User acquisition is not and should not be seen as the central metric for determining the success of a mobile application, although it is easy to fall into that wrong assumption. Equally or more important than acquiring these users is maintaining them. But it is not always easy.

An application with good acquisition numbers but low engagement and retention cannot survive because the application will not have active users using it. Today we will focus on retention.

Retention is usually defined as the percentage of users who return to the application in the period of 3 months - some sites refer 1 month - after the first session.

Thus, one of the major goals of companies is user retention. Data indicate that 25% of users abandon an application right after its use, either because they did not like the experience or because they needed it just for a specific action.

Today, we leave you with some strategies to follow to increase the retention of your application and help you recover the investment made.

Integration

An efficient integration process is an excellent place to start. The integration process appears in the first contact that the user has with your app. You can make a short tutorial that demonstrates the main functions. The harder it is to start using an application, the more likely the user is to stop using it.

You should also reduce the number of steps required to create an account.

Loyalty and Rewards Programs

Loyalty and rewards programs are an excellent way to ensure that your customers return, but they are only applicable to the business models that allow these offers to users. This type of programs rewards loyalty (repeated use of the application), not only offering discounts but also making users feel important to a brand.

Push Notifications

Push notifications are the equivalent of receiving a good morning when entering a physical store. Examples of simple interactions are a welcome message for new users or notifications with useful information as users progress through the application.

Bidirectional communication

Currently, users are looking not only to use a product or service, but to create a relationship with brands. Therefore, you should promote directional communication, ask for feedback from users and help you solve their problems.

Opening a line of communication with your customers can help you improve aspects of your application, but you must be able to respond to resolve these issues.

All of these factors will undoubtedly improve your mobile application's retention rate. Zalox specializes in app development. Talk to us and start building your mobile application today!