Discover insights to find success for apps and games in France
6 best practice tips to reach more mobile users in France
France has Europe’s 4th largest population, and close to 80% of people there are smartphone users (Statista 2020). Because French is the main language (and English fluency is low), it’s important to localize your app or game to reach more users — which brings the added benefit of opening it up to other French-speaking markets around the world.
Gaming is also the #1 cultural product sold in France before music, books, and movies. France is home to legendary games such as Assassin’s Creed and Detroit: Become Human built by legendary studios such as Ubisoft, Gameloft or Quantic Dream. This is expected to expand as the number of video games produced in France grew by 43% (YoY 2018 vs. 2019) to reach 1200 games (SELL 2018, AppAnnie 2018).
Let’s take a closer look at 6 key factors that can help your app or game find success in France.
1. Launch in popular game and app categories
Games
The top 3 grossing game genres in France are:
- RPG (Role Playing Games) — with a mix of international and EMEA-developed titles
- Strategy — mostly dominated by Supercell titles
- Action — anime and Japanese IPs are very popular with several titles in the Top 20
Apps
In France, the most commonly used app categories are:
- Communication — such as WhatsApp and Facebook Messenger
- Social — such as Facebook, Instagram and Snapchat
- Productivity — with mostly G-Suite and Office 365
In terms of top grossing apps the categories are:
- Online Dating — such as Adopteunmec, Tinder, Happn, Lovoo
- Video Entertainment — Canal, Netflix, and Twitch
2. Localize your pricing
Currency
The currency of France is the Euro (€). There are no strict guidelines on how prices should be written. Both “10,00 € / 0,99 €” and “10 € / 99 cent” are familiar formats. “2,00 EUR / 0,20 EUR” is another variation, often intended for official government use.
All Euro coins have a common reverse side showing the value, so it is therefore preferable to show this when the coin is being represented by a graphic, rather than the other side which often features national designs.
All countries using the Euro have different designs and names for their coins, but they are interchangeable and have the same value.
Methods of payment
Credits cards are the dominating payment methods with more than 50% of consumer spend, followed by Carrier Billing and PayPal, with Gift Cards completing the payment landscape with less than 5%.
3. Adapt your language and tone
Language style
One of the first language decisions you’ll need to make when developing an app for the French market is whether to use ‘tu’ or ‘vous’ when addressing users. The first is more casual and personal, whereas the latter is more polite and official. Each has their potential downsides to be aware of. For example, ‘tu’ could be interpreted as rude and invasive, while ‘vous’ is seen as distant and old fashioned. The key is to be consistent, as switching between the two makes the text awkward. Also, French is usually written without any contractions. For example, it is more common to see “tu n’es pas” rather than “t’es pas”.
Punctuation
French punctuation is quite specific. In most instances, spaces should be added (e.g. « Ceci est une maison ! ») — but these spaces’ Unicode should be U+00A0 instead of the more common U+0020. They are called “non-breaking spaces” or “unbreakable spaces”, because they prevent the punctuation being split up by automatic line breaks (see below). On a Mac, this is done by pressing Option+Spacebar. On a PC running Windows, it’s Ctrl+Shift+Spacebar.
4. Consider font, layout, and user interface
Short and concise sentences are often preferred.
There is no general font in French, you simply have to make sure that the one you choose supports all the special characters used in this language, such as Æ, Œ, Ç, à, á, â, ä, æ, ç, è, é, ê, ë, œ, «, »
See these examples below:
Here the special character “œ” is missing
Here the special character is used correctly
5. Adapt to local and cultural nuances
Your app or game should be in French, although the acceptability of English is on the rise. That said, anglicisms such as email, shopping, chat, podcast, and feedback are widely used (although not in Quebec French) and most titles (for movies, video games, comics, and alike) tend to remain in English.
English is also acceptable for more common video gaming words including skins, win, round, boss, and auto.
For example:
You can also help your app or game stand out from the crowd by customizing your use of slang, contractions, and tone of voice.
6. Modify your user acquisition strategy
Online
While TV ads are popular, many French developers (from the likes of Voodoo, Ketchapp and Oh Bibi) invest heavily in multiple digital channels such as social media and in-game cross-promotions. Google, Facebook, Iron Source and AppLovin are all networks used to increase user acquisition in France.
For certain genres, YouTube and influencer marketing are also key user acquisition strategies.
Instant games and playable ads became popular in 2018 as marketing and user acquisition tactics.
Offline
Out-of-home marketing is more common for big developers, especially for triple-A games with high production values or games linked to key sporting events or major movies, TV shows, and alike.
Ad campaigns in the Paris Métro are also used by the bigger brands.
Mobile
According to eMarketer, French consumers are less tolerant of mobile ads compared with other countries (around 40% prefer other ad types compared to 20% worldwide). As such, additional care should be taken if you’re thinking about monetizing your app through advertising.
Final thoughts
The two key considerations in preparing your product to enter the French market are language and acquisition strategy.
While there is some tolerance for anglicisms — such as email, shopping, chat, podcast, and feedback along with English game terminology — translation into French is essential. Carefully consider whether you should be using casual or formal language. Watch out for punctuation issues, particularly the need for a non-breaking space between words and exclamation and question marks. Also, make sure that the font you choose supports the special characters used in French.
When it comes to marketing your app or game, you may have to place less reliance on mobile advertising, because it isn’t as well-tolerated in France as elsewhere. In addition to digital advertising you may want to consider TV ads and out-of-home marketing, although for more limited budgets YouTube and influencer marketing can also be successful.
Once you have prepared your app or game for the launch in French, consider taking it to other French-speaking markets such as Belgium or Canada.
What do you think?
Do you have thoughts on launching apps and games in France? Let us know in the comments below or tweet using #AskPlayDev and we’ll reply from @GooglePlayDev, where we regularly share news and tips on how to be successful on Google Play.
