Report also sheds light on differences between paid and organic installs, noting that app marketing is fast becoming a pay-to-play game as marketers build up paid activities

The outbreak of COVID-19 has upended economies throughout the world, but one in particular has shown extraordinary resilience: the App Economy. Global SaaS company Adjust’s annual App Trends 2020 report, which looks at long-term trends based on data from 2019, includes valuable insights into how COVID-19 has affected the app economy by comparing Q1 2019 and Q1 2020 figures.

The data shows that many app verticals are seeing increases in sessions and installs in 2020, most notably in the Business, Food & Drink, and Gaming verticals:

• With the pandemic forcing the majority of employees to work remotely, it’s no surprise that Business apps have seen a huge rise in sessions (up 105% from Q1 2019) and installs (up 70%). Revenue events are also up 75%, as users opt for premium versions to help ease the transition to working from home.
• As many restaurants are forced to turn to takeout-only, Food & Drink apps also saw a significant increase in sessions — up 73% on this time last year, while installs increased by 21%.
• Gaming has also seen a large uptick in installs, as those sheltering-in-place seek entertainment. In the last week of March, the vertical saw an 132% increase in the number of installs compared to last year. In total, Gaming apps saw a 47% increase in sessions and 75% increase in installs in Q1 2020 compared to Q1 2019.

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“Beyond these increases in installs and sessions, the report shows little evidence to suggest that there’s been a fundamental shift in user behavior post-install,” said Paul H. Müller, co-founder and CTO of Adjust. “Users are still taking the same actions in-app, such as averaging a little above two sessions a day, to churning at predictable points in the customer journey.”

The report also sheds light on differences between paid and organic installs, noting that app marketing is fast becoming a pay-to-play game — as the market becomes increasingly competitive. The number of installs from paid sources amounted to 30% of total installs in 2019, up from 24% in 2018.

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Additionally, the report explores when users typically engage with app verticals throughout the day, offering insights into peak times and the windows of opportunity for reactivation campaigns:

• E-commerce apps see a peak of sessions both at lunchtime, between noon and 2 p.m., and again in the evening, with sessions between 7 and 10 p.m. accounting for a quarter of their daily total. Similarly, Food & Drink apps see a spike in use between 5 and 8 p.m., accounting for 31% of their total daily sessions.
• On the other hand, many Gaming apps don’t see significant shifts in use throughout the day. Casual game activity increases between 12 and 4 p.m., but it’s a modest jump of only 15%. Meanwhile, Mid-core games rise from very early in the morning (5 a.m.) to peak at 1 p.m.

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