A Perfect App Store Optimization Strategy

App Store Optimization (ASO) is a very important part of your app or mobile game marketing strategy. Over 60% of all app installs come through a natural iOS App Store or Android Google Play search function, says Business Insider.

In general, both main app stores work similar and we can compare them to a standard internet search engine in terms of titles or keywords algorithms. If you want to appear above your competitors in search results, there are a few tips and tricks on how to boost your rankings. And unlike SEO, there is a second part when you neeed to persuade your potential customer to actually download your app after he or she clicks on it.

If you decide to give your application a vague name, most people won’t even bother clicking on it. Your app name should be as explicit as possible because you don’t want to confuse users with irrelevant title.

Be aware of a visual name length limitation – your potential customer will only see the first 32 characters of your application name if he’s browsing App Store from iOS6 on iPhone. In addition, your app name also works as some kind of “main” keyword and has a slight advantage in comparison with standard search keywords.

By the way, did you know that publisher’s name also plays a role in search results?

Keywords have an important role in your App Store Optimization strategy – a proper use of them can land you a huge amount of search traffic. Apple offers you 99 characters to set up your keywords, so take an advantage of it.

Don’t use merged keyword phrases as “dog training tips” and rather use those words separately as “dog, training, tips”. There are no more search ranking boosts for using whole phrases. Also, Apple is handling plural words much better now so if you are running out of characters, try cleaning up your keywords. For example, keyword “tip” works pretty much the same as “tips”.

Do a brainstorming and think about various keywords people can actually use to search for your app. Sometimes it’s even better to use long-tail words because there is definitely an advantage to be in TOP 5 search results for keyword with lower search volume than sit somewhere in TOP 200 for “mainstream” keyword. You can use tools as AppCod.es to help you with keyword research and optimization. You can even see suggested keywords for your app based on keywords your competitors are using.

This part is often being ignored even by bigger publishers which means you have much higher chance to score on local markets. It is hard to rank number 1 for “fun games” in english, however for example in Spain this is much more easier task. Of course, you need to translate your whole app – which is a task you can outsource.

I highly recommend you to read this awesome article by David Janner who did a spectacular case study about increasing his download rate by 767% just because of localization!

Icon itself has zero effect on search results, however its impact on click-through-rate and install rate is unbelievable. Many mediocre apps receive huge amount of downloads just because of well designed app icon. Now imagine that synergic effect when you actually have a high quality application with beautiful icon. As an example, read this case study about game called Trainz Driver which was selling 20 times as many units after icon change.

Even if it sounds obvious, don’t (really, don’t!) use your app name in your app icon. It looks just horrible. Design beautiful, simple and high resolution icon with simple colors. Be consistent if you plan to release more apps – for example take various Angry Birds app icons as an example. If you want to be sure that your icon looks great on every background, don’t hesitate to add some creative borders. For inspiration, look at iOS Icon Gallery.

The very first prerequisite for a great screenshot is logically your app design. Even if you could seduce people to download your app with highly manipulated screenshots, you will probably end up with with low ratings and angry comments. So remember – well designed app means beautiful screenshots and more downloads.

Don’t hesitate to use as many screenshots as you can! Apple gives you 5 slots and Google 8 – so use them. Place your most beautiful screenshot first, however be sure that it reflects core of your application or game. Putting a splash screen as your first screenshots is not a good idea, since it says absolutely nothing about features of your app. Also, be aware that Apple changed policy for screenshots and now you can only change them along with a proper app update.

Be creative and add some additional graphics and explanations to your screenshots – it’s allowed! For example, look at Clash of Clans screenshots below. In addition, here is a nice article about designing great screenshots.

Great app description is like the cover page of your app’s CV. This is the place where you need to encourage your app viewers to download it. Don’t be scared to hire a professional copywriter or at least spy on your competitors and learn how to write a good description. Every app category has its own specifics.

The first 3 lines of your description are the most important. They are visible by default, along with your app icon and first (sometimes also second) screenshot. Explain clearly what your app is about and pitch your unique selling proposition – A.K.A. why are u better than your competitors? If you were reviewed by big internet player (as New York Times or TouchArcade), don’t hesitate to put that information on top of your description. Think about it as another marketing channel – people usually don’t pay much attention to text, so you need to be catchy.

