the game’s horizon.

Cross-Promotion

Secondly, they capitalized on cross-promotion. Several fans of Clash of Clans were converted because the game was all too familiar. With Clash Royale ads placed on Clash of Clans and vice versa, users were quickly aware of the new card game in town and with time, they got hooked.

Real-Time Strategy

Supercell, decided to create a game that is simple, easy to learn yet complex enough so it does not get boring, with a social appeal to generate mass-market and followership. Clash Royale also combines a unique blend of Multiplayer Online Battle Arena, Tower defense, Collectible Card Game and Real-time strategy. With a high level of social and re-engagement hooks, the game has all it takes to make you return to it, over and over. The game figured out how to allow players across the globe, compete with each other, in real-time. This is a very huge feat as the speed of downloads and carriers vary across the globe. This is basically one of the most unique features of Clash Royale. People all over the world get to meet and interact in real time!

Subtle Monetization

The company adopted subtle ways to monetize the mobile game application while giving users unique value for money services. Thus making it easier for users to spend, as they are having fun out of the whole process.

Faster Upgrades

Clash Royale in a few ways also tried to be an upgrade from Clash of Clans. For instance; to get an upgrade in Clash of Clans takes a few days or weeks, sometimes. Upgrades in Clash Royale takes only a few hours as players are given chests, opened every 3 to 8 hours. This concept did not only give supercell an edge, it also made it easier for monetization to happen; this is because matches are short within the game and players are allowed to save up as many chests in several ways, thus making it easy to gain momentum, but when a player gets to the point where he/she can no longer wait till the chests open; they can either wait for chests to pop or spend money on gems to get gratified, instantly!

Final Thoughts

The game like every other mobile app has a number of challenges, like a free-for-all to- play system that is not all rosy; but it does not take away the fact that it is one of the most exciting games the industry has witnessed in a while, as it totally offers a unique experience for gamers around the globe. So, we expect it to grow even bigger as the years go by.

The post Mobile App Success Story: Clash Royale first appeared on AppSamurai.

Stress is always present in our lives and can have disastrous effects on our health. Meditation can be an answer to this problem and luckily there are plenty of apps in app stores specially created for this purpose. One of the most popular apps that help users to relax is Calm. We should discuss the strategies used by its owners for converting Calm into an award-winning app.

Brilliant Idea

Michel Acton Smith OBE and Alex Tew are the founders of Calm. Michal launched several startups before Calm and felt the pressure of being a successful entrepreneur. He followed his passion for mindfulness and neuroscience, teamed up with Alex, who was trying to prove the beneficial effects of meditation, and they created Calm. The platform was launched in 2012 and since then its creators added a lot of features in order to make it the “Nike for the mind”. Now all these services are available for iOS and Android users. We will continue to analyze Calm for discovering the secrets behind its success.

How Calm Did It

In reality, Calm is an app packed with all kinds of solutions for users, to help them meditate, relax and sleep better. It is time to observe the most important features and techniques which makes Calm so efficient.

Business Model

As with many other successful apps, Calm follows the same freemium pattern. Users are invited to download the app and to take advantage of its basic facilities for free, but for more advanced options they will need to pay. Customers reveal their opinions regarding this business model in their reviews. And, as you probably guess, some of them are very satisfied with the app so they are happy to pay the price for the annual subscription, while others consider that the app should offer all the features for free. It all depends on the onboarding flow and the way app owners choose to attract their audience. The following section will clarify our point.

User Experience

The main purpose of Calm is to give users a sensation of tranquility and … well, calm! For this reason, the app is very simple and intuitive and it guides users through the sign up process in a smart manner. From the beginning, Calm explains why users need to share their data and the results obtained after they use the app. It is about engaging users and winning their trust. One of the most effective strategies of Calm creators is Daily Calm, a 10 – minute program which convinces customers to come back to the app daily. The session is short enough to allow even the busiest people to participate and the fact that it happens every day increases the retention rate.

Experts

Let’s be honest! Without professional advices, the user won’t be able to reach their goals, no matter how simple and attractive is the app. When it comes to health and fitness apps, the content must be created by experts who know what to do for obtaining the wanted results. Tamara Levitt, who studied meditation since she was 18 years old, is the right person for teaching users how to have a less stressful life. Interesting is the fact that she discovered these practices in a clinic for eating disorders. Now it is a good moment to mention another tool for attracting users. It is called Calm Masterclass and Mindful Eating with Dr. Michelle May is a very useful class for those who want to have “a healthy relationship with food”.

Partnerships

App owners know that a very efficient method for acquiring new users is to join forces with other brands. This way they have the chance to reach a wider audience. And an app focused on healthy habits like Calm, is the most suitable for a partnership with (RED). Together they fight to end AIDS. Calm launched a special product called Sleep Mist, and $1 from every purchase is used for that cause. Additionally, more content was produced for this campaign, and Calm takes advantage of other features, like Calm Masterclass for helping people diagnosed with HIV. It would be great if more and more companies would donate some of their profits for making our world a better place!

Stories

We were talking about trust and it is known the fact that users pay attention to other users when they want to download an app. Testimonials have the power to convince customers that Calm is really beneficial for mental wellness. Users are invited to tell their stories and to share with others why they use the app and the results obtained. The most popular social channels are an inspiration for all customers and we should say that Instagram is the network where images speak for themselves. Because we were talking about Stories we need to mention Sleep Stories, one of the most appreciated features of the app. With calm voices, these short narratives help customers to fall asleep much sooner.

Bonus Tip: Be A Great Example For Your Users!

The truth is that everyone experiences hard moments sometimes and for our mental wellness it is good to stop for a second and breath. This is how everything began with Calm and it remains the core functionality of the app. Its creators managed to overcome the struggles with meditation and they encourage users to do the same. Probably this is the reason why investors observed its potential and the app raised $27 in a financial round, as TechCrunch highlights.

