Why Mobile Monetization is Shifting to the Web
For over a decade, the App Store and Google Play dominated mobile monetization. But with rising platform fees, limited pricing flexibility, and stricter data policies, mobile teams are reevaluating their growth infrastructure.
Web funnels now offer a smarter path — letting teams control user experience, optimize conversions, and own the monetization stack.
App developers increasingly understand that owning the payment relationship, having flexible pricing tools, and gaining better insights into customer behavior are essential for long-term success. With web funnels, you’re not just rerouting traffic — you’re reshaping how value is communicated and captured.
Why Web Funnels Beat App Store-Only Monetization
Mobile users don’t convert because they see an app listing — they convert when they understand the product's value. That value needs to be communicated before a user hits a generic App Store page. Web funnels help:
- Deliver personalized onboarding experiences
- Show flexible pricing models and bundles
- Pre-qualify users with quizzes or tailored flows
- Tell a value-driven story tailored to different audiences
Apps that route users through a branded web funnel before the install consistently see better conversion rates, higher lifetime value (LTV), and improved retention.
Web funnels also give you the flexibility to create targeted experiences — for example, showing different content or offers based on which ad a user clicked. This level of control is not possible within the App Store alone.
5 Reasons to Monetize Outside the App Store
1. Keep More of Your Revenue
App store fees can take up to 30% of every sale. With web funnels, transactions happen directly — allowing you to keep more revenue and reinvest it into product development or growth.
2. Offer Flexible Pricing
Web monetization enables dynamic pricing: trials, bundles, one-time offers, localized discounts. Unlike static store listings, you can test, iterate, and optimize in real time.
3. Customize Checkout and Retention
Build upsell flows, show retention offers, and customize checkout logic — all without App Store restrictions. You can implement pause options, save attempts, or downgrade flows to reduce churn.
4. Expand Your Global Reach
With a web-based checkout, you can localize language, pricing, and payment methods for any market. This increases conversion in regions where traditional app store infrastructure is less effective.
5. Own the Relationship
Capture email before the install. Ask qualifying questions. Re-market with personalized follow-ups. On the web, you build a direct channel to your users — no gatekeeper involved.
From Web to App: Web Funnels in Action
Here’s how a web funnel works in practice:
- Click — User taps a TikTok, Meta, or YouTube ad.
- Landing Page or Quiz — They land on a Zellify-built funnel tailored to the ad's angle.
- Offer — They see a dynamic paywall or pricing page based on quiz answers or UTM source.
- Conversion — They purchase directly on the web or proceed to the app to use the product.
These funnels act as intelligent onboarding journeys. With Zellify, you can A/B test every step, view funnel drop-off, and push changes instantly — without engineering support.
The result: better paid conversion, more engaged users, and full visibility into what drives growth.
The Monetization Stack That Works
Zellify gives you the full infrastructure to:
- Build and deploy custom paywalls and onboarding flows
- Accept payments via Stripe, local PSPs, or global processors
- Create subscription, trial, or one-time payment options
- Support localization (currencies, UX, languages)
More importantly, Zellify tracks user behavior and conversion metrics in real time, helping you identify what's working and where to optimize.
Whether you're running a language learning app, a mental wellness tool, or a subscription-based productivity app — web monetization with Zellify scales with your needs.
Final Thoughts
The App Store isn’t going away — but the smartest mobile teams aren’t building exclusively within it anymore.
Teams like Quittr, Buddy, and others with $100K+ MRR have started shifting core parts of their monetization stack to the web — increasing margins, improving flexibility, and creating a better user experience.
Web funnels allow you to:
- Reduce reliance on app store logic
- Regain control of pricing and LTV
- Build a direct relationship with users
Zellify makes it easy.
Whether you want to test a new pricing strategy, reduce churn, or improve onboarding — launching a web funnel is now easier than ever with Zellify.
It only takes a few minutes.
→ Try Zellify free