Below the fold, don’t forget to include social proofs, quotes from blogs or mention your other successful apps. Also, keep your description updated when you add key features and receive new trophies. Don’t be too technical and always be honest with your customers!

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With the Moto G, Google is executing Nokia’s strategy better than even Nokia themselves

Google is a dangerous company. Most companies specialize in one thing, make money doing that one thing, and then invest a certain percentage of that money being made into expanding the business. Google, on the other hand, specializes in advertising, and all the money that they make from those little blue links for cheap Canadian prescription drugs is used to provide an inordinate number of services to consumers for nothing.
Enter the Moto G that was announced yesterday at a press event in São Paulo, Brazil. Google took control over Motorola Mobility about a year and a half ago, and they’re already applying the Google mentality to the once giant American mobile phone maker. Because Google prints money thanks to their ad business, they can sell an incredibly capable smartphone for just $179 unsubsidized.
How capable is capable? The Samsung Galaxy S III, launched in early 2012, had a 720p display, quad core processor, and an 8 megapixel camera. It also sold for over $600, though in the US and UK that cost was obfuscated with a two year contract. The Moto G has the same 720p display, albeit smaller and using LCD technology, the same quad core processor, though it’s four ARM Cortex A7 cores instead of four ARM Cortex A9 cores, and a 5 megapixel shooter.
Again, all that for $179. You can buy three Moto G phones for the price of an iPhone 5s and still have over $100 leftover to go out with your mates to the pub or take the misses out for dinner and a movie.
What does any of this have to do with Nokia?
Nokia was the first mobile phone maker to introduce the phrase “the next billion” into the mobile industry’s lexicon. Their thinking was that there’s a huge market out there of people who would love an iPhone 5s or Galaxy S4, but can’t afford one, so “cheap” smartphones like the $150 Nokia Lumia 520 were created.
Those cheap Lumias have been selling, that’s a fact. Nokia’s Q3 2013 financial results say the Finnish firm sold 8.8 million Windows Phones at an average selling price of $190, which is down from the $210 average selling price during the same quarter a year prior. In other words, Nokia knows that the future is cheap handsets, hence the creation of Lumia 520 and the Asha portfolio of feature phones that do more than your typical feature phone, but not enough that you can actually call them smartphones.
With the Moto G, Google says they’re targeting the 500 million people who are going to spend roughly $200 or less on a smartphone during the next 12 months. That’s not exactly “the next billion”, but it’s still a sizable market. On stage, Google called out the elephants in the room, Apple and Samsung, for their strategies of capturing the low-to-mid range segment. Samsung’s Galaxy Fame was mentioned, and mocked, for delivering inferior specifications. And Apple’s iPhone 4 was name checked as being too “old”, leaving consumers with only $200 to spend feeling like they’re relegated to the past.
How should operators feel about the Moto G? If I were in charge of a wireless network, I’d be thrilled. Earlier this year, Open Signal did some research on the relation between the size of a phone’s screen and how much data a person consumes. Their conclusion was that nearly 300 MB of data was consumed for every extra square inch of real estate. Offer your customers a phone with a larger display that’s packed to the gills with what are arguably the best internet services currently in existence, and sit back and watch your customers upgrade their data plans so they can watch more, read more, and chat more.
Looking out into the future, if Google can make a Galaxy S III class phone for $179 and launch it just 18 months after the Galaxy S III hit the market, just think of what we can expect from Motorola this time next year. It might seem hard to imagine now, but a large 1080p smartphone at under $200 that delivers Google’s vision of a connected device will be on store shelves all around the world.
It wasn’t that long ago when you needed to be a businessman to be able to spend several thousands of dollars on a briefcase sized appliance that let you make phone calls while out in the field. Today you can do that with a $25 Nokia phone. The same will happen to smartphones, and the fact that Google is accelerating this trend, because they frankly don’t care about profit and would rather break even, is something to be excited about.
Whether you’re a consumer, an operator, or a developer looking to sell apps, Google executing on the vision Nokia has been talking about for the better part of the last half decade is a welcome thing.

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