Mobile Marketing Glossary: A Comprehensive List of Terms You Need to Know
By: Andrea Knezovic
Tags: Mobile Marketing Tips, Glossary, Mobile Marketing, Mobile Apps, Marketing Tips

ARPDAU, CPC, MAU, DAU, ASO… No, I’m not having a stroke, I’m just listing some terms from our mobile marketing glossary. Do you know what all of them mean?

If you work or have an interest in mobile marketing, you hear many technical terms thrown around. As new mobile marketing practices emerge, we need a way to effectively describe and communicate them. That’s why new words and terms are being invented all the time.

That’s all fine and dandy, but the challenge is keeping up with mobile marketing terminology. Let’s be honest, it can get quite confusing, no matter how knowledgeable you are. That’s why you need to go over this mobile marketing glossary. Nobody wants to look stupid in front of a coworker or in a business meeting.

If you’re a beginner and just getting into mobile marketing, this glossary is the perfect cheat sheet. Read it, learn it, and master it because you’re going to need it.

If you’re an expert in the field, you probably know many of these terms. Congratulations! But don’t be so quick to dismiss it. It’s always a good idea to refresh your memory. It will help you stay on top of your game. And who knows, perhaps you’ll find a couple of mobile marketing terms you’re not familiar with?

This mobile marketing glossary will be helpful to you regardless of your level of expertise. So, let’s take a deep dive into the mysterious and often confusing world of mobile marketing terminology. Once we’re done, you’ll know them like the back of your hand!

A/B Testing

Also known as split testing. A process of comparing two variants.

Ad Campaign

A set of advertisement messages that have a common idea and goal.

App Monetization

Making money from a mobile app through different techniques. Find out how to choose an app monetization platform here.

App Personalization

A process of personalizing the app experience in order to meet the needs of specific groups of users.

You can learn more about mobile app personalization here.

ARPU

A ratio of average revenue per user.

ARPDAU

A ration of average revenue per daily active user. Find out more about ARPU and ARPDAU here.

ASO

Stands for App store optimization. A process of optimizing the app store page to increase the visibility of an app.

If you want to learn more about app store optimization, check out our simple ASO guide.

Backlinks

Inbound links to a webpage.

Bounce Rate

Percentage of website visitors who leave the site after viewing only one page.

Churn Rate

A percentage of users who discontinued using an app.

Chatbot

A piece of AI software engaged with a real person in a mimicked conversation.

Click to Call

Mobile ads created with the goal of getting people to call a business.

CPA

Stands for cost per acquisition. It’s a metric that calculates the cost for a specific action user takes.

CPC

Stands for cost per click. The cost of one ad click in a pay-per-click campaign.

CPCV

Stands for cost per completed view. It measures the cost of one completed video view.

CPE

Stands for cost per engagement. It measures how much you pay when a user engages with an ad.

CPI

Stands for cost per install. It measures the cost of one install of a mobile app.

CTA

Stands for call to action. It is a piece of content (text, image, etc.) that encourages a user to take a specific action.

CTR

Stands for click-through rate. It is a ratio of users who click on an ad to the number of impressions (times an ad is shown).

Conversion

A conversion happens when the user completes a desired goal or takes a specific action. Usually, it’s a response to a CTA.

CPM

Stands for cost per mile. It measures how much one thousand ad clicks or views cost.

CR

Stands for conversion rate. It is the number of users who have taken a desired action.

CRO

Stands for conversion rate optimization. It is a process of increasing conversions through different methods and strategies.

Cohort Analysis

A method of studying the behavior of groups of similar users (cohorts).

DAU

Stands for daily active users. It is the percentage of unique daily users that visit a website or use an app.

Engagement Rate

It measures how much users engage with a piece of content.ž

Funnel

It is a model used in marketing that describes an assumed journey a customer takes from awareness to purchase.

Geo-conquesting

A location-based mobile marketing technique of targeting users who are in near proximity of your competitor’s location.

Geo-fencing

A location-based mobile marketing technique of setting a virtual fence around a desired location with the goal of targeting users who enter it.

Geo-targeting

A subdomain of geo-fencing. It is a technique of targeting users based on their location and demographics.

Geo-location

A process of identifying a device’s geographic location.

Impressions

The number of times an ad has been shown to the target audience, regardless of whether the users clicked on it or not.

IAP

Stands for in-app purchase. It describes a product or feature a user buys inside the app.

In-app Ads

A type of ads served inside mobile apps.

In-app Message

A type of message or notification that is displayed inside a mobile app.

Influencer

An individual who has authority in their field, great connection with their audience, and can influence people’s purchasing decisions.

Interstitial Ads

A popular type of full-screen ad format.

Incent Traffic

A type of traffic where users receive a reward for completing an action like installing an app.

Keywords

One of the key parts of search engine optimization. Keywords are the phrases people use to conduct a search.

KPI

Stands for key performance indicator. It measures a company’s progress towards achieving the desired goals.

Landing Page

A standalone web page created with the goal of conversions.

LTV

Stands for lifetime value. It is a metric that shows you revenue that each user got you in the entire lifetime of using the app.

Location-based Mobile Marketing

A marketing strategy that targets mobile users based on their geographic location using different techniques like geotargeting and geo-conquesting.

You can learn more about location-based marketing here.

MAU

Stands for monthly active users. It is a percentage of unique monthly users that visit a website or use an app.

Native App

An app that is created for use on a specific platform or device.

Non-incent Traffic

It is organic traffic achieved by advertising.

Onboarding

It is a process used to get new users familiar with a mobile app.

Organic Traffic

It is a type of non-paid traffic that comes from search engines.

PPC

Stands for pay-per-click. A type of advertising where you pay every time a user clicks on your ad.

Programmatic Media Buying

Use of automation when purchasing ads.

Push Notifications

A pop-up message from an app that appears on the user’s mobile device.

QR Code

A barcode that is scannable with mobile devices.

ROI

Stands for return on investment. It measures the net profit of an investment relative to the amount of money that was invested.

Reach

The number of users who have seen an ad.

Remarketing

A strategy of showing ads to users who have visited your website previously.

Retention Rate

It shows you how many users return to your app after installing it. Read about why you need to track user retention in mobile apps and games here.

Segmentation

The process of diving users into groups based on similar characteristics.

SEO

Stands for search engine optimization. It’s the process of optimizing a website with the goal of getting more organic traffic.

Session Intervals

The amount of time that passes between two app sessions.

Session Length

The amount of time a user spends using the app.

Targeting

It refers to selecting a group of people you want to reach with your marketing efforts.

Time of Inactivity

The amount of time that has passed from the user’s last interaction with an app.

UX

Stands for user experience. It refers to the experience a user has while using your app or website.

User Acquisition

The process of acquiring new users on a platform like an app or website.

To Summarize

Hopefully, now you have a much better grasp of mobile marketing terminology. Bookmark it and come back to it whenever you need. Our memory is a tricky thing, so it’s always good to have a reminder.

Also, we’ll keep updating our mobile marketing glossary with new terms, so check in from time to time to get the new updates.

Have we missed any important marketing terms? Let us know! If you need more clarification on a specific term you find hard to understand, reach out to us in the comments below!

Read More About Mobile Marketing

About Udonis:

In 2018 & 2019, Udonis Inc. served over 14.1 billion ads & acquired over 50 million users for mobile apps & games. We’re recognized as a leading mobile marketing agency by 5 major marketing review firms. We helped over 20 mobile apps & games reach the top charts. Want to know how we make it look so effortless? Meet us to find out.