Google, on Thursday, said that Nigeria has witnessed a digital surge, ranking sixth globally for app downloads, with a 320 percent rise in just two years.
The West Africa Director, Google, Mr Olumide Balogun, said this in a statement made available to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos.
According to him, it shows a market with deeper engagement, higher loyalty, and richer opportunities for businesses that tap into the app-driven economy.
He said the digital pulse of Nigeria beats fastest on mobile.
‘’With N1bn projected in app usage and purchases for 2025 across the continent, marketers in Nigeria cannot afford to ignore this wave.
Smartphone access is set to reach 880 million across Africa by 2030, and monthly mobile data use is expected to triple.
‘’Nigerians spend over four hours daily on mobile, with 80 per cent of that time in apps,’’ he said.
According to him, apps have moved from being optional extras to becoming the core of customer engagement, business efficiency, and innovation.
Balogun said for marketers and business owners, apps are now a key growth driver.
He said the path forward was clear to understand what makes apps work and how to maximise their impact.
The director, however, highlighted seven ways Nigerian marketers could make the most of this app-led shift.
He said marketers treat the customer journey as unified and forget dividing the audience into “web customers” and “app customers.”
“Nigerian consumers move seamlessly from browser to app and back again, often in a single purchase journey,” he said.
Balogun said marketers should focus on profitable app engagement, stressing that app users are their most valuable customers.
He said that app users engage more, show higher loyalty, and tend to spend more than those who stick to websites.
According to him, with digital privacy in sharper focus, apps give marketers a chance to collect direct and consented customer data.
He said that growing one app’s user base takes more than organic buzz.
“Google ads offers app campaigns designed for this moment, reaching billions of users across Google Search, Play, Gmail, YouTube, and more than two million sites and apps on the display network.
“When it comes to discovering new apps and products, few platforms rival YouTube.
“With nearly two billion logged-in users every month, YouTube reaches audiences at scale, and it is where people spend more than a billion hours each day watching video,” he said.
