How to Make Money from Mobile Apps

The app market is gathering steam, for free and paid apps alike. We’re seeing more and more content providers and app developers jump into the market- if you can sell your app, that’s fine, but to be competitive, you’ll likely have to make a free version as well. Thankfully, putting out a free app doesn’t mean losing your opportunity to profit; it just means you need to think of other ways to do it. Here are four common ways to make money from mobile phone apps.

Long tail ads: Going with just one ad network is the best option, and it’s also the most profitable. Long tail ad networks include InMobi and AdMob, and the advantage of using such a network is its simplicity in integration, and the speed with which you can start earning money. The main disadvantages are that the CPM is often low (especially for new or smaller developers), and lower “fill rates” can make effective CPM even lower.

High Quality Ads: If your content is high-quality, consider upgrading your ad network to something like Say Media or Greystripe. These ads look better, and are better-equipped to take advantage of a smartphone’s functions.  The creation and integration of these ads is more complex than that of a simpler network, but developers typically get higher CPMs (but a lower fill rate).

Ad Exchange:These allow app developers to use several ad networks at the same time, and they offer higher fill rates than the exclusive networks. Ad exchanges require more work on the part of the developer, since they have to optimize apps to change ads based on the highest bidder. Another big disadvantage is that ad quality can be lower, as can CPMs.

Sponsorships:The easiest way to realize high profits is to get an advertiser to directly sponsor your app. For this to work, the app and the brand in question have to fit well together; the development of brand relationships is difficult and takes a lot of time. Getting sponsorship is expensive, and it’s almost exclusively the province of larger companies. Some of the ad networks mentioned above do work with app developers and advertisers to create content-rich ads for these apps.

Just a couple of years ago, the “gold rush” was on, as the popularity of the iPhone proved that mobile phone apps were big business. Many app developers jumped in and staked their claim, as did average folks who were blinded by the possibility of easy money. The rush has slowed down somewhat, but the desire for new mobile apps hasn’t- and neither has the chance for developers to make money from those apps. The amount of choice developers and publishers have in advertising can be almost overwhelming, but if you know your target demographic and understand the benefits and drawbacks of each option, you will be more likely to make the right choice.

About Author: This article was written by James Harper on behalf of Xibis. To find out more about mobile application development, please follow this link: http://www.xibis.com/.