Category: activation

Boost Mobile App Retention with These 5 Strategies
Einstein said, “Compound interest is the eighth wonder of the world.” Similarly, small improvements in user retention compound over time, dramatically increasing revenue.

For Product Teams, their App is fighting for attention along with dozens of other App on the phone and any small MAU change in retention or churn usually equates to MRR – and your Apps survival!

In this post we offer 5 proven tactics to reduce churn and increase retention in your mobile app:

1. Optimize Onboarding
- Guide new users to an “aha” moment quickly
- Prompt for push notification access
- Shorten/extend onboarding flow and test different variations
- Highlight value and set expectations upfront
The onboarding flow is crucial for setting expectations and showing the value of your app. Optimize this experience to convert more new users into engaged, long-term customers.

2. Encourage Repeat Use
- Identify power users and highlight their preferred features
- Promote habit-forming behaviors
- Segment users based on behavior data to optimize paths
- Prompt for ratings/reviews after milestones
Getting users to repeatedly open and use your app is key. Analyze behavioral data to understand user cohorts and encourage the actions that drive ongoing engagement.

Google chat nudges active users to start threading

3. Reduce Friction Points
- Simplify internal reports to focus on key metrics
- Monitor real-time feedback to quickly address issues
- Offer omnichannel access across platforms
- Close experience gaps that could send users elsewhere
Identify and eliminate pain points that cause users to churn. Continuously monitor feedback channels and behavioral data to surface and resolve friction.

4. Keep Users Engaged
- Highlight new features, content, and activities
- Create exclusive benefits for loyal users
- Promote social sharing and interaction
- Send win-back offers to re-engage lapsed users
A nice feature prompt for stickiness

Long-time users can still churn due to waning interest. Continually add value by introducing new experiences, benefits, and ways to interact.

Here are two great examples::
1. the first is a news app that needs to “Hook” users while they have their attention, otherwise there are many other news apps the user can switch to.
2. The second is a robot vacuum cleaner advising of automatically mapping the house – magic!
Encourage single click recurring use

Surprise and delight! When the Apps magic is done for the user.

5. Continuously Optimize
- Define key metrics for each stage of retention
- Measure baseline rates and experiment relentlessly
- Track retention cohort trends over time
- Prioritize fixes for major drop-offs
Manage user drop-offs

Improving mobile app retention requires continuously measuring, testing, and optimizing based on data. Fix drop-offs, find wins, scale what works, and keep experimenting.

Using customer-centric data to understand user behavior is key to optimizing retention throughout the journey. Turn insights into product improvements and experiences that convert and keep mobile users engaged for the long haul.

Are you looking to get more users to love your mobile and web apps? Click on the buttons below to get your 14 day free trial or contact us for a demo!

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July 18, 2023
Half of your Mobile App user acquisition costs are wasted, the problem is knowing which half.

We recently looked at a report by Appsflyer that showed the average uninstall rate for Android Apps was 49% in the first month with half of those uninstalled on the first day. The report stated that iOS uninstall tracking is limited after iOS 15 caused background pushes to only be delivered if the app has been used in the foreground in the past few weeks. However it’s probably safe to say that iOS Apps are not immune to similar rates of user churn.

The report made a reference to user onboarding “Clearly, creating a superior onboarding experience through deep linking and well-crafted tutorials is essential” but somehow didn’t include Onboarding in the 9 key takeaways in their report.

When you think about the huge volume of App installs that fall foul to user churn it raises the question, how much development and marketing costs are wasted?. Well almost 50% is the obvious answer but what if you had to put an actual dollar figure on it?

The Business of Apps has very helpfully published a report with exactly that information called App Marketing Costs (2023) and some of the underlying data is supplemented by the same firm as the previous report (Appsflyer).

The report split the App Marketing Costs into three stages Pre-Launch, Launch, and Post-Launch which we will summarise for you here:

Mobile App Pre Launch / Launch Costs

Post Launch costs / cost per App.

