How to market an app with no budget: a practical playbook

"Everyone with a phone" is not an audience. Write a sentence you could say to a stranger: "[App] helps [specific person] do [specific task] without [current pain]." Every channel below gets easier with that sentence, because you know where those people are and what words they use.

If you are still before release, start with how to launch an app. This guide picks up once the app is live.

Most people who hear about your app end up on its store page. If that page does not convince them, every other effort leaks.

Apple's guide to App Store search says results depend on text relevance (app name, subtitle, keywords and primary category) and on user behavior such as downloads and ratings. Two practical consequences:

• Choose specific keywords. Apple notes that popular terms drive traffic but are highly competitive, especially for newer apps. Less common, precise terms are easier to rank for.
• Do not waste the 100-character keyword field on plurals, the word "app" or words already in your name.

Google gives similar advice in its store listing best practices: a short description of 80 characters or less that sums up the biggest benefit, a full description that does not repeat it, and no ranking claims such as "#1" or "Best".

Then test, one change at a time. Google Play's store listing experiments let you A/B test icons, screenshots and text for free. Google recommends testing one asset at a time and running each test for at least a week to cover weekday and weekend patterns.

Ratings appear in search results and influence ranking. Apple's page on ratings, reviews and responses explains that the standard prompt can be shown up to three times in a 365-day period. That is not many, so trigger it after a success: an export finished, a streak completed, a task done. Never right after the first launch.

Reply to reviews too, especially critical ones. Apple notes that reviewers are notified of your response and can update their review.

A visitor who clicked on a post about one feature should land on screenshots of that feature. Apple's custom product pages let you publish up to 70 extra versions of your App Store page, each with its own screenshots, promotional text and unique URL. Apple reports an average increase of 2.5 percentage points in conversion when people are referred to a custom page. Treat that as Apple's own average, not a promise.

On the web, the same idea applies: one page per use case beats one generic homepage. Track visits by channel so you can compare them later; measuring directory referral traffic explains a simple setup.

Paul Graham's essay Do Things that Don't Scale argues that most startups take off because their founders push them, often by recruiting users one by one. For an app, that looks like:

• Messaging people you know who have the problem, and asking them to try one task.
• Answering questions in communities you already belong to, and mentioning the app only when it helps.
• Emailing every new user personally in the first weeks and asking what almost stopped them.

It is slow, but each conversation teaches you something an ad never will.

Launch platforms give you a dated moment and a permanent page that people and search engines can find. On MegaLaunch, a listing is free and stays online; the Product Hunt alternatives comparison helps you choose a few other platforms that fit your app. Prepare assets once (icon, screenshots, tagline, a short demo video) and reuse them everywhere.

Directories are slower but cumulative. Pick the ones your users actually browse, not the longest list you can find; where to submit your SaaS shows how to build a short, relevant list. A developer tool may also fit a Show HN, a consumer app rarely does.

• Posting the same link everywhere on the same day. Communities notice, and you cannot answer everyone.
• Changing five things at once. You will not know what worked.
• Measuring downloads only. Track how many new users finish the first key task, and how many return.
• Asking for ratings too early. A prompt before any success invites low ratings.

Consistency beats bursts. A sustainable week for a solo developer:

Change one thing per week, and keep notes so you know what moved the numbers.

How do I promote my app for free?

Optimize your store listing, ask happy users for ratings, list the app on launch platforms, take part in communities and contact early users personally. These cost time, not money.

What is the best marketing strategy for a new app?

One audience, one sustainable channel, measured weekly. Add a second channel only when you know what the first one brings.

How do I get my first users?

Recruit them by hand from people you know, communities, beta testers and launch platforms, then talk to each one.

Should I pay for ads right away?

Usually not. Ads amplify what already works. Wait until your store page converts and new users come back.