The Ultimate App Store Optimization Guide. Tips & Tricks on How to Increase Your App Store Traffic and App Downloads

Transcription

1 The Ultimate App Store Optimization Guide Tips & Tricks on How to Increase Your App Store Traffic and App Downloads

2 The Ultimate App Store Optimization Guide Summary 1. Introduction - Why We Prepared This Guide & Why ASO Is So Important? - But, What Exactly Is App Store Optimization? 2. Step by Step Guide For App Store Optimization - Check Your Competitors First - Get Found With the Right Keywords - Choose Your App Name Wisely - Choose Your App Name Wisely - Write a Distinctive Description - Share Your App Updates - Optimize Your Visuals: App Icons, Screenshots & Videos - Reviews & Ratings - Choose the Right Category - Frequency Update - App Localization 3. Mobile App Marketing 4. App Optimization Tools At A Glance 5. Checklist

3 1. Introduction Why We Prepared This Guide & Why ASO Is So Important? There are almost 5 million Apps in both, the Apple App Store and the Google Play Store and over 200 billion download in total. We live in a mobile world and the App industry keeps on growing. These millions of mobile Apps are waiting in the stores to be found. According to a study by Tune, 52% of Android and 55% of ios users found the last App they downloaded through an App store search. To get your App found, ASO might be your secret weapon. If you spend time on improving your ASO, you will definitely impact your App s ranking and overall performance. As the number of peers and competition increases, the cost and the time you have to spend increases, too. So, keep on optimizing, ASO is the key to your success! You need to be sure that you rank well, that you attract the right users and outshine from your opponents to reach the download numbers you are aiming for. But, What Exactly Is App Store Optimization? ASO is the process of optimizing mobile Apps to rank higher in an App store s search results. The higher your App ranks in an App store, the more visible it is to potential customers. That increased visibility tends to convert into more traffic to your App s page in the App store. The main goal of your optimization efforts is to drive more traffic to your App s page, so searchers can easily download your App. So, it s crucial to understand your target customer s behaviour such as keyword searches, similar Apps they are using etc. Once you get to know your potential users needs, you can not only use this information for your ASO efforts but also for your whole mobile App marketing strategy. Bonus: Difference between App Store Optimization and SEO for Apps App store search is separate from Google search, and is another form of Mobile App SEO. While ASO is about optimizing App ranking in the App Store / Google Play Store search results, SEO for Mobile Apps deals with improving your App s visibility in the Google s SERP. But both are important for your mobile App marketing.

4 Considering the differences of the search behaviour of Google Search, App Store Search and YouTube Search you may want to invest into a good keyword tool since keywords are crucial on any search optimization. At the end of your research you will see that you won t need long tail keywords like you would normally have on Google Search. Now you have your keyword list, congrats! Choose Your App Name Wisely Before we begin let s make one thing clear to avoid any confusions. Apple s App Store uses as title App Name and Google s Play Store uses Title. Practically, they both actually mean title and they both are the most valuable piece of your App store results page view. Another study by Tune found that Apps with relevant keywords in their title are ranked 10.3% higher than the ones that are not using them. Ok, if you have decided on your keywords you can now start typing the most visible, most determining words for your App. No pressure, but you only have a couple of letters to type due to the character limits. App Store Make sure that your App name is fully visible on any kind of screen. (Tip: Test it on smaller screens!) Your ios App name should not exceed the 25 characters limit. In these 25 characters you need to add your brand name, main keyword(s) and beside this you may want to add an extra keyword which makes your visitor click on your App and download it. Yes, this is especially challenging if you have a long brand name. When writing the keywords: - Don t use spaces just separate them with a comma - You don t need to write plurals - Use numbers 2 instead typing two

5 Play Store Within the same context Google Play Store gives you a 50 character limit for your title. However, because of the different screen sizes the suggested optimum character amount is 30. So, even if you keep it longer than 30 characters make sure that you use your main keyword, brand name and purpose of the App within the first 30 characters. Max. Character Apple App Store Google Play Store App Name 25 Recommended (225) 30 Keywords Short Description Description What s New Here are some examples: ikinciyeni.com - ikinci el oto Google Maps Navigation & Transit Bonus: ios 11 update With the ios 11 update in the ios App Store in October 2017, it will be possible to add subtitles below the App Name/Title section. This will have an impact on our optimization process. Let s wait and see...

