Active User

What is Active User?

An Active User, as the name suggests, is the type of user who can maintain their interaction in a digital service, given a time bound period . An Active User is crucial for gauging engagement and success on digital platforms, representing individuals who interact with an app or website within specific periods (DAU, WAU, MAU). Unlike dormant users who may have accounts but don't engage regularly, active users are those who take actions that demonstrate engagement and interest, such as clicking, browsing, making transactions, or any form of interaction that can be tracked and measured.

Frequently used metrics with Active User

Understanding active users involves breaking them down into three primary categories, which are critical for assessing an application's health and growth:

Daily Active Users (DAU): This metric measures the number of unique users who engage with the app or website in a 24-hour period. It's vital for gauging daily engagement levels and the immediate impact of marketing efforts.

Weekly Active Users (WAU): WAU tracks the number of unique users who interact with the platform over a week. It offers insights into weekly retention and the effectiveness of weekly content or feature updates.

Monthly Active Users (MAU): This broader metric counts the unique users engaging with the platform each month. MAU is essential for understanding long-term growth, user retention over a more extended period, and the overall size of the active user base.

What does Active mean?

The distinction between an "active user" and a "user" lies in engagement. A "user" may have registered or downloaded an app but doesn't necessarily engage with it regularly. They might use the app in the future with the help of re-engagement campaigns. In contrast, an "active user" is involved in the platform through actions that demonstrate engagement. This differentiation is crucial for performance marketing, as focusing solely on user numbers without considering activity levels can lead to misleading conclusions about a platform's success and engagement.

Why is Active User important?

Active users are a cornerstone metric in performance marketing for several reasons:

Engagement and Retention Insights: Active user metrics provide direct insights into how engaging a platform is and how well it retains users over time. One of the metrics to look into is retention rate.

Targeted Marketing: Understanding active users allows marketers to segment their audience more effectively and tailor marketing strategies to boost engagement. They can determine which kinds of users have higher engagement, and which marketing campaigns can keep up the active level.

Revenue Potential: Active users are more likely to convert and generate revenue, making them a key focus for optimizing marketing spend and strategies. For example, lifetime value (LTV) is a crucial metric to gauge the revenue, but it can not be calculated without the retention rate, which also can not be calculated without the number of active users.

‍Product Development: Feedback and behavior patterns from active users inform product development, ensuring that updates and new features align with user needs.

FAQs

What is a good DAU? ‍

It varies, depending on business size, industry, target audience, and historical performance data. Some hundreds for a small, niche business is excellent, while large sites have thousands or millions of DAU.

What is considered an inactive user?

They are the users who have not opened or used your app within a specific time period, such as a day, a week, or a month.

How do I track active users on an app? ‍

You can use these methods:

1. In-app analytics such as Google Analytics for Mobile Apps, Firebase Analytics and Apple's App Analytics,
2. Analytics tools such as Google Play Store for Android apps and App Store Connect for iOS apps,
3. Mobile measurement partners (MMP) like Airbridge.

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