How Plyo App Doubled Its User Base For Less Using Video

Background

Rewarding exercise with exclusive offers

Plyo is an app that rewards students for exercising on campus.

The rewards are legit, ranging from free food at local restaurants to exclusive discounts on clothing from popular brands.

Yeah, it’s pretty sweet.

Challenge

Acquisition, Acquisition, Acquisition

In the app development world, acquisition is the name of the game. And Plyo is no exception. In fact, the nature of Plyo’s app requires them to acquire more than just users. They need to develop partnerships as well.

Plyo relies on involvement from a network of partners. They need the buy-in and participation of universities, students, and merchants in order to operate successfully. But before any of them are willing to jump on board, they need to gain a clear understanding of what the app is, and what it can do for them.

That’s why Plyo decided to create an explainer video. They needed to educate all of their different partners about their app in a way that was brief, digestible, and compelling.

Approach

Follow the User’s Journey

We decided to tell a story that follows a student using the app in their everyday life, rather than explain the features and benefits one-by-one. Context is everything.

So we followed our trusty, three-part process for creating effective video.

Strategy

Before we produced the video, we helped Plyo develop a strategy that would lead them to success.

The main objective? Acquire new users.

To do that, we knew the video would have to resonate with students. It couldn’t just educate, it had to engage.

Your run-of-the-mill explainer with animated characters just wasn’t going to cut it.

We established a creative direction, wrote the script, tweaked it, and planned out all the shots and animations to be included in the edit- all while keeping our target audience and distribution plan top-of-mind.

Production

After recruiting student actors, securing locations, and planning out all the logistics, it was time to shoot our video.

For this production, budget constrictions made it necessary for us to capture all the footage we needed across four different set locations in less than six hours. Not an easy task, but we did it.

Even with a minimal crew, we were able to set up, film, pack up, and travel throughout Minneapolis within the allotted time frame. That’s the beauty of thorough planning, right there.

Distribution

Before we produced the video, we mapped out exactly how it would be distributed online.

We made two different versions of the video, to be utilized on different platforms for different purposes:

• A full-length, 90 second version for the homepage of Plyo’s website- to engage website visitors with a little Plyo 101.
• A shorter, 20 second version for promoting across their social media platforms- to raise awareness about the app among local students.

Over time, we’ve tracked key viewer metrics and analyzed the results in order to make changes that optimize performance.

Outcome

More users acquired for less money

The results of the video were a huge sucess!

Increased Awareness

The video made its online debut in January of 2019. By February, it had been watched over 100,000 times.

100% Growth in New Users

After launching the video, Plyo didn’t just acquire more users; their app’s user base doubled.

Lowered Cost of Acquiring Users by 33%

Plyo has been tracking the success of its social media campaigns by analyzing key metrics like Cost per Install (CPI), which measures the cost to acquire one unique customer. With the help of their new explainer video, Plyo’s CPI has decreased by 33%