On Aug 16, 12:40 pm, String <[email protected]> wrote: > The "attrition" I was referring to is from users uninstalling my app, > not from retiring old phones. My thinking was that if, for example, 1% > of users uninstall the app per month - whether from needing the space, > getting tired of it, deciding they don't use it enough to keep it > around, whatever - then those numbers will add up. Essentially, your > active % will almost never go up after a while, because that 1%/month > attrition rate applies to your ENTIRE active user base, AND it's > cumulative. > > But again, that's just my thinking. If it hasn't been your experience, > congrats!
Dropping from 70% to 54% in a few months is no reason for congrats. :-) But anyway, I do understand what you're saying about cumulative loss, though I don't think it's a flat attrition rate across all users at all times. I have to imagine that the longer a user has had my app, the less likely they are to remove it over time. It's small, and it doesn't really have a diminishing appeal (because it's more of a replacement for a system app than anything else). It is essentially the only paid app of its type. There's almost no gee-whiz-bang appeal to it, and there's even a free trial version and extensive in-app help and a web site, so if you didn't know you wanted to keep it on the first day, you're unlikely to keep it at all! > > > Bottom line: don't worry about active percentage. > > > Well, I'm not sure about this statement because if active install % is > > an (important) factor in app rankings, then I should very much be > > concerned about that number. Rankings are everything as far as > > visibility is concerned. It's all about getting as high as possible > > into the rankings if you want your app to be noticed and sell. > > Fair point. However, the ecosystem as a whole might well be healthier > if there is some rotation at the top; otherwise, it becomes virtually > impossible for good new apps to get noticed. We who are already highly > placed in our categories might not like it, but OTOH, it would give > new apps we write a better chance as well. Yeah, I'm sympathetic to the plight of the new app developer (my day job has me analyzing and responding to mobile developer needs). One thing the Android Market has over the Apple App Store is that it's not governed by raw download activity and it is indeed possible to get up there in the rankings for paid apps without a lot of downloads. I've found that the apps that can get ranked high with relatively few downloads by serving niche needs. They sometimes require special hardware or accounts to operate -- the people who would use the apps are usually just ecstatic that it accesses their special hardware or account. As a side benefit to the rankings for these apps: if you don't have the required hardware or account, there's no incentive to frivolously download or rate. I think user retention rate is a great ingredient to add to the "special sauce" of a ranking algorithm because it's an indicator of satisfied customers. That's something you can't derive from download activity. I just want to have some assurance that my scary drop in install base is explainable or universal and not some mistake. I won't feel so great if I knowingly lose rank and income over a mistake! > Interesting discussion, y'all. :^) Indeed! -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Android Developers" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected] To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected] For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/android-developers?hl=en
