A Proactive Approach is Needed to Improve Application Discovery
As I was reading about the growing use of social media as a device for content discovery, a couple things became clear to me. First, the article mentions social media as the next great gateway for users to discover stuff that is meaningful to them. I agree. Social media is a great vehicle to find information and content from people you trust. But recent news of Twitter’s stalling growth, Facebook flattening and MySpace’s descent into a ghost town (ok, not so recent news there) lead me to believe that social media will not displace conventional means of content discovery, such as search, information portals, etc. So let’s face it, discovery will continue to pervade multiple channels. It also became clear that most of these discovery gateways are reactive, involving users seeking out said content. In the long run, that’s not enough. In order to maximize discovery, especially in regards to application discovery, one needs to employ a multi-pronged approach: one that is both proactive and reactive.
First, let’s talk about reactive methods. Enabling reactive methods of application discovery can be time-consuming and produce results slowly especially if you are just getting started (sure, there are rare exceptions to this rule). For a publisher, it usually involves methods, like SEO, that are set to invite users to discover whatever their content may be, such as a new app. Even social methods require users to find you and subsequently follow you, which is indeed a passive step that must be achieved before a social conversation can start. It’s sort of like standing patiently at a mixer, waiting for people to just come up and chat with you because you look cool. While that might produce some results, the best way for those to discover you is to get out, introduce yourself, and bump a few fists.
So let’s talk about proactive discovery. An app with a great user experience, solving user problems without an active user base is worthless. Publishers need to take a multi-pronged approach to improve discovery in order to build an engaged user base. This includes standard reactive discovery gateways such as search and social, but also proactive methods that get your app in front of actual users saying “hello, nice to meet you”. It dawned on me that W3i’s InstallIQ intuitively fit as a distinct proactive method to virtually shake hands (or fist bump) with users. InstallIQ engages users on the install of an application; meaning that you have users’ undivided attention and have taken control over your discoverability destiny. This proactive method is as equally important as reactive methods, but is one that is often lacking from marketing plans. Proactive application discovery has less up-front investment (much like going up to someone and simply introducing yourself – no need to cultivate and hone your meta data for someone to spot you) and produces quicker results (hey, some of those people will introduce themselves back!). The numbers don’t lie. Within 8 months of launch, W3i’s InstallIQ helped a weather widget install a staggering 1.5 million apps. Within 6 months of launch, a shopping widget gained an active audience of 3 million users via InstallIQ. A proactive approach to application discovery can produce great results.
W3i offers a chance to proactively engage users and increase awareness, therefore, leaping over the difficult discoverability hurdle. So how has your application discovery destiny played out? Have you taken control of it? How has it worked thus far? Let your voice be heard in the comments.
Eric Montag, Product Manager, W3i, LLC
Eric is a Pragmatic Marketing Certified Product Manager and uses his experience in internet marketing to lead the charge in product research, planning, and execution from both a consumer and business standpoint.
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