Hello, community! What won’t we do in the chase for traffic? Sometimes, we even have to learn mobile app development! Apps, that is, mobile applications and games, have long served as a tool in the hands of affiliates. Today, we’ll explain how and why they are used.

Before we begin, let’s remind you that we always talk about unconventional traffic sources. Recently, we wrote about why you should pay attention to Discord and how to drive traffic from it. So, we recommend checking that out!

What is an App?

The word “app” comes from the English words “Application” and “App,” which refer to mobile applications and games. In the context of affiliate marketing, apps are used solely for one purpose – to drive traffic to them and then redirect it to an offer.

Apps are placed on major platforms like the AppStore and Play Market. This allows you not only to get traffic for free if you’ve made a really high-quality and popular product, but it also helps you promote your app using tools like Google UAC.

All apps used by affiliates can be divided into two main types:

  1. WebView – This is a website wrapped in a standalone browser. In essence, you’re offering the user to download a browser that only opens one site. For example, you can wrap an online casino site that opens via your referral link, creating the illusion that it’s a standalone app for that casino. However, such apps are quickly blocked, so their lifespan on platforms is quite short;
  2. Native apps – These are fully developed products, standalone applications that, while created for an offer, also offer users a range of additional features, such as iCloud login. Native apps are much more difficult to create, but they are not blocked as often. Generally, only explicit gambling, dating, etc., that don’t try to mask themselves, fail moderation.

Native apps convert traffic better due to the lack of a need for registration, saving the user’s time. However, WebView apps are much easier to create; with modern builders, it can be done in just a few clicks. So even the prospect of such an app being blocked after a few days doesn’t deter many affiliates.

Where to Get Apps?

There are several options for affiliates to get apps for their campaigns.

The most challenging path is to create an app from scratch. If you don’t have programming skills, you’ll need to pay for development by dedicated teams. This is a very costly endeavor, as top developers create their apps for thousands of dollars. And if the app is being created for something like gambling, the risk of the app being blocked still remains. So, your expenses may not even cover themselves.

If you have a basic understanding of how apps work and how they can be created, try using app builders. These tools allow you to create even games using an interactive interface without having to write tons of code. If it’s a WebView app, the creation process is almost instantaneous: you enter the URL, and you get a file to download your app.

Renting apps is a more optimal solution if you don’t know how to program and your budget is quite limited. You can rent an app on specialized services. This costs about 20 cents per day. Considering the average duration of a campaign, this is quite a reasonable price for the resource you get in return.

You can also buy a ready-made app. The advantage is a more reasonable price compared to development costs. Plus, the fact that such apps are usually already uploaded to platforms also simplifies the work. However, how long it will stay there remains an open question.

Benefits of Driving Traffic Through Your Own Apps

Now let’s talk about why you should consider buying or creating your own app. This process is quite labor-intensive and requires not only financial investment but also time spent on placing the app on platforms, passing moderation, etc.

The first benefit is the ability to retain traffic, which positively impacts the lifespan of a lead, or its CLV. It also allows you to offer almost any offer. If your app is a full-fledged game, there’s a chance that the person will open it almost every day. Accordingly, you can drive them to different offers daily.

If you have your own app, additional ad networks, such as in-app formats, become available to you. Google UAC, which stands out significantly among other ad networks, allows you to get a large volume of traffic but only allows you to drive it to apps. It’s also very convenient to drive traffic to apps through push notifications, which is a very budget-friendly traffic source.

Finally, it provides the opportunity to work with verticals that are much harder to target on META platforms or in Google Ads. Explicit gambling won’t be approved on the AppStore or Play Market, but even here, successful cloaking helps with easier moderation.

Conclusion

For an affiliate, having an app is somewhat equivalent to having a website for a webmaster. You can use the app to promote almost any offer, and by retaining your audience better, you can increase CLV, test strategies, and promote other offers to your existing customer base, among other things.

Do you use apps in your work, or do you consider it unnecessary? Share your thoughts in our Telegram community, where we discuss the most relevant topics in affiliate marketing every day.

Best regards, Your Geek!

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