‘Cohortization is key. If you don’t do that, it’s gross injustice to your acquisition‘

At the e4m Screenage Conference 2024, the session titled "Winning with ASO" delved into strategies for making apps stand out in the crowded app marketplace. Moderated by Dimpy Yadav, Head of Strategy - Digital at Mindshare India, the fireside chat featured Prabhakar Tiwari, Chief Growth Officer of Angel One, who shared insights from his journey in transforming Angel One into one of India’s top fintech apps.

The session began with Yadav highlighting Angel One’s significant achievements under Tiwari’s leadership. In response, Tiwari acknowledged the complexities of scaling in the fintech space. “Install is very cheap... People can install anything,” he remarked, underlining that visibility and engagement metrics were the true indicators of success.
He detailed how Angel One shifted its focus to meaningful metrics, saying, “The journey has always been looking at cost-to-revenue ratio, looking at certain metrics very, very closely. Angel One has always been a trusted brand, which is very important in the financial services world and in the fintech world.”

Tiwari shared that when he joined Angel One, the company was acquiring 10,000 customers per month in the B2C segment. Today, this number has grown to 10 lakh customers monthly. He attributed this remarkable growth to a focused approach on optimizing keyword strategies, app titles, app store optimization, and retention. The emphasis, he explained, was on metrics like engagement and retention percentages, which are prioritized by app store algorithms.

He also emphasized the role of broader marketing efforts. According to Tiwari, “Discoverability plays a huge role. One should never see the investment on television or other digital media in isolation to what is happening in app installs. Attribution may not always be clear, but one should always attempt to join the dots and see how brand-building efforts contribute to app performance.”

When asked about the role of AI in app store optimization, Tiwari underlined its importance in streamlining processes and enhancing performance. “AI has a huge role to play because even things like targeting, looking at cohorts, and segmentation require AI. Cohortization is very important. If you do not do that, you’re doing a gross injustice to your entire acquisition process,” he explained.

He also outlined the specific applications of AI by explaining that in app store optimization, tasks like keyword selection, description crafting, A/B testing, and multivariate testing become significantly streamlined through AI. He shared, “You can send blended signals—like login percentages, fund additions, or account openings in a fintech context—that improve conversion rates.”

“For example, if someone is in a low-bandwidth area in the South versus a good bandwidth area in a Tier-1 city in the North, their journey can be tailored much faster with AI,” he said, highlighting how personalization can be powered by AI. However, he cautioned that implementing such systems requires significant investment in data infrastructure, collaboration across teams, and the right tools.

The conversation then shifted to the importance of creating a data-driven ecosystem to build advanced solutions that drive business objectives. Responding to Yadav’s question on aligning ROI with effective decision-making, he stressed, "Everybody's ROI-minded—that’s a given. Businesses want to understand cost drivers, revenue generators, and profits. Often, organizations avoid analyzing data objectively, but data-centric organizations have a huge advantage."

He elaborated on how his team approached significant investments like becoming an associate sponsor for the IPL. "We had to quickly implement analytics and measurement systems to evaluate incremental uplift. It's not just about on-ground investments but also on-air and digital spends. Using these tools, we could uniquely attribute performance metrics, from acquisition funnels to retention strategies," he shared.

Tiwari highlighted that embracing data-driven campaigns requires commitment, often avoided by marketers. “Marketers enjoy the thrill of a Disney-like campaign but tend to shy away from metrics. That’s not the case in our organization. We challenge ourselves, and while not everything works, the spirit of experimentation keeps us pushing boundaries.”

In his closing remarks, he emphasized on the importance of focusing on user value. “Winning in the app environment means continually adding value to your users. Engagement and retention are critical metrics—not just for your organization but also for app store algorithms that rank your app. Avoid operating with a leaky bucket; retention and increment metrics are key. If you consistently focus on adding value, you’ll succeed in the app ecosystem,” he concluded.