4 Top Tips To Measure Mobile ROI

An undisputed starting point of any ad strategy is of course the assessment of all returns – and how to obtain the maximum amount of value from any and all marketing efforts from app installs to LTV, or ARPU. The question that often plagues mobile marketers is how to actually go about successfully measuring this … and the answer lies in the measurement of your Return On Investment (ROI), often referred to in this market as Return On Ad Spend (ROAS).

It is critical to calculate an estimated ROI before implementation, because if something doesn’t work, you could end up paying a heavy price, Therefore it’s safe to say that ROI must be THE key metric that launches your entire campaign strategy and we at Liniad are here to help as we delve into the world or ROI and give you our top 4 tips for measuring this metric:

1. Understanding Costs. Understanding Revenue.

All marketing efforts have their costs and the potential to make significant returns, yet no app marketer should pass the green light without a complete understanding of all fees and expenditure to accurately assess ROI. These costs range from money spent on agencies to tools used, and these costs need to be calculated into campaigns. Beyond expenditure, it is also critical to have a solid grasp on all revenue streams. As this wonderful app ecosystem is, let’s face it, driven by the freemium model, one must assess accordingly  – apps that are free to install will bring in revenue from a varied amount of channels which can make data streams all the more complicated.

Whether you are trying to pull in In-App Purchases (IAPs), attempting to drive revenue via In App Advertising (IAA) or tap into the lucrative marketing in-app subscriptions (dating apps, streaming apps), it is critical to assess ‘cost vs quality’ when factoring in the age old ‘revenue vs cost’ assessment- higher value market targeting will obviously come at a cost, yet lower revenue markets should not be ruled out as campaign costs are often lower.

2. All Eyes on Data Management

Correct and comprehensive cost and revenue data leads to a deeper understanding of performance. As more app advertisers are using a greater number of networks, partners and channels, it is becoming near impossible to get a quick and thorough understanding of data in order to maximize returns. Therefore it goes without saying that being able to access immediate and consistent data is the x factor in making necessary decisions for ROI. Implementing API’s directly into your backend for (almost) real-time data absorption is important to ensure that the right data can be used to make the right decisions. Getting all leverageable data directly into the hands of the app marketers is key to assuring not only agility, but the best possible overview of ROI.

3. ‘With Great Data Comes Great Risk’

Going beyond the simple management of data, it is important to make sure that the quality of the data coming in is reliable. Where ROI plays the part of a simple measurement unit, erroneous data could cause everything to suffer- input equals output after all. Decision making can suffer when data is unreliable – bad data and its misattribution can derail entire campaigns.

Now is the time to get robust with data. Using an MMP (Mobile Measurement Partner) could be the step needed to leave any data worries at the doorstep. The right MMP comes with solid and reliable integrations with most media sources and platforms and can offer a clear and transparent view into all data; points, and sources. Once your data is clean, you are well on your way to for stronger ROI. 

Measuring ROI should not be a chore – you should actually consider it your north star that has the power to steer you in the right direction for campaign success. The right ROI data will lead to optimization of data and goals and will help your team make best possible decisions.

Head of Sales & Growth @ Adjust

4. Standardize That Data

While on the subject of clean data, one cannot ignore the fact that there are challenges when measuring ROI – mostly due to the fact that most inputs are coming from different sources – and let’s face it, these sources are not unified in how they handle and deliver data. Each network has different cost metrics – Twitter houses tweets, Facebook has Likes, Snapchat has Swipe-ups. These metrics if left raw and unfiltered can negatively impact your efforts and slow down analysis if left unstandardized.

It is crucial to standardize all incoming data in line with company marketing needs. This is actually not so difficult to accomplish – bulk work can be set up early to ensure a free flow of standardized, clean data . Setting up a consistent, defined data structure with the correct naming conventions can put you well on the way to smooth and winning measurement of ROI and streets ahead of the competition.

So there we have it, our four top tips to successfully measure your mobile ROI. There are of course many more best practises out there (which may warrant a sequel to this blog piece!) , but with these four key tips in play, you will be well on your way to successful ROI measurement which can lead to best possible returns. 

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