--- title: Why acquiring more users is no longer enough description: User acquisition is no longer enough. Learn how mature apps scale with a purposeful channel mix, with insights from Pizza Hut at App Growth Summit Mexico 2026. image: https://blog.rocketlab.ai/hubfs/Event%20Vertical%20(1)-2.png --- [![logo\_\_white](https://blog.rocketlab.ai/hubfs/logo__white.svg) ![Logo\_RocketLab](https://blog.rocketlab.ai/hubfs/Logo_RocketLab.svg)](https://www.rocketlab.ai/?hsLang=en) - [SOLUTIONS](https://www.rocketlab.ai/?hsLang=en) [First-impact Ads](https://www.rocketlab.ai/solutions/fia?hsLang=en) [Apple Search Ads](https://www.rocketlab.ai/solutions/asa?hsLang=en) [Programmatic Ads](https://www.rocketlab.ai/solutions/programmatic?hsLang=en) [Reach Beyond](https://www.rocketlab.ai/solutions/reach-beyond?hsLang=en) [Braze](https://www.rocketlab.ai/braze?hsLang=en) - [SUCCESS STORIES](https://www.rocketlab.ai/success-stories?hsLang=en) - [PARTNERS](https://www.rocketlab.ai/partners?hsLang=en) - [PUBLISHERS](https://www.rocketlab.ai/publishers?hsLang=en) - [COMPANY](https://www.rocketlab.ai/about-us?hsLang=en) [Hiring](https://www.rocketlab.ai/hiring?hsLang=en) [About us](https://www.rocketlab.ai/about-us?hsLang=en) [CONTACT US](https://blog.rocketlab.ai/en/user-acquisition-vs-app-growth#popup_contact-us) ## Contact Us # Why acquiring more users is no longer enough ![estrategias-ASO-app-posicionamiento](https://blog.rocketlab.ai/hs-fs/hubfs/estrategias-ASO-app-posicionamiento.jpg?width=1024&height=576&name=estrategias-ASO-app-posicionamiento.jpg) At App Growth Summit Mexico City 2026, **Jair Vilchis from Rocket Lab** sat down with **Alfredo Ortiz, Head of Ecommerce at Pizza Hut**, to discuss a challenge many mature apps are facing: what happens when acquiring more users is no longer enough to keep growing?   The conversation focused on how mobile app growth strategies change as apps mature, why adding more acquisition channels does not automatically create better results, and what teams need to understand before deciding where to invest next.   The main takeaway was clear: **user acquisition and app growth are no longer the same thing.**   ## **Growth happens after the install** For a long time, app growth followed a relatively simple logic: acquire users, optimize CAC, and increase investment when the numbers worked. Today, an app can improve acquisition efficiency and still struggle to grow. More installs do not necessarily translate into more active users, first purchases, repeat transactions, or long-term value. That is why the questions growth teams need to answer are changing. Instead of focusing only on how many users they can acquire, they need to understand what happens next: whether those users activate, purchase, return, and ultimately contribute to the business. As Alfredo shared from Pizza Hut's perspective, sustainable growth comes from connecting the app strategy to those broader objectives rather than treating acquisition as the final outcome.   ## **Having more channels is not the same as having a strategy** During the session, the audience was asked which channels they currently use to grow their apps. The answers covered much of the mobile advertising ecosystem, including Meta, Google, Apple Ads, programmatic advertising, OEM, and CTV.   The second question was more revealing: **how many of those channels actually work together as part of the same strategy?** Channel diversification matters, especially as apps look for new audiences and incremental reach. But adding platforms to a media plan is not enough. Each channel needs a clear role based on what the business is trying to achieve.   Some channels help create demand, others capture existing intent, open access to new inventory, or bring current users back into the app. The value comes from understanding how those roles complement one another rather than evaluating every campaign in isolation. **A diversified media mix only becomes a growth strategy when every channel is working toward the same business objective.**   ## **The business objective should define the mix** One of the key points Jair shared during the breakout was that an app growth strategy should start before choosing a channel. What is currently limiting growth? Is the priority acquiring new users, generating first purchases, increasing MAU, reactivating customers, reaching higher-value audiences, or finding incremental growth outside the platforms already in use?   The answer determines the mix, and that mix will change over time. This was also part of Pizza Hut's experience. The strategy evolved as the business learned what was working, identified new opportunities, and added solutions based on what it needed next. Growth was not about finding one channel and scaling it indefinitely, but about adjusting the approach as the challenge changed.   ## **Scaling is not just increasing spend** For mature apps, there is a point where putting more budget into the same acquisition channels starts to produce diminishing returns. Audiences overlap, costs rise, and the next stage of growth depends increasingly on understanding what is truly incremental.   Which channels are reaching users you would not have reached otherwise? Where is there still untapped inventory? What role is each solution playing across the funnel? Answering those questions requires measurement, experimentation, and a strategy that continues adapting alongside the business.   The apps that keep scaling are not necessarily the ones using the most channels. They are the ones that understand what they need to solve first, give every channel a purpose, measure what each one contributes, and evolve the mix over time. **Understand the business. Build the strategy. Evolve it. Then scale.**   Want to explore what the right growth mix could look like for your app?[Get in touch](https://www.rocketlab.ai/?hsLang=en) with our team. ## FAQs #### **What is the difference between user acquisition and app growth?** User acquisition focuses on bringing new users into an app. App growth goes further by considering what happens after the install, including activation, first purchase, retention, reengagement, and long-term user value.   #### **Why should apps diversify their acquisition channels?** Diversifying channels can help apps reach new audiences, access incremental inventory, and reduce dependence on a small number of platforms. The key is giving each channel a specific role within the broader growth strategy.   #### **How can an app scale without simply increasing media spend?** Sustainable scale comes from understanding which channels generate incremental growth, measuring their contribution across the funnel, and adjusting the media mix as business objectives change. ## About Author Jair Vilchis, Customer Growth Manager at Rocket Lab. Rocket Lab is an App Growth Hub that integrates multiple solutions to help companies and their apps achieve their business goals through attraction, acquisition, and engagement strategies. Its solutions include Apple Ads, OEM advertising, programmatic media, and ad networks, supporting brands across the entire app lifecycle. ![Captura de tela 2026-03-31 111045](https://blog.rocketlab.ai/hs-fs/hubfs/Captura%20de%20tela%202026-03-31%20111045.png?width=1356&height=516&name=Captura%20de%20tela%202026-03-31%20111045.png) ![Blog cover (89)](https://blog.rocketlab.ai/hs-fs/hubfs/Blog%20cover%20%20(89).png?width=1024&height=576&name=Blog%20cover%20%20(89).png) ![Blog cover (89)](https://blog.rocketlab.ai/hs-fs/hubfs/Blog%20cover%20%20(89).png?width=1024&height=576&name=Blog%20cover%20%20(89).png) ![Blog cover (89)](https://blog.rocketlab.ai/hs-fs/hubfs/Blog%20cover%20%20(89).png?width=1024&height=576&name=Blog%20cover%20%20(89).png) --- ### Subscribe to our newsletter ### Recent Posts ![](https://blog.rocketlab.ai/hubfs/Event%20Vertical-2.png) Published Oct, 08, 2026 ##### [When everyone knows your brand, what is User Acquisition really for?](https://blog.rocketlab.ai/en/user-acquisition-for-well-known-brands?hsLang=en) [Read more](https://blog.rocketlab.ai/en/user-acquisition-for-well-known-brands?hsLang=en) ![](https://blog.rocketlab.ai/hubfs/Cover%20Blog_Casos%20de%20exito%20(1)-2.png) Published Sep, 29, 2026 ##### [How Farmatodo grew first purchases by 296% and cut CPA by 68%](https://blog.rocketlab.ai/en/farmatodo-case-study-first-purchases-cpa?hsLang=en) [Read more](https://blog.rocketlab.ai/en/farmatodo-case-study-first-purchases-cpa?hsLang=en) ![](https://blog.rocketlab.ai/hubfs/R-Voices_Cover%20Blog_TEMPLATE%20(20).png) Published Sep, 23, 2026 ##### [How starting Discovery now can help Apple Ads deliver more during peak season](https://blog.rocketlab.ai/en/apple-ads-discovery-peak-season-keywords?hsLang=en) [Read more](https://blog.rocketlab.ai/en/apple-ads-discovery-peak-season-keywords?hsLang=en) ##### [All posts](https://blog.rocketlab.ai/en) ##### [Rocket lab](https://blog.rocketlab.ai/en/tag/rocket-lab) ##### [Case studies](https://blog.rocketlab.ai/en/tag/case-studies) ##### [Rocket voices](https://blog.rocketlab.ai/en/tag/rocket-voices) [![Logo(1)](https://blog.rocketlab.ai/hubfs/Logo(1).png)](https://www.rocketlab.ai/?hsLang=en) - [![linkedin](https://blog.rocketlab.ai/hubfs/linkedin.png)](https://www.linkedin.com/company/rocket-lab-unlock-new-growth-today/about/) - [![instagram](https://blog.rocketlab.ai/hubfs/instagram.png)](https://www.instagram.com/rocketlabsquad/) - [![youtube](https://blog.rocketlab.ai/hubfs/youtube.png)](https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCrdlfd2d5ocxr0mbNwFrFig) - [![apple-podcasts 1-1](https://blog.rocketlab.ai/hubfs/apple-podcasts%201-1.png)](https://podcasts.apple.com/es/podcast/hablemos-de-mobile-marketing/id1560175049?l=en) - [![Component 1(2)](https://blog.rocketlab.ai/hubfs/Component%201(2).png)](https://open.spotify.com/show/6fuFRcLX4a6JLj7DLR21AC)