Apps have provided an excellent platform for businesses worldwide to expand their reach and increase their conversions. The average consumer spends around 4.2 hours every day on mobile phone apps, with some spending well over five hours of their day on smartphone apps.
Businesses that leverage apps to their advantage have a clear edge over their competitors. However, just because you have an app on Play Store or Apple’s App Store doesn’t mean you’ll automatically have user engagements that lead to conversions. To succeed, you need to understand your target audience and optimize your app to increase app user engagement.
Remember, a huge percentage of smartphone users will get rid of an app if they find no use for it. If you don’t want users to delete your app, you’ll need to know how to engage app users effectively. If you have no clue how to go about that, fear not; we’re here to help.
Today we’ll be looking at a few foolproof ways to increase your app’s user engagement.
Preview the App’s UI Before Letting Users Sign Up
Give your users a little taste of the app before letting them sign up for it. Visually display how the app works, making sure you focus on interactiveness and user-friendliness. A great way to do this is to show how the app’s user interface looks on different platforms when they open the app.
Focus on the ease of use and be sure to highlight key areas of interest. You may consider throwing a tutorial video into the mix, but this might be overdoing it. However, showing how the app’s UI works is an excellent way to increase user engagement.
Consider a Trial Version for Paid Apps
If you run a paid app, it might be a good idea to have a free trial version to let users know whether the app is worth purchasing. Allow users to explore your app as much as possible, but remember to limit certain features to make it different from the paid version. A trial version allows you to demonstrate your app’s value before asking users to commit.
Some people won’t even think about buying a mobile phone app. However, giving them a taste of the app can convince them otherwise. Including a trial version for your mobile phone app not only increases engagement but could also increase conversions.
It’s also worth noting that you don’t need a paid app to make money. There are plenty of ways free apps can generate considerable income.
Prioritize Developing a Fast App
Visuals and an interactive UI are great for user engagement, but that doesn’t matter if you have an app that crashes midway through the first loading screen. People these days want things done fast.
Most people don’t have the patience to wait for anything that takes too long to load. 53% of mobile phone web users will close a web page if it doesn’t load within three seconds. Nothing is stopping them from doing the same with your app.
To have a super-fast app, make sure that all the core features work seamlessly. Your app doesn’t necessarily have to be bug-free, but as long as the main features work well, your app should work seamlessly. Also, make sure you take your app for comprehensive software testing and quality assurance before rolling it out into the market to remove any bugs.
Reduce Your Welcome Pages
Don’t make your users have to scroll through five to eight welcome pages just to get to the crux of your app. This is super annoying and will hurt your user engagement. It’s even more annoying if you don’t add a skip feature that allows your users to skip the welcome pages completely.
Apart from being annoying, too many welcome pages tend to overwhelm your users with information. A better approach would be to have around three to five pages with precise information on what you offer and how to use the app. The users will learn anything else when they use the app.
Make Your Contact Information Clear and Noticeable
A simple way to increase user engagement is to make it easy for your users to contact you. Feedback gives you crucial insight into where you need to improve and focus. Giving feedback on your app shouldn’t seem like a chore.
Your users should be able to give feedback with a tap on their screen. Also, make it easy for them to access resources like knowledge bases and FAQ pages to help them address any queries or grievances. If users have to give their feedback on the App store’s reviews page, there’s something you’re not doing right.
Also, make sure you streamline your customer service for quick responses when customers have any queries or issues with the app. You can use tools like Helpscout that send automated responses to let users know that you’ve received their message and that they should await further communication.
Be Open With App Permissions
You don’t want any of your users feeling even slightly suspicious about your app. That’s because the next thing that follows suspicion is deleting your app. That’s why it’s super important to follow app permission requests’ best practices for the best results.
The first rule about permission requests is never to ask permission for things you don’t need. For instance, it makes no sense to ask for camera access permission when your app has no use for images or videos. Doing so only makes your app look suspicious and scares away users.
When considering permission requests for your app, think about the language, tone, messaging, and even timing. Make sure you don’t seem like you’re invading the users’ privacy or have ulterior motives.
Also, remember, some users might deny your app permission for whatever reason. Devise a plan to deal with such users so that their decision doesn’t prevent them from experiencing the app’s full range of features.
