Join our Waitlist for Expert Advice!

25 Creative Ways to Promote Your App For Free You don't need to spend advertising dollars to earn customers. Here are 25 ways to do it for free.

By Rahul Varshneya Edited by Dan Bova

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

I've been meeting more and more app entrepreneurs who have made it in the app world without spending a penny on promoting their app. And I've known entrepreneurs who've earned more than a million dollars selling their app, largely promoting it for free. Some have made use of press publicity and some generated a lot of buzz on social media. While some manually recruited customers, others had tremendous customer referrals.

In my experience, it does not make sense to pay advertising dollars to get customers because the cost of a customer acquisition is never lower than the price of the app. What's more, there are many ways out there to promote your app for free. Here are 25 of your most creative options:

Build a microsite

This one or two-pager showcases your app to the web audience. Take cues from Snapchat and Path.

Build a teaser website

Do this a month or two before your launch to collect email addresses of people who would like to know when the app launches.

Start a blog

Attach it to your microsite. Write interesting content that will draw people to your website. Buffer app does this really effectively.

Share your content

Use your Twitter, Facebook, Google+ and LinkedIn profiles to promote the app several times in a week.

Create a product video

Make it creative, funny, thought-provoking or personal. Tell the story, but in a way people can identify with. Here's a great one as example from the Dollar Shave Club.

Get press, tons of it

Entrepreneur Neil Patel says: "Press is the best way to kick start your startup, and the best way to get it is to manually reach out to journalists."

Pitch to app review websites

Sites like 148apps, AppStoreApps and AppAdvice can generate a lot of buzz for your app if they mention it.

Contact bloggers who would care

Identify bloggers who write on niches that relate to your app. For instance, a children's app can be pitched to bloggers write write for mothers.

Apply for awards

Look into awards such as the Kiip Build Fund or The Mobileys. If you win, you also get a ton of press, not to mention winner's booty.

Start a podcast

Publish it on iTunes or your own website. Draw content from the niche your app caters to most.

Always be collecting emails

Gather potential customer emails through Facebook, Twitter or your website. An email list of people who have opted in is a powerful marketing tool.

Create a six-second how-to series

Make the most of Vine with videos potential customers will find useful. The hashtag #howto is one of the top trending tags on Vine.

Post on Pinterest

Use blog images, infographics and visual content from your app to create content on your Pinterest board. You can even use happy customer photos or hold contests.

Use Dubbler

Promote your blog posts or content having to do with your app's niche on Dubbler -- a 60-second audio social network.

Manually recruit customers

The creator behind Canvsly reaches out to local art schools, libraries and pediatricians to get more customers. Know your audience and find them.

Run a contest

For example, you can encourage people to tweet and share content on their social networks promoting your app. A random person every week can win a promo code to download your app for free if it is a paid one.

Create a Facebook group

Form a group for people with common interests related to your app's niche so they can meet and socialize regularly. If your app caters to hikers, for example, create a hiking group.

Get speaking opportunities

Research events that touch on the topic your app addresses and make an appearance. Start small and get recognized as an authority in the space.

Take advantage of voicemail

Include a creative mention of your app in your phone's voicemail recording.

Be obsessive about resolving negative reviews

Remember: A happy customer is a brand ambassador for your app.

Make good use of App Store Optimization

You can find it at the app store.

Contact admins of related Facebook pages

Look for pages with 100k+ likes and reach out to their admins. Make sure these pages have something to do with the focus of your app. Then give them a compelling reason to mention it.

Optimize your email signature

Provide a catchy one-liner about your app along with the link to download it in your email signature.

Consider offering a promotional price

If your app is a pay-to-download one, consider a promotional pricing of $0.99 during the launch time. This price point encourages impulse purchases.

Integrate social within the app

This will make it obvious to users to share with others. Path app allows users to share photographs on social networks and Draw Something makes sure you rope in a friend or more.

Rahul Varshneya

Co-founder at Arkenea

Rahul Varshneya is the co-founder of Arkenea, an award-winning web and mobile app development agency.

Want to be an Entrepreneur Leadership Network contributor? Apply now to join.

Side Hustle

These College Classmates Started a Side Hustle to Solve a Common Household Problem — Then Scaled It From $0 to Over $50 Million in Under 4 Years

Tumble co-founders Justin Soleimani and Zach Dannett envisioned a better, easier-to-handle kind of rug — so they got to work on it.

Business News

You Have 2 Months to Prepare Your Business for AI Agents. Here's Why!

Get Ready: AI Agents Are Transforming the Workforce Faster Than You Think

Marketing

Stop Relying on AI SEO Tools — These 5 Secrets Will Help You Rank #1 on Google Search

Many businesses use AI-powered SEO tools to boost their website rankings, but they often struggle to see results. The key isn't just in AI; it also involves strategic off-site tactics such as link building, using social media signals, partnering with influencers, and fixing toxic backlinks.

Business Ideas

63 Small Business Ideas to Start in 2024

We put together a list of the best, most profitable small business ideas for entrepreneurs to pursue in 2024.

Starting a Business

What No One Tells You About Entrepreneurship — 5 Hard Truths

Here are five things you need to consider before becoming an entrepreneur.

Marketing

8 Budget-Friendly AI Tools to Boost Your Marketing

The utilization of AI for marketing has only grown, but many small businesses may wonder how to afford it. Fortunately, there's a wealth of AI options available that can enhance marketing efforts and improve efficiency without significant investment.