6 Write A Distinctive Description It is important to have not only your App title contain the strongest keywords, but also your description. Writing a message that is easy to understand, well-structured and stands out of your competitors is important. Keep in mind that you want to convince your users to download your App. Your App description, your visual and clear App icon, and engaging App screenshots will be the main assets for this. Both the App Store and Google Play Store have a character limit for the description area. The first 2-3 sentences are the most important ones, because this is what users can see without tapping the more link. You will be able to provide more detail on what you want to say later. But first, try to wrap up why the user should download your App, what the main benefits are and highlight the unique features that this App has in the first 252 characters. Bonus: Users don t like to read According to StoreMaven s research collected from 50m App users, App store users don t like to read. Only 5% click the more button to continue reading. So every single character and wording you use in the short description counts. While keywords used in the description have an impact on rankings in Google Play, this is not relevant for App Store for ios. But this doesn t mean that you should put less effort in it. Keep in mind that this description area plays a role in convincing the visitors to press the download button.

7 Stretch your description by giving details about your App s benefits, features and additional advantages. Try adding your website link, social media and blog links or any other information that you may think can affect your users decisions. The recommended description should be kept concise & informative. Additionally, - Make it easy to read. Try using bullet points - Tell them what they will gain and they will love the App - Highlight how easy the App is to use - Explain why your App should be preferred over the competitors ones - Maintain the tone & terminology of your brand Isn t it easier to read the above items in bullet points. What do you think? :) Keep in mind: - Don t use over-optimized keywords in your title and description. Be natural in your language. - Don t forget the most important thing is your target audience. Why do you want that specific user to download your App? You don t want that people just download your App and later delete it and contribute to the dump of deleted Apps. - Don t forget that you can only update your description when submitting a new version release, in ios at least. If you ll need to add more information or updates you can use some of the additional features that do not require a release to update. Bonus: New ios features ios 11 will have lots of new features, making us optimizers feel like in heaven. Next to the subtitle feature already mentioned above, you will be able to add promotional ad texts above the description with 170 characters. Promotional ad texts can be used to emphasize new features and promotions. The good thing is, you can play around with this text and do A/B tests without releasing a new App version. Share Your App Updates ios gives you an additional characters to tell your users what is new with you App prior to the latest version. So if you have any updates, don t hesitate to share this in your What s New section. If there is nothing new, don t bother to write anything in here. But you can be creative and write funny updates to capture your visitor s attention. Write only if your App really has new features. Besides this, if there is a bug make sure you put it in there.

8 Optimize Your Visuals: App Icons, Screenshots & Videos They say A picture says more than 1000 words. And this is true! Although App visuals do not directly impact an App s ranking, they are very important aspects in App Store Optimization as visuals help you to portray the App experience and convince the visitors to download your App. App Icons Your App icon is what your potential users see first with the App name/title. So there are no other words needed to describe on how important it is. Don t forget, besides your App store results page you will be using this icon on your website, your press releases and for various other marketing purposes. It s worth putting some thinking on it. If needed get help from a professional to design your App icon. Here are some tips for your App icon: - Less is more, try to avoid words. - Let the icon give ideas about what the App is about. - Make sure people can associate it with your brand and what your App does. So if you are a well-known brand use your brand logo but if the functionality of your App is more important, describe your App icon with the main functionality of your App. - Make sure you have your App icon on your website in proper places. App Screenshots The first 2 screenshots you will use will determine your App s destiny we would say as it is crucial that the visitors see the main features of your App first without downloading it. You can add up to 5 screenshots to your App Store and 8 to your Google Play Store, but how should these screenshots look like? Here are our tips & tricks: - Make sure that each screenshot is telling a unique message about your App. - Be as Appealing and informative as you can. - Show how the App will look like & what kind of pages will expect them. - Most importantly, add short and snappy captions on a clean background. - Focus on a different benefit in each screenshot - Avoid login and registration screenshots and don t use ads in the images. - Keep the screenshots vertical so you have more space to showcase them. App App Store Up to 4 Screenshots 1334 x 750 px (iphone 6 & 7) Screenshot Requirements Google Play Store Up to 8 Screenshots Min. Dimension: 320 px 2048 x 1536 px (ipad) Max. Dimansion: 3840 px JPEG or PNG JPEG or PNG 72 dpi resolution

9 App Preview Video If a picture says more than words, than a how-to video must be worth words. That s right! Especially mobile users tend to prefer watching over reading. So a video of what your App does and how it basically works can contribute more than you think. Plus, you might even skip or shorten most of your how-to questions in your text. Therefore, the App preview helps you to show the features, functions and the user experience of your App. Each preview is limited to 30 seconds. Take a look at Apple s Developer Guide for more details about the content and the format of App previews. Here some tips for you to consider: - The first seconds of your preview are the most important ones, so try to grab the viewer s attention in the very first seconds. - Try to include a call-to-action, so that the viewer gets curious to see more by downloading the App. - Focus on the most important features of your App. Keep it short and snappy! - Avoid welcome messages or unnecessary fade-ins. Here are some good App Preview Examples that you can check out. Mac Owners can easily create App Reviews by connecting ios device to a Mac with Quicktime. Bonus: New ios features In the search result page of ios 11, up to three App preview videos and/or screenshots can Appear, rather than just two as in ios 10. Videos will always be displayed before screenshots and the first video will now play automatically, but sound will be muted by default. App Preview Requirements App App Store Google Play Store App App Store Google Play Store seconds length 30 seconds 2 minutes video length 2048 x 1536 px (ipad) Maximum file size of 50 MB Preview videos must be uploaded to YouTube first JPEG or PNG 72 dpi resolution.mov,.m4v,.mp4 format The full YouTube video link must be used instead of shortened link only use screen captures No or Limited Copy Allowed Use Voice Over