Provide In-App Customer Support
Your users should be able to talk to customer support directly without having to exit the app. That way, they can ask specific questions and get the answers right away. They can also inform you of any issues they’ve experienced with the app and receive immediate help.
An in-app chat feature with customer support is always a great way to provide support and increase user engagement.
Send a Welcome Email
It might sound corny, but sending your users a welcome email is a kind gesture and a great way to introduce your users to your app. If you play your cards right, this email might be the first step to building a concrete relationship with your users.
You can start with a brief introduction of the company’s founder or CEO, then a brief description of the company and its mission. Encourage the users to communicate with the company via email, in-app chat, or phone. Lastly, include a call to action with an explanation of what value comes with taking the action.
Get Your Push Notifications Right
Your app isn’t the only app on your users’ phones. Some users have so many apps that apps are essentially fighting for attention. The problem with your app being too quiet is that it might be forgotten and eventually deleted.
To prevent this from happening, you need to send push notifications to remind your users about your app’s existence. The trick with push notifications is that they have to be relevant and well-timed. This is what separates a push notification from spam.
Don’t Forget About Deep Linking
Deep linking is attaching special links on your app that sends users directly to an app instead of a web page or website. Deep linking goes hand-in-hand with push notifications because you can attach these links to your push notifications.
Deep linking can help lead your users to another affiliate app and increase its audience. You can also use deep linking to direct your users to specific places in your app.
Personalize Your Pages and In-App Messages
If you want your users to feel a tad special, consider personalizing their in-app messages and pages. You can use the data you collect from the signup process to achieve this. You can also use public or private APIs to do the same.
Personalized messages are much better than generic messages and pages that look lazily drafted. It’s also an excellent way to build a solid relationship with your users. If applicable, don’t make your messages sound too formal; make it seem like you’re talking to your buddy.
Try App Gamification
Gamification describes the addition of gaming dynamics into a mobile phone app. This not only helps increase user engagement; it also does wonders for app user retention. Corporate gamification helps companies encourage employees to use company apps more.
The best way to gamify your app is to have users compete among themselves in completing various tasks. This can make completing the most mundane tasks seem extra fun. To be fair, gamification may not apply to every app, but if it works for you, go for it.
Adapt Referral Programs To Expand Your Reach
Referral programs are an excellent way to increase reach and build virality. While referral programs are an effective expansion strategy, they’re also a great way to reignite interest in previous customers. You’d be surprised that many referrals trace back to previous app users who deleted the app.
Embrace referral programs not only to attract new users but also to re-engage with previous users. Win back some of the users you lost with an elaborate referral program.
Be sure to include incentives if necessary, because they perform much better than referral programs without incentives. Do your homework on the various referral models and find one that works for you.
Engage Via Multiple Channels
The internet offers plenty of channels where you can engage with your users apart from through the app. Leverage the multiple platforms to your advantage and use them to increase engagement with your users. That’s one way you can convert your app users into loyal customers.
Engage your users through email, your website, and social media. That way, if you can’t find the users on your app, you’re sure to find them on their favorite social media platforms like Facebook and Instagram. What’s more, using the available channels is much cheaper than paying for app campaigns.
However, make sure the channels in question resonate with your target audience. There’s no use trying to engage with users on TikTok when your app is about fitness regimens for the elderly.
Always Update Your App
Things move very fast, especially in the tech world. To keep up with the competition, you need to update your app constantly. Your users can misinterpret failure to update your app as laziness or lack of commitment.
After updating your app, don’t forget to tell your users about the update. The same also goes for any new product you release. That way, you can spark the conversation among your users and let them know about the new developments.
If the update follows a request by the users, be sure to make this apparent in the email. In doing so, you’ll let users know that you are responsive to their issues and requests. This will encourage them to give more feedback, which enhances customer engagement.
Emails Your Users a Freebie Once in a While
Every once in a while, reward your users with a voucher, a coupon, or a promo code in their email. This shows that you appreciate your users and enhances their loyalty.
The freebie or reward doesn’t have to be too expensive. A discount code or a t-shirt voucher will do just fine; it’s better than nothing.
Increasing Your App User Engagements Is a Breeze
The above tips should make increasing your app user engagement a walk in the park. All you need to do is be consistent and pay attention to your users’ requests. If you have success with your current app, you should consider developing another one.
If you need any help with your app development, interface design, and product research, contact us today, and we’ll sort you out.
