How to make use of in-app advertising space?

As the production of apps increases year by year, major companies already have the R&D resources and want to make their own apps. Up to now, more and more teams have begun to pay attention to the in-app operation.

01 Ad space, the effect is as its name suggests

Although the names are not uniform, no matter whether you see "promotion position", "advertising position" or "resource position", they all point to the same destination - in-site advertising; and these may just be "banners", "opening screens", etc. without specific names.

Usually, the in-app operation will take over the users brought to the app by the brand or other business colleagues. The user may only know the name of the product, or a friend’s introduction may arouse his interest and download an app.

As products develop from extensive to intensive cultivation, advertising spaces have gradually changed from being monotonous to being able to be truly personalized for each individual.

1. banner

This is the most common form of advertising display within the terminal, generally referring to banner ads. Most companies will place a banner at the top of the homepage in interface design as an important window for daily activities and notifications.

• Suitable for themes: basically universal
• Advantages: large exposure, long-term stable display (users may not click when they first see it, but when they need it)
• Disadvantages: The display level is weak, it is difficult to make a highly effective promotion, and too much exposure will dilute the user click rate
• Display content: Visual design diagram
• Display mode: Carousel, usually one picture is displayed every 5 seconds, if there is only one picture, it will not be displayed in carousel.
• Data effect: relatively stable, the average click rate ranks third among the four forms introduced this time

2. Pop-ups

This form is most common in e-commerce applications, and is also more likely to pop up on the homepage. In addition to the common form of pop-up windows for operational control, there is another type of pop-up window that can be seen when inviting users to upgrade versions or experience internal tests. Usually pop-up windows need to be closed manually by users, which makes this position inherently strong.

• Suitable topics: activities, important notices
• Advantages: Large exposure, the strongest display level, only two options: participate and turn off, which can best ensure that users receive the message
• Disadvantages: For users who have a clear need to access the app, such ads will interfere with user operations and are prone to customer complaints when users have other urgent situations.
• Display content: Visual design diagram
• Display mode: Single display per startup
• Data effect: Affected by user scenarios, content themes, and design presentation, it fluctuates greatly. The average click rate ranks first among the four forms.

3. Open screen

In most cases, the open screen and pop-up window will prevent a user from seeing them at the same time. The open screen will be less oppressive. Although the display area is large, it does not force access.

• Suitable topics: product promotion, event
• Advantages: Large display area, and appropriate increase in visual content to facilitate exposure of high-quality content
• Disadvantages: Users may not have time to finish watching the video, and the video will be automatically skipped after the time has passed.
• Display form: visual design diagram
• Display format: Single display each time it is launched, usually 5 seconds exposure. If it is too short, users who are interested may not be able to finish watching it. If it is too long, it will disturb users from visiting the app.
• Data effect: Affected by user scenarios, content themes, and design presentation, it fluctuates greatly. The average click rate is the second highest among the four forms.

4. Push

This is a form of advertising that is different from the above three. Usually, users will receive it as long as they turn on message notifications even if they have not launched the app. It is generally the main means to increase DAU. In addition to operational push, there are also some product push that are pushed to a certain node of the user based on product strategy.

• Suitable topics: Timely content, information
• Advantages: Attract users to visit the app and increase user activity
• Disadvantages: At this point, users may not have a demand for the app, and the opening effect will be reduced
• Display format: main title, content
• Data effect: Most affected by user scenarios and content themes, the average click-through rate ranks fourth among the four forms

02 How to pass the test

For a primary terminal operation, arranging the advertising space clearly is a passing score. So what aspects are included to be considered as a clear arrangement?

1. First of all, as the center of the advertising space, you must be clear about what your goal is?

Is it to serve the business department to achieve sales, brand awareness, etc., or to increase user activity and retention to win more users for other sectors. Only by clarifying this point can we set the target point; of course, if this point is not understood, it will lead to confusion in the tone of the advertisement, and the tragedy of "promotion is fun for a while, but ends in disaster".

2. After clarifying the goal, consider where the content input comes from.

For some UGC products, such as Zhihu, some hot, professional and popular content will be promoted; for news and information products, such as Toutiao, information that happens at any time will be promoted. Based on this point, we can understand that in order to carry out promotion we must have content in our hands. This content can be produced by ourselves or borrowed according to the tone of the content.

3. The third step is to be able to complete the promotion of a single point. After getting the raw materials, how to process them so that they can be promoted to users

If it is news, it is necessary to provide information on the six elements of news; if it is an event, it is necessary to explain clearly how to participate and whether there is a time limit. Make sure you make your words clear first (commonly known as speaking in plain language) and then consider their attractiveness.

4. Finally, the wiring input-processing-output mechanism

Generally, based on the tone and frequency of a promotion, the arrangement of content should be considered in advance according to the frequency. Before the promotion, the copy should be clear, the design drawings should be produced, and any confirmation required by superiors should also be completed. This involves the management of schedules and the rhythm of operations to avoid an explosion of content at the same time and gaps at other times.

In addition to smooth operation, you should also pay attention to whether there are any restrictions. Some companies may set some marketing red lines, such as marketing time cannot be later than 9 o'clock, and marketing content cannot be in certain forms, in order to protect the user experience.

However, you must be aware of the country’s advertising laws. For example, extreme words such as “most” and “first” are not allowed to appear in advertisements, and you must also pay attention to copyright issues of promotional materials. That's the limitation.

After completing this task, a solid foundation will be laid for the management of on-end operations.

03 To advance, you need systematic end-to-end operations

If the second point promotes the process from nothing to something, then the third point focuses on the process from something to perfection.

Initial operations require the ability to complete single-point projects, such as solving a pop-up window from demand to promotion to users, and finally presenting it to users. Mid-level operations need to consider adding the important factor of "users". This will directly affect which type of users will see the promotion in which scenario, and how you want users to participate.

For example, newly registered users and deep app users have different perceptions and understandings of the app and its business. Before we promote specific activities to new users, it is more important to first introduce ourselves comprehensively. Only based on trust can the subsequent process for users go more smoothly.

To give another example, during daytime working hours, users generally cannot participate in activities that take too long or are too noisy, so it is necessary to focus on the content, time, and location of the promotion.

Based on these single points, we connect the user paths and take actions to activate users and increase stickiness at points that can generate interaction.

On the one hand, through the experience of operators and data verification, we continuously optimize the relationship between people, goods and places, and drive results.

On the other hand, if you want to do your work well, you must first sharpen your tools. As extensive farming progresses to intensive farming, tools will also be sharpened from iron pestles to needles. For the tools used, in addition to better reaching users, we should also consider improving the efficiency of operators.

In the process, the value of data is constantly strengthened.

We have launched several promotions, which are very basic in terms of number. The effect of adding data and reflecting the reach efficiency of operational leverage are the proof of the core value of on-end operations.

Author: Xiaojing Luo

Source: Xiaojingluo