Free App Or Paid App: Which Works Better?

By Author: Yancy Marry
Total Articles: 185
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One of the most important strategies that a mobile application developer has to consider is whether to release his/her application in the market for free or at a price. The app pricing strategy plays a decisive role in its marketing. In fact, it is one of the toughest decisions taken by the developer at the time of launch of the mobile application in the market. Though there is no fixed formula to guide a developer in releasing an app as paid or free, mobile market researchers often advise to release an initial free version followed by a paid version of the same mobile app but with additional features.

Let us take a look at some differences in releasing a mobile application as a free and paid version.

The Pros and Cons of Free and Paid Apps:

The mobile app development industry is highly progressive and that is the reason why thousands of applications in the same category flood the mobile market every year. Earning money from the sale of these apps can become difficult for the software developer. Ensuring the financial success of a mobile application from the day of its launch in the market depends on the ...
... design of the app model; if the features of an app appeal to the target audience, the developer can make money even from free version of the app and use the same as capital required to make improvements in the app in the future, while it continues to sell in the mobile market as a free app.

There is no disregarding the fact that free mobile applications appeal to the existing and potential user base, and therefore the download rates of free apps are higher. However, this does not mean that paid applications are not popular among the mobile audience. In fact, paid apps earn revenues faster than free versions of the same app, through ads. Since developers do not want the target audience to be discouraged from using an app only because it is a paid version, they release the basic features for free, while charging money from users for every subsequent additional feature.

Know Your App and the Market:

While it is important to finalize the goals to be achieved from a mobile application, it is also important to know about the expectations of the market where the app will be released. Make sure whether the audience for which you will cater is a niche or broad group. For instance, a gaming app will have a mass appeal; therefore, you can release it as a paid mobile application as download rates are expected to be high despite the price attached.

An education app, on the other hand, will be targeted toward only a small group of people interested in the subject or institute covered by the app. Moreover, there may be other similar apps to provide completion to this education app. Releasing this app for free guarantees its download at least towards the initial stages. The development cost can be recovered towards the later stages when the mobile app becomes popular amongst the small group of audience and prices are attached for enjoying some of its features.

The above listed are few factors that should determine the developer’s decision of launching a mobile app for free or as a paid version.

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