There’s a great debate in the industry regarding incent vs non-incent traffic. While you’ll find mobile marketing teams and developers that either swear by one or the other, when it comes down to the finer points, there are advantages to both forms of installs. When deciding what kind of traffic you want to generate to your new app, you must first ask yourself the all-important question of what it is that you want from this campaign. Once you have the answer, you’ll be able to move forward more confidently with your choice.
What are Incentivised and Non-Incentivised Installs?
Incentivised installs refers to a process whereby the audience is required to engage with an advertisement for some kind of reward. The type of advertisement and the reward can range greatly, depending on the developer and publisher.
Non-Incentivised installs, on the other end of the spectrum, refers to traffic that is generated when no reward is offered. This type of traffic is generated when users choose to engage with an advertisement without any promise of reward. In other words, they are simply choosing to involve themselves with the ad due to personal interest.
Source: www.gopixpic.com
Incent Installs: Pros and Cons
Two great aspects of incent installs, which simply cannot be overlooked, is that they are incredibly cost-effective and can significantly boost install numbers over a short period of time. Incent installs are often used to increase install numbers in order to achieve better rankings in the App Stores.
If you are planning on launching a new app, you should consider using incentivised traffic within the first 30 days of release, as this will greatly increase your chances of ranking in the “Top New” lists of both iTunes and Google Play.
On the opposite end of the scale, there are some negatives involved with incent installs, including a lower lifetime value for users. When users are incentivised by a reward, they are more likely to install your app without actually wanting it. This often makes it easier for them to uninstall your app after a few days, which will spike your uninstall rates in the app store. While this can be a negative aspect of incent installs, you must also consider whether or not your app is one that will appear to large audiences, but simply needs exposure. If you are confident with how audiences will engage with your app, incent installs may be just what you’ve been looking for.
Source: searchenginewatch.com
Non-Incent Installs: Pros and Cons
The traffic produced from non-incent installs is one of the most notable benefits from this kind of campaign. Non-incent traffic often provides higher quality users who are choosing to engage with your app, purely because they like what they see. The users acquired by non-incent installs often show a high lifetime value, which translates to more monthly active users and better monetisation. Non-incent installs is our highest quality of advertising available and works directly with large mobile publishers.
In most cases, non-incent installs prove to be a more expensive advertising option than incent installs. Non-incent installs can often take longer to generate, meaning this may not be the best option for you if you are wanting to achieve a “Top New” ranking soon after launch, in order to gain more exposure. When considering whether incent or non-incent installs are better for your campaign, it is important to consider your budget and resources.
Personally, we recommend creating a marketing campaign that includes both incent and non-incent installs. Incent traffic is a great way to boost your install numbers when you first launch your app, allowing you to rank in the App Store “Top Lists”, providing you with the exposure that all new apps need to thrive. Once your initial launch period is complete, a combination of both incent and non-incent installs can help you to maintain download rates and ensure that your app is still receiving a good amount of high quality traffic.
If you would like to discuss your options when it comes to incent and non-incent installs, please contact a member of our team – we’re here to help!
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