Once you’ve put in the hard work and built your app, you’re probably eager to get it out into the world. But what is the best way to distribute your app? In this blog, we’ll explore several potential routes and help you determine which distribution method is best for you!

App stores

An app store is the distribution channel through which users access mobile apps and games. App stores offer developers a convenient way to distribute their products. There are numerous app stores, including official and third-party stores. Each app store has its own selection criteria for games and applications, and depending on the store guidelines, a developer must include certain elements in the product to gain approval from the company.

The most popular app stores are Google Play Store for Android apps and iOS Store for iOS apps. Both provide access to millions of downloads from around the world daily. Google Play includes thousands of free apps with no download fee – though you may have to pay for usage or upgrades – as well as paid applications or games with a download fee that varies according to region. iOS provides only paid content, but although there is a purchase fee, users can still get some free content. In addition, there’s an increasing number of third-party app stores providing alternative applications not available in more popular stores, such as Amazon Appstore and GetJar.

To best reach your target audience, it’s important to understand each store’s terms of service before putting your product up on any website or platform, as this can help you ensure that you’re compliant while avoiding potential legal issues if applicable. Additionally, once published on an app store, it’s important to continue monitoring reviews and feedback in order to give customers the best experience possible. Lastly, keep in mind that developing an exceptional application is only one step towards success; marketing it effectively through these channels is also essential for broadening its appeal.

Direct download

Direct app downloads can be a great way to distribute your app, as they are a way of directly promoting and selling your app through an online or physical store. It allows customers to quickly obtain the app with just a few clicks, and eliminates the need for installation from third-party sites or marketplaces.

Direct download campaigns are especially effective for apps that require a subscription model or have additional paid content. These types of campaigns are also great for promotional efforts that involve creating exclusive content, limited-time discounts and other special offers.

When creating a direct download campaign, you’ll need to make sure that you have all the necessary information for the app’s download page on the storefront. This includes detailed descriptions of the features and functionalities, as well as screenshots, promotional images and video previews. Additionally, it’s important to include keywords in these descriptions so your customers can easily find your app when searching through their device’s storefronts.

Other key components of successful direct downloads include:

• • Accessing user analytics so you can monitor how users interact with the application after it has been downloaded.

• • Ensuring proper implementation of tracking codes so you can measure performance.

• • Making sure there is pricing set up within store fronts.

• • Managing customer support requests such as refunds.

• • Continuously running promotions or discounts aimed at driving app downloads.

By taking advantage of direct downloading campaigns as part of your overall mobile strategy, you can significantly increase your chances of getting more users on board with using your mobile application in a cost-effective manner.

Enterprise distribution

Enterprise Distribution is a method for distributing apps to customers within an organization – either an internal group, clients or partners. It allows an app to be distributed more securely than the App Store or Google Play, and it also has powerful analytics features that give developers insight into how users engage with the app.

When you release your app via enterprise distribution, it’s easy to manage multiple versions of the same app, since each variant can have its own specific security settings. And if you’re using inter-app communication like Apple’s Toolbox APIs, methods like enterprise distribution make managing shared keys easier.

Using an enterprise MDM (mobile device management) solution provides significant advantages over simply making your app available through public stores or websites. Underpinning this solution is the ability to customize and maintain your own secure user base. You gain complete control of who has access to your app as well as detailed usage analytics that provide valuable insight into what devices are being used and where people are engaging with your application from.

One other major benefit of enterprise distribution is that it provides a cost-effective way of securely offering apps internally. An MDM solution helps make sure policies are applied appropriately and ensures you maintain control over devices that are accessing corporate data in a range of different locations – something which is increasingly important in today’s digital world.

Pre-installing on devices

Pre-installing your app onto consumers’ devices is an effective way to spread awareness and increase your customer base. Pre-installing is used when a phone has already been purchased but not yet updated with the proper operating system. By bundling your app with the in frame device updates, you can ensure that customers get access to the latest version of your app before they even begin using it. This method also allows your app to have the highest visibility at launch, as it will be one of the first screens customers will see when activating their new device for the very first time.

In addition, pre-installing your app on devices from other manufacturers also provides a great opportunity for cross promotion between different device makers, as well as giving smaller companies a chance to make their mark in the market by reaching customers outside of their normal target audience. It also helps reduce customer acquisition costs since most apps that are pre-loaded on devices come at no extra cost to users. Though it can be difficult to secure deals with larger phone companies, small businesses may want to focus solely on pre-loading apps onto devices from lesser known manufacturers as a form of targeted marketing and cost efficiency.

Physical media

Physical media is a common way to distribute applications, allowing your content and programs to reach potential users who cannot access the internet or prefer traditional media transport methods. This can be done through CD’s or DVD’s that contain your application and installation instructions for different platforms, or as USB sticks (or other physical drives) with preloaded data.

Advantages of using physical media include its low cost, since the technology is well established, as well as its low maintenance needs since there are no servers required to host your code or applications. This makes it ideal for one-time provisioning of resources, such as educational materials for an in-person workshop, for example. Additionally, it can be integrated with digital marketing channels – promotional USB sticks containing information about a product work very well and often increase enquiries.

However, there are some disadvantages of physical media including its difficulty being updated once released due to high production costs – this may result in incorrect information being circulated which could damage credibility if not identified quickly. Also the storage capacity is often limited when compared with that of a digital platform. Lastly certain aspects of the product might require internet access so users would have to manually download any updates if available – this could give users a negative experience and reduce customer satisfaction levels depending on how user-friendly the update process is designed.