At FeedMob, we see a lot of at-scale app brands that have hit a user acquisition (UA) wall on traditional marketing channels. Some UA managers may think that’s the end of the road, but we know differently. A wide array of marketing channels exists beyond search and social, and our team’s job is to navigate and optimize these channels, in addition to helping clients reach their goals in the process.

What is CPA, and why is it important?

CPA is a pricing model used by mobile advertisers that allows them to pay media sources when a user takes a specific action. That action may be a registration, a purchase (like a first ride or delivery order), or a deposit in a bank account. As we’ve covered before, we warn against focusing too closely on cost-per-action (CPA) in specific contexts. However, for many apps, it’s an integral KPI that must be optimized.

For some apps, a download is just part of the process but doesn’t mean much — a new user must make a purchase to be valuable. For these apps, tracking CPA is an excellent way to track the effectiveness of a campaign or media source. Finding users who go beyond the install and actually take action is often more challenging (and expensive), and that’s where the experts at FeedMob come in.

How to calculate CPA

How to lower CPA the FeedMob way

In 2023, we worked with a food-delivery client to improve its net new user acquisition efforts across global markets. With this campaign, we had to go beyond installs and look to first-purchase events to measure success. Our team identified, onboarded, and managed dozens of new global partnerships to find the right media mix. Learning about such a wide variety of channels and networks is typically more than small UA teams can handle — but our team has developed a deep familiarity with the mobile marketing options outside of search and social.

In this instance, we relied heavily on Owned and Operated (O&O), OEM,  and Incent media partners. By testing a wide variety of advertising channels, we are able to help the client optimize for the most efficient media mix, which leads to the most purchases for the least amount of money. Ultimately, FeedMob improved many of the client’s key KPIs, including CPA, which dropped by more than 66%. Read the complete case study to learn how we did this while increasing first-purchase events by 6X.