If you are familiar with the concept of SEO, it won’t take you very long to understand app store optimization. It is the same thing, it just happens on a different platform and therefore, applies some changes in its working. Just like it is needed for websites, mobile apps also need to get closer to their target audience and the technique of optimization works for them. ASO brings the apps at the top of the search results when you look for a particular app in the play store or app store.
We have come up with 10 most essential ways with which you can make app store optimization better for your mobile application:
- Understanding the Competitors
Unless you know who you are competing against, you can’t really sharpen your approach. It is the ultimate rule of thumb whenever you try to sell your product and is no different when it comes to mobile apps. So here are the few things you need to elaborate:
- App description
- Research on the ‘phrases’ and ‘words’ used by the target audience
- Thorough knowledge of the keywords
- Usage and reasons for the downloading a particular app
- If you are through with all the aforementioned attributes, then it won’t be very difficult for you to get a headstart.
- Find out what your customers want
This is probably the most important part which helps you shape up the whole campaign. Consider the following points while racking your brains doing that:
- What does your audience mostly look for?
- What are they getting out of your application?
- Is it worth sharing with friends and family?
Once you get answers to all these questions, you would be able to make up with a clear strategy. You may also have to carry out market research to know the potential of the market. If you are dealing with a niche market, you need to be very specific about the content as well. If you are sure that you are serving your audience well, then you can focus on zeroing in on the customers.
- Naming the application accordingly
It is not strictly necessary to come up with a catchy title always, you need to just ensure that it is relevant and strikes a chord with the people you are targeting. Also, consider the possibility of coming up with titles that could accommodate the right keyword. If you could come up with such a title, then rest assured that its chances of success are increased by at least 10% to 15%.
Note: There is a limit of characters and you cannot obviously exceed that. For play store, it is 255 characters, you may need to take help of some wordsmith who could suggest the proper title.
Make sure that the title includes the major keyword and it should also sound very effective or easy-going as per the nature of your application.
Keep in mind that if you come up with a title that exceeds 23 characters and involves spaces will be cut short on App Store, on Play Store, the limit is 30 characters.
So ensure that the title you choose for your application should be short, intriguing and appropriate.
- Broad range of keywords
It is also very important to have a wide range of keywords so your application would appear when a relevant word is used for searching the service your app is offering. Here’s what you need to consider while thinking of keywords.
App Store
Keep the character limit always in mind
Consider the search strings before you come up with title and keywords
Keywords have to be research-based so you would know what the users actually type, it would be a great help in increasing the traffic.
- Play Store
- Works in the same way as search engines work for SEO
- The app description is scanned by Google scans to ascertain the keywords
- On the product page, one keyword could be repeated only 5 times.
- You can add extra stuff without fearing of any negative impact on the ASO.
In order to achieve the best results, it is recommended to think with the customer’s perspective and then finalize the keywords.
Also Read: How can App Store Optimization growth of your business?
- Writing a perfect description
The app description is undoubtedly the most pivotal part of the app store optimization. It should be focused on what the customers are looking for. Remember the tips while you try to make a description:
- It is better to have a call-to-action phrase added to the description.
- It should be in laymen’s language and should state the major benefits very clearly in the first three lines.
- The description should be revised every time with a new update along with the screenshots.
- Appealing Icon
Alongside the description, you also to be very precise about the icon, because the visual appeal works much better with plenty of mobile app users. It actually makes the first impression on the minds of the audience and they tap on it and go through the content. Therefore, you need to be considerate of standards followed by the App Store and Play Store. You need to take care of the size, geometry, and color scheme which could be in accordance with the standards. Here are the specifications:
- iOS
- The minimal limit of the size of the icon is 1024×1024 pixels.
- The scaling down of icon is done the basis of its usage accordingly.
- Understand the categorization of icons-
- App icon (180×180)
- Navigation icon (66×66)
- Tab bar icon (75×75)
- The icon should be designed with such measurements that it should look proportionate after being scaled down.
- Android
- The sizing scheme followed by Google 512×512 pixels.
- Google doesn’t make it very hard, but it suggests you follow the guidelines.
- Following plenary guidelines, you can be sure about lighting, shading, and anatomy of the icon.
- Regardless of the platform, the design should deliver the crux of the app and it should not be unnecessarily wordy or tacky.
- Screenshots and videos
They don’t really impact the ratings of your app, but they are immensely helpful if you want to make your application user-friendly. More than the text, users look at the pictures to see how the app is going to work when downloaded. They give a clear picture of the functions and features of the application. Here’s what you need to take care of when including them:
- The number of maximum screenshots is capped at 5 and 8 for iOS and Android respectively.
- Even if you max out the quota, only 2-3 screenshots will be displayed in the gallery.
- Therefore, you need to ensure that the selected screenshots make the message clear and help the users understand what they want to.
- Make sure the screenshots accentuate the effect of your app, it should strike a chord with the target audience.
- Preference to local language
The number of audiences who understand English is limited and if you want to capture the market, it must be listed in the local language of the region where you are launching the app. It is better to have research done before you decide on the language, be sure about the language in which your audience would like to see the content. You can streamline this activity by doing the following:
- Engage in conversations with the target audience.
- Hire the local language experts ready to translate the whole content.
- App and Play Store are both compatible with several local languages to expand the reach of your business in different countries.
- Evidently, you can increase the volume of downloads by 70% if the localization is done properly.
- Use other media of marketing as well
You can certainly use other means of promotion as Google and Apple both allow the backlinks of the product page. They also consider the total number of visits to your page and it paves the way for you to increase the traffic and rankings both. Follow the instructions mentioned below and make things better for your app:
Index your app so the content is rendered more discoverable by the search engines on phone and computer.
Employ online advertising, social media, press, reviews, and press.
- Updating the app regularly
Updates are the best way to make the usage of your app better. Even if your app has some imperfections, you will know about them through the reviews. You can work on them and consistently retrofit the platform to deliver something new every time. The mantra here is to keep working on every single aspect and striving to make the usage of your app better for the users. Things you need to consider while working on updates:
Add a brief description of the update and let the users know that every single update improves. Use a push notification or a login note to deliver the content of the update.
Consider a ‘call-to-action’ such as an instruction or directive inciting the users to click on the backlink and reach your app.
Last but not least, the reviews have to be positive and you can achieve it by delivering a wonderful experience to the user.
At first, you might think that app store optimization is complicated, but it is actually not. It is the most promising method of reaching the audience by widening the ambit of your app. You can certainly make it possible if you have a credible service provider by your side. It is not very difficult to outperform your competitors if you have the right strategy in your mind. With app store optimization services, you can certainly achieve it and reach every single potential customer.
