Are you having trouble keeping people engaged with your mobile app? If so, you’re far from alone.
Believe it or not, there are nearly 2 million mobile apps on the Apple App Store and a slightly overlapping 3 million on the Google Play Store. Couple this with the fact that most people have over 80 apps on their smartphones, and it’s not hard to see why keeping users engaged is challenging for businesses across all industries.
But it turns out that there’s a great way to keep people interested in your app long after they click the download button. The strategy we will be discussing today is mobile app user segmentation.
Today, we will share with you what this means and how it can help. We will cover some actionable techniques and tools so you can improve your app retention rate and overall engagement.
Let’s dive in!
What is Mobile App User Segmentation?
Put simply, user segmentation is the process of organizing your app users into smaller groups based on specific characteristics. These could be things like their behavior, preferences, or how they use your app.
Here’s how Investopedia describes it:
Instead of treating everyone who downloads your app the same way, you can create focused groups of users who have things in common. When done correctly, it’s the best way to make sure each person can see content and offers that resonate with their needs.
The reason this strategy matters so much is that research shows that 76% of users are more likely to engage with an offer when it’s personalized to their needs. In other words, if you’re showing the same content, sending identical push notifications, or displaying the same offers to everyone, you’re missing out on a pretty big opportunity to connect with your audience.
Here’s an example so you can see how you can use this to your advantage.
Imagine you have a fitness app. Some of your users might be complete beginners looking for basic workout routines, while others could be experienced athletes seeking advanced training programs. Would it make sense to send them both the same workout recommendations? Of course not!
By segmenting these users into different groups, you can:
- Send beginners entry-level workouts that won’t overwhelm them
- Offer advanced users more challenging routines
- Customize nutrition advice based on fitness goals
- Adjust push notification frequency based on user preferences
When people see things that align with their goals, they’re far more likely to check back in with your app, which means more long-term engagement.
Benefits of Mobile App User Segmentation
Now that you understand what user segmentation is, let’s talk about why it’s worth your time and effort to implement it.
The benefits of segmenting your mobile app users are pretty impressive, and I’ve seen businesses transform their apps just by getting this right.
Here are a few key advantages you can expect:
- Higher Engagement Rates – When users see content and app features that actually matter to them, they’re naturally more likely to engage with your app. It’s that simple. Instead of hoping something sticks, you’re delivering exactly what each user wants to see.
- Better Retention Rates – Research shows that apps using segmentation see up to a 3x improvement in user retention. Why? Because people stick around when they feel like an app understands their needs.
- Increased Revenue – When you target the right users with the right offers at the right time, your conversion rates go up. Whether you’re monetizing through in-app purchases, subscriptions, or ads, segmentation helps you show people what they’re most likely to buy.
- More Effective Marketing – Instead of throwing money at broad marketing campaigns, you can focus your budget on specific user groups. This means lower acquisition costs and better returns on your marketing investment.
- Improved User Experience – when users get personalized content and recommendations, their experience with your app naturally improves. This leads to better reviews and user feedback, as well as more word-of-mouth referrals and organic growth for your app.
- Data-Driven Decision Making – By segmenting your users, you’ll get clear insights into how different groups interact with your app. This information can help you make decisions about your app and products.
The best part is that these benefits stack up over time. As you gather more data and refine your segments, your ability to serve each user group gets better and better.
Here’s what it will ultimately lead to:
Best Practices for Mobile App User Segmentation
You now understand what segmentation is and why it matters, but how do you actually implement it effectively? Let’s break down the actionable strategies that will help you succeed.
Start with User Behavior Data
The most valuable information you can collect is how people actually use your app. This means tracking things like:
- Which features do they use most often?
- How long do they spend in your app?
- What actions do they take (or don’t take)?
- When do they typically open your app?
- What triggers them to make purchases?
This data is super important because behavior data tells you what users actually do, not just what they say they’ll do. This gives you a much clearer picture of how to group your users effectively.
For instance, if you notice that a group of users always opens your app first thing in the morning, you might want to create an “Early Bird” segment that receives push notifications with their daily recommendations right when they wake up.
