Perplexity · B2C · AI search app
Time your biggest ad push with good news, like a top-100 list
Guest calls it smart; no results shared
Unknownpaid-socialpr-launch
What they did
Perplexity started paid campaigns in May 2024 and pushed its campaign to a peak in September-October 2025, the same time it made the top 100 AI app list, pairing paid ads with the good news.
- Stage
- Scale (scaled app)
Related topics
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More from this episode
- Offer a one-time purchase under $5 to people who skip the paywall1-2 one-time sales a day on one app; no data on later subscriptions
- Hily: End onboarding with a $3 one-time profile boost, not a subscription paywallSaid to lead payers into subscriptions later; no numbers shared
- Show people searching one keyword a store page with matching screenshotsAbout $200 extra within 2-3 days; app already ranked well for the keyword
- Grow with only App Store search and Apple Ads, no other channelsHost says it achieved 'a lot of success'; no numbers
- Advertise in one less crowded country like Brazil or Thailand, not the USHost says clients did well; no numbers
- SocialPeta: Start free, then add small creators, Product Hunt, and paid ads once funded
- Film ads split-screen, with a creator on the top or bottom halfUsed by ~80% of AI app ads in ad-tracking data; no performance numbers
- Mention making money or cash rewards in your adsGuest says these ads perform well in games and AI apps; no numbers
- Run Google search ads that open a web signup, not the App StoreMost AI chat apps doing web-to-app use Google; no performance numbers
- BetterMe: Send ad clicks to a web quiz that builds a plan, then to the appCalled the typical web-to-app example; no numbers
- Perplexity: Target the US first, then big cheaper markets like India and BrazilUS, India and Brazil were its top ad regions; no results shared
- Perplexity: Open ads with 'I deleted ChatGPT, Claude and Gemini' to pitch one appAmong its top-ranked creatives; no numbers
- Vidia: Open ads with a strange first 3 seconds, then show the app in useAmong its top creatives; guest expects high CTR, no numbers
- Canva: Make holiday ads, like Easter or St. Patrick's Day, that show the productShown as top creatives; no numbers