Branded Mobile Apps & Games

Mobile app downloads are at an all time high, reaching 10 billion downloads in January of 2011. Savvy businesses are taking advantage of this new medium and working on ways to incorporate branded mobile apps into their marketing strategies.

Some examples of successful branded mobile apps include…

• Pizza Hut, a free custom order branded mobile app said to have reeled in 1 million in profit over the span of one year.
• SitOrSquat: Bathroom Finder: sponsored by Charmin, this free branded mobile app finds users the nearest restrooms and reached a half a million downloads within the span of 1 year.
• iFood Assistant: a branded mobile app that hit the #2 spot in the iTunes lifestyle section & Kraft has reported 60% of downloads are repeat users. This branded mobile app gives dinner recipes on the go and generates shopping lists (including Kraft products & coupons).

Successful branded mobile apps find a way to connect with their target audience by developing an app that is useful for that demographic, like the examples above.

An enhanced alternative to a branded mobile app would be to utilize the games and entertainment categories to develop long-term brand loyalties (branded mobile games). Since the games and entertainment categories account for the vast majority of app downloads, branded mobile games are a new marketing strategy that cannot be ignored. Although the costs tend to be more when developing games, branded mobile games pay out in the end by reeling in a higher number of repeat users.

Here are some examples of successful branded mobile game apps…

• Waterslide Extreme, by Barclaycard, is a branded mobile game based on one of their humorous TV commercials, it reached 2 million downloads in two weeks and currently has 17 million downloads. The branded mobile game campaign was so successful that they added a second roller coaster version that reached 9.7 million downloads!
• Audi A4 Driving Challenge, a racing game by Audi, allows players to race through selected tracks and ‘test drive’ Audi vehicles. Users can also add custom enhancements to the vehicles. The goal of this branded mobile game is long-term success and has received over 4 million downloads to date.
• The Karate Kid, by Sony, goes hand in hand with the release of The Karate Kid movie and allows users to play several levels of martial arts training classes. By the movie release date, Sony had reported app downloads were 5 times more than what they had anticipated.

To learn more about branded mobile apps and branded mobile game development options, please give us a call at 603.881.9200 or hit the ‘request a call’ button to contact one of our account reps.