Can Social Media Marketing Drive App Installs?

The Answer May Surprise you :

One of the questions I get asked most often is, “How do I leverage social media to drive app downloads?” Now this is a very tricky question to answer, since at first glance there’s sort of a disconnect between the social media world and mobile app installs. However, done effectively, creating the right kind of social media strategy can help deliver a steady stream of downloads, or at the very least increase your app’s user reviews on the various app stores. Allow me to go into detail and share a few unique case studies.

The Challenges

I’ll be the first to admit that focusing strictly on social media marketing in hopes that it drives installs is a really bad idea. The reason being is that your users are browsing the web from PC’s and Laptops, which means that in most cases they might not have an iPhone or Android device to begin with, so regardless of how many friends or fans you rack up, only a small percentage of them will ever be relevant to your goal.

The second reason focusing all your attention on social networks is because you’re distancing your potential users away from the app. So even if they do have the right device for your app, they’re still a good couple of clicks away from going to the App Store or Google Play, reading the description and making a decision about if they want to go ahead and download it.

Zeroing in on your Key Audience 

So when is it a good idea to start building your social audience? First let me say that there’s no reason not to grab and own your app or company’s name across all social networks. Hey it’s there and free for the taking, so own it, before your competitors do.

Now, if you’re app’s already up and generating downloads or a user base, it’s a good idea to introduce them to your social presence where they can interact with you. The natural choice would be a Facebook Fan Page, but don’t knock off other very relevant channels such as Instagram or Twitter.  Figuer out where your core audience is spending most of their time, and get involved there.

Communication is Key

As with all good relationships, communicating with your end users is super important. But how do you let them know about your social presence in the first place? Sure, buttons and banners might work, but in most cases,  users have become blind by anything that isn’t directly related to your app’s UI.

That’s where engagement tools come in. App SDK’s such as Appoxee, App Booster, and Urban Airship all offer push notification services that let you, as the app’s developer communicate with your end users. Inform them of your social profile, new version updates, new features, contests and so on. Of course, balance is important, as you don’t want to overdo it.

Once you’ve introduced your users to your social page, that’s where you should be communicating with them, even on a daily basis. As I said in the beginning, this won’t directly translate into new downloads, but it does set the basics of good business, in other words, happy customers. If you really pay attention to what they tell you and are responsive enough, they will be more than happy to share a review for your app, or share news about it with their network of friends. In fact, you can even knock it up a step and offer them special bonuses just for liking your page or participating in various tasks, but that’s a whole other topic we’ll cover in an upcoming post.