A burst in the mobile app promotion sector is a strategy aimed at generating a sudden surge in installs for a given app, with the goal of propelling it to the top of app store rankings like the Apple App Store and Google Play. App stores prioritize apps that are experiencing high demand, and bursts are designed to quickly generate this interest. These “install explosions” are often achieved through promotional services such as “app of the day” features, or by rewarding users (with points, levels, or lives in a game) for each install.

However, it’s important to note that bursts can result in low-quality installs from individuals who may not use the app long-term, or may even uninstall it quickly. The primary objective of these campaigns is to climb the app store rankings, but the effectiveness of this approach is expected to gradually decrease. Indeed, app stores are starting to take into account other criteria besides the number of installations to establish their hit parade, such as ratings, uninstallation rate, search queries, and user engagement with the application.