During the development of a new app, team members, especially managers, are often so focused on getting the product to market and attracting new users that they rarely consider what happens next. They prioritize the number of downloads rather than app performance and user retention. It may be an easy method to measure success, but it’s often misleading.
Post-launch metrics are, in fact, so much more important. According to Statista, the average retention rate of the app, depending on the category, is around 25% on the day of downloading. However, in one month, this percentage is 5% on average (almost 10% for news apps and 1% for photo and video apps). To not only attract users but also make them stay, you need to know the core metrics and how to use them for the benefit of your app.
1. User Engagement: Are People Actually Using It?
The number of downloads means little if users don’t come back after the initial launch. Instead of tracking this number, you might want to learn about user engagement levels, which means checking if the app has become a part of users’ routines or just sits on their home screens. A few key metrics to track include:
- Daily Active Users (DAU) versus Monthly Active Users (MAU);
- most used features;
- sessions per user;
- average session length.
For example, an average session length in the beginning of 2024 amounted to 18.6 minutes per session. But don’t get stuck on daily metrics – instead, look at trends and how they develop over time of usage.
2. Retention Rates: Stick or Slip?
Another important metric is retention rate. It shows whether the product is engaging to users after some time has passed. The standard benchmark checkpoints are Day 1, Day 7, and Day 30 – these are the timeframes that show if users stick with your product.
You always want to strive for high retention rates, as it means that your product has a loyal user base and shows steady growth over time. It directly impacts another important metric – Lifetime Value (LTV) – the longer people stay, the more likely they are to subscribe, watch ads, or make in-app purchases. Use cohort analysis to see real changes and compare the results, like user signups for different months or years.
3. Conversion Metrics: Turning Users into Value
Getting users to download the app is not enough to ensure its success. If the app is free, you can still monetize it by showing ads; Otherwise, you need to make sure the users take the desired action, be it subscription, purchase, or content download. These are called conversions, and there are specific metrics to track them more precisely.
It can be useful to separate microconversions (first steps like account creation, adding an item to cart, or starting a free trial) from macroconversions (the final goal, such as paying for a subscription or completing a purchase). Tracking them can give you more insight into where users get stuck before achieving conversion. Not all conversions affect profit, though, so make sure to focus on those that do.
4. Financial Metrics: Revenue, CAC, LTV
After conversions come financial metrics, allowing you to determine the financial success of the app. Among them are:
- Revenue – total income you get from the app, whether by selling ads, subscriptions, or in-app purchases;
- Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC) – how much it costs you to gain a new user.
- Customer Lifetime Value (LTV) – the total amount of profits you get from a single user during the time they use the app.
The key questions you have to ask yourself at this point are:
- Are marketing costs paying off?
- Is there an increase in average user value?
These numbers speak to the long-term viability of the product and not just show the profits at any given moment.
5. Customer Feedback Metrics: Listen Closely
Real data comes from real people, not just analytics. That’s why it’s important to listen to users closely and track customer feedback metrics. If analytics show what users do, their feedback shows what they think about the product. Page ratings, reviews, support tickets, and surveys can provide context behind the numbers and give you a good idea of what users think about your product.
The Net Promoter Score or NPS, in its turn, not only shows you what users think but also how keen they are to recommend your product to other people. This can significantly lower the CAC and bring you new yet already loyal customers. Make sure to address the negative comments too – they can show you the weak spots and reveal hidden opportunities for growth.
Closing Thought: Metrics Are a Conversation, Not a Report
Metrics on their own are just numbers. They are not valuable if you track them but don’t use them to refine and improve the product. You need to understand what they say about the product, the team, and the users. Changes in retention, drop rate, or good/bad reviews can all tell a part of the story, allowing you to improve. The CEO’s goal should be not only to watch the metrics closely but use them to get insights into the product and users and later turn them into a strategy. Metrics should guide better decisions and not just be random numbers in reports. This way, you’ll have the chance to both improve the app and make users happier with their experience.
