Creating Viral Apps: 7 Steps to Play Store Success

An app gone viral is the highest compliment to the developer or development company. Hundreds of apps are released daily to the App Store and Play Store, but only few make it to the top spots or featured charts. There are more than 2.8 million apps available on the Google Play Store, with new ones launched every day. Android is often the preferred platform owing to its wide user base.

Not surprisingly, the app market is flooded with custom android development services. But not everyone delivers on quality and not many developers understand the premise of virality. What are some criteria that can help build apps that are runaway successes? We explore some ideas to build the hype and publicity for your android app, organically.

1. Pick the right day

Timing is very important so if you are launching a sports app, be aware of the appropriate season for initial release. Launch your app on Tuesday or Wednesday, instead of Monday, Friday or weekend as research shows people are neck-deep in work or preoccupied on other days.

2. Easy onboarding

Millennials and the Gen-Z cohort have too much on their plate to devote time for a complicated and convoluted sign in. Make onboarding as unobtrusive as possible. Allow users to opt for one-click sign-in via Facebook or Twitter instead of restricting them to a dedicated user name and password. This has the added benefit of data to grow your network.

3. Integrate sharing

Make it effortless for users to post on multiple social channels with just one click or tap. Be sure to make sharing part of the creation cycle and allow users to share on multiple sites in one go. Android framework has an edge over iOS, in that it allows apps to share much more easily with other apps. Also showcase profile pictures of users’ friends during authentication to increase your audience.

4. Make it rewarding

The charm of rewards and bounty is never lost on users. It has a basic psychological pull. If you want to promote app usage, make it rewarding. Encourage your customers to share the app with friends by gifting them each time they get a friend to use the app. Get creative with the ways to encourage customers to invite friends at different points in the app. Dropbox encourages users to refer by offering free space, while with PayPal both referrers and new signups get free credits. Remember to reward the friend/new sign up too, for the process to continue.

Some common rewards could be:

• extra storage
• credits
• free themes
• a character
• a free upgrade
• discounts
• sample sizes
5. Pitch your app

There are several app review sites that can work wonders for your reputation if the editors choose to review. Many developers pitch their app to sites such as CNET, 148apps, Mashable, TechCrunch, IGN wireless etc. Ensure that you make an excellent case for your app and follow their submission guidelines. Offer a free download or other exclusives just for the reviewing site to ensure maximum visibility and downloads in case they choose to post your app’s review. Choose review websites that have a high Alexa rating to get more mileage out of it.

6. Push and pull

Simply getting more user downloads is not enough. Sustaining interest and keeping them coming back for more is essential to get higher number of recommendations, ratings and referrals. Use push notifications to send messages that recapture their attention. Draw them back in with important announcements as well as helpful tips to navigate the app and use it better.

If it is a gaming app or learning app, then create challenges for users to participate in. Games such as Diamond Dash or Words with Friends launched weekly tournaments that were quite a sensation among the users. Players particularly enjoy posting their victory scores on Facebook when they beat a friend’s record. Also allow posting details of new records, a special power or unlocking a feature.

7. Viral contests

Build momentum on social media channels by announcing contests and sweepstakes. Everybody loves contests and freebies and you can generate a lot of free buzz by making your contest social. Plan your contest well in phases to build up the hype over a period of time and keep posting interesting tidbits to sustain the curiosity.

Building a viral app can’t be an afterthought. Create your development strategy around it and make it social and shareable at the core. A great concept, sound marketing strategy and social insights can help you achieve virality and meteoric success. Do you agree? Please let us know your take on this in the comments below.

Olivia Johnson is a technical writer, love to share stuffs related to technology & development.