On average, smartphone users use 26 different apps every month. If your app is one of those lucky ones, it calls for a big hoorah, right? Well, not so fast. Just because your app is being used, doesn’t mean those users are interacting with it in valuable ways.

The reality is that people can do almost anything on their smartphones. While this has presented seemingly countless opportunities for app developers, it’s a double-edged sword. Users are constantly switching back and forth between apps. Closing some apps, opening others. Downloading new ones, trashing the old. While users see them simply as more apps, marketers see them as more distractions. And they’re everywhere. If you’re not doing your part to keep their attention, then you risk losing them forever.

But don’t be fooled, this sob story has a happy ending – if you play your cards right. In-app marketing, those cards are timely in-app messages and valuable push messages that lure them back in.

Here’s how and when you’re losing your app users, and what you can do to keep them engaged.