4 monetization strategies for iOS and Android: which to choose

Mobile app monetization is the process of developing a system that will allow you to obtain a stable income from the app. But how to apply that in real life? Apple Store and Google Play platform have more than 5 million applications on offer and it seems obvious that under such competition it will be quite hard to get your share of the audience. Below we look at strategies helping to monetize iOS and Android applications.

4 monetization strategies

The most efficient strategies are:

• Income from advertising – this is the most efficient way for the majority of apps. The ads which are shown to the users are organically embedded into the app interface and looks like it was intentionally created to be there. These can be ad banners, full-screen video clips, slides of 2-3-4 images, interactive content, etc. The type of the ad is determined by an automated system; the same software decides who to show the ads.
• In-app purchase – a very efficient strategy for games. The purchases are of two categories – consumable products and non-consumable products. The former means that the items the users buy will perish and they will have to be bought again and again. The latter type offers you a one-time “everlasting” purchase, such as a tool of equipment for your character.
• Paid subscription and Freemium. Subscription is the paid access for a certain period of time, e.g. for a month; users won’t be able to use the app upon the expiry of this term. Freemium gives the opportunity to use the app free of charge, however, users can pay to enjoy the extended version, which is usually more convenient to use and has a wider range of features.
• Paid download – surprisingly, this strategy is still in use. There is one advantage – instant income. But, there are disadvantages, too – not many people would want to pay for something they haven’t tried yet. This model might be applied to service applications, although it is not advisable for gaming apps.

Which of the 4 strategies is better

We strongly recommend using the first strategy – revenue from ads – to monetize your Android and iOS apps for the following reasons:

• It is the advertisers who pay and not the users, and it is a good solution for new and relatively unknown applications;
• To start making money on advertising you only need to register at a programmatic advertising platform and set up your personal account;
• Flexible ad campaign management within the platform;
• Virtually instantaneous monetization;
• The ads do not annoy the users, they seem organic and are shown only to the users interested in the offer.

We would also like to point out that the strategies which presuppose income at the expense of users are becoming outdated. The proportion of those willing to pay for a mobile app is going down year after year, which makes programmatic advertising a perfect solution.