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Anyone who has tried knows — it’s tough to make money on most apps.

ile people download apps by the ton, they spend 80% of their time on just five, Forrester says. Even so, Gartner estimates there are more than 200 companies creating mobile app development platforms, millions of developers are creating mobile apps on them.

That means you don’t get much of a shot to impress people keep them coming back, so providing a good user experience is paramount.

Ads Are Not For Everyone

ile app profits may not let you quit your day job, they can make you a tidy little sum. An InMobi survey of over 1,000 developers found that average monthly app revenue ranges from $5,000 to $11,000, depending on the platform. Independent developers average around $1,500 a month, companies can make up to $44,000.

The most popular way to make money is by running ads. If you develop a strong following, ad revenue can be substantial. A Vision Mobile study found that 17% of developers who rely primarily on advertising make more than $10,000 per month. So what if half the time people click ads by mistake? At least they click, right?

If ads are too annoying, though, they may not return to your site. Users especially hate blinking, flashing, or vibrating ads. Though you can bar a specific advertiser, you have no control over the type of ads companies create they can strain the patience of your users.

A third of internet users find ads completely intolerable, more than 25% are using adblocking software to avoid ads entirely. Adblockers now work on mobile sites, too, almost 300 million people worldwide are using them, according to a geFair study. Even people who don’t block ads often have “banner blindness” don’t see them.

at About Surveys?

th users in the driver’s seat when it comes to ads, it’s essential to give them an enjoyable experience while they’re on your site. That doesn’t mean you can’t run ads, but given the sentiment out there, it’s probably a good idea not to rely on them completely.

An interesting alternative is to host surveys. eters pay you for your customers’ data, people seem to enjoy revealing information about themselves in exchange for a reward or a little entertainment.

Surveys tend to pay better than ads, can be used in conjunction with them. If you want, you can kill two birds with one stone by offering ad-weary viewers uninterrupted time on your app if they take a survey.

Surveys also keep users on your site, whereas ads take them away—perhaps never to return (especially if they hate the ad).

Creating an app is hard work. To give yourself the best chance of success, it’s a good idea to spread your odds with a mix of ads, in-app purchases, surveys.

arn about monetizing content experiences, increasing ad revenue with Survata Surveylls.