Sell Products in the Mobile App

Sell your learning products directly in your Branded Mobile App and increase your revenue.

How to Sell Products in the Mobile App

In-app purchases are a Branded Mobile-exclusive feature. They allow your students to discover and buy new learning products directly within your branded app, using their Apple ID or Google Play account. With Apple and Google Play’s in-app purchase systems, they can easily tap, purchase, and get access to new learning products, while the earnings from these purchases are deposited directly into your bank account.

For most branded apps, in-app purchases are required by Apple and Google for your app to be approved in their app stores. Learn more about it here: In-App Purchase Requirement.

In-app purchases allow you to:

• Increase revenue
  By offering in-app purchases, you create an additional revenue stream that is deposited directly into your bank account, allowing you to increase your product sales.
• Meet students where they are
  Your students are already using the app - capitalize on their engagement by offering them a convenient way to get more courses from you without leaving the app.
• Ensure that your Branded app is approved
  In many cases, in-app purchases are required by Apple and Google in order to approve the app.

Which products can be sold through In-App Purchases?

The Thinkific team will work with you on setting up the first product.

In-app purchases can only be enabled for:

• published courses and bundles with one-time payment pricing (with or without expiry dates)
• published courses and bundles with subscription pricing

At the moment, the following product types are not supported for in-app purchases:

• Communities
• Memberships
• Free trials
• Free previews
• Hidden or private products
• Products with monthly payment pricing

We're continuously working on improving our mobile app offering behind the scenes, including on offering more product options via in-app purchases! Keep checking this article for more information on the latest releases:Mobile App Recent Updates.

Once enabled, students will be able to purchase the products directly through their app. See the Student Experience section below.

How do I get paid for In-App Purchases?

All in-app purchases are processed through Apple and Google, which means that they bypass standard Thinkific checkout. Money will be deposited directly into your bank account. All in-app purchases will be charged a 30% fee by Apple and Google. Apply for a reduced rate to reduce the fee to 15% by following the instructions here.

Set Up In-App Purchases

The Thinkific team will work closely with you to set up in-app purchases. To ensure a successful setup, you will need to complete the steps outlined here:

• Set Up In-App Purchases in the Apple App Store
• Set Up In-App Purchases in the Google Play Store

Add Products to In-App Purchases

The Thinkific team will work with you on setting up your initial in-app purchase product. However, if you decide to make more products available to purchase through your Branded app, you can do it by following these steps:

• Adding Products to In-App Purchases in the Apple App Store
• Adding Products to In-App Purchases in the Google Play Store

How can students purchase products in the app?

When the In-App Purchases feature is enabled and set up, your students will be able to purchase the products directly from within your Branded app! To do that, your students need to:

1. Open your branded app
2. Select the Catalog tab at the bottom of the screen. Note that students might need to click on More first if the catalog tab is not visible right away.
3. Select the product they want to purchase
   When viewing the list of products, your students will see the product image, the product price, the product name, and the product description, and the table of content.
4. Purchase the product using a payment method associated with their Apple ID or Google Play accounts
5. Once purchased, your students will be automatically enrolled in the product and can start learning right away!

How can students manage their active subscriptions?

Your students can manage their in-app purchase subscriptions directly within the app. To access it, students need to:

1. From any tab in the app, click on a profile image
2. Select Active Subscriptions
3. Students will be able to see the list of their active subscriptions purchased in the mobile app. They can cancel or manage their subscriptions by clicking on Manage Subscriptions.

Subscriptions and purchases that are not made in the mobile app will not show up in the Active Subscriptions menu.

Important Considerations

• We recommend applying to Apple App Store and Google Play programs that offer reduced rates to lower in-app purchase fees to 15%:
  • Apple Store Small Business Program
  • Enrol in the Google Play Store 15% service fee tier
• Note that the price of each individual product sold through In-App Purchases cannot exceed $1000 USD on the Apple App Store and Google Play Store. The maximum price limit for South Korea on Google is $400 USD.

Frequently Asked Questions