Journable · B2C · AI calorie counter app
Start with cheap Google install ads, $10-15 a day, filled with stock images and videos
Gives Google baseline install costs to build on; no numbers given
Workedpaid-search
What they did
Step 2: launch app install campaigns first to 'feed the algorithm' and get baseline CPI and CPM for the market. Fill every asset slot: 5 headlines, 5 descriptions, up to 20 images and 20 videos; stock images and videos are fine for a proof of concept. Start at about $10-15/day and ramp up. Ads run across Google's network (Play Store, Search, YouTube, Display, Discover); Play Store ads on searches like 'calorie counter' are the top performer.
What happened
Play Store ads became their 'bread and butter'; very likely #1 for 'calorie tracker' searches on Play Store
- Stage
- Growth (Paid growth start)
- Effort
- Main channel; ~$500K all-time Google Ads spend
“Google ads app campaigns require 10 pieces of copy, so five headlines, five descriptions, and then up to 20 images and 20 videos.”
“Use stock images and stock videos. Yeah, highly recommended, just flood the campaign with assets and let Google's algorithm do the do the heavy lifting.”
“So, this is our highest performer, our Play Store ad.”
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More from this episode
- Journable: Launch on Product Hunt and treat the first paying users as proofFront page; a couple hundred installs and 2 subscribers, enough to validate
- Journable: Advertise to Android users first, since iOS ads cost about 4x moreAndroid converted as well as iOS and was far cheaper; now ~80% of revenue
- Journable: Before running Google ads, send installs, paywall views, trials and purchase values to GoogleLets Google optimize delivery on real purchases; no separate numbers
- Journable: Test wildly different ad images and videos, and upgrade your Play Store screenshotsFounder says the store listing is where most of the win is; no numbers
- Journable: Switch to target cost-per-trial ads with a daily budget 10x that costRule of thumb: Google needs 10 target events a day to optimize
- Journable: Raise ad budgets only as paywall and price tests lift conversion~$500K spent on Google ads for about the same attributed revenue
- Journable: Make logging food as simple as typing a sentence or snapping a photoFounder says simplicity is what makes the app valuable; no numbers