By Beth Berger, Vice President & General Manager, Americas at Moloco
Search is no longer the reliable growth engine it used to be. AI tools like ChatGPT, Gemini, Claude, and even Google’s own AI Overviews are changing how people discover and consume information, often without ever clicking a link. Today, 60% of searches now end without a website visit, cutting off the organic traffic that once drove brand discovery. At the same time, paid search is becoming more expensive with Google PPC costs seeing their sharpest spike in years, turning SEM into a crowded, costly, and inefficient battleground.
This shift demands a new approach and those who want to stay ahead need to rethink how they reach their audiences. A surprising growth lever in this new reality? The mobile app ecosystem.
The pivot: Mobile apps as a primary strategy, not an add-on
In a “Google Zero” world, mobile apps offer what websites and SEO strategies no longer can:
- Control: Apps give brands direct access to their customers, bypassing search algorithms entirely. When your app lives on a user’s home screen, it becomes a daily presence and persistent, visual reminder or “mini billboard” for your brand that no algorithm can suppress.
- Engagement: With features like push notifications, personalized content, and native mobile UX, apps act as mobile screen real estate to create stickier, habit-forming experiences that websites struggle to replicate.
- Revenue Diversification: From subscriptions to in-app commerce, mobile apps open up monetization options that are no longer locked behind the 30% app store fee barrier. Direct payment solutions and alternative platforms can now serve as direct revenue streams.
Many marketing leaders have missed how much growth is happening within the independent app ecosystem, where more consumer time is spent and performance is more predictable. In 2024 alone, the app economy generated over $150 billion in in-app purchase revenue – and it wasn’t just from mobile games. Consumer apps are growing faster in both spending and engagement, and according to recent data, brands that shift their ad mix toward the app ecosystem can increase financial returns by up to 214%.
The first mobile app boom in the 2010s happened in a context where CMOs had much more influence over discovery channels – and the first movers were able to build giant leads in personalized engagement over more traditional brands. Today, as the rules of discovery are being rewritten, there’s an opportunity to revisit the key growth levers beyond the browser:
Maximize revenue with subscriptions, in-app purchases, and advertising. Mobile apps unlock direct-to-consumer revenue streams that far exceed what’s possible on the web. They provide more control, higher margins, and more predictable performance, all without relying on third parties. Candy Crush Saga is a prime example, with lifetime revenue recently surpassing $20 billion and 95% coming from in-app purchases alone. With recent changes to app store fee policies, the opportunity to grow these revenue streams is bigger than ever.
Boost retention and re-engagement through personalized, frictionless experiences. Push notifications, seamless checkout, and first-party data personalization keep users coming back. For example, onboarding campaigns play a key role here—apps that guide new users with welcome messages not only achieve higher 30-day retention, but also see a 24% lift in install-to-purchase conversions. Unlike broad web strategies, apps can re-engage specific users based on past behavior, driving stronger engagement, more consistent usage, and repeat purchases.
Leverage signal engineering to find high-value, hidden users. Using privacy-compliant, first-party app data, brands can unlock entirely new audiences that aren’t reachable through conventional ad channels. This kind of data-driven “signal engineering” helps identify untapped high-value users that are under the radar. This approach feeds algorithms rich, predictive signals helping to discover users who resemble your best customers but fly under the radar.
Tap into global growth by expanding into emerging, mobile-first markets. While app usage has plateaued in the US, UK, Germany, and Japan, it’s surging in markets like South Africa, India, and the Philippines. These regions often skip the desktop web entirely. Apps offer a direct route to these high-growth audiences, bypassing the limits of search and reaching users at a global scale where they actually spend their time.
Strategic takeaways for brands and publishers
The digital landscape is shifting as AI platforms continue to disrupt how people search, discover, and interact with content, making SEO and Google Ads more expensive and less effective. In this new reality, mobile apps have become a uniquely reliable engine for sustainable, scalable growth.
The shift to a “Google Zero” world isn’t a threat: it’s a wake-up call. By reallocating spend from inflated PPC budgets into app-first strategies, and by doubling down on lifecycle marketing, personalization, and product innovation, marketing leaders can reclaim control over discovery, revenue, and retention. And as with all major consumer shifts, the strategic marketer has a critical role in helping their brand play to win.
