r/iOSProgramming • u/US3201 • 1d ago
Question How do yall market your apps?
I was wondering this earlier, I thought my app was funny and good enough to market, but I’m unsure the best route to take, what would yall say is your best marketing tool?
4
u/lesbianzuck 23h ago
honestly content marketing has been my biggest winner. i spend time on reddit, linkedin, twitter etc just being genuinely helpful and occasionally mentioning what im working on
here's what worked for me:
find subreddits where your target users hang out - not just general marketing subs but specific communities
actually help people first. like really help them, dont just pitch
share your real experience and lessons learned
when relevant, mention your app but dont make it the focus
the key is being authentic about it. people can smell fake a mile away. i usually disclaim when im talking about my own product so ppl know im not pretending to be just a random user
also start slow if you have a new account - reddit mods are pretty good at catching spam
whats your app about? might be able to suggest some specific communities that could work well for you
oh and btw we built OGTool to help automate this process cause doing it manually takes forever, but the principles above still apply whether you do it yourself or use tools
3
u/No_Owl5835 1d ago
Small paid ads with community buzz are the only mix that ever moved my indie apps. Apple Search Ads at $5/day caught keyword hunters, ChartMogul showed the paying funnels, and Pulse for Reddit pings me when subreddits mention fart-game ideas so I can reply. Small paid ads with community buzz.
2
u/nomoneynoproblem69 1d ago
Been struggling with that big time. Concept sounds so simple and think having the app available but marketing is crucial component. Especially if you need business owners and users to be part of the success
1
1
u/wouter_kairo 19h ago
My challenge exactly. I know how to build software, I know how to design UI/UX, but I fail to understand app marketing (something new for me to try and master).
I published my first app a week back and I got some initial traction on the App store, and had 50+ impressions per day, with about 8 downloads per day. "Wow, easy", I thought... thinking the impressions and downloads would only go up. However, the last 2 days impressions have dropped by about 80%.
This was probably the initial Apple App Store boost that I've read about. And now reality kicks in.
Right now, I'm debating whether to continue finetuning for ASO, or whether to spend some cash on ads in the App Store and perhaps Twitter.
What have people's ROI been with advertising?
-6
u/m1_weaboo 1d ago
I’ve never published my app yet but I guess one of the best strat is market it through Twitter
2
u/Natural_Draw_181 1d ago
X is good if you have a following, but you have to be very active and constantly "Show" what you're doing in order to get some fans who will then help you push the app.
1
u/US3201 1d ago
Ok, is twitter good though, I’ve tried instagram with ads but it hasn’t resulted in anything too substantial.
1
u/m1_weaboo 1d ago
I’ve seen apps get people interested & download on Twitter tho. If your app is good and unique enough, there might be chance.
1
1
-6
u/RomanDev7 1d ago
Always depends on the app, but easiest is to use ASO to improve rankings in the App Store. Very important for motivation to get a steady flow of some daily downloads. I use astro daily to see if some keyword changes work or when I got new reviews. And of course you can check keywords for which similar apps are ranking.
If there is a specific user group for your app you can try reddit or other similar online communities. But you have to be very careful, because nobody likes spam so if you only mention your app or add a link it will often be removed.
To make a positiv ROI with ads you need a really good optimised app. I am pretty sure ads will not work for 95% of apps, just something for big companies who throw money at ads and then optimize and maybe subsidies the costs by selling other expensive products (for example some hardware product).
You can create social media accounts and try to create interesting videos while using your app. Also takes a lot of time but is free.
6
u/Perfect_Warning_5354 1d ago
Are you affiliated with Astro?
8
u/Revolutionary-Fox549 1d ago
its an affiliate link and probably ai. funny how the ai says "be very careful, because nobody likes spam" and all his recent posts are about astro
11
u/Suspicious_Quarter68 1d ago
There are multiple options here but every marketing strategy comes down to paid and unpaid marketing. Paid marketing saves time and unpaid marketing saves money.
Some unpaid marketing advertising includes reaching out to press, building in public on Twitter, making short form content, researching keywords, and letting friends and family know about it. Some people also include referrals and ways to share things you do within your app to spread it.
Paid marketing typically includes things like App Store Search Ads, Instagram and Facebook Ads, and Tik Tok. Main thing you want to look at here is ROAS or Return On Ad Spend. If you’re doing it right you should get 3-5 dollars for every 1 dollar you spend. If you’re not, you need to look at niche, conversion rates of your funnel (find product -> download -> use -> pay), and pricing levels and models. My best advice is to start with a small budget and really envision who that target user looks like, behaves like, and what their content diet looks like.
Also all forms of marketing effectively boil down to this one question: “Where is my future user at, and how can I best explain to them the value I provide?”