10 Reviews And Ratings Previously, it was only assumed that the number of installs that your App gets, determines its ranking, but lately reviews and ratings have gained more importance. We all agree that user generated content is one of the topics that contributes most to the overall conversion. So App reviews and ratings contribute to the overall download numbers. In short, as your App gets more downloads, it definitely will help in your overall ranking. First, make sure that you give users a good UX and a high quality product service. Then, incent your real users to rate you and give reviews. Please don t verdantly ask them for a review. Yes, we all hate that pushy appoach. Try to: - Ask when the whole process is finished. For instance, when the user completed a reservation, finished a level in a game, purchased a product etc. - Please don t beg. Just use nice wordings such as - Would you mind - You would really contribute to our - Give us your opinions, so next time we can give a better experience... - Conduct a survey and ask if they like your App and if they would recommend it to a friend. Those who answer with Yes are your App Lovers and they would likely give you a positive rating or review. Note to yourself, if there are bad reviews don t ever delete them. Embrace them. By this we mean answer them and show that you care about your customers. Show your users that even if they have a problem with your service there is a real person on the other side with whom they can always address their problems to and questions won t be left unanswered.

11 Choose The Right Category The App category helps you to get discovered by users who browse in App categories and give them an idea of what your App is about. Basically, you need to pick the category that defines your App best. However, it looks the easiest, but it may be harder than you think. Sometimes your App just won t directly fit into any category, or it fits into more than one category. When you just can t decide: - Check your competitors to see what category they have opted-in - Focus on your App s main purpose not the secondary one - Still not sure or maybe you are so unique you don t even have any competitors yet? Try to think like your target audience. Ask yourself: With what other activities can your audience correlate you with? For example, you have an ebook about healthy cooking. Which category should you choose: Food & Drink, Health & Fitness or Books? Even though it is a food and drink book, we would definitely recommend you to go with Health & Fitness, because your target audience is directly interested in health and fitness. Users who search in that category are most likely to be interested in healthy cooking and you have a good chance of not getting lost in the books category for someone who is generally searching for ebooks. Still in a dilemma? We recommend you to choose the category which has lower competition. Be careful though, if your category is too irrelevant, you may get disappoved by the App stores! Frequency Of Updates Regular updates can have a positive impact on your ratings and also your ranking. Frequent App updates can improve user loyalty and with a new update the App shows up on the top in the updates list of the App stores. Apple and Google also like to see App updates, because they show you re committed to the App and that it s still being maintained. Of course, you shouldn t do an update just for doing an update. Your updates should always improve your App, either by bug fixings or enhancements. App Localization It is recommended that you should localize your App listing first to see how well your App performs in different countries. It means translating your App name, App store keywords, screenshots, etc. You can then decide if you should perform a full localization of the whole App for the best performing countries. Congratulations! Your optimization is almost done.

12 3. Mobile App Marketing Once you have Applied all the steps above, you should now focus on promoting your App and get relevant traffic to your App store, because downloads and conversions can improve your ranking as well. Yes, we know, that sounds a bit like a chicken or egg problem: Optimizing the App to get higher downloads vs. increase downloads to improve rankings? You can start with these simple steps: - Start to promote your App to your existing web users and clients - Make sure your App is visible on your website. You can put the App download icon on your website footer for example - You can even create a seperate landing page which only promotes your App. You can add some content, screenshots, your App icon and your demo videos to this page. This would help getting organic web traffic to this page where users can directly download your App. - Another way to promote your App is advertising on it. So, which ad platform is better than Google when it comes to high conversion rates? With Google s AdWords Universal App campaigns you can advertise your App across all of Google s ad networks to maximize reach and increase App installs. The best of these kind of ads is that it is a quick and easy way to promote an App in different networks with the need of only a single campaign. Those ads can Appear on Google Play, Google Search, in YouTube Apps or on mobile sites and in the Google Display Network.

