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Software and app marketing brings the product to users who need it, then helps them sign up or install, reach their first meaningful outcome, choose a paid plan, and keep using the product. Optimize the entire journey across your website, App Store, Google Play, and the product itself—not just the initial sign-up.

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Find the tactics that match your goal

Select the stage you want to improve now to see the metrics to check and the tactics to pursue. Decide goals not only by sign-up counts but by also evaluating activation, paid conversion, and retention.

Get your product discovered

Increase touchpoints with people who need your product through search, AI search, social, app stores, and more.

Increase sign-ups and installs

Communicate your product’s value and usage requirements to increase the number of people who move from your website or app store to the point just before they start using it.

Increase activation and retention

Reduce the friction for new users to get the initial value and create conditions that encourage repeated use.

Increase paid users

Provide the information needed to decide to purchase and create compelling reasons and flows to move users from free to paid, driving recurring revenue.

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Execute tactics with NoimosAI

If you already know which tactic you want to work on, go to the corresponding Channel Guide. Each page explains the basics of the tactic and step-by-step ways to implement it using NoimosAI.

Research competitors

Investigate competitors’ features, pricing, onboarding flow, and messaging, then use relevant insights to improve your product and marketing.

Build or improve your website

Communicate your product’s value, features, pricing, and how to get started to build or improve a website that drives sign-ups and installs.

Increase search traffic with SEO

Capture searches for comparisons, how-tos, and problem-solving, and create pages that drive sign-ups and retention.

Get found by AI with GEO

Ensure your software or app is accurately referenced and quoted in AI product recommendations and solution answers.

Manage social media

Continuously share features, usage tips, and updates to increase awareness, sign-ups, and usage.

Improve CVR for sign-up, activation, and paid conversion

Reduce drop-off from discovering the product on your website or app store through to paid usage.

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If you’re unsure where to start

Choose the tactic that best matches your current situation.

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Who this guide is for

This guide targets software and apps that users can sign up for, install, or purchase and then begin using on their own. It’s aimed at founders, business owners, product owners, marketers, and product managers offering web services, mobile apps, desktop apps, and similar products. Regardless of whether you sell to consumers or businesses, this applies to products users can start using by themselves via your website or app store. If you need to improve sales processes that involve inquiries, demos, sales meetings, quotes, or internal approvals before a contract, refer to Marketing for B2B Products and Services. If you offer both self-service and sales-assisted paths, use the guide that matches the sales channel you want to improve now.

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How software and app growth works

For software and apps, success can’t be measured only by sign-ups or installs. Track the end-to-end flow from discovery to getting value, converting to paid, and retaining users.
Some products convert to paid after a free trial, some require purchase before install, and others upsell during use. Set where paid conversion occurs according to your pricing model. Recurring revenue is primarily determined by the product of these elements:
The number of paid users depends on the share of people who discover the product and then sign up, install, purchase, and activate. Even if many people discover the product, if they can’t get value after signing up, they won’t retain. High sign-up rates alone don’t increase revenue if you don’t communicate why users should choose a paid plan. Check counts and conversion rates at each stage and improve where users are dropping off.

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Set objectives for each stage

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Get your product discovered

Clarify your target users and use cases, then create touchpoints in the places where those users look for information. For each discovery channel—search results, AI answers, social media, and app stores—track how many people reach your product page or store listing. Don’t judge by impression counts or follower numbers alone—confirm that target users visit product pages and move toward sign-up or install.

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Increase sign-ups and installs

On your website or app store, explain who the product is for, what jobs it improves, pricing and usage terms, and how to get started. For web services, measure completed sign-ups; for mobile apps, measure installs from store page views; for desktop apps, measure downloads to first launch—choose conversion points that match your distribution method. Key metrics include product page visits, store page views, sign-up starts, sign-up completions, downloads, and installs. Segment by traffic source and device to see which paths have the biggest drop-offs. If product explanation or pre-sign-up information is lacking, start with Build or improve your website. If specific conversion points show high drop-off—like visits to sign-ups or store-to-install—start with Improve CVR for sign-up, activation, and paid conversion.

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Increase activation and retention

Define activation not as sign-up completion or first launch but as the user action that captures the product’s value for the first time—for example, creating the first deliverable, connecting data and seeing results, or sharing with other users—an action close to the promised outcome. Track the share of users who complete that action after sign-up, the time to completion, and the screens or steps where users drop off. After activation, measure the percentage who return within a time window appropriate to your product’s usage frequency, which features are used, and when usage drops off. Systematically remove barriers to first value, such as missing instructions, unnecessary fields, permission requests, integration steps, and wait times. The method to identify and fix drop-off points is explained in Improve CVR for sign-up, activation, and paid conversion. If users can’t find setup instructions or troubleshooting help, improve help and documentation via SEO and GEO.

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Increase paid users

Make clear the value of paid plans, how they differ from free usage, billing units, usage limits, and cancellation terms. For paid apps or one-time purchase products, make sure users can review use cases, screenshots, features, price, system requirements, and reviews before buying. If you offer free plans or trials, guide users to paid conversion aligned with usage—after they experience value, approach limits, or try a paid-only feature. Separate and track eligible users for free tiers or trials, the presentation of paid plans, the start of paid service, and payment completion. Don’t focus only on conversion rate—also measure post-conversion retention, cancellations, and refunds to ensure changes aren’t driving short-term sign-ups only. If you need to benchmark pricing and terms against competitors, see Research competitors. If you need to improve pricing pages, upgrade flows, or drop-off before payment, go to Improve CVR for sign-up, activation, and paid conversion.

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Define your growth model

Before starting tactics, clarify your target users and the flow to activation. Review your current metrics and choose the stage with the largest drop-off and the greatest potential impact. Once you’ve set the goal, use the relevant Channel Guide to put the tactic into practice.