App marketers are being hit by ‘app inflation’ as the cost of acquiring users and download volumes on Apple’s App Store soars.

According to app marketing company Fiksu, the App Store competitive index, which measures the aggregate daily download volume among the top 200 ranked apps, grew 24 per cent in May to reach 6.6 million. The figure was 5.34 million in April but more than seven million in March.

In addition the cost per loyal user Index in May rose by 17 per cent compared to the previous month to $1.78. This was a 34 per cent year-on-year increase.

Fiksu said that with this increasing download volume, app marketers will need to find more creative ways to find and retain users. Improvements in granular targeting options and optimised app marketing should boost these efforts.

“The increased quality and growing popularity of apps continues to fuel ever-increasing demand, meaning marketers must continually hone their new strategies and spending in the quest to cost-efficiently acquire loyal and engaged users,” said Micah Adler, CEO of Fiksu.

Fiksu also found the cost per launch for apps fell in May. It fell 5 per cent to $0.20 for iOS while Android saw a 20 per cent drop to $0.10.

This was attributed to ‘super users’ who launch apps numerous times during the day, increasing total launches without app marketers needing to acquire new users.

This engagement pattern creates a challenge for marketers, Fiksu noted, as it makes it harder to gain mindshare with users and convert them to loyal fans. This is also likely to have driven the rise on the cost per loyal user.

Fiksu also announced integration of its mobile ad optimisation products with Twitter’s recently-launched Mobile App Promotion technology.

The company participated in Twitter’s beta programme in which it generated more than 80 million impressions and 500,000 clicks on new ads.

“Our integration with Twitter means our mutual clients can take advantage of our deep experience in mobile app install ads combined with Twitter’s immediacy, massive mobile reach and audience targeting possibilities,” Adler noted.