Figure 1: Average retention curve for Android apps
After having followed checklist of App store Optimization and getting your app into an app store and then acquiring a few downloads is where your work begins – and not where it ends – as an ‘app-preneur’. If you don’t want to face a steep drop in your app usage, as is shown in the image above, then you need to take measures to ensure that you always engage your users after they download your app.
There are two key factors that you have to consider if you want to increase app usage: App retention rate and user engagement.
Engagement mostly describes behavior within the app, characterized by time spent and actions completed within the app. Retention is about how many times the user comes back to your app – mostly measured by daily or monthly active users (DAU/MAU).
Whereas strong engagement usually has a direct effect on how you monetize your app, retention is also very important because it determines the average lifetime value that users feel your app provides.
While there are many things that you could do to increase your user engagement and app retention rates, one of the simplest, least time consuming, and least expensive options is to make use of native device features in order to boost app usage. Therefore, this should be the first strategy you employ.
Below is a list of native device features that you could use to boost app usage.
1. Move controls and buttons to easily reachable areas
Depending on the physical size of the device being used, there are certain hot zones that make the app easy to use with one hand or two hands. You should take maximum advantage of these thumb zones because using the app then becomes easy – easy to navigate and easy to use efficiently and effectively.
Figure 2: Mobile device thumb zones
2. Make use of Social Media Integration
Every mobile device these days has deeply integrated social media because users demand it. The human yearning for socialization shows that there is a deep-seated need for engagement and interaction – and all you have to do is find avenues to tap into this need.
If your app has great content and it is easy for users to share content, then your app will have increased engagement and user retention rates.
3. Make use of Deep Linking
Deep linking allows other apps and search engines to crawl your app content and then provide access to your app via other websites, apps, and search results.
Figure 3: Deep linking using native device features
With deep linking, if your user has already installed your app, then they will be directly taken to the relevant section of your app where they can be delighted by the useful content that you have in your app.
4. Make use of feedback from your users
It is critical that you constantly seek to improve your app. The best way to do this is by simply listening to your users. The native device features allow for very easy and very advanced collection of data that allow you to not only learn what your users like or don’t like, but also allow you to talk to them directly.
Figure 4: Feedback widget on Android phone
Additionally, making it easy for your users to opt into features that will improve their customer experience within the app is an important feature that brings great gains, although it is often overlooked.
5. Refine your App’s layout
After extensive research and feedback, it should not be difficult to determine the best layout for your app. Depending on the content of your app, you will need to choose between layouts like list views, grid views, maps, and so on.
Additionally, careful and timely placing of call-to-actions in the layout of the app will create a stronger likelihood that certain tasks will be completed. For more details, have a look at 16 killer design tips for creating mobile apps.
6. Make use of Push Notifications
One of the best ways to increase app retention, whether you are considering native app features or not, is to use push notifications. However, there is no question about it – you need to do it carefully, or else you will begin to inconvenience and irritate your users.
So how do you do it carefully?
There are two key factors that can help you plan your strategy: RELEVANCE and TIMING.
7. Make the app extremely responsive
One of the biggest priorities that you need to look into is responsiveness optimization. Users always expect a buttery -smooth experience with minimal or no lag time at all. The more devices you are able to provide this experience on, the more your users will want to keep using your app. Therefore, you should avoid making your app unnecessarily heavy to load and use when your app user is on the move.
Conclusion
Like many other app makers before you, you will begin to realize that at the end of the day, it doesn’t really matter how great YOU think your app is if your app USERS don’t think that it is. This means that you have to constantly monitor what your users want and give them what they want. A great way to do this is by making use of native device features to boost app usage.
Guest article written by: Mohammad Farooq works as an Analyst. When not working, he goes backpacking around India. He regularly blogs about Travel, Movies, Political Issues and a lot of other things on his blog “ReveringThoughts”.
Thanks for share this post.