Get Your Timing Right
Timing is everything when it comes to app engagement. I’ve seen too many businesses send notifications and updates at random times, hoping something will stick. That’s more like guesswork as opposed to a solid strategy.
Instead, use your segmentation data to understand when different user groups are most likely to engage with your app. For example:
- Some users might check your app during their lunch break
- Others might be most active in the evening
- Weekend users might have completely different patterns than weekday users
The key is to track when each segment is most active and align your communications with these patterns. This way, you’re reaching out when users are most likely to respond, not when they’re busy or sleeping.
If you’re wondering how effective this is, here’s something to consider: According to PushEngage, when an app push is sent at the right time, it gets 40% more clicks.
Focus on Value-Based Segments
Here’s something I see a lot of app owners get wrong: they focus too much on basic demographics and not enough on what actually matters – the value users get from their app.
Knowing someone’s age or location isn’t nearly as important as understanding what they want to achieve with your app.
Let’s break this down with some examples:
For a fitness app:
- Goal-focused users (want to lose weight, build muscle, etc.)
- Workout preference (home workouts vs. gym routines)
- Fitness level (beginner, intermediate, advanced)
For a shopping app:
- Discount hunters vs. premium shoppers
- Category preferences (electronics, fashion, home goods)
- Shopping frequency (weekly, monthly, occasional)
When you segment based on value, you can create much more meaningful experiences that keep users coming back for more.
I suggest sending out surveys to your most active users to understand what they value most about your app. Use this information to build detailed buyer personas that represent each major segment of your user base. This way, you’ll have a clear picture of who you’re targeting and what they need from your app.
If you want to see this strategy in practice, check out this buyer persona:
Use the Right Tools
Having the right tools makes segmentation much easier and more effective. Without them, you’ll struggle to collect the data you need and probably miss opportunities to connect with your users.
Here are the types of tools you should consider adding to your tech stack:
- Analytics Tools – You need a way to track user behavior, understand patterns, and measure the success of your segments. Look for tools that can help you collect and analyze user data in real time. This will help you decode your traffic and figure out how to start segmenting users.
- Customer Engagement Platforms – These platforms help you act on your segmentation by sending targeted messages, push notifications, and in-app content to different user groups.
- A/B Testing Tools – Testing is crucial for segmentation. Make sure you have a way to A/B test different pages and approaches so you can measure which ones work best for each segment.
- Customer Data Platforms (CDPs) – These help you collect and unify user data from multiple sources, giving you a complete picture of your users and their behaviors.
Remember, you don’t need to invest in everything at once. My advice here is to start with the basics and add more tools as your app grows and your segmentation needs become more complex.
Make Your Segments Actionable
Having great segments doesn’t mean anything if you can’t actually do something with them. I’ve seen too many businesses create detailed user segments that just sit there collecting dust.
Instead of a vague segment like “active users,” try something specific like:
- Users who haven’t opened the app in 7 days
- Users who start but never complete purchases
- Users who use specific features regularly
- Users who only engage with certain types of content
See the difference? These segments give you clear direction on what actions to take.
For example, if you know someone hasn’t opened your app in a week, you can send them a personalized reminder with content they’ve enjoyed in the past. Or, if you notice users abandoning their shopping carts, you can create targeted offers to bring them back.
Final Thoughts
As you can probably tell by now, mobile app user segmentation is more important now than ever before. There are just so many different products out there, and people expect the ones they engage with to focus on personalization.
The strategies we outlined today will help you start the process of segmenting your business. Take things one step at a time, and make sure you’re making changes based on concrete data.
You’ll start to see more people sticking with your app longer than they did before. I highly suggest pulling this data now so you have something to compare it to after you start segmenting.
When done correctly, this is one of the best ways to improve your app and dramatically improve retention and engagement.
Author Bio
Syed Balkhi is the founder of WPBeginner, the largest free WordPress resource site. With over 10 years of experience, he’s the leading WordPress expert in the industry. You can learn more about Syed and his portfolio of companies by following him on his social media networks.