Average Time from First Visit to Paid Order on App (ATFV-Paid Order)

The Average Time from First Visit to Paid Order on App, often abbreviated as "ATFV-Paid Order," is an important Key Performance Indicator (KPI) for e-commerce businesses that operate primarily through mobile apps.

It measures the average time between a user’s first visit to the app and their first paid purchase. By understanding this metric, ecommerce businesses can gain insight into the customer’s decision-making timeline, evaluate the effectiveness of their in-app marketing strategies, and tailor the user experience to accelerate conversions.

Key Takeaways

  • Definition: Average Time from First Visit to Paid Order on App (ATFV-Paid Order) measures the average time between a user’s first app visit and their first paid purchase.
  • Calculation: ATFV-Paid Order is calculated by dividing the total time for all users to make their first purchase by the total number of first-time buyers.
  • Strategic Importance: ATFV-Paid Order provides insight into user experience, marketing effectiveness, customer behavior, conversion rate optimization and sales forecasting.
  • Optimization Strategies: To reduce ATFV-Paid Order, companies can optimize the user experience, implement effective onboarding strategies, use retargeting campaigns, offer exclusive first-time offers, and build trust with customers.
  • Limitations: ATFV-Paid Order is limited to app usage, does not capture offline engagement or customer behavior, can be influenced by external factors, lacks insight into purchase intent and overall customer satisfaction, and varies by industry and business model.
  • Complementary metrics: ATFV-Paid Order should be considered alongside metrics such as mobile app conversion rate, average session length, and in-app cart abandonment rate for a comprehensive analysis of app performance.

Why does Average Time from First Visit to Paid Order on App matter for your business?

Analyzing the ATFV-Paid Order offers various advantages:

  1. User Experience Insights: A prolonged duration might indicate issues in the user experience or a lack of enticing offers, pushing users to delay their buying decision.
  2. Marketing Strategy Assessment: If the average time is lengthy, it might hint at less effective in-app marketing or the need for more persuasive retargeting campaigns.
  3. Customer Behavior Understanding: By gauging this metric, businesses can comprehend user hesitations, which could be due to price, product variety, or trust factors.
  4. Conversion Rate Optimization: Shortening the time span could directly boost the conversion rate, enhancing overall profitability.
  5. Sales Forecasting: Knowing the average duration helps in forecasting sales, especially during special promotions or product launches, to understand the likely lag between interest and purchase.

How to calculate Average Time from First Visit to Paid Order on App (ATFV-Paid Order)?

\[ \text{ATFV-Paid Order} = \frac{\text{Total Time taken for all users to make their first purchase}}{\text{Total Number of First-time Purchasers}} \]

Explanation of the parts of the formula:

  • “ATFV-Paid Order” refers to the Average Time taken for all users to make their first purchase.
  • “Total Time taken for all users to make their first purchase” represents the sum of the time taken by all users to make their first purchase on the website.
  • “Total Number of First-time Purchasers” is the total count of users who made their first purchase on the website.

Example Scenario

Let’s consider an example scenario:

  • The total time taken by all users to make their first purchase is 300 minutes.
  • The total number of first-time purchasers is 50.

Inserting these numbers into the formula:

  • ATFV-Paid Order = Total Time taken for all users to make their first purchase / Total Number of First-time Purchasers
  • ATFV-Paid Order = 300 minutes / 50
  • ATFV-Paid Order = 6 minutes.

This means that, on average, it took 6 minutes for each user to make their first purchase on the website.

Tips and recommendations for reducing Average Time from First Visit to Paid Order on App

To reduce the ATFV-Paid Order, businesses should consider:

Streamline the user experience

Streamlining the user experience is critical to reducing the average time from first visit to paid order within the app. By ensuring that the app is intuitive, fast, and easy to navigate, businesses can provide a seamless experience for their users. Simplifying the checkout process is especially important, as it allows users to make quick purchase decisions without unnecessary hurdles.

Effective onboarding strategies

Implementing effective onboarding strategies can have a significant impact on the ATFV paid order metric. By using tutorials, walkthroughs, or welcome offers, companies can guide new users through the app and help them understand its features and benefits. These strategies not only educate users, but also motivate them to make an early purchase by demonstrating the value they can get from the app.

Retargeting campaigns

Retargeting campaigns play a critical role in reducing ATFV paid order. By implementing retargeting ads or in-app notifications, businesses can remind users of products or services they have shown interest in or left in their shopping cart. This serves as a gentle nudge to encourage them to complete their purchase, ultimately reducing the time it takes for them to go from first visit to paid order.

Exclusive first-time offers

Offering exclusive offers or discounts to new users can speed up their purchase decision and reduce the time between their first visit and a paid order. These special offers create a sense of urgency and excitement, encouraging users to make a purchase sooner rather than later. By providing this extra motivation, businesses can increase their conversion rates and reduce the average time it takes for users to become paying customers.

Trust-building measures

Building trust is essential to converting first-time users into paying customers. Displaying prominent testimonials, user reviews, and secure payment badges can instill confidence in users who are hesitant to make a purchase. By showcasing positive experiences and emphasizing the security of transactions, businesses can build trust with their users and reduce the average time it takes to complete a paid order within the app.

Examples of use

Onboarding Offers

  • Scenario: An e-commerce app selling handmade crafts finds a longer ATFV-Paid Order compared to industry standards.
  • Use Case Application: They introduce an exclusive 10% discount for first-time users if they make a purchase within 24 hours of app installation. This strategy sees a marked reduction in the ATFV-Paid Order as users are incentivized to make a quicker purchase decision.

