iPad Mini: Tipping The Monetization Scale For Developers

By Amy Vale

Over the last several weeks, everyone has been talking about Apple’s debut of the iPad Mini. It has a somewhat smaller screen size (7.9 inches, to be exact); it’s priced lower than the older versions of the iPad; it’s equipped with a new and improved 5-megapixel camera. But will this new tablet be seen as an opportunity or challenge to app developers? Here are 3 reasons the iPad Mini will tip the monetization scale for developers (in a good way).

Play nice with old apps

The in-app experience on the iPad Mini will be the same as on the older and bigger versions of the iPad. In fact, it’s capable of running 275,000 iPad apps. That’s good news for app developers who may not have the resources or budgets to redesign or rescale their existing iPad apps to fit the lighter, thinner and smaller version. Plus, since the iPad Mini has the same aspect ratio as the bigger iPads, apps designed for the iPad Mini’s 7.9-inch screen will translate well to the larger 10-inch screen of the iPad.

Up the ante for tablet gaming

Some are calling the iPad Mini a gaming “game-changer” for the simple fact that the device’s lighter, thinner and smaller specs allow users to hold it comfortably in one hand. As a result, it’s been touted as an alternative controller or console for iOS games.

Mintel has found that sales in the mobile phone and tablet gaming market in the U.S. more than doubled between 2005 and 2010—reaching $898 million—and sales are forecasted to increase 82%, to $1.6 billion, by 2015. Smartphone sales in the U.S. increased a massive 538%—from 11.3 million units to 72 million units—between 2006 and 2011. What’s more is that U.S. tablet sales are forecast to more than triple between 2010 and 2015, from 10.3 million units to 44 million units. So what does this mean for gaming developers looking to monetize with ads on the iPad? For gaming developers looking to monetize effectively and consistently, the route to monetization will be just as clear, if not better, via in-app ads and in-app purchases.

Enhance user experience

Tablets are often referred to as “lean back” devices. Its users rely on the devices to read e-books/news, watch videos, play games, use utility apps, listen to music and perform a host of other activities (aside from making calls/talking). Understand what types of tablet users are likely to use a specific app on the iPad Mini, where they’re using it, when they’re using it and for what purpose. If your app has a strong design, easy-to-use interface and isn’t cluttered with an excessive number of calls-to-action, you’ll be one step closer to monetization.  

Monetization Questions Every App Developer Should Ask

Monetization Questions Every App Developer Should Ask

By Amy Vale

We live in a fast-paced world; no one has time to grab breakfast these days let alone leisurely read a physical newspaper or even sit at our computers reading about the news. Like so many people around the world, I too rely on my smartphone and tablet to scour through national and international news  while on-the-go. It looks like I’m not alone here.

A recent study released by Pew Research Center’s Project for Excellence in Journalism and The Economist Group revealed that nearly three times as many tablet owners and twice as many smartphone users access news primary through browsers than apps. 60% of tablet news readers and 61% of smartphone news readers in the survey said they get most of their news through web browsers on those devices. 23% of tablet news readers and 28% of smartphone news readers claimed they use apps, while 16% and 11%, respectively, said they use apps and web browsers equally. For many news publishers such as Hearst and The Economist Group, mobile traffic is booming. That’s a fact; now how can they monetize those huge mobile traffic numbers? Here are three questions every app developer should ask themselves to monetize effectively.

How willing are people to pay up-front for my app?

Arguments can be made on both sides for the freemium and paid app model. The monetization advantages of the paid app model have a lot to do with the type of content and category of the app itself. Does your app’s user base prefer not to have the overall user experience disturbed by ads? If you answer yes to this question, the paid app model, whereby users pay a one-time fee to download an app, is one way to ensure that your app is monetizing.

Is the user experience engaging, relevant and informative?

Don’t be in a rush to get your app launched and in the marketplace. Make sure the user experience is strong, relevant to the needs of the audience and, most importantly, that it won’t be a trick pony and will drive consistent clicks and revenue.

Will my user base be receptive to view, and click on, in-app ads?

No matter what category your app falls into, I can’t stress enough the importance of having a mobile-specific strategy, creative collaboration and testing what works and doesn’t work. Know what your users are doing, where they are and where they’re going. Know the type of content that will resonate with them, even with the ads being served in apps. For example, mobile users reading news on The Economist Group tablet app will likely be more receptive to viewing a streaming video ad. Leveraging these insights will put you one step closer to effective monetization.

