There’s a reason everyone is trying to hop on the mobile app train. The mobile app industry is fast growing with the market projected to reach nearly 543 Billion dollars of revenue by 2026. If you can cut it, it can be highly lucrative.

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So you want to launch a mobile app. Maybe you’ve decided when to launch your app and already pitched your concept to investors, or maybe you’ve just got an idea. Whatever the case may be, in app entrepreneurship, it is important to be thorough and well prepared.

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Here are some key things you need to know before launching your mobile app. 

1. How you’re going to price your product - Developing an app is rewarding on its own, but at the end of the day you want to make a profit or at the very least make up for your expenses. To do this, you need to select the right pricing strategy for your product. Find apps in the same market that you are entering and see what strategies they use.  Each pricing option has its pros and cons, so it is important to research and discover what best suits your needs and your audience. Your target audience may not be willing to pay for an app download, but would be willing to see advertisements on the app.
2. How to optimize your app for search - A big mistake that new mobile app entrepreneurs make is underestimating the value of a good App Store Optimization (ASO) strategy. You may be familiar with SEO, search engine optimization. ASO draws from similar ideas and concepts, but simply caters strategy to the app store specifically. Using the appropriate keywords in your app store content remains of the utmost importance. Other key factors are your reviews, updates, and even your title. Overall, make things clear in your content and continue to improve your application to rise in the ranks. 
3. Your competition - Start by researching what industry you’re trying to enter. Who provides a service similar to yours? When you search for apps like yours, who appears in your search results? You can talk with other members of your team, and ask them what brands come to mind in your field or line of work. After you’ve found those competitors, identify their strengths and weaknesses. Think of ways that you can edge out the competition and take your product to the next level. If there are any competitors that you aspire to be like, you can observe their practices like their ASO keywords and pricing strategy to take inspiration for your own product. 
4. How to get app reviews and testimonials - App ratings and reviews are key decision-makers for consumers when downloading an app. Generating and improving those ratings will help you rank higher in app store search results and get more downloads. The best way to get reviews is to make the review process as simple and easy as possible. Let them review from within the app, and make sure to respond to their feedback! Responses improve consumer loyalty and show that you care about your customers and your product. After your app has been out for sometime, you can seek out testimonials. If you want to be proactive make a social media post or send out an email requesting testimonials. You can incentivize testimonials with a coupon code or another gift that applies to your app. If you don’t want to ask for testimonials, you will be surprised how many actually exist already! In an age where everyone tweets their thoughts, social media can be a great resource for finding testimonials for your product. You can also search emails from customers for some good testimonial content as well. 
5. How you’ll measure success - In business, there are more ways to measure success than there are hours in the day. You need to decide what metrics and key performance indicators (KPIs) you will use to measure your app’s success and which of those metrics will be most important to you. Major performance indicators that you MUST monitor are things like downloads, customer lifetime value & retention, and return on ad-spend (ROAS). These metrics tell you the basics of what you must know about your app's success. When creating an app, downloads are a clear goal and obvious metric to monitor. As much as gaining new downloads and users is important, are you keeping those users and making the most out of your relationship with them? That is the key to long term success. Finally, ROAS help indicate if your marketing efforts are successful and if you may need to pivot your methods or investment towards a different strategy.
6. How to decide on new feature development and app optimizations - Post launch, you’ll need to decide where to invest your time and money for improving your app. To do this most effectively you’ll need to capture user data. If you plan to take any user data directly from the app, ensure that this is specified in your privacy policy. A great way to find out what your users want from your app is simply to ask them. Surveys are a powerful temperature gauge for how your users are feeling. If you want to incentivize participation, try making a raffle or contest where a survey response counts as an entry. 
7. How to develop a media outreach strategy - After you’ve put all this hard work into app development, you’ll want to spread the word about your app at the time of launch. Public relations and media relations are key to promoting your business and maintaining your image. First, think of your audience and what media they would consume. Identify a list of media personnel that you would like to reach out to, and send out your release. Some lists are available for purchase online. Remember you are asking them for something, be sure to be polite and understanding. If you want a professional to take care of your media outreach strategy for you, consider reaching out to a PR firm or other PR professional. As your business grows, it may be valuable to hire a PR professional to your team.

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Key Takeaways

There is always more to learn. Tech is a fast-paced and rapidly growing industry. No matter how long you have been in the field, there will always be more coming down the pipe for you to learn and better your apps. Be prepared and be curious. A good app entrepreneur is well-organized and eager to find out more. As much as it is important to be careful and deliberate, you should be willing to experiment and ask questions. These are the only true ways to grow and foster innovation.

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If you need help, don’t be afraid to reach out! A digital product agency is familiar with the ins and outs of app development and entrepreneurship and can offer you valuable advice. At Camber Creative, we have experienced developers, marketers, and industry professionals that would be more than happy to hear your idea. We offer free consultations, so there is no risk in setting up a meeting with us. We can’t wait to see what you are working on!