Tailored App Discovery: Unveiling Appnext’s Personalization Strategies for Users’ Unique Experiences
CXOToday has engaged in an exclusive interview with Mr.Danny Tuttnauer, COO at Appnext, Affle
How does Appnext tailor app recommendations to individual users, considering their preferences and behaviors?
Our approach to personalizing the mobile experience is deeply user intent-driven.
Strategic partnerships with advertisers, developers and OEMs enable us to facilitate the most personalized smartphone experience to date. A key component to our ability to do this is Appnext’s proprietary ‘Timeline’ tech, which has been integrated into devices of the world’s leading smartphone manufacturers, and plays a pivotal role in understanding and predicting user behavior. We are able to analyze a range of data points and contextual information to ascertain users’ preferences and needs at different times of the day. By leveraging this technology, we can deliver app recommendations that are not only tailored to the user’s general interests but are also aligned with their real-time activities.
A unique aspect of our discovery solutions is that they span the entirety of the mobile lifecycle —from a dynamic setup wizard to help the user discover new apps as they personalize a new device to multiple placements along their daily mobile experience such as widgets, app stores, minus one screen, browsers and more. Basically, this means users receive contextual, personalized, and unmissable recommendations throughout their mobile journey, at relevant moments and in the language of their choice
What strategies does Appnext employ to ensure that users receive relevant app recommendations during different seasons or events, such as the cricket or festive season?
Our discovery solutions have been a game-changer for advertisers and developers during holidays and big sporting events— both in India and elsewhere. Take Diwali, for instance, when there has always been a marked spike in shopping app downloads. Recent data shows that last year shopping app installs and sessions during the holiday period were 14% and 47% higher than the whole 2022 average, which is huge! We work with a number of major e-commerce and retail brands to help them with their marketing efforts and ensure they tap into the increased shopping activity and make the most of these periods by engaging with high-intent shoppers.
Our predictive analytics and proprietary machine learning algorithms play a significant role in delivering recommendations precisely when they matter most. By analyzing user behavior, preferences and engagement patterns, we can accurately pinpoint the optimal recommendation moment, increasing the likelihood of a first-time install or reuse. This approach isn’t just about making suggestions; it’s about making the right suggestion at the right time.
How does engaging with app developers and advertisers enhance the quality of app recommendations for users?
Our collaboration with app developers and marketers is critical to creating effective and targeted campaigns. For one thing, these partnerships are important for understanding the unique aspects of each app and aligning them with advertisers’ goals. For example-during the cricket season, we need to understand and highlight specific features like live streaming or score updates that will appeal to cricket fans. Or, during Diwali, work with our e-commerce customers on targeted campaigns to offer discounts or promotions to relevant shoppers during this festive season.
The wider benefits of collaboration with developers and advertisers also include us covering as broad a spectrum of user interests imaginable. We have created the most individual and responsive smartphone experience ever because we work with such a variety of app developers to cover everything a user needs during their daily mobile journey — from listening to music, exercising and shopping to ordering food, commuting or booking a doctor’s appointment. In short, discovering the right app at the right time is essential in our connected world: it is the key to well-being, education, our social lives, transportation, travel, fun and everything in between!
How do you ensure that users receive timely and contextually appropriate app recommendations related to cricket or festive season activities?
As I mentioned, Diwali is a big time for us in India because there’s a notable increase in online shopping activity. As you’ll know, Dhanteras is a lucky day for people to purchase important and expensive items. This presents a unique opportunity for e-commerce and luxury item apps because intent is so high — people actively want to make a purchase and their expectation is for a personalized and contextualized experience.
By working closely with app developers and advertisers, we are able to craft tailored campaigns that resonate with what users want during these high-activity periods. The approach here is far from generic; it’s all about providing personalized promotions and deals that cater to these special moments. Additionally, we leverage geolocation and power recommendations that adapt to regional variations, ensuring that the recommendations are customized, relevant, and delivered in the language of choice. I would describe it as a holistic strategy that ensures the recommendations users receive are timely and pertinent to their current context.
Can you provide examples of successful app discovery and recommendation campaigns that were implemented during previous cricket or festive seasons?
We’ve executed so many successful targeted campaigns during these seasons, it’s tough to pick just a few. While I can’t go into figures relating to specific clients, I can say that during one IPL season, a targeted promotion for a cricket streaming app led to a huge jump in downloads. And during Diwali, several leading shopping apps strategically partnered with us in campaigns that resulted in growth in installs and purchases.
