Solved: Boost App Downloads in Amsterdam with Google Ads

Hi there,

Thanks for reaching out!

Happy to give you some initial thoughts on getting app downloads in Amsterdam. It's a common problem, people often default to Google Search ads thinking it's the only way, but for apps, that's usually not the most effective route, especially when you're targeting a specific city. You end up spending a lot for very little return. The real trick is to think less about "searching on Google" and more about where people actually discover and decide to download apps.

I'll walk you through a strategy that I've seen work time and again for app growth campaigns, including one we've managed that hit over 45,000 signups at a really low cost. It involves shifting your focus away from traditional search and onto the platforms where app-install intent is highest.

I'd say you need to forget what you know about Google Ads...

Right, let's get straight to it. The fundamental mistake I see people make when trying to promote an app is treating it like a website or a local service. They think, "I'll just run some Google Search ads for keywords related to my app, target Amsterdam, and the downloads will roll in." Unfortunatly, it just doesn't work like that. It's a bit of a trap.

Think about your own behaviour. When was the last time you Googled something on your phone's web browser, clicked an ad, went to a landing page, and then got redirected to the App Store to download an app? It's a clunky, multi-step process with a huge drop-off rate at every single click. It's just not how people naturally discover or install applications. People discover apps in two main places: directly within the app stores (the App Store or Google Play) or through recommendations and ads on social media platforms while they're scrolling.

Running standard Search campaigns for app installs is like trying to sell boats in the desert. You might find a few interested people, but you're in the wrong place entirely. The friction is too high. Every extra step you force a user to take is a chance for them to lose interest. What you're doing is paying Google for a click, then hoping that user has the patience to complete another three or four steps. In most cases, they don't.

Google knows this, which is why they created Universal App Campaigns (UAC). We'll get to those in a bit, because they *can* be effective, but they are a completely different beast to standard search ads. They don't rely on keywords you pick. Instead, they are an automated, multi-channel campaign type that runs across Google's entire network (Search, Play, YouTube, Discover, and the Display Network). The algorithm decides where to show your ads based on the creative assets you provide it. The problem is, if you don't feed it the right assets, it just wastes your money showing mediocre ads to the wrong people.

So, the first bit of advice is a bit contrarian: to get good at Google Ads for your app, you first need to get good at advertising *outside* of traditional Google Search. You need to go where the intent is highest.

We'll need to look at the platforms built for app installs...

This brings me to the single most important platform you're probably ignoring: Apple Search Ads (ASA). If you have an iOS app, this should be your absolute number one priority. Full stop. It's the closest you can get to putting your app directly in front of someone at the exact moment they're looking to download a solution to their problem.

Think about it. A user opens the App Store. They are in an "app mindset". They type a search term like "photo editor amsterdam" or "local delivery app" directly into the search bar. Your ad can then appear at the very top of those search results. There's no redirect, no landing page, just a direct link to your app's product page within the store. The user intent simply cannot be higher. They are literally searching for an app to install *right now*.

This is a world away from a Google search, which could be for anything – research, news articles, reviews, or a competitor's website. The intent on Google is ambiguous; the intent on the App Store is crystal clear. In the app growth campaign I mentioned earlier that drove over 45,000 signups, a massive part of that success was leveraging platforms like Apple Ads where the path to conversion is shortest. We found the Cost Per Install (CPI) was consistently lower and the quality of the user was higher, because they were actively seeking a solution rather than being passively advertised to.

To really hammer this point home, here’s a visualisation of the two different user journeys.

For Amsterdam specifically, you can set up ASA campaigns to only target users in that city. You'd want to structure your campaigns around a few different keyword themes. Here's how I would typically approach it:

The same logic applies if your app is on the Google Play Store. You can run Google App Campaigns (which we'll discuss next) that specifically target placements within the Play Store search results. Again, the principle is the same: advertise where the user is already looking for apps.

You'll need to use Google Ads the *right* way...

Okay, so now that you're prioritising in-store advertising, let's talk about how to use Google Ads properly. As I mentioned, this means using Universal App Campaigns (UAC), now just called "App campaigns". This is Google's all-in-one, automated solution for app promotion. You don't pick keywords. You don't pick placements. You give Google a few key things, and its machine learning algorithm does the rest.

Here's what you need to provide:

• Your budget and bid: You tell it how much you want to spend per day and what your target Cost Per Install (CPI) or Cost Per Action (CPA) is.
• Locations and languages: In your case, this would be Amsterdam and Dutch/English.
• Ad Assets: This is the most important part. You provide a mix of text headlines, descriptions, images, and videos.

Google then takes all these assets, mixes and matches them to create hundreds of different ad variations, and shows them across its entire network to users it thinks are most likely to install your app. The entire success or faliure of your campaign hinges on the quality and variety of the creative assets you provide. This is not a set-and-forget thing. You need to treat it like a creative testing engine.

Most people fail with UAC because they upload a couple of screenshots, write two lines of text, and hope for the best. The algorithm has nothing to work with, so it produces poor results. To make it work for Amsterdam, you need to be very deliberate.

