5 Ways to Leverage Facebook and Instagram Ads for Higher Mobile App Downloads

Mobile apps have become an integral part of marketing for brands across industry verticals. With an application, businesses can create a direct connection to their audience to increase engagement and brand awareness. In order to convince consumers to install your mobile app, they have to know it exists, which is where Instagram and Facebook ads come in.

A digital marketing agency with expertise in advertising mobile apps on these social media platforms can achieve a high level of success. This is especially true on Instagram, where most users view the platform on their phone. As a result, mobile app downloads happen more easily with just one tap.

Instagram is also a newer ad platform, which means brand competition is lower than on Facebook. On the other hand, while consumers prefer ease of use, they also gravitate toward familiar platforms like Facebook. For businesses, this means access to a larger, varied audience.

The following tips will assist you in making decisions that work best for your app download strategy.

1. Use the Same Strategies for Mobile App Ads as Your Other Advertising

Getting someone to download your mobile app is inherently a call to action (CTA). Don’t forget that the same marketing strategies for CTAs that work on your website also work for mobile app ads.

Use those appeals to consumers in your mobile app ads. For example, encourage people to ‘Play The Game’, ‘Start Shopping Now’, or ‘Get The Latest News’. What works for website CTAs often works for mobile app ads.

2. Mobile Ad Placement Works Best for App Downloads

It seems obvious to say, but mobile app users are using their phones. From a targeting point of view, Instagram works great for this since the platform is already mobile-friendly and enjoys higher user engagement than any other social media platform on mobile.

On Facebook, tailor your mobile app ad campaign specifically for mobile users via the audience targeting options in Ads Manager.

3. Leverage Your Existing Clients for Higher Conversion Success

You can upload existing customer lists to the ad campaign platforms. From that list, you can tailor your targeting with a Custom Audience. Options for this include website visitors, people that have already downloaded your app, or Facebook or Instagram users who have previously engaged with your content. You can even follow up with offline users who have expressed interest in you and your business.

You can expand your advertising base by creating a Lookalike Audience. A Lookalike Audience will target Facebook and Instagram users that match the profile of your existing audience.

4. Not All Mobile Apps Are the Same, and Your Ad Campaigns Shouldn’t Be Either

Mobile apps are designed to work on specific platforms – either Apple or Android. Target specific audiences by the type of device they are using.  

By reviewing advanced options on the Facebook and Instagram ad platforms, you can target your mobile app only for Android users. If the app only works for the iPhone 7 or higher, your ads only appear for users with those phones. You can customize this targeting option more extensively based on the capabilities of your product and who best fits the mold of your target consumer.

5. Consumers Like To See Themselves

Boost conversions for mobile app downloads by including visual imagery in your ad. Showing someone using the app and images from the app itself produce a higher level of user engagement. Video, in particular, increases the likelihood of a download. They allow room for creativity and create higher user interest.

Also, tell and remind potential users the advantages of your app. The more information you offer, the higher engagement you can achieve and the greater the potential for conversions.

Advertising Your Mobile App is Advertising Your Business

Since having a phone with us at all times is now commonplace, mobile apps will keep you and your business at the fingertips of your audience at a moment’s notice. Successfully utilizing the Facebook and Instagram ad platforms to entice users to download, keep them engaged with great content, and homne in on your primary market will improve your download rates and sales conversions.