The two approaches
When you want to promote an app, you generally have two options: run paid ads (Apple Search Ads, Meta Ads, Google Ads) or get content creators to make videos about your app. Both work, but they work very differently.
Paid ads
Pros:
- Immediate traffic, you can start today
- Precise targeting (demographics, interests, keywords)
- Predictable, scale up or down with a slider
Cons:
- Expensive. App install campaigns typically cost $2-5+ per install on iOS.
- Ad fatigue. Performance degrades over time as audiences see the same creative.
- Ad blindness. People have trained themselves to ignore anything that looks like an ad.
- No lasting value. When you stop paying, the traffic stops.
Creator content
Pros:
- Authentic. Feels like a recommendation, not an ad.
- Higher engagement and trust from viewers.
- Content stays up and can keep generating views for months.
- Can go viral, giving outsized returns on a small budget.
- Repurposable. You can use creator content in your own ads and store listing.
Cons:
- Less predictable. You cannot guarantee views.
- Takes more time to set up campaigns and review content.
- Quality varies between creators.
Cost comparison
A typical comparison for an indie app:
- Paid ads: $500 budget, $3 cost per install = ~167 installs
- Creator content: $500 budget at $5 CPM = 100,000 views. If even 1% convert, that is 1,000 installs.
The conversion rate varies significantly, but creator content generally has a much lower effective cost per install because the content is more engaging.
The best approach
For indie developers with limited budgets, creator content offers better ROI in most cases. Start with creator campaigns to generate authentic content and social proof, then consider adding paid ads later to amplify the content that performs best.
On ViewBounty, you can start with any budget size and only pay for verified views, which makes it a low-risk way to test creator marketing for your app.