Like other activities and hobbies, reading and collecting comics has changed a lot in the past few years. In this technology-driven era, not many of us like to read or collect comic magazines and books. Instead, users have now moved to mobile apps.
Hence the popularity of comics apps is rising, and if you own a comic app, this blog post is perfect for you. Below we will reveal the most effective methods and strategies to promote a comic app and how you can build a healthy community around your app. Have a look:
Business Model
First of all, you need to find the best way to monetize your comics apps. While analyzing the other apps, we noticed that these apps are listed in a special category on Google Play Store. In contrast, on the famous Apple App Store, comics apps are listed in Books as well as inside the Entertainment section.
SO, we will advise you to monitor and examine both Books and Entertainment categories to get the desired results. Furthermore, we observed that some comic apps focus on providing the wanted comics while some mobile applications have a lot of different options for creating a great adventure for users.
After conducting thorough and deep research, we can say that subscription is the most common and used paying model for comic apps on both the app stores. However, the app charges are not the same and vary according to their features and solutions offered.
Hence, you will have to analyze your competitor’s app and its features to make the right choice.
How You Can Promote Comics Apps
As mentioned above, the market for comic apps is somewhat limited to the other types of apps. This is because not all users download or use comic apps neither developers target all sorts of users.
The point here is to utilize intelligent methods to entice people willing to read comics through an app. So, here are some practical and straightforward ways that will help you promote your comic app.
Make it a New Experience For them.
Keep in mind that using mobile phones for reading comics has many benefits and you must know them. First of all, people can view and open them anytime and at any place. Secondly, they can read and share their impressions with other like-minded people. Thirdly, the digital atmosphere is ideal for taking this simple activity to a whole new level. By adding music and other visual effects, you can easily make users feel part of the story.
However, while doing so, ensure that you maintain the main subject of comics, and if you can keep the core, nothing can stop you from improving the user experience. By doing so, you can easily attract more users to your app.
As an example, we recommend you to study Madefire. The popular app will give you valid reasons to consider converting classic comic books into the digital screen.
Manage Your Collections
It is a well-known fact that comic lovers like to keep their comic collections organized. So, you need to ensure that your mobile app provides them an easy to manage their groups.
Similarly, think about offering them some innovative ways to view and store the comics. You can do many things to make their experience smoother, such as adjusting the brightness and providing them flexible options that make the right reading environment. Similarly, it will enable them to highlight their favorite titles or share their thoughts and feedback about the comics.
Additionally, it would be best to allow them to view the comics in multiple file formats and the options to protect their comic collections via a password. Further, enabling them to download the comics for later reading or without a working internet connection is helpful.
These are some simple demands that you can fulfill and promote your comic app in a better way. Moreover, these features will leave a remarkable impression on your users, and you can quickly transform them into loyal users.
In this regard, we recommend you to look at ComiCat and study how it has arranged interesting books for users. The app offers multiple facilities to its users and allows them to manage their collections as per their preferences.
Don’t Forget Comics Fans
We stated earlier that you need to provide all the things that the target audience needs and demands. But how will you know which features will impress users? There is a significant difference between offering the most attractive app and filling it with all sorts of impractical options.
The key here is to discuss the matter with your target audience. Find an appropriate way to connect with them and try to personalize their whole experience.
The only thing that almost all comics fans like to do other than reading and collecting the comics is to talk about comics. Take part and remain active in online discussions and, if possible, visit relevant events to meet and greet your users.
Moreover, you can collect their email addresses or social media account details and send them to personalize messages as per their preferences. Developing a community around your new comic app is ideal for knowing user needs and obtaining their feedback about your app.
Just like Marvel, the popular platform rewards its users against their specific actions. Remember that this trick works for all regardless of the brand name and size.
Unlimited Entertainment
It’s always handy to have an intuitive app, but this is one small phase of a comprehensive marketing strategy. After you load your comic will all the bells and whistles demanded by your target users, you have to do some other things as well.
