Mobile applications are a must for many companies, as they offer constant and convenient contact with the consumer. However, it is not enough to just develop a product, you need to promote it. An effective marketing tool such as ASO or App Store Optimization will help you with this. So, we will explain to you what it is and how to optimize mobile applications.
What is ASO app optimization
ASO – is a type of mobile SEO. ASO is now considered a staple of integrated marketing for app owners, as it ensures an increase in the app’s position in store rankings for keywords, as well as an increase in its visibility and results. As with SEO promotion, app optimization will bring organic traffic for a long time after the work has stopped. However, specific ASO results are difficult to predict, as they depend not only on keyword optimization, but also on properly formed graphics.
In addition to regular store searches, apps are also installed after contextual advertising changes. They differ in the number of returns. Usually, those who install an app from regular store searches are the most loyal audience interested in using it regularly.
There are some differences between Google Play and App Store promotions, but the basics of ASO are the same, so that's where we'll start.
ASO consists of several main stages:
- Defining KPIs before starting work.
- Application audit.
- Competitor analysis.
- Basic optimization.
- Conducting A/B tests with different graphic elements.
How do users search for mobile apps? Give them names and keywords that describe the desired functionality. When a user types a query in the search bar, search suggestions are displayed that they can follow. However, search engine algorithms take into account most, but not all, mistakes made accidentally when typing on a moving keyboard, and this is worth remembering. The name and description of the app with relevant keywords are the most important ranking factors.
The icon is responsible for the first impression of the application. When creating it, it is important to adhere to the standard sizes of store icons, not to use text (there is a name for this), to avoid small, poorly visible elements, as well as transparent elements, and not to use screenshots and photographs as an icon. Optimizing the block with screenshots that are used as a user guide will help increase the installation conversion.
When choosing keywords and phrases, we recommend not to use regular semantic collection services. Google Play keywords are different from Google search keys. We recommend that you first create a list of associative words and phrases yourself. Only then should you contact services to expand the list of keywords.
We offer a list of recommendations for ASO in the Google Play store
- Title: Use a short name up to 30 characters, taking into account the part displayed on the catalog page. Place important keywords at the beginning of the title.
- Short description. The maximum length of the short description is 80 characters. Here you should describe the essence of your application using keywords.
- Full description. The length of the full description is up to 4000 characters. It is worth placing a good interesting text here, because if the user has reached this place, there is a high probability that he will install the application. The full description is one of the ranking factors in Google Play, so it is important to write key queries in it, but without overloading - no more than 4-5 for maximum volume. Moreover, the text with the most important keywords for promotion should be placed in the first 167 characters of the description.
- Category Selection: Choose the category that best suits your product using logic and competitor analysis.
- Icon: Create an attractive icon according to the marketing guidelines.
- Screenshots. Use the maximum number of screenshots possible - 8 and create a set of screenshots for each device. You can use special generators to create them.
- Promo video. Create and upload a promo video of 30 seconds to 2 minutes. You can also upload a video for each language supported by the store. When creating a video, keep in mind that the most important information should be placed in the first 5 seconds, because very few users will watch it to the end.
- Location: If your app targets multiple regions, you will need to translate the title, descriptions, keywords, and screenshots into the languages of those regions. To do this, select the languages in the Google Play Developer Console and fill in all the required fields for each language.
Optimizing a game or mobile application in the App Store
- Title. Up to 50 characters long; the visible part is 30 characters long and this is where you need to enter the most important information and priority key requests.
- Full description. For iPhone apps, the full description is not a ranking factor, so here you can only write a good piece of text up to 4000 characters long to attract users. We recommend not to put a continuous text, but with a division by lines.
- The Keywords field. Content is not available to the average user, but it is one of the most important ranking factors in the App Store. The field will be filled in your iTunes Connect account. Here you can write up to 100 characters. We recommend that you use all available characters, write with commas and no spaces, do not duplicate requirements used in the title or description, do not write the name of the developer and other brands, and write requirements in descending order of importance.
- Category: Select the most appropriate category according to the topic and the participants' choice.
- Icon: Create an attractive icon that meets industry standards.
- Screenshots. You can use up to 5 screenshots in the App Store, and the most important ones are the first 2 (you can see them when you go to the app page). And if you use a video in the description, then only 1 screenshot is displayed.
- Promotional video: In the App Store, you can publish videos up to 30 seconds long and only for one region, so it is recommended to create an animated video without text with an attractive freeze frame for preview.
- Localization: To adapt a cross-regional app for different languages, you need to go to iTunes Connect and mark the languages there, and then fill in all the required fields.
Features of promoting iOS, Android applications
In addition to optimization from the application side, there are other methods and tools for promoting mobile applications.
Rating and reviews. In addition to optimizing the app page, you also need to work on ratings and reviews - the rating also affects the ranking. To avoid the appearance of negativity in the rating area, we recommend collecting user reviews through a pop-up window. However, it is important to set it up in such a way that it does not interfere with the user's experience with the app, but appears after the action has been completed. Please use the question form to avoid anger and refusal. When promoting Android apps, working with negativity is especially important, since reviewers on Google Play receive an email with the developer's response, which allows them to work directly with the negativity and, as a result, get a higher user rating. Although such a thorough study of negative aspects is not so important for promoting iOS apps: in the App Store, the rating is reset every time the app is updated to a new version.
Application size. Many users prefer not to download "heavy" applications, so we recommend paying attention to this parameter.
Promotion of mobile applications is not a one-time event, but constant measures to maintain the competitiveness of the application: regular implementation and testing of new elements / changes / improvements, tracking trends in the field of application creation and monitoring competitors. All this requires time and money, as well as the presence of a qualified contractor.
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