Why Your App Launch Failed (And How to Fix It!)

Two-thirds of apps from app stores generate less than 1,000 downloads in year one; more generate even fewer than that, Senior Analyst, Tim Shepherd tells The Guardian.While Candy Crunch and Clash of Clans ranks in the top 15 most successful apps, pulling in approximately $1.9 billion and $892 million in 2013, for every success story there are hundreds if not thousands of apps that miss the mark.However, all is not lost. App developers and designers can learn why their apps failed when launched, and, from retracing their steps, can pinpoint what they need to do differently in order to fix pre-launch mistakes.Read on to learn why your app launch failed, and what you can do to fix it!

Not Enough Marketing

The truth is, your target audience is busy living their lives. They aren’t going to actively search for information about the launch.That said, your app may have failed because not enough of your target audience knew about it. Perhaps you didn’t create a teaser website, piquing your audience’s interest?Or, once launched, you didn’t build a microsite (two-page site) which gives your audience insight about the app and how they can contact you if they have questions or concerns.Combine this with not enough social media marketing, press releases, and blog posts, and it’s safe to say the information needed to engage your target audience was too few and far between, let alone not easily accessible.

How to Fix This?

You can always tweak and rebrand your app. Should you decide to do this or start from scratch, make sure you use every marketing strategy at your disposal.This means collecting emails from day one so you can provide your target audience with tips and insight about the app. (Plus, later on, use that email list to entice beta users to sign up for beta testing.)

The App Was Priced Too High

If your app failed, see if you priced it too high after just launching it. Even if you marketed your app aggressively, potential buyers may be turned off from purchasing it, especially if the price is too steep.

How to Fix This?  

Promo prices are a great way to get impulse buyers to splurge on your app when you’ve just launched it. Even if your marketing efforts are solid, it doesn’t hurt to initially price your app lower than your ideal price.That way, you can once again use your marketing efforts to get the word out to your target audience about the limited sale, and reap more downloads and sales than you anticipated.  

Not Marketed to the Right Buyers

You contacted several journalists, and had several press releases written. Nearly every online tech magazine had an article about your new app.Plus, you created a Facebook page and Twitter account for your app, posting frequently enough to where you garnered around 20,000 followers on both platforms.Even then, your app didn’t perform as well as you thought. What went wrong was that you didn’t study your target audience’s communication and spending habits long enough.In doing so, you may have marketed aggressively but marketed to those who weren’t interested in your app to begin with.

How to Fix This?

Take the time to study your target audience…in detail. Find out how they consume information, what social media platforms they use and how frequently, what their spending habits are, and what apps they need to make their lives easier. That and more.(Using real user monitoring appropriately may also help you gather data about how your target audience reacts to your app when launched.)  

Final Thoughts

Other reasons your app failed could be due to not beta testing or using the wrong beta testers, as well as not integrating the feedback from beta testing to improve your app for launch.No matter what the problem was, you can always retrace your steps, figuring out the solution and start again with more insight and experience. What other ways can you ensure your app performs better the next time? Leave a comment! This post was written by AJ Phillips a tech consultant with ManageBacklinks.io who helps businesses reach their full SaaS potential. He frequently writes about the latest advancements in the SaaS world and digital marketing.