- Display interstitial ads. This was the one change I made to my apps which instantly saw my revenue almost treble. I had previously been showing banner ads within my apps but adding interstitial ads made my revenue boom. Be careful however that you don't drive users away from your app, remember the revenue of your app is relative to the the usage of your app.
- Establish your app early on before adding ads. I find that ads can be a turn off to users, and every install counts when you are trying to establish your app. The best thing to do is to let the app gain momentum and user base before introducing ads. After all if you have a handful of users adding ads isn't going to gain you more revenue. Remember, the revenue of your app is relative to the the usage of your app.
- Experiment with ad placement. Do you put a banner at the top or the bottom, on every page or just sub pages, do you show an interstitial on load or on exit or during the app - it changes depending on your app. You need to test the waters with each placement (a week will suffice) and then go with the one which gives you best revenue, without affecting your user base. Remember if you turn off your users, the revenue potential decreases - the revenue of your app is relative to the the usage of your app.
- In app purchases. This depends on your app and what service you are providing. In app purchases are great for games for adding levels or features, but it can be used in other apps too. This could be from adding other features, to simply allowing the user to remove the ads for a price. Again you need to experiment with your approach - what is the best price etc. Like everything else the more users you have the greater the number of people who may purchase something in your app. Remember. the revenue of your app is relative to the the usage of your app.
- Have a great app. This is the hard one - the items above are easy to add - getting the original installs is the problem. Sometimes the app doesn't even need to be great, it just needs to fill a gap or do something better. But if your app is good quality, has few bugs, and offers value to the user then you'll end up with a high number of installs (marketing I'm sure also plays a massive part here - that's a future blog...) and with more installs and users you'll get more revenue. Remember. the revenue of your app is relative to the the usage of your app!
These tips are my experience so far - I'd be interested to hear others experience - please add a comment and we can open up the discussion!