For comics fans, it is vital to have an inspiring library and different options to choose from. This will help you to convince the users to pay a set price. The subscription charges can be monthly or yearly, and they will get all the things they want. However, remember that this doesn’t apply to those users who use your mobile app now and then.
Instead, this strategy will work seamlessly for your loyal customers who are always there for you and looking for exciting comics and titles. This strategy is also beneficial for them as they won’t have to pay for every single issue.
ComiXology, an online comic, has a brilliant app with over 100,000 solutions. And users don’t mind paying for these solutions. The funny app also gives a seven-day free trial to its users.
Promoting Your App on Groups, Forums, and Communities
The condition is extremely sensitive in this case. This is because most comics groups on various platforms are loaded with different spammers. So, you need to be extra careful when promoting your mobile app in such groups.
There are various spammers out there, and all of them are a threat to your new comic mobile app. Online communities and groups filled with spammers are useless from a marketing perspective. Neither of these groups will bring you, new users.
Most users of such groups don’t care about the community and don’t give anything to the community. Try to find people and artists that are also searching for their audience and collaborate with them.
Most online groups and communities allow you to introduce yourself when you join them, but many don’t allow you to use their group for promotion and marketing.
Usually, these are nice people that invest their precious time and energy to run the group and keep them clean and beneficial for everybody. Here you can try promoting your new comic app.
You can do that in multiple ways. The first way is to follow the rules. Start by introducing yourself, connect to others, be helpful to the community, and soon others will notice you for your good karma. The process works, but it takes time.
The other way is to create and define your own rules by building your community. And this is the best way to promote your comic app. Other than these two, we don’t recommend any other option.
Moreover, you can also use these two ways together. This is because there are several groups and communities that allow promotion on specific days. Then you can easily find Discord servers that have dedicated channels for marketing and advertising.
So, on the one hand, you can start building your groups and, at the same time, keep exploring promotional groups to promote your mobile app.
Another platform that you can use for promotion is Tapastic’s forum. The rules are strict, but you can manage them if you play carefully. Some general rules are to remain polite to others, participate in discussions, say no to abuse, and more.
Overall Tapastic forum is excellent for comic lovers, and in no time, you will see a significant increase in your app’s download. Other than the promotion, the forum is also an ideal place to talk about Webtoon matters.
Whatever forum you pick for your app, first give your proper introduction and then try to find the #showcase/#promotion segment of the forum to promote/post your content.
If you are ready to tackle more significant challenges, we recommend you try your luck on Reddit, 9gag, funny, Bored Panda, and Imgur. Remember that all these networks are popular and have dedicated sections for comics.
However, you need to be careful as some communities on these platforms can be toxic, and they are not only for comics. So be ready to face new challenges or just leave them there.
Consistent App Icons, Titles, Images & Headers
Brand recognition is a vital part of any marketing campaign. When promoting an app on social media networks, the importance of brand recognition gets doubled, and every minor details count. Here we will advise you to use a consistent picture, app icon, and headers as all these things leave a mark on users.
It may sound simple and obvious, but a lot of people fall flat when it comes to these minor details. Furthermore, try to use one image for your app store, website, business cards, and social media accounts to improve the brand’s credibility.
Moreover, you will come across many studies that state that you should use an attractive and professional photo as your profile pic. However, this does not apply to the comics world, and you can be creative here. You can use a vector photo, a self-portrait, or any other image that looks unique.
Besides, don’t change your profile pic frequently as it is a part of your brand. Try to promote your comic app wherever possible such as in your profile photo, posts, header/cover image, across all the popular social media platforms.
These things are part of a promotion, so don’t take them lightly when promoting a new app or starting a marketing campaign.
Final Thoughts
Comics is a unique app category, and it is not like other mobile apps. The audience is somewhat limited, but the scope and popularity are higher. When promoting comic apps, you will be targeting specific groups of users, not all.
So the app’s success mainly depends on the overall user experience offered by the app. If you can provide a much better experience than the traditional way of reading comic books, no one can stop your funny app from getting popular. So, ensure that your app contains many animated features, remains consistent, and understands the user’s love for comics.
Lastly, follow the methods mentioned above and promote the comic app in the best way!