When an app is readied for release, the primary marketing costs are: CPI, (Cost-Per-Install), and CPA, (Cost-Per-Action). Both the big app developers and independents set aside a significant portion of their app marketing budget towards acquiring users for their app, and even more towards incentivizing those users to perform specific actions such as registering an account, making an in-app purchase, subscribing to a service, or making a reservation.

Post Launch Costs

Similar to how the earlier reports reference Mobile user Onboarding there is an equally oblique reference to Push Notifications.

When you take these costs into account it’s surprising that Product Teams and Marketers fail to prioritise No Code solutions like Contextual that directly help product growth teams and app developers increase activation and reduce user churn.

For example let’s take a Mobile App that has a growth target of 100,000 monthly active users in one year. Based on industry churn rates the product growth and marketing team need to achieve at least 195,000 installs to hit their MAU target. However, doing it in 12 months is a tough ask! For example from a standing start of 1000 installs per month plateauing at 10,000 per month by month 10 it would take 24 months to reach 100,000 MAU’s provided of course there were no other impediments to growth and retention.

Based on the aforementioned “user Action Costs” of “Advertising cost per install” of $4 and “Install cost” $2 per install the App developer will have spent $1.17m over 24 months not including Pre-launch costs or any other User Action costs to reach the 100,00 MAU target by month 24. However if the Product Team could improve Activation by 19% to 70% of App installs the team would not only hit their MAU target 6 months earlier but will have saved almost $165K in User Action costs being wasted due to User Churn.

The cost of a No Code mobile app onboarding tool like Contextual is a small fraction compared with the software development and customer acquisition costs CPI, (Cost-Per-Install), and CPA, (Cost-Per-Action) hemorrhaging at a rate of 49%. In fact Contextual customers commonly experience greater than 20% improvement in activation and Contextual pays for itself in month 1 and returns between $2.2 to $9.50 for every dollar spent, gradually improving ROI as our customers achieve scale.

ROI aside, the lifetime value gained from the users Contextual helped retain via Mobile app onboarding and In-app Tooltips is an order of magnitude best left to the App Developer to determine.

As for the rest, with Contextual tools and analytics you will at least have a better understanding about why the remaining users are not converting.

Don’t let all your hard work acquiring users go to waste! Click on the buttons below to get your 14 day free trial or contact us for a demo!

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February 22, 2023
Unlock the Secrets of Black Friday Success with Contextual User Onboarding!

In case you thought it was too early to be talking about Black Friday sales, think again.

This period from Black Friday through Cyber Monday is make or break for retailers, accounting for up to 40% of annual sales. With the holiday season just six weeks away, data.ai reports a staggering 22% increase in visits to mobile shopping apps as consumers eagerly research, compare prices, and hunt for discounts.

But here’s the catch: while downloads are important, user engagement on mobile shopping apps has grown nearly twice as fast. The time users spend in these apps directly correlates to higher retail sales. As the world faces an acute shortage of software developers, retailers struggle to quickly adopt a mobile-first strategy to capitalize on this massive trend. Additionally, inflation continues to impact consumer wallets, making the upcoming holiday season even more challenging.

To win over mobile users and maximize sales, retailers and service providers must do more than simply release a mobile app. They need a solid strategy for mobile app user onboarding and ongoing user engagement. Mobile shopping apps, in particular, are prone to high user churn, making it crucial to guide users to the “Aha moment” swiftly. This moment occurs when users experience the initial value of the app, such as finding a desired product and making a purchase—also known as “Activation.” Activation aligns with the methodology of Product Teams, ensuring the app fulfills a potential customer’s needs to be done (JTBD). Since users invest only a few minutes or even seconds before moving on, a well-designed mobile app walkthrough is essential for them to activate and return to the app repeatedly.

When it comes to mobile app user onboarding, best practice involves designing contextual mobile app walkthroughs. Contextual mobile tooltips deliver the right information to the right user at the right time, enhancing the onboarding flow and ensuring a seamless user experience.

Experienced retailers understand the art of maximizing customer spending by optimizing impulse buying decisions. Mobile app shopping is unique because time is of the essence, and users will quickly move on if their needs aren’t met within seconds. This is where contextual mobile in-app tooltips come into play, helping users achieve their goals and nudging them toward the next desired action, such as checkout and continued shopping.

