Your 2025 Playbook for Mobile User Acquisition

As we approach 2025, mobile user acquisition is set to undergo shifts that will reshape how app owners and brands attract, engage, and retain users. Whether you're launching the next big social app or a cutting-edge e-commerce platform, the trends we'll outline here will give you a strong foundation for navigating the competitive mobile ecosystem.

Key Takeaways:

• Mobile dominates online activity: By 2025, over 60% of e-commerce sales will come from mobile devices.
• AI-driven targeting is a game changer: Artificial intelligence will help app developers run hyper-targeted campaigns with better ROAS.
• Creative, engaging ad formats: Playable ads and gamification will drive deeper engagement and conversion.
• Fraud prevention is essential: Investing in advanced fraud detection tools will help protect advertising budgets from click fraud and fake installs.

The Mobile “Technologic”: Bigger, Faster, Smarter

By 2025, mobile will officially dominate the digital landscape. With over 5 billion smartphone users globally, mobile advertising will become a must-have component of any serious marketing strategy. Consumers are increasingly leaning toward mobile for shopping, banking, fitness, and entertainment. In fact, m-commerce sales are projected to hit $2.5 trillion by 2024, making mobile user acquisition essential for any app developer or brand looking to drive business growth. Given these growth factors, it’s reasonable to assume that m-commerce will continue to grow at a similar or slightly accelerated rate in 2025. If we project a 16% year-over-year growth rate (consistent with the 2024 increase), m-commerce sales could reach approximately $2.9 trillion to $3.0 trillion by 2025. This estimate accounts for increased mobile device usage, improved shopping experiences, expanding global markets, and the adoption of mobile payment methods.

Mobile First, but Why?

Here's what’s driving this seismic shift:

• Mobile as a primary device: 47% of online transactions will occur on mobile devices this year, and that number is projected to hit 62% by 2025.
• Apps over social media: Users are spending an average of 4 hours in apps daily, compared to 2.5 hours on social media platforms. This means your potential audience is more reachable inside apps than on traditional channels.

You can learn more on Unlocking the Potential of Mobile Advertising.

What does this mean for app owners and brands?

If you’re still relying heavily on traditional web or social-based advertising, it’s time to review your strategy and include a more diversified channel acquisition approach. The combination of AI, creative engagement, and safe ad placements makes mobile apps the most effective way to drive user acquisition in 2025.

Mobile User Acquisition Strategies for 2025

1. Leverage AI for Precision Targeting

Artificial intelligence is no longer a "nice-to-have", it is essential for scaling campaigns efficiently. AI tools can analyze user behavior and preferences across apps, enabling you to serve the right message to the right audience at the right time. This is crucial for performance-based marketing where ROAS is king.

Best practices for using AI in mobile acquisition:

• Automate campaign optimization: Platforms like AppLovin’s AppDiscovery use AI to optimize campaigns in real time. This automation ensures you're continually tweaking and improving your efforts, increasing efficiency without human oversight. Unity Ads is also a robust platform for automating user acquisition and monetization in mobile games and apps. It offers machine learning-driven campaign optimization tailored to in-game advertising, including playable and rewarded ads. 
• Behavior-based targeting: Instead of relying solely on demographic targeting, focus on user actions within different apps. AI-driven platforms can optimize ads based on user behaviors, improving conversion rates by focusing on what users actually do, not just who they are.

We give further details with our 15 steps towards optimizing your ad campaigns for maximum impact.

2. Prioritize Creative, Engaging Ad Formats

Your ad creatives must grab attention, fast. In 2025, user acquisition will be more about engagement than exposure. Creative formats like playable ads and gamified content are proving to be game-changers in driving deeper user interaction and higher conversion rates. The idea is to immerse users in your app experience before they even install it.

Proven strategies for ad creatives:

• Playables and gamification: Simulate app functionality (like fitness tracking or making a purchase) directly within the ad. This gives users a feel for your app’s value before they hit ‘install.’
• Video ads with 100% SOV: Full-screen video ads capture most of users’ attention, without distractions. These are perfect for highlighting app features or running brand-safe campaigns.

3. Ensure Brand Safety and Quality Control

Brand safety is a top concern for companies investing in mobile advertising. In-app advertising offers a secure and controlled environment, as apps on major stores like Google Play and Apple App Store are thoroughly reviewed before they’re published. This reduces the risk of your ads being shown alongside inappropriate content.

Key brand safety measures:

• App Store compliance: Partner with ad networks that prioritize app quality and compliance with strict publishing guidelines.
• Ratings and reviews: Apps that provide a poor ad experience are penalized through low ratings, which can lead to removal from app stores. Focus on ad quality and relevancy to maintain high ratings and brand trust.

4. Invest in Fraud Prevention

As mobile ad spending increases, so does the risk of fraud. Without the right tools, your user acquisition strategy could be riddled with fraudulent installs or click fraud, wasting your ad budget and skewing your data. In 2025, fraud prevention will be a must-have, not just a nice extra. 

Fraud prevention tips:

• Use anti-fraud platforms: Tools like Adjust or FraudScore help detect fraudulent activity, such as click spamming or bot-driven installs.
• Monitor post-install behaviors: Fraudsters often mimic real user actions. Use data analytics to track genuine post-install engagement (e.g., purchases, sign-ups, and session lengths) to filter out fraudulent traffic.
• Track Time-to-Install (TTI): Monitor TTI metrics to detect signs of click injection. Abnormally short TTIs can indicate fraudulent behavior.

5. Tap into Emerging Markets and Personalization

As global smartphone penetration rises, particularly in emerging markets, there’s a huge opportunity for brands to scale their mobile user acquisition efforts. These markets are often less saturated, offering lower acquisition costs and higher engagement rates.

Actionable steps for tapping into new markets:

• Localization: Adapt your ad content and creatives for different languages, cultures, and user preferences to resonate with international audiences.
• Personalization: Use data-driven insights to deliver personalized experiences based on individual user behavior. This increases the likelihood of engagement and long-term app use.

Conclusion

By 2025, mobile user acquisition will be all about precision, creativity, and security. Leveraging AI to automate and optimize your campaigns, creating engaging ad formats, and ensuring a fraud-free, brand-safe environment will set your app or brand up for success. With the right strategies, you'll not only drive user acquisition but also build long-term loyalty in an increasingly mobile-first world.

Ready to future-proof your mobile marketing strategy? Contact us to grow your users, your revenue and more with our tech-advanced mobile user acquisition strategy.

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