In-app Retargeting

  • Scenario: An online fashion app notices that many users browse extensively but take days to make their first purchase.
  • Use Case Application: The app introduces in-app notifications highlighting limited-time discounts on items users browsed. This strategy nudges users to make purchases faster, reducing the average time taken.

Personalized Recommendations

  • Scenario: A food delivery app observes that users take a considerable amount of time to place their first order.
  • Use Case Application: The app implements personalized recommendations based on users’ previous food preferences and browsing history. By suggesting relevant restaurants and dishes, it encourages users to make their first order sooner.

Social Proof

  • Scenario: A travel app finds that users take a while before booking their first trip.
  • Use Case Application: The app incorporates social proof elements such as displaying real-time reviews and ratings from other users. By showcasing positive experiences, it instills trust and prompts users to make their first booking more quickly.

Limited-time Promotions

  • Scenario: A ride-hailing app notices a delay in users converting their first ride.
  • Use Case Application: The app introduces limited-time promotions, such as discounted fares or free ride vouchers, for first-time users. These time-limited offers create a sense of urgency and motivate users to take their first ride sooner.

Average Time from First Visit to Paid Order on App SMART goal example

Specific – Reduce the average time from first visit to paid order on the app by 30% (from 10 minutes to 7 minutes).

Measurable – Track the average time from first visit to paid order before and after implementing optimization strategies.

Achievable – Yes, by streamlining the user interface, improving app performance, and optimizing the checkout process.

Relevant – Yes. This goal aligns with the company’s goal of improving the user experience and increasing conversion rates on the app.

Timed – Achieve the 30% reduction within three months of implementing the optimization strategies.

Limitations of using Average Time from First Visit to Paid Order on App

While the Average Time from First Visit to Paid Order on App is a useful metric in ecommerce analysis, it also has its limitations:

  • Limited to App Usage: This metric only applies to customers who use the app for their purchases. It doesn’t account for customers who prefer other channels, such as website or physical stores.
  • Doesn’t Capture Offline Engagement: The metric focuses on the time between the first visit and the paid order on the app, but it doesn’t consider any offline interactions or touchpoints that may have influenced the customer’s decision to make a purchase.
  • Doesn’t Account for Customer Behavior: The metric doesn’t take into account the various actions and behaviors a customer may go through before making a purchase. This includes researching, comparing prices, reading reviews, and other activities that contribute to the overall decision-making process.
  • Influenced by External Factors: The average time from first visit to paid order can be affected by external factors such as website performance, app usability, or technical issues. These factors may skew the metric and not accurately reflect customer behavior.
  • Lacks Insight into Purchase Intention: While the metric provides information about the time it takes for a customer to make a purchase, it doesn’t provide insights into the customer’s intention to make a purchase in the first place. Understanding customer intent can help businesses optimize their marketing and sales strategies.
  • May Not Reflect Overall Customer Satisfaction: The metric focuses solely on the time between first visit and paid order, but it doesn’t measure overall customer satisfaction or post-purchase behavior. Customer satisfaction is a crucial aspect of ecommerce analysis that goes beyond the transactional period.
  • Varies Across Industries and Business Models: The average time from first visit to paid order can vary significantly across different industries and business models. It’s important to consider industry benchmarks and context when interpreting this metric.

In conclusion, while the average time from first visit to paid order on the app can provide valuable insights, it should be used in conjunction with other metrics and factors to gain a more complete understanding of customer behavior and overall ecommerce performance.

KPIs and metrics relevant to Average Time from First Visit to Paid Order on App

  1. Mobile App Conversion Rate: This gives insights into the percentage of users who make a purchase after downloading the app.
  2. Average Session Duration: This metric can hint at user engagement levels; a higher session duration with a longer ATFV-Paid Order might indicate decision-making hurdles.
  3. Cart Abandonment Rate on App: High rates can be a reason for prolonged ATFV-Paid Order durations.

By combining insights from ATFV-Paid Order with these KPIs, your company can tailor its app strategies for better user acquisition and conversion.

Final thoughts

Understanding the average time from first visit to paid order on the app is important for ecommerce businesses to optimize their app for sales. Reducing this time means businesses can convert potential interest into actual sales faster, increasing profitability and ensuring sustainable growth.

Peter Hrnčiar

Senior UX designer and business data analyst with 15 years of digital marketing experience. He specializes in improving user experience and designing powerful e-commerce platforms that engage and satisfy customers, leveraging his expertise in 360 marketing to drive growth and success.

Table of Contents

    Average Time from First Visit to Paid Order on App (ATFV-Paid Order) FAQ

    What is Average Time from First Visit to Paid Order on App?

    It’s a KPI that measures the average duration from a user’s first visit to their initial paid purchase on an e-commerce app.

    Why is this metric crucial for my e-commerce app?

    This metric offers insights into user decision-making timelines, effectiveness of in-app marketing, and areas of user experience that need improvement.

    How can I reduce the ATFV-Paid Order duration?

    Strategies include optimizing user experience, introducing enticing first-time offers, implementing retargeting campaigns, and building trust.

    Are there other relevant metrics to consider?

    Yes, metrics like Mobile App Conversion Rate, Average Session Duration, and Cart Abandonment Rate on App can provide a holistic view of app performance.

    Does a longer ATFV-Paid Order always indicate an issue?

    While a longer duration can indicate potential issues in user experience or marketing, it’s essential to consider the product type, price points, and target audience. Some high-ticket items or niche products naturally have a longer decision-making process.

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