What is lifecycle tracking?

Lifecycle tracking is an umbrella term that covers the measurement of a user’s ‘lifespan’ with an app, which Adjust tracks through its uninstall and reinstall features.

To understand how lifecycle tracking can be used to help improve retention, let’s take a look at an example scenario:

Let's say you’re a marketer for a travel app and you want to run a video ad campaign about your new speedy check-in feature. You’ll want to track how many users trigger the new feature, as well as their subsequent retention.

As is common for many travel apps, you understand that 90% of your users will uninstall your app after they check into their flight. But those same users are likely to reinstall the app the next time they fly. In this case, if your team ignores uninstalls and reinstalls, the campaign will show a high conversion rate with low retention, which we know is incorrect.

By enabling lifecycle tracking, your travel app can pinpoint the moment users are most likely to uninstall and reinstall, allowing you to better understand users’ needs. If you know your user is likely to uninstall just after their flight, you might decide to retarget that user with an offer for 20% off a hotel booking – but make the offer an in-app exclusive. That way, the user is encouraged to keep the app for longer, or even make a second purchase.

Lifecycle tracking is also an important key performance indicator (KPI) for e-commerce apps. For example, a successful retention campaign could be the difference between an abandoned cart and a significant purchase event.

With Adjust, you can track uninstall and reinstall events automatically, and gain insights into why users leave and how you can start bringing them back.

Plus, you can create a custom list of these users—with Adjust’s Audience Builder—and focus your efforts on those who churn, targeting them with direct messaging based on their last interaction with your app.

Adjust’s Datascape helps you record your app users’ lifecycles and view your most important metrics. With dedicated dashboards, and a powerful report builder, you can pull-in, pivot, and drill-down into the dimensions that matter most to you and your app’s success.