Google App
campaigns

How Google App campaigns work

Google App campaigns are fully automated campaigns for one purpose: getting people to install or use your mobile app. You don't choose keywords or placements. Instead, you supply text, images and videos, set a budget and a target, and Google shows ads across Search, Google Play, YouTube, Discover and thousands of partner apps and sites. The system learns which combinations lead to the result you asked for.

That last part is the important one. If you ask for installs, you'll get installs, and many of them from people who never open the app again. If you ask for in-app actions such as a first order, a booking or a subscription, Google looks for people who are more likely to do that. It costs more per install and much less per customer.

Who should run App campaigns

Most small businesses in Canada don't need an app. A fast mobile website with online booking or ordering does the same job without forcing anyone to download anything. App campaigns make sense for:

• Ordering apps for restaurant groups, cafes or delivery businesses with frequent repeat orders.
• Booking apps for fitness studios, salons or clinics with loyal regulars.
• Subscription apps and SaaS products where the app is the product.
• Startups whose growth depends on active users.

If your app gets opened twice a year, money is usually better spent on Search campaigns pointing to your website.

Tracking that makes or breaks the campaign

App campaigns depend on in-app events coming back to Google Ads. For Android, that usually means Firebase linked to your Google Ads account. Many apps use a mobile measurement partner instead, which also covers iOS. Either way, I make sure key events are named clearly, fire once, and carry values where it makes sense. Without this, bidding can only aim at installs.

iOS adds a layer of difficulty, because Apple's privacy framework limits user-level tracking. Results on iPhone are often modelled or aggregated. I explain these limits in reports rather than pretending the numbers are exact.

Assets and the store listing

Google mixes your assets into ads for each placement, so variety matters: several headlines, descriptions, landscape and portrait images, and short videos. Video is especially important because YouTube and in-app video placements carry a lot of the volume. Then there's the store listing itself. If the screenshots are outdated or reviews mention bugs nobody fixed, ads will bring visitors who don't install. I review the listing before launch and give you a short list of fixes.

For apps used in Quebec, store listings and ad text are expected in French. I run app campaigns in English only, so French listings and French-language campaigns would be handled by your own team.

Budget and learning

App campaigns need data to learn. Google generally recommends a daily budget that allows a reasonable number of installs or events per day, and that adds up quickly for action-based bidding. During the first couple of weeks I avoid big changes, because each one restarts learning. After that, I shift bidding toward value once enough in-app events come through.

Reading results without fooling yourself

Installs are the vanity number of app marketing. I track how many installers open the app again after a week, how many make a first order or booking, and what those users spend over the following months. If a cheaper source of installs brings users who never come back, it gets less budget even though its cost per install looks great. These numbers also feed back into your product decisions, because a weak onboarding screen shows up in the data long before it shows up in reviews.

What I need from you

Access to Google Ads, the app's analytics (Firebase or your partner), the store listings, and a developer who can add or fix events if needed. I handle the campaign side, setup at $650 and management from $750 a month. For a broader view of which campaign types fit your business, start from the Google Ads services page, or check end-to-end analytics if you want to connect app data with sales.