Marketers struggle to keep app users interested
Only 10% to 12% of users are still active on an app seven days after downloading it, according to research from mobile marketing analytics firm AppsFlyer. While these numbers might seem negative, app user retention is actually increasing YoY. Last year, iOS user retention was up 9% overall. Retention of non-organic app users, who have been offered incentives to download an app by its developers, went up 25% in 2016. However, monetising apps still remains an issue. Fewer than 2% of users who download an app actually end up buying anything inside the app. 

by Gavin O'Malley , Staff Writer @mp_gavin, February 14, 2017

Retaining app users over time remains a big challenge for marketers.

In fact, only 10%-12% of users remain active seven days after downloading an app -- while a mere 4%-5% are still active after 30 days, according to new research from AppsFlyer.

When comparing organic and non-organic users, the former outperformed the latter by 15% on iOS and 21% on Android, the mobile analytics and attribution firm found.

More broadly, year-over-year retention rates appear to be up.

Last year, the only drop was seen from Android organic users (down 6%), while Android non-organic user retention was up 4%.

Even better, iOS was up 9%, overall, and up 25% among non-organic users.

According to the researchers at AppsFlyer, the improvement clearly demonstrates that marketers understand the importance of retention, and have doubled down on their optimization efforts.

Meawnwhile, monetizing users -- especially non-organic ones -- remains a challenge. Indeed, fewer than 2% of those who download an app actually make purchases inside the app.

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Non-organic Android users are slightly more engaged earlier in the funnel (click-to-install, install-to-engaged rates) -- but, when it comes to purchases, iOS users win out.

In fact, the chances of an engaged user turning into a buyer are almost 80% higher on iOS, while the odds of a user who installed an app becoming a buyer are 55% higher.

Lifetime activity is significantly different across shopping and gaming. The average mobile gamer performs about six in-app events in 90 days, with owners of Android devices outpacing iOS device owners by 20%.

By contrast, the average user of a shopping app performs about 18 in-app events in 90 days, with iOS users almost 25% more active than Android shoppers across each stage in the funnel.

Also of note, North America remains the leader in the share of buying users, with the best iOS install-to-buyer ratio (2.25%) -- and the second best ratio on Android (1.3%) -- among non-organic users.

North American shoppers are also most active in adding products to their in-app shopping cart and making purchases.