As mentioned earlier, software development resources are expensive and in high demand. They are also slow. To catch the wave of mobile e-commerce consumers, app developers, designers, and product managers must move faster than traditional software development sprint cycles allow. The market is evolving too rapidly for current methodologies to keep up. That’s where Contextual, a no-code SDK plug-in, becomes invaluable. It empowers product teams to create mobile app user onboarding guides, in-app tooltips, onboarding carousels, mobile app videos, and user feedback surveys through an Engagement layer, without the need for extensive coding. This preserves precious development resources, allowing them to focus on the app’s feature layer.

Don’t miss out on the incredible opportunities presented by Black Friday and beyond. Embrace Contextual User Onboarding to supercharge your mobile app success and leave your competition in the dust!

October 18, 2022
Product Led Growth – App User Onboarding Strategy and Execution
In this Product Led Growth (PLG) webinar, we had three great speakers looking at PLG essentials:
- David Jones, CEO of Contextual
- Mark Hayes, Head of Growth at Plexure
- Dennis Kibirev, Chief Growth Officer at Mesh Ai
The webinar was packed with loads of PLG info, so contact us if you’d like to get the slides. We’ll definitely be stealing, err…borrowing some!

In this article, we’ll focus on the section where David covers contextual onboarding and activation.

Contextual Onboarding and Activation

Contextual onboarding is a personalized, in-app experience that guides users through the app’s features and functionality. It’s more efficient, scalable, and cost-effective than traditional onboarding methods.

The goal of contextual onboarding is to help users get up and running quickly and easily, so they can start using the app and experiencing its value.

Contextual Mobile Tooltips

Contextual mobile tooltips are a type of contextual onboarding that provides users with help and guidance at the right time. They can be used to explain features, provide instructions, or answer questions.

Contextual mobile tooltips are a great way to increase user adoption and engagement. They can help users get up and running quickly, and they can also provide ongoing support and guidance.

Digital Adoption Platforms

A digital adoption platform (DAP) is a software solution that helps you create and deliver contextual onboarding experiences. DAPs offer a number of benefits, including:
- A centralized platform for creating and managing onboarding content.
- The ability to personalize onboarding content for each user.
- The ability to track user progress and measure the effectiveness of your onboarding efforts.
DAPs are a great way to automate your contextual onboarding process. They can help you create personalized, in-app experiences that will help your users get up and running quickly and easily.

How to Enhance Contextual Mobile User Onboarding

There are a number of ways to enhance contextual mobile user onboarding. Here are a few tips:
- Start with the user in mind. What are their goals? What do they need to know in order to get started?
- Keep it short and sweet. Users don’t have time to read through long manuals or watch lengthy videos. Get to the point quickly and concisely.
- Use visuals. People are more likely to remember information that they see, so use images, videos, and other visuals to help explain your app’s features.
- Make it interactive. Don’t just tell users what to do, show them. Use interactive elements to help them learn how to use your app.
- Personalize the experience. The more personalized your onboarding experience is, the more effective it will be. Use triggers to deliver content that is relevant to each individual user.
- Measure your results. Track user progress and measure the effectiveness of your onboarding efforts. This will help you identify what’s working and what’s not so you can make improvements.
By following these tips, you can create contextual mobile user onboarding experiences that will help your users get up and running quickly and easily. This will lead to increased engagement, retention, and ultimately, success.

Conclusion

Contextual mobile user onboarding is a powerful tool that can help you improve the user experience of your app. By using a DAP, you can create personalized, in-app experiences that will help your users get up and running quickly and easily. This will lead to increased engagement, retention, and ultimately, success.

Full Webinar Summary

Once again, contact us if you’d like to see the whole webinar, attend the next one or see the slides. The full topic was: “How to Automate Product-Led Growth” – we’ll discuss what it means to be a product-led software business and provide insights into how to automate your software company’s PLG strategy:

✅ HOW PRODUCT LED GROWTH is transforming in 2022

✅ EVOLVING YOUR SOFTWARE product’s Product-Led Growth (PLG) model

✅ TOOLKIT TO AUTOMATE PLG: from onboarding to retention
October 11, 2022
Empty States and UX Anti-Patterns: Best Practices for Engaging User Experiences
Are you throwing up roadblocks to your users before they’ve Activated in your App?

