Making money on mobile / apps for information sites

Apps are more about getting your content displayed to the end user. It's about getting users to use you as opposed to the competition.

An app can be a lot more user friendly as opposed to using the phone or tablet's native keyboard.

Every time a user is browsing content via your app you have opportunities to get them to visit your main website.

Some companies simply display a mobile friendly version of their website within the app. That way you can get the user to surf your site without the need to open their web browser or surf to your site. They simply open the app and it's all there before them.

You mentioned Facebook. I don’t think it's fair to say they lost money when people used the app. They probably gained money as a result.

Facebook is all about numbers, the more popular the service is, the more useful and addictive it is to the user. The app gave it market share, it allowed people to use the service when they where pretty much anywhere. This was in part responsible for generating growth and therefore income.

Youtube does show adverts within the app, although they are embedded within the video content in much the same way they are on the website.

As for your own app. You need to think in terms of how does your user interact with your existing website. What are the long term goals of your app and how will it be different to the website.

If you are only interested in generating revenue and nothing else then it is unlikely you will succeed. You need to deliver a product that is useful. People are not going to settle for an app that they really don’t use. It will simply be deleted from their device.

Focus on the user first and foremost. Then understand how they are using the app. Then you can think about methods of generating revenue that don’t effect the user experience.

Mack.

As for your own app. You need to think in terms of how does your user interact with your existing website. What are the long term goals of your app and how will it be different to the website.

If you are only interested in generating revenue and nothing else then it is unlikely you will succeed. You need to deliver a product that is useful. People are not going to settle for an app that they really don’t use. It will simply be deleted from their device.

That's just it, there aren't any long-term goals with an app. Frankly, I wish that mobile didn't exist; IMHO, in the long run, mobile is hurting everyone other than data providers and app developers.

Regardless, in trying to keep up with the technology and stay a step ahead of any competition, I need to figure out how to provide this app, and at the same time, not lose money.

My sites only make money through ads. We provide news, message boards, classifieds, personals, and a few other localized features, so we rely on a high amount of traffic to view the ads and pay the bills. The content is highly used, and we could easily provide the data in an app. The problem is that there's simply not enough screen to provide the data along with ads.

And as I said earlier, even if we did find a way to squeeze in an ad, they're worth about 1/10th of an ad on a desktop. So, at best, if we made $5,000 on a website, but then everyone suddenly went to mobile, we'd make $500 for the exact same content.

So to answer your last statement, I think we have a fair understanding of the user, and deliver a useful "product" (ie, content). What we don't know, though, is how to make money on it in a mobile environment. Ads are virtually worthless, and we can't expect the user to pay for an app. So what's the third or fourth option that I'm not seeing?

One point you are maybe overlooking is brand loyalty. If a user likes your service they will install your app. If you do not have an app they may install one from a competitor and end up using their service across all devices.

An app may be seen as a "loss leader" but I'm not sure it's a factor we can ignore.

Mack.

Given the industry reports for device use, ignore mobile at your own peril. Mobile also includes tablets... a larger screen. It is a pain to deliver different layout (hence code in fluid design), but if your regular visitor is on the commuter (bus or train, etc.) and has a yen to visit... that app makes it easier.