Leveraging Mobile App Ads to Boost Customer Lifetime Value

According to comScore, mobile platforms account for 60 percent of total digital media time spent, while consumers already spend 1.5 times more time on mobile than desktop. Nielsen reports mobile app usage is nine times greater than mobile web. We’ve quickly passed a mobile-first era focused on responsive design. Today, the imperative is to plan and execute with the mobile experience —app or otherwise — top of mind, including interactions with a brand’s mobile advertising. While gaming and other pure-play mobile app companies have been aggressive in their mobile marketing, major brands in such verticals as retail, financial services and travel should follow suit in order to boost customer lifetime value (LTV).

Mobile is Personal
In today’s mobile-first world, “mobile” is more than just connectivity or a device; it’s personal. People are emotionally invested in, and protective of, their mobile experiences, giving brands an opportunity to embed themselves in consumers’ lives to become part of the highly valued and curated experience. The challenge for brands is “doing it right” by providing mobile users with relevant and personalized attention, offerings and brand experiences. However, brands that misfire risk alienating consumers by invading their personal space uninvited, and the unwelcome intrusion isn’t easily forgiven.

Doing it Right
At its most basic level, “doing it right” consists of understanding audience segments across devices and messaging to them accordingly. Given consumers love affair with mobile apps, brands need to explore app advertising on the premium distribution channels, including Facebook, Google, Instagram (all three offer the ability to modify ad messages and calls to action based on whether someone is already an existing customer), Twitter, Yahoo Gemini and the major mobile display networks.

While doing so, brands need to leverage mobile analytics partners who can measure consumer engagement within apps through embedded software development kits to get beyond standard install metrics and measure key performance indicators (KPIs) focused on in-app interactions, purchases and other downstream conversion events, which show whether customers truly value the in-app experience. Brands should consider which KPIs will provide them with an in-depth understanding of their highest LTV customers to better identify and engage new, similar audiences. Such in-app KPIs may include the following:

• cost per install (CPI);
• cost per paying user (CPPU);
• average revenue per user (ARPU);
• five-, seven-, 10-day re-engagement rates; and
• seven-day yield (revenue generated over first seven days/cost).

To assist in this process, brands can turn to technology partners that enable the following:

• access to mobile channels where people spend most of their time and have the highest affinity;
• native format ads that feel good experientially;
• precise audience targeting and lookalike expansion;
• cross-device campaigns that allow tracking of what’s been said and in what way;
• analytics and measurement tools that help better understand converting audiences; and
• optimization tools to help refine messages and targeting to continually provide more value.

Brands “doing it right” will ultimately reap the benefits of affection by association — and as long as they continue to provide relevant, personalized offerings and brand experiences. Brands that understand their highest-value customers, re-engage them appropriately, and leverage this information to identify new and similar target audiences will create a virtuous cycle of re-engagement and ongoing relationships that deliver maximum value for both the user and the brand.

Kelly Wrather is the senior manager of content marketing for Kenshoo, a provider of agile marketing solutions. Kelly can be reached at kelly.wrather@kenshoo.com.