Social Games: The Monetization Factor

Social Games: The Monetization Factor

By Amy Vale

When it comes to social networks like Facebook and Twitter, mobile traffic is growing by leaps and bounds. Recently, Facebook put out some big numbers indicating its mobile users jumped from 83 million in March 2012 to 102 million in June 2012. According to comScore, time spent on Facebook’s mobile site and apps per month (441 minutes) has finally surpassed usage of its classic website (3991 minutes) – for Americans who use both Facebook interfaces. When you look at these stats, the potential for gaming developers to generate revenue from apps on Facebook is tremendous. But not all social games monetize the same.

There are 3 R’s that gaming developers should keep in mind - Reach, Retention and Revenue. Each of these should be taken into serious consideration when developers are looking to monetize their social games.

Reach

How many people does your social game have the potential to reach across all channels, including gameplays, Facebook and Twitter? It’s millions and millions. And those millions will translate to a large amount of revenue, if your app strategy is executed well.

Retention

Once people download and play your game, are they coming back 10 times, 20 times and on a consistent basis? Are they inviting other friends on their social networks to play too? It’s not enough to get a user to your app; you have to create a rich, wholly immersive user experience that will make them return repeatedly, enjoy the experience and, best of all, encourage their fellow mobile-centric friends to download and play the game.

Revenue

What are you doing to generate revenue? In-app purchases in the form of virtual currency or tokens can be an effective way to generate revenue while still complementing the overall user experience. For example, tokens can be used as a form of reward or incentive to move to the next level of a game.

Mobile Wallets & The Monetization Effect

By Amy Vale

The term ‘mobile wallet’ has been popping up quite frequently in major discussions among industry experts, analysts, retailers and the press. A mobile wallet is a smartphone or tablet app that stores a consumer’s payment details on his/ her devices or online to fund digital and in-store purchases. These mobile wallets are being touted as an area of great promise to both streamline and speed up the overall shopping process for consumers. According to a recent report by JuniperResearch, mobile payments are expected to rise nearly fourfold to more than $1.3 trillion annually by 2017.

Since the Merchant Customer Exchange announced its plans to launch a mobile payments network back in August, two more leading retailers have joined including Gap Inc. and Bed Bath & Beyond Inc.  It’s not just retailers who are lining up to implement mobile wallets into their larger advertising strategies. Financial services giant MasterCard is putting a lot of its marketing and manpower behind its vision to let consumers pay for items from just about any app or video. But the question remains: How will app developers monetize with mobile wallets? Here are 3 things app developers should keep front of mind when developing mobile wallet apps.

Improve user experience (one-click payment option from mobile devices)

When it comes to today’s shoppers, multi-tasking is embedded into their DNA. They are typically on-the-go, running from one place to the next and rely on smartphones and tablets (often simultaneously for varying tasks). One key tactic that will help app developers monetize with mobile wallets is improving the user experience. Create a user experience that makes it easy, fast and even entertaining to get from point A (researching a product) to making the final purchase in as few clicks as possible.

Offer instant mobile coupons

The beauty of a mobile wallet is that it simplifies and enhances the overall shopping experience, all within a mobile app. Using location-based targeting to deliver instant coupons is a smart and effective way for app developers to monetize with mobile wallets.

Look at customer purchase data and tweak advertising tactics accordingly

As with any form of marketing, data shouldn’t just be seen with the attitude of “what did we do?” App developers looking to generate revenue via mobile wallets should look at data with the attitude of “how can I act on it?” As more mobile wallets enter the market, the amount of purchase data from an increasingly mobile audience will be tremendous. Ask yourself important questions. Who are the consumers using your mobile wallet? What is their purchase behavior? How often are they shopping? What’s their typical spend per purchase? If your app isn’t perfoming well (less than 3.5 stars), use the data to tweak and adjust your app so that it’s creating a consistent stream of revenue.

Mocean Mobile’s Julie Preis To Speak at Application Developers Alliance Event in NYC

By Amy Vale

Mobile advertising is futile without the right mobile ad serving technology behind it to deliver results. Without the right tools and ad serving platforms, monetization will continue to remain a challenge for publishers and app developers. Helping developers find smart, effective ways to monetize their apps will be the topic of conversation at a panel hosted by the Application Developers Alliance, which takes place at the IAC Building in New York City on Tuesday, October 9^th. And we’re excited to report that our very own Julie Preis, SVP, Product Management, will be speaking on the Platforms/Tools panel at 12:45pm, and she will be joined by highly respected mobile advertising executives from Localytics, Double Positive and TapJoy.

The event will be live streamed across the Application Developers Network and, of course, you’ll be able to see all of the monetization action and dialogue on our Facebook and Twitter pages as well.