How to Increase the LTV of App Users

Low lifetime value (LTV) is a key reason for app failure because it prevents you from covering your customer acquisition costs (CAC).

It also leads to app stores burying your visibility. 

You want to avoid at all costs the death spiral where users download your app, use it once, and never come back. 

That’s why we’re doing a deep dive into maximizing the value of every single user. Grab a notebook and pen.

The first thing you need to realize is…

High-Quality Downloads Matter More Than Volume.

Many developers think the key to making a profitable app is getting huge numbers of users.

They prioritize quantity over quality, which ironically hurts their app’s success.

A great example can be seen with the apps Procreate Pocket vs Tall Man Run. 

Despite having just 1% as many downloads as Tall Man Run, Procreate Pocket earns over 20x more revenue per month!

The key difference between them is user retention. 

Source: Steven Cravotta.

Source: Steven Cravotta.

So how do you maximize user retention so customers who download your app stick around?

Start by Segmenting Your Users. 

Segmenting based on marketing channel, i.e., TikTok vs Google Ads, is only the beginning. 

You also want to identify higher intent users by posting content that addresses different pain points. 

For example, say you produce two different pieces of content for TikTok. You want to track the two different user groups you secure and find out what their LTVs are.

This is crucial for identifying high-intent users who are likely to keep paying a monthly subscription for a long time. 

The sooner you find out the average value of each group, the quicker you can double down on the messaging and marketing channels that yield the highest ROI. 

And once you’re acquiring the highest intent users, you want to impress them immediately. Which brings us to the next point.

Your Onboarding Should Wow Users. 

Having users commit to a specific outcome makes them way more likely to keep returning.

Let’s say you’ve created a health app

You want users to commit ASAP to a goal. For example, “meditate every day for 30 mins,” “lose 5 pounds by the end of the month.”

This reminds your users of the pain and desire they’re experiencing, which makes your app stickier. 

Building a dynamic onboarding experience with a progress bar is an excellent way to accomplish this.

You can also raise the stakes by gamifying the experience with trophies and streaks. 

I entered a simple prompt on Natively, asking for my meditation app to feature a daily progress and streak tracker. 

Another approach is to tailor onboarding flows based on how users answer key questions. 

Using the above meditation app as an example, I used a prompt to segment users based on experience level, which would lead to different daily goals. 

If you want to learn more about creating an amazing onboarding experience, Screen Design is a great resource for learning from the most successful apps. 

It’s worth looking for the most popular apps in your niche and studying their onboarding process. 

Once you’ve worked on these elements, you want to focus on your paywall.

Optimize Your Paywall For Conversion. 

This can include the following:

• Wording that is benefit-focused, not feature-driven. 
• Design with clear CTAs. 
• Social proof. 

It’s easy to get carried away and A/B test every little thing from what emojis you use to the price points you offer. In the beginning, just focus on testing one variable at a time. 

Superwall is another great tool you can use for testing these variables and optimizing for the highest LTV. 

You’ll be able to find out what the LTV is for each price point.  

If you follow these best practices, you’ll have a strong head start against competing apps. Of course, there’s more you can do to increase LTV and market your app effectively. Stay tuned because we’ll be dropping more knowledge and strategies you can use to make your app a huge success.