Crypto and Mobile in 2022 Series Part 5: Crypto app users are sticky and highly engaged
Tiahn Wetzler, Director, Content & Insights, Adjust, Apr 19, 2022.
As the crypto space on mobile continues to grow, we’re continuing to dig into the data. In celebration of our recent Fintech Deep Dive: Digital currencies playbook, we’re taking a closer look at some of the key metrics highlighted and providing some fresh, deeper insights on how mobile marketers, advertisers, and developers can make the most of this dynamic, expanding vertical.
In Part 4 of this series, we examined the number of crypto apps present across the app stores, and looked at the performance of downloads, installs, and sessions globally and regionally. In this installment, it’s retention, stickiness, and partners per app that we’re shining a spotlight on.
Interest and competition in the vertical are increasing, making metrics like retention and stickiness more important than ever — it’s not just about attracting users to your app; it’s about ensuring that the experience stands out from the competition and encourages users to remain engaged long enough to prove ROI. Adjust data shows that crypto apps are already doing an impressive job in this area.
Retention rates and the top crypto apps
Working with Apptopia, we pulled out the top apps in the crypto vertical for 2020 and 2021. A few standouts emerge, but a considerable shift from year-to-year also takes place, with Binance taking the top spot, and players like CoinDCX and MetaMask entering the top 10 for the first time
Perhaps the most interesting way to assess the performance of these apps regarding engagement metrics is to compare them with their closest established counterparts — stock trading apps. Retention rates for crypto apps, for example, performed steadily higher than stock trading apps in Q3 and Q4 of 2021. In Q3, for example, crypto app retention is 32% on day 1, while stock trading comes in with a median of 19%. By day 7, crypto apps are still retaining 24% of users compared to stock trading’s 13%, on day 14 it’s 19% vs. 12%, and by day 30, 18% vs. 9%. This represents a huge opportunity for crypto app marketers. The high retention rates mean there are plenty of opportunities to monetize users throughout the 30 day period. Considering these benchmarks, LTV should definitely be a KPI.
As retention rates are performing exceptionally well for the crypto vertical, it’s interesting to examine how many partners the average crypto app is working with to acquire these users. Interestingly, crypto apps work with significantly fewer partners than stock trading and payment apps, but with a higher number than banking apps. Considering the high LTV shown by crypto users, working with a somewhat smaller number of partners who successfully find this niche audience is an impactful strategic approach.
Let’s look at crypto app stickiness
In terms of stickiness, crypto app users also significantly outperform their stock trading counterparts. Crypto stickiness was high throughout all of 2021, reaching its peak in Q4 with a ratio of 35% — a number we predict will keep growing.Given that stock trading’s height (also in Q4) is 23%, the nature of crypto users as distinct from the rest of fintech is once again underlined.
In many ways, crypto is starting to emerge as a standalone vertical — in a similar vein to hyper casual, which is now almost completely distinguishable from the remainder of the gaming vertical. What does this mean for marketers?It’s time to regard crypto as an individual vertical in its own right. Crypto has a unique and niche user base with unique and niche user needs. And Adjust data shows that if app marketers and developers can hit the right notes strategically, they can create a high-value, loyal user base.
Crypto app stickiness is also impressive across all key regions tracked by Adjust, with APAC coming in as high as 36% for Q4 of 2021. The lowest performer for the same time period was LATAM at 29%, a figure that shows how impressive crypto stickiness is — the median for fintech is 21% and sits at 19% for the entire app industry.
Growing a crypto app in 2022
In addition to understanding the ebbs and flows of interest in cryptocurrencies, success in the digital asset/crypto space on apps is dependent on multiple key factors.
When building your strategy, ensure that you pay attention to advertising compliance requirements, as restrictions on crypto ads are still regulated on a jurisdictional basis. We also recommend experimenting with creatives. Many brands have seen success from embracing bold, brash, and confident images as harbingers of the future of finance.
While sticking to the crypto niche is a great way to achieve the results we’ve explored throughout this series, don’t shy away from reaching out to find new audiences as well. Even if you focus 95% of budget on catering to safe crypto segments, a campaign that allocates 5% to discovery could also prove lucrative. People are more interested than ever in the crypto space, and making it approachable for newbies can pay off. A good example is how large exchanges such as FTX and Crypto.com have made major investments in brand awareness by pursuing fans of professional sports, especially in the U.S.
For more tips, tricks, and insights on how to break into the world of crypto app marketing, or how to grow your already existing app in this space, be sure to check out our Fintech Deep Dive: Digital currencies playbook.
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