13 4. App Optimization Tools At A Glance As already mentioned before, ASO has many parts, from keyword & description optimization to visual optimization, analyzing reviews & ratings to marketing. During your optimization process different optimization tools can help you, whether you need them for your research or App tracking. Here are some of our most favorite ASO Tools: 1. Sensor Tower Sensor Tower is an App store optimization tool and intelligence platform. The tool s accurate data and tracking functions help to improve your App s visibility in the App stores. Sensor Tower is the perfect tool to track keyword ranking and performance. Its keyword translation feature can translate your keywords into multiple languages to increase your App downloads in other countries as well. The tool can also be used for competitor tracking. The price starts from $79 per month. 2. App Annie App Annie is a business intelligence tool designed to help App publishers and developers with their decision-making. You can use this App store optimization tool to measure, test and optimize your keywords to improve your App s discoverability and to increase downloads. 3. App Radar With App Radar you can edit App store meta data all in one place. It s a very good App marketing platform helping you through the process of App store optimization. You can track your keyword rankings with only 1 /day. 4. StoreMaven StoreMaven is an App testing tool to conduct A/B tests by testing a lot of different variables. With StoreMaven you can test your App Store as such or even test elements like App icons or screenshots 5. Firebase Google Analytics for Firebase is a free App measurement solution that provides insights on App usage and user engagement. Analytics reports help you to understand clearly how your users behave, which again enables you to make informed decisions regarding App marketing and performance optimizations. Google s Firebase App Indexing allows users to search the dynamic content in your App, and it works for both, Android and ios devices. Firebase App Indexing is definitely an user acquisition opportunity. It is because it allows users to search for your App contents no matter your App is installed or not. Last, But Not Least Don t hesitate to make mistakes. This is what optimization means. Trying something, than changing it for a better outcome. Over and over again. Be patient! Both SEO and ASO take time, but if you do it right, you will be rewarded.

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15 5. App Store Optimization Checklist 1. Competitor Research Why: To be able to build a successful ASO strategy, you need to know your competitors. Check your competitors rankings for relevant searches See which keywords they use in their titles and descriptions See the marketing language and call-to-action words they are using Check what do they offer, what can I do to stand out 2. Keyword Research Why: Keyword research is the core of your optimization process. Therefore: Check the common search behaviour See what keywords your competitors focus on Determine your most converting keyword Check the competition in these keywords Add your keywords to ios s keyword area (99 for Apple App Store) 3. App Name / Title Why: Your App Name/Title is what the potential users see first, so... Make sure it contains your main keyword Check if it clearly describes what your App is about See if your App name looks appealing Check if it is within the character limit (25 for Apple App Store & 30 for Google Play Store) 4. Description Why: After the first glance at the title, this is where users look to understand what your App does and why shall the user choose this App instead of others. process. Therefore: Make sure your description include the keywords Make sure your description describes what you do in a language that is easy to understand Check if the description describes why the user should choose this exact App instead of another one See if it is easy to read Make sure that the language is in line with your brand s voice Check if it is within the character limit (4000 for both Apple App Store and Google Play Store)

16 5. What s New Why: You can tell your users what is new in the latest version of your App: Describe what is new in this latest version See if your competitors App s have any incapabilities which your App can manage Check if it is within the character limit (4000 for Apple App Store & 500 for Google Play Store) 6. App Icon Why: Besides the App name/title, the App icon is the first thing the users see: Make sure that it gives a clue about what the App is about Try to attract attention within all other icons Check if the icons design reflects with the brand 7. App Screenshots Why: You can show your users some screenshots off your App: Make sure that the first 2 screenshots focus on the main action Add text to your screenshots to describe the screenshot Try to upload 5 (Apple App Store) & 8 (Google Play Store) screenshots Check if the screenshots abstracts the purpose of the App Make sure that you focus on a different features on every screenshot Use the correct file format (JPEG or PNG) Check if the dimensions are correct (1334x750px, 720dpi for Apple App Store, min 320px and max 3840px for Google Play Store) 8. App Preview / Video Why: A video is the best way to show your App characteristics as mobile users mainly prefer watching than reading: Check if the length of the video is within the limit (max 30 seconds for Apple & 2 minutes for Google Play Store) See does the first seconds explains the main purpose of the App Make sure that the content of the video illustrates the usage of the video

17 9. Reviews and Ratings Why: Preferably, positive reviews and ratings assist to higher download numbers: Make sure that you give a good service to get a good review and rating Try to kindly incent your users to make a review Don t delete the bad reviews, answer them instead 10. Category Why: Users can discover you through searching by categories: Determine your main category Check which categories do your competitors use Do research for which category your target audience mostly use Analyze which category has lower competition 11. Marketing Your App Why: Besides reaching the App searchers, there are some additional strategies that you can use to increase downloads: Define your marketing strategy Make sure you have an Adwords and App Store account to start promoting Make sure that your website links to your App Integrate Firebase with your App Start using alternative tracking tool

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