Final Thoughts

Calm is really an effective solution for everybody who wants to minimize the effects of stress and it is a real inspiration for all app owners who want to promote their health and fitness apps. In case you want to know more about this category of apps, we recommend you to read also the story behind Headspace, another award-winning app that takes care of its users!

The post Mobile App Success Story: Calm first appeared on AppSamurai.

Do you know what’s great at Starbucks? Yes, coffee! But we meant something else than coffee. Atmosphere? Yes, that’s great too, but what else? That’s right! Starbucks app! It is an amazing tool which convinces users to buy more coffee and spend more time inside Starbucks store! Today we will observe some of the most important marketing techniques that made Starbucks app one of the leaders in its category on the app stores.

Brilliant Idea

For those who don’t know, Starbucks started as a small coffee shop in Seattle back in 1971. Before buying Starbucks, Howard Shultz tried to copy the Italian coffeehouse culture and created Il Giornale. After acquiring numerous companies and opening countless stores all over the world, its owner expanded his plan to the mobile ecosystem, creating Starbucks app. If you want to know the entire story behind Starbucks we recommend you to check the timeline displayed on the official website. It is important to highlight that Starbucks became the most appreciated product and its mobile apps had something to do with its overall success. They are available on Apple App Store and Google Play. Furthermore, Starbucks continues to amaze users with new features and many facilities for a wonderful experience.

How Starbucks Did It

We mentioned Starbucks many times before in our tutorials, but it will be more helpful to gather here all the key points of a successful app marketing strategy.

Click here to see proven strategies that will help you to increase your app store ranking!

Rewards

Let’s make it clear from the start. What is the most important element which attracted users and convinced them to pay attention to the app in the first place? The rewards program. Customers have the chance to gather stars and all kinds of rewards which can be converted into free drinks and food. Moreover, with Starbucks Card, every customer can offer a gift for somebody else. This comes very handily when you forget to buy something nice for your friend’s birthday!

Orders

Another advantage offered by the mobile app for coffee lovers is that they can order their favorite drink and to pick it app from the nearby store. Remember that all those deals would be pointless without a well – designed system to redeem the reward. And when users are able to skip the line and to build their order while they are still at the office, then they really appreciate the app and spread the word about it. Keep in mind this technique and observe that this is a good moment to ask people to review your app.

Music

Of course, coffee must be delicious but, as we mentioned before the atmosphere really counts when you want to enjoy your coffee. And what makes the difference between a relaxing moment spent in a coffee shop and an ordinary coffee break? The music! Well, Starbucks users shouldn’t worry about this fact anymore because the app is integrated with Spotify. Now they can listen to their favorite music while they drink their favorite coffee and if there is a song they liked in the store they can save it in their playlist.

Payment

The question is: When you have so many customers all over the world, what’s the point of asking them to leave the app when they have to pay? That’s the reason why Starbucks payment system is so powerful that outpaces Apple Pay and Samsung Pay. At this point, more than 23 million users in the United States, ages 14 and above will use it for a proximity mobile payment. Let us remind you about the study published just a month ago by eMarketer, revealing the fact that Starbucks will continue to be the leader in this competition through 2022.

Click here to download free eBook includes what you need to know and consider in order to promote your app successfully and reach your KPIs

Omnichannel Marketing

Omnichannel experience is a multi-channel approach to marketing, selling, and serving customers in a way that creates an integrated and cohesive customer experience no matter how or where a customer reaches out. Starbucks has one of the most successful examples of omnichannel efforts in industry and this is another innovative solution that users can experience with their app.

Let’s take a closer look. First, you get a free rewards card that you can use whenever you make a purchase. But unlike traditional customer loyalty programs, Starbucks makes it enable to check and reload your card via phone, website, in-store, or on the app (these are the different marketing channels, obviously). Any change to the card or your profile gets updated across all channels, in real-time. And for the action, you can make purchases on a Starbucks store with your Starbucks app. This makes it so much easier for the customers.

Location-Based Services

Talking about proximity, you probably wonder how Starbucks managed to create a connection between the app and the store. The answer is a method focused on personalization: location-based services. It is about knowing that your potential customers are coming near your store, but there is a trick here. You need to find the best way to invite them in. Starbucks obtains the wanted result with certain offers, but the truth is that data matters a lot when you want to reach your audience. Having some information about your customers allows you to meet their expectations. Be careful, though, how you gather their data. You need to have their permission to do that.

User-Generated Content

You already know everything about user-generated content, but don’t worry we won’t talk about the popular campaign where customers had to draw on their cups, even though it was an amazing success. We want to tell you about Upstanders 2, which represents the second season of the original series created by Starbucks. The main idea is that everybody can do something wonderful for the community and these stories must be told in order to inspire other people. It is true that this campaign focuses on humanity and this is an important factor in the big plan to attract customers. The point is to earn customers’ trust, which takes us to the following point of our discussion.

Bonus Tip: Continue Building Your Brand!

Starbucks’ owner didn’t stop expanding his business when he reached 100 stores, or when the company went public. With over 22,000 stores, he didn’t stop when he launched the app. He continued to promote it and to use it for attracting more customers. What’s the point in creating an app for your brand if you don’t take advantage of its features? This is an important lesson for all of us. No matter how strong your business will be, never stop investing in your products. Maintain the highest quality standards and find innovative methods to impress your audience.

Final Thoughts

So, what people choose when they need a pleasant place to work? Starbucks coffee shop! And what do they select when they want a delicious drink? Starbucks coffee! But which is the most inspiring product when it comes to building the perfect mobile marketing strategy? Starbucks mobile app!

The post Mobile App Success Story: Starbucks App first appeared on AppSamurai.