9 proven CRO strategies to boost app revenue in 2025 with Steve Young

As part of our Paddle Happy Hour series, we spoke to Steve Young, founder of app marketing agency App Masters to talk all things CRO for app growth.

Steve and Paddle's Lucas Lovell break things down into 9 core strategies. We've detailed them below or watch the full webinar here.

Strategy 1: Optimize the first-time user experience (FTUE) 

When it comes to driving app purchases, first impressions matter – a lot.

Roughly 60% of app purchases occur during the user's very first session.

That means your FTUE is make-or-break for conversions. The most successful apps use their precious few onboarding screens to showcase their core value prop and highlight benefits, not just features.

Users don't buy products; they buy into better versions of themselves. Show them what that looks like and you'll have their attention.

Implementation tips

• A/B test different onboarding flows to see what resonates.
• Emphasize outcomes and user goals; show them what success looks like.
• Longer, more informative FTUEs work well for some categories like education and fitness apps. Headway saw strong conversions with an extended onboarding.

Strategy 2: Leverage your homepage 

Your app's homepage is the second most common purchase location and a powerful lever for conversions. 

The goal is to make it seamless for high-intent users to find and tap your paywall or subscription CTA.

At the same time, you want to showcase your app's unique selling proposition and build credibility and urgency with persuasive social proof. Do it right and your homepage becomes a 24/7 sales machine.

Implementation tips

• Experiment with different paywall CTAs and icons to see what gets noticed.
• Feature glowing user reviews or key usage stats prominently.
• Make sure the paywall is easily accessible, not buried in settings.

Strategy 3: Guide users with intentional flows 

The best apps don't just throw new users into the deep end and hope for the best. They guide them with intentional flows and interactive experiences that feel customized and valuable.

The key is to give each step in the user journey a clear purpose.

Gather key information gradually and use it to personalize the experience and dynamically highlight relevant features and benefits. If you get this stage right, users will become invested in your app before they see a paywall.

Implementation tips

• Map out key activation points in the user journey - where can you provide guidance?
• Ask questions that will help you understand the user's needs and goals.
• Dynamically surface content, features, and offers based on user input.
• Consider an interactive walk-through or product tour for complex apps.

Strategy 4: Optimize your paywall CTAs

Your call-to-action buttons are the "moment of truth" – the final step between a prospect and a new customer.

How you phrase them matters a lot. The highest-converting CTAs are crystal clear, low on friction, and heavy on benefits and outcomes.

"Start My Free Trial" beats "Submit" every day of the week.

People want to know what they're going to get, not what they have to do.

Implementation tips

• A/B test different CTA phrasing to see what connects.
• Avoid generic terms like "Subscribe" that imply commitment.
• Get specific about what the user will gain with active, benefit-driven CTAs.
• Consider different CTAs for iOS vs Android if data shows a clear preference.

Strategy 5: Turn blog posts into growth engines

Every app needs a steady stream of high-quality leads to grow.

One often overlooked channel is content marketing – specifically, blog posts. A single, well-crafted article on a topic relevant to your app can rank in search, drive targeted traffic, and siphon users into your onboarding funnel for months or even years. The key is to address high-intent informational queries with genuinely useful content and then artfully pitch your app as the ideal solution. Rinse and repeat for growth on autopilot.

Implementation tips

• Identify common questions your prospects have and address them with blog posts.
• Use keyword research to find high-intent, informational queries relevant to your app.
• Include prominent CTAs in each post driving to an app install or your paywall.
• Add social proof like app reviews, user results, or press mentions to build credibility.
  

Strategy 6: Create high-converting landing pages

A dedicated, conversion-focused landing page can transform ice-cold ad traffic into qualified prospects and loyal users.

The key is message matching – your ad creative and landing page headline should align like a key in a lock. From there, it's all about articulating benefits, surfacing social proof, and reducing friction on the way to your CTA.

Implementation tips

• Echo ad phrasing and keywords in your landing page headline.
• Articulate a clear, quantified benefit in the subheadline.
• Add ratings, reviews, or key social proof points near the top.
• Make pricing and current promos/discounts crystal clear.
• Have a strong, mobile-friendly CTA above the fold.

Strategy 7: Test value-based pricing strategies

Pricing is part art, part science. Get it right and you'll boost conversions and revenue. Get it wrong and even your most compelling offer can fall flat. One of the most powerful pricing strategies is anchoring – providing a "decoy" option that makes your core offer look like a no-brainer by comparison. Another is using pricing tiers to spur upgrades and filter your user base. Done well, value-based pricing is a profit multiplier.

Implementation tips

• If using 3 tiers, make the middle option a clear best value to anchor the user there.
• Offer a free trial on the cadence with the most signups/highest LTV (often annual).
• Study historical data to determine your most profitable customer cohorts and price to attract them.
• Don't be afraid to experiment with decoy prices 10-20% higher than your target option.

Strategy 8: Drive purchases with web2app funnels

While in-app purchases and getting customers to buy in the app stores will always be important, savvy app marketers are increasingly leveraging web-based checkouts to drive purchases, especially for subscription offerings.

Why? More pricing flexibility, better data, and freedom from high app store fees and restrictions. The key is to provide a seamless experience that starts on the web but ends in your app.

Implementation tips

• Use email/password signup vs Apple/Google login so the account ports between web and app.
• Provide a magic link or similar to seamlessly direct web purchasers into the app.
• Experiment with acquisition funnels that begin on web and end in the app.
• Leverage web purchasing to gather declared data for personalization and cohort analysis.

Strategy 9: Localize and optimize the checkout experience

You've nurtured a prospect all the way to the point of purchase. The last thing you want is an off-putting checkout experience that derails the sale.

With potential customers coming from all over the world, that means localizing your checkout flow as much as possible.

Think local language, local currency, and local payment methods like Alipay in China or PIX in Brazil. Pair that with a mobile-optimized design and you have a checkout that converts.

Implementation tips

• Detect user location and serve appropriate language, currency, and payment methods.
• Minimize form fields and extra clicks – mobile users hate friction.
• Offer Apple Pay/Google Pay and make them prominent for easy, one-tap purchasing.
• A/B test checkout flows to maximize conversion rates.

CRO and app growth in 2025

Driving meaningful, sustained app growth requires a holistic approach to conversion rate optimization.

From the first user experience to the final checkout, each touchpoint is an opportunity to remove friction, boost motivation, and compel action.

The 9 strategies above, backed by real-world examples and data, provide a roadmap for systematically finding and plugging conversion leaks. While it takes work to implement and test CRO best practices, it’s time very well spent and will reap huge rewards for app leaders willing to invest the time.

Watch the full session with Steve and Lucas here