Apps and Analytics

Many publishers make their content available via an app. While this is a great way to reach an audience, it’s important not to overlook the importance of analytics tools when it comes to keeping audiences engaged.

What are analytics?

Tools such as Google Analytics and Firebase help you collect information from your app, giving you a fantastic insight into your audience and brand new way to interact with them. This data can include the number of regular users, how much time they spend using the app, what they look at within the app, etc. Essentially, you can choose to collect data on any activity possible within your app.

Why should I use analytics?

Smartphones give us access to a seemingly unending supply of information and entertainment wherever we are, so your app has a lot to compete with.

It’s important to remember that an app is not just another platform in which to publish your content. It can give publishers the power to connect with their audience in a much more meaningful way than has ever been possible before.

To ensure your audience stays engaged, knowing what works in terms of content and communication is essential. This is why the insight you gain from analytics tools is so important.

How can I use analytics?

Understanding which content is and is not popular with an audience is, of course, extremely valuable. However, there’s much more you can learn from analytics data.

• At what time of day do people use your app?
• What do people search for within your app?
• What brings new users to your app?
• How long to people spend using your app?
• What are your audience demographics (e.g. age, location, etc.)?

Having access to this data allows you to gain a better understanding of things like the sort of content your audience likes, the most effective time to publish new content and how to drive new users to your app.

Thinking beyond one-size-fits all

While it’s important to have an overview of your audience, there’s a limit to how effective you can be when trying to communicate to everyone in the same way.

This is why it’s important to ensure that you are providing a more personal experience for your audience. Having an app allows you to communicate to specific groups within your audience in a variety of ways.

For example:

• You can send a notification to users that haven’t opened your app in the last 3 months.
• You can recommend articles to users who have shown an interest in a particular subject.
• Provide content for people based on their location.
• Reward frequent users of the app with promotions or special content.

By employing some of these techniques you can help ensure that people stay engaged with your app and your business.

What PageLizard can offer

Standard Package

All Page Lizard apps come with a standard analytics package, giving you a clear overview of your audience and how they are using your app.

This includes information on:

• User activity
• User retention rates
• Activity within the app (e.g. which articles are being accessed)
• User demographics

Custom Packages

You can record information based on any possible event within your app. This allows you to gain a greater insight into your audience.

1. Decide how best to categorise your users
2. Different content is likely to be aimed at different types of users. Creating groups of users behind the scenes based on things like location, previously read articles, app use frequency, etc. gives a lot more flexibility with your communications.
3. Decide how best to communicate to each user group
4. There are a variety of ways you can customise your communications. These include sending different notifications to different user groups and display different content within your app.
5. Measure the effectiveness of your communication
6. Developing an effective communication strategy involves some trial and error. You will be able to clearly see which sort of communications have the most impact on your users.
7. Use Google’s AI to help predict user behaviour.
8. Google can predict certain types of user behaviour, such as when someone is likely to stop using your app. You can use this information for targeted communications to ensure as many users as possible continue to engage with your app.

Advice

It’s easy to feel overwhelmed by the amount of data available and it’s not always obvious how to best make use of it. Our experts can help you understand how you can use analytics to the benefit of your business and the experience of your users.

We also run regular webinars to give newcomers a better understanding of the benefits of using analytics.