1. Localise Everything: Your ad copy should be in Dutch (and English, as Amsterdam is very international). Your visuals should resonate with someone in Amsterdam. If it's a food app, show pictures of Dutch food or well-known Amsterdam restaurants. If it's a utility app, use backgrounds that look like Amsterdam streets or homes. Generic, stock-photo-style creative won't cut it. It needs to feel local and relevant.

2. Video is King: UAC heavily favours video assets because they perform best on platforms like YouTube and the Display Network. You need to create multiple video ads. They don't need to be high-budget productions. Simple, screen-recorded walkthroughs of your app's main features often work brilliantly. Aim for short, punchy videos (15-30 seconds) in different aspect ratios (vertical for mobile, horizontal for YouTube).

3. Focus on In-App Actions: Initially, you'll probably optimise for installs (CPI). That's fine to get data. But as soon as you can, you should switch your bidding strategy to target specific in-app actions (CPA). This could be a user completing a tutorial, making a purchase, or signing up for a subscription. By doing this, you're telling Google, "Don't just find me people who will install the app; find me people who will install it and then actually *do* the thing that makes my business money." This dramatically improves the quality of the users you acquire. I remember one SaaS client where we reduced their Cost Per Acquisition from £100 down to just £7 simply by refining the campaign structure and shifting the optimisation goal from installs to valuable in-app events.

Here’s a checklist of the kind of assets you should be aiming to provide your UAC campaign.

You probably should be looking at social media too...

The final piece of the puzzle, and another channel that often outperforms Google for app installs, is social media advertising—specifically Meta (Facebook and Instagram). People spend a huge amount of time on these platforms, and they are in a discovery mindset. They are open to finding new things, including apps.

Meta's advertising platform is incredibly powerful for targeting. You can layer targeting options to get very specific. For your goal, you could target:

• People living in Amsterdam
• Within a certain age range
• Who speak Dutch or English
• And have shown interest in topics related to your app (e.g., interests in "photography" if it's a photo app, or interests in competing apps).

The campaign objective you'd use is "App installs". This optimises the campaign to find people within your target audience who are most likely to click through to the app store and download. The ad format is simple: a video or image that links directly to your app's page in the App Store or Play Store. Just like with ASA, the friction is very low.

Creative is, once again, the most important factor. The ads that work best on platforms like Instagram and Facebook often don't look like ads at all. They look like native content. User-Generated Content (UGC) style videos are particularly effective. This could be as simple as someone filming themselves on their phone, talking about how they use your app and what problem it solves for them. It feels authentic and trustworthy, which cuts through the noise of polished, corporate-style advertising. We've had several SaaS clients see fantastic results with UGC videos; it builds social proof and feels much more genuine to the viewer.

The key is to test lots of different creative angles. One ad might focus on a specific feature. Another might tell a story about a user's success. A third might be a quick, energetic montage showing the app in action. By testing different approaches, you'll quickly learn what resonates with your target audience in Amsterdam and can double down on what works.

Let's talk numbers: What should you expect to pay?

This is always the big question. "What will my Cost Per Install be?". The honest answer is: it depends. It's affected by your app's category, the quality of your ads, the competition in your target market, and even the time of year. However, based on my experience running hundreds of campaigns, we can establish a realistic ballpark.

For app installs in a developed European city like Amsterdam, you should probably expect a Cost Per Install (CPI) to be somewhere in the £1 to £5 range. Apple Search Ads will likely be at the lower end of that range for relevant keywords, while Google and Meta might be slightly higher, but they offer greater scale.

Anything under £2 per install is generally considered very good. The campaign I mentioned earlier where we drove 45k+ signups achieved a cost per signup under £2 across multiple platforms, which shows it's absolutely achievable with the right strategy and relentless optimisation. But you should budget with a more conservative estimate to begin with. If your CPI comes in at £3.50, don't panic. The initial goal is to gather data. Once you have that data, you can start optimising your creative, targeting, and bids to bring that cost down.

To give you a better idea of how budget and target CPI affect your potential results, I've built a simple interactive calculator below. You can adjust the sliders to see how the numbers change. It's a good way to model some different scenarios before you launch.

I've detailed my main recommendations for you below:

To bring this all together, here is a summary of the step-by-step strategy I would recommend you implement. This is a framework that moves away from inefficient methods and focuses your budget on high-impact activities that are proven to work for app promotion. Following this will give you a much clearer path to getting downloads in Amsterdam.

As you can see, a successful app marketing strategy is a lot more involved than just setting up a simple ad campaign. It requires a multi-platform approach, a deep understanding of user behaviour on each channel, and a constant process of creative testing and data analysis. It's not just about finding the cheapest install; it's about finding the most cost-effective way to acquire a user who will actually engage with your app and provide long-term value.

This is where having expert help can make a significant difference. Navigating the nuances of Apple Search Ads, Google App Campaigns, and Meta's platform can be a full-time job. An experienced consultant or agency can help you avoid costly mistakes, accelerate your learning curve, and implement a sophisticated strategy from day one, ensuring your ad spend is working as hard as possible to grow your user base.

These are just my initial thoughts based on your question, but hopefully they provide a much clearer and more effective direction for you. If you'd like to discuss your specific app and goals in more detail, we offer a free, no-obligation consultation where we can dive deeper into a tailored strategy for you.

Regards,

Team @ Lukas Holschuh