A few years ago, a strong app store listing was all you needed to reach your users. Now, it’s just one part of a much bigger plan, and most UA teams recognize this. With more than 4 million apps competing for attention on the Apple App Store and Google Play, categories such as Fintech, Gaming, and E-commerce continue to lead the way in downloads, revenue, and user engagement. The main idea is clear: in 2026, the best advertising partners for app growth are found outside the app stores.
Test paid ad networks, native placements, influencer programs, and mobile OEMs. If your cost per install keeps going up on the same channels everyone else uses, the issue isn’t with targeting—it’s with where you’re buying ads. Diversifying your ad sources is just as important as focusing on how you buy.
This article explains which advertising partners are worth testing beyond app store optimization and organic listings, and how each fits into your user acquisition strategy.
Key takeaways:
- Google Ads, Meta, and Apple Search Ads still make up most UA budgets, but rising cost per install means they can’t generate growth on their own anymore. That is why app growth in 2026 depends on partners outside the app stores.
- Native, video, and playable ads tend to convert better than static banners because they match how people already browse.
- Influencer marketing is most effective when it creates trust, rather than serving as your main way to acquire users.
- OEM advertising lets you reach users directly on their devices before they even open an app store, and you usually aren’t competing with Google or Meta for the same ad space.
- The best user acquisition strategies use two or three types of partners, not just one.
Where the big paid networks still fit
Most app marketers still start with Google Ads, Meta, and Apple Search Ads. These platforms are easy to measure, scale quickly, and work well with all mobile measurement partners. Still, that is also where the competition is highest.
The problem is that everyone is bidding on these same platforms. As competition increases, cost per install goes up, but install quality doesn’t always improve. Teams that rely only on these channels often reach the same users their competitors already targeted, which is why the bigger opportunity lies outside the app stores.
Ad networks like Unity Ads and AdMob also use this paid-media approach for in-app ads, which can help increase volume but doesn’t fix the main problem. If a single algorithm change or policy update can affect your whole funnel, you’re taking on too much risk instead of building a real growth strategy.
Native, video, and playable ad formats worth testing
Your ad format matters as much as the network you use. Native ads blend in with the content and cause less ad fatigue than static banners. Video and rewarded video ads work especially well for gaming and entertainment apps, where users expect motion and sound.
Playable ads are short, interactive demos that let users try your app before they install it. This is especially helpful for game developers, since it gets users engaged right away instead of waiting until after they download.
These formats aren’t new, but advertisers now pay much more attention to choosing the right format, not just the right network. The main idea is that spending the same budget on a native or playable ad instead of a banner can get you different results. That is why format choice matters here.
Influencer marketing as a trust layer
Influencer marketing usually isn’t your main way to get new users, but it does something paid ads can’t. It uses the trust that creators already have with their followers. A creator’s recommendation means more than a display ad, especially for fintech, dating, and e-commerce apps where people are careful about what they download.
Use social media collaborations to support your paid user acquisition, not replace it. They build awareness and social proof, which can make your paid campaigns work better later. In that way, influencer marketing acts as a trust layer.
OEM Advertising: The advertising partners most teams skip
Most UA teams haven’t tried mobile OEM advertising yet. OEMs like Samsung, Xiaomi, HUAWEI, vivo, OPPO, realme, OnePlus, Transsion, Itel, Infinix, Tecno, HONOR, and Lenovo control the device itself. This includes lock screens, app vaults, folders, push notifications, and the setup procedure before a user even opens Google Play.
The reach is huge. AVOW’s OEM partners cover 86% of the global Android market and 65% of the global mobile market, giving access to 1.85 billion daily active users—without competing in Google or Meta auctions.
This approach works in practice. Magalu, a major e-commerce platform in Brazil, increased its mobile OEM investment by 50% year over year and saw nine times more installs, along with a 25% increase in average basket size, after moving beyond programmatic, search, and social.
Joom used exclusive OEM partnerships to get 60,000 installs per month and a 150% return on ad spend across 10 new regions. The Filipino social app Kumu combined Huawei AppGallery, Xiaomi GetApps, and OEM display ads to cut its cost per download by 57% and reach over 500 million ad impressions.
Ben Barta, Senior Growth Manager at Tripledot Studios, put it this way: “AVOW truly understands the gaming app landscape. Their ability to tap into new, scalable user acquisition channels and optimize targeting strategies has been invaluable.”
How to choose the right mix
Don’t rely on just one advertising partner and call it a strategy. Combine a paid network for volume, a different ad format like native or playable for engagement, and at least one channel outside the main four for variety. That third piece is usually missing, which is why the mix matters.
Start with a small test. Try OEM advertising or a native ad format with 10 to 15% of your budget before making bigger changes. Focus on retention and return on ad spend, not just installs. A cheap install that churns in three days is more expensive in the long run than a pricier one that brings value.
FAQs: choosing advertising partners for app growth
What counts as an advertising partner for app growth?
Any channel or network you pay to acquire or engage users beyond your own app store listing. That includes paid ad networks (Google Ads, Meta, Unity Ads, AdMob), influencer programs, and mobile OEM advertising through device manufacturers like Samsung, Xiaomi, and HUAWEI.
What is OEM advertising?
OEM (original equipment manufacturer) advertising places your app in inventory the phone maker controls directly: lock screens, app vaults, folders, push notifications, and the out-of-the-box setup flow. Users see it before they ever open an app store.
Is OEM advertising better than app store advertising?
It’s not a replacement, but it’s a different auction entirely. AVOW’s OEM partners cover 86% of the global Android market and reach 1.85 billion daily active users without competing against Google or Meta for the same bids, which is why it works well alongside paid search and social rather than instead of them.
How much of my budget should go toward OEM advertising partners?
There’s no universal figure. As a starting point, test with somewhere between 10 to 15% of your total advertising budget and measure retention and ROAS (return on ad spend) before scaling it further- the same approach outlined above for any new channel.
Does influencer marketing work as a standalone acquisition channel?
Rarely. It works best as a trust layer that improves paid campaign conversion, not as the only source of installs. Fintech, dating, and e-commerce apps tend to see the strongest lift from pairing the two.
The bottom line
App stores are only a place to list your app, not a full strategy. The main idea is that the advertising partners that will make a difference in 2026 are the ones working in spaces where your competitors aren’t already bidding—like native ads, influencer feeds, or even the phone’s lock screen. That is the shift to focus on.
Diversifying your partners doesn’t mean leaving Google or Meta behind. It’s about making sure that a single algorithm change can’t affect your whole quarter.
Find out how OEM advertising can fit into your app’s growth strategy. Book a demo to learn more.
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