If you’re an app developer trying to get your app out to the masses, you know how difficult this can be. Ranking in the app store and
Google
Search can feel like unrealistic and unattainable goals, especially when you’ve just launched a new app.
But regardless of which app store you’re selling on (
Apple’s
App Store, Google Play, etc.), some basic optimization can go a long way. Just as you would expect to invest time and money into search engine optimization (SEO), you also need to focus on app store optimization (ASO).
This post will provide you with a complete list of the basics of ASO, including why it’s so important to rank in app store search, how to find and use relevant keywords, and which elements of your app listing are most important for ranking.
The Importance of Ranking in App Store Search
There is no substitute for high rankings in app store search. You can’t rely on the chance that your app will get featured on a top chart or in top category results; because even if this does happen (which is unlikely for most apps), the resulting downloads likely won’t be as great as you’d think.
According to MobileDevHQ (now renamed Tune), developers shouldn’t rely heavily on these top category rankings: “While there’s a lot of noise around ranking highly in the Top Charts and being featured, it may not be the end-all for installs. While we’re absolutely not downplaying the uplift apps may see after ranking really highly in the Top Charts, or being featured by Apple or Google, we are saying that’s it’s more effective to think holistically (i.e., about all your channels) about app marketing instead of focusing purely on a high category ranking.”
According to their research, nearly half (47%) of all US iPhone users find apps by searching in the app store, while only 10% find apps due to being featured on a top chart, and 9% through Apple’s featured screen.
These results are similar for both Google Play and Apple’s App Store.
Top Ranking Factors in App Store Search
In your efforts to achieve more “holistic” rankings, your focus should be on creating an app store listing that has the best chance of ranking for popular app store searches. The rest of this post will focus on the most important app store ranking factors, as well as best practices for creating an engaging and effective listing for your app.
Keyword in title and description
Not surprisingly, the keywords you use in your app title are important (though perhaps not as important as you’d expect). According to research by MobileDevHQ (cited above), using your keyword in your title can result in up to a 10.3% increase in rankings.
The main goal of your title is to accurately convey the name and subject of your app, so hopefully you’ve done a good job of incorporating a popular keyword into your title. There is some controversy over the importance of keywords in your app description. It’s somewhat unclear as to whether descriptions are indexed and searchable. What we do know, however, is that your description (particularly your intro) is what will ultimately sell your app to users.
Finding keywords for your app is much like finding keywords for your website. Ideally, you want to find words and phrases that meet three criteria:
- High volume of searches
- Low level of competition
- High relevancy
Using a tool like KeywordTool.io will allow you to find popular app store keywords by country and language. I would strongly suggest using a tool like this from the outset, even before you name your app. Changing your app name down the road means losing all your current search power, so make sure you incorporate important keywords into your name right from the start.
What types of keywords to target
Make App Magazine has provided a great breakdown of the types of searches we should be optimizing for.
Genre searches: 80% of all app store searches are for specific categories like ‘games’ or ‘business’. Make App stresses the importance of targeting a category that hasn’t yet become over saturated and therefore too competitive: “The Holy Grail of ASO is to identify a type of genre search which is still not overly competitive. In order to find these types of opportunities you normally need to spot trends early – for example optimizing your apps for terms such as “Gangnam style games” or “London Olympics”.”
App titles: Only 5% (or less) of all app store searches are for specific app titles. This underlines the importance of incorporating popular and relevant keywords into your app title, rather than counting on brand recognition to get you ranking.
Inspirational searches: 5-10% of searches are for subjective keyword phrases like ‘best to do list’ or ‘new games’. These types of phrases may be difficult to incorporate into your app title, but it doesn’t hurt to include them in your description. And certainly, you should be using inspirational keywords in the keyword field.
Transactional searches: Around 5% of searches are for specific functions that your app performs, like ‘resize image’ or ‘organize tasks’. These can be extremely difficult to use in your app name, but again, make sure to include them in the keyword field.
Localization
This is a tactic that can have a significant impact on rankings, but often gets ignored. Using localized keywords is simply the process of using multi-language translations of your app name, keywords, screenshots, etc. David Janner of Make App Magazine tried this strategy with great results: After localizing his app (just his app name and keywords, mind you), he received a seven-fold increase in downloads of his app. Before localization, the vast majority of downloads were from within the US. After localization, his downloads looked like this:
Google Play offers a number of tools to make localizing your listing easier, including automatic translations. Keep in mind that localizing your actual app is a much more involved process; fortunately, Google has provided a complete Localization Checklist for Android developers.
Number of downloads
While this is largely outside of your control, it’s important that you understand the role of downloads for ASO. Basically, the more downloads you have, the more likely you’ll rank highly in app store search. The higher your app is in search, the more people who will download it. The more people who download it….well, you get the picture.
Utilizing the strategies above will give you the best chance of getting your app noticed and downloaded. As your app gets downloaded more and more, your rankings will continue to improve. Recognize that this is a perpetual process and that all your small successes are cumulative.
Ratings and reviews
This is another factor that you obviously can’t directly control. That said, there is a way you can attempt to decrease the impact of recent, negative reviews and ratings: flood out the negative reviews with positive ones. The best way to do this is to request positive reviews right from within the app.
A tool like Rate Our App will allow you to do just this, but here’s the best part: while it encourages satisfied users to leave positive reviews, it deflects negative reviews by providing a “send feedback” option instead.
Icons and screenshots
Your images will be the main visual representation of your app and brand. Make sure they grab the attention of users, inviting them to find out more about your app. Before launching your app, you may even want to test out your images via
Facebook
ads or AdWords to see which ones result in the highest click-through rates.
Another option for testing your app images is to use a tool like StoreMaven. It allows you to A/B test your icons and screenshots and compare them against industry benchmarks. This service is best suited to bigger brands, however, as the cost will likely be prohibitive for most small business owners.
Don’t forget to optimize your website for app-related searches….
Finally, remember that it’s important not only to optimize your in-store listings but to optimize your website for app-related searches. If we look at Google Trends data for ‘apps’, we can see an explosion in searches for ‘apps’ since 2009. Looking at trends for various other app-related keywords reveals the same data: “games apps”, “productivity apps”, etc. all show this same progression in popularity.
Google searches for ‘apps’ have exploded over the past few years
Make sure to promote your app on your website, using direct links to your app listing. Write blog posts targeting difficult app-related keywords, and include links to your app. If you have a mobile version of your site (you do, right?), this is the perfect place to promote your app, as users are already connecting with you via mobile.
Getting exposure for a new app isn’t easy, and requires a commitment to continual optimization and promotion. Hopefully, this quick-start guide will give you the tips and motivation you need to start your own journey into app store optimization.
Are you trying to get your app to rank in app stores? What are you struggling with? Share below!
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