When a user is getting started – quite often there won’t be any data for them to visualize how your product can help. This is a called an Empty State.

What is a UX Anti-pattern?

A UX Anti-pattern is a common mistake that is made when designing user interfaces. These mistakes can lead to poor user experiences, which can in turn lead to users abandoning your product.

What are common examples of poor and good Onboarding experiences?

Here are some examples of poor and good onboarding experiences:
- Poor Onboarding: A poor onboarding experience is one that is confusing, frustrating, or time-consuming. For example, an onboarding experience that requires users to fill out a lot of forms or go through a long tutorial is likely to result in app abandonment.
- Good Onboarding: A good onboarding experience is one that is clear, concise, and engaging. For example, an onboarding experience that uses tooltips, walkthroughs, or interactive demos is likely to result in an optimum outcome, Activation! .
Empty States in Onboarding.

When a user first opens your app, they may be greeted by an empty state. This is a blank screen or page that doesn’t have any content. Empty states can be a problem because they can confuse and frustrate users.

How to Address Empty States

There are a few things you can do to address empty states in your app:
- Use mock data: If your app doesn’t have any data yet, you can use mock data to fill up the empty states. Mock data is fake data that looks like real data. Using mock data can help users understand what your app is about and how it works.
- Show useful starter content: If you have some useful starter content, such as tips or tutorials, you can show it to users when they first open your app. This can help users get started with your app and learn how to use it.
- Use tooltips: Tooltips are small pop-up windows that provide additional information about a button or icon. You can use tooltips to explain what a button or icon does, or to provide instructions on how to use it.
- Use walkthroughs: Walkthroughs are step-by-step instructions that show users how to use a feature or function. You can use walkthroughs to help users get started with your app and learn how to use it.
Remove Frictions

When users are first using your app, they are likely to be hesitant to give you any information. This is because they don’t know you or your app yet. To encourage users to give you information, you need to remove as much friction as possible.

Here are a few things you can do to remove friction:
- Ask for the minimum amount of information: Only ask for the information that you absolutely need. If you ask for too much information, users will be less likely to give it to you.
- Make it easy to give information: Make it easy for users to give you information. Use clear and concise forms, and make sure that the submit button is easy to find.
- Thank users for their information: When users give you information, thank them. This will show them that you appreciate their time and effort.
Keep the Experience Consistent

If you have multiple platforms, such as a web app and a mobile app, it’s important to keep the user experience consistent across all platforms. This will help users learn how to use your app more quickly and easily.

Here are a few things you can do to keep the user experience consistent:
- Use the same design language: Use the same design language across all platforms. This will help users recognize your app and know how to use it.
- Use the same terminology: Use the same terminology across all platforms. This will help users understand what the different features and functions do.
- Use the same navigation: Use the same navigation across all platforms. This will help users find what they’re looking for more easily.
By following these tips, you can create a better onboarding experience for your users. This will help you increase activation and improve user retention.

In the video below is a presentation (snippet) from Bess and David where they cover some actual patterns and anti-patterns in Mobile App examples to compare with.

In a followup post we will cover one popular B2B webapp (Monday.com) and summarize some patterns and ux anti-patterns we’ve come across – especially for Mobile Apps!

https://vimeo.com/manage/videos/746752726/02af45cf24

Webinar: How to Automate Product-Led Growth in APAC

With MeshAI

Tue 29th September 2022, 12:00 pm SGT (2:00pm AEST)
- How Product Led Growth is transforming in 2022
- Evolving your software product’s PLG model
- Automating PLG the who and how
- Product-Led Go-To Market strategy
- The PLG Automation analytics, onboarding and communications
Are you looking to get more users to love your mobile and web apps? Click on the buttons below to get your 14 day free trial or contact us for a demo!

Get a Demo

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September 7, 2022