The big day has finally arrived! Your app is ready for launch. But is your App Store ASO strategy in place yet?
The day you hit the proverbial launch button is an exciting one for every app developer and marketer. Many hours of work have led up to it, including, we hope, a substantial chunk of time dedicated to app store optimization–researching, tweaking, searching according to app store optimization tips, learning exactly how to promote your app and getting everything just right in time for launch.
Of course, you’ll continually track and refine your ASO methods over time. But before you actually launch your app in the iOS App Store for the first time, there are some crucial tasks you need to be sure to have tackled.
This App Store pre-launch ASO checklist provides a rundown of all the things to have in place before your Apple App Store launch. Also, if you’re an android developer, we didn’t forget about you. But since this post is focused on App-Store Optimization, you might want to skip this one and move directly to our post about Google Play Store App Store Optimization.
App Store Optimization Keyword Research
There are a few practices to follow when deciding on your keyword strategy.
Know Where To Use Your Keywords For Indexing – Keywords are crucial if you want to have a successful user acquisition strategy. The App Store uses primarily keywords coming from the app title and subtitle while creating organic rankings. Even though they will not be visible, do not forget to make the most out of your App Store Keywords field as they will be directly indexed.
Research Your App Keywords – Obviously you need to find the right keywords to include in your strategy. A comprehensive research about keywords will allow you to increase your visibility in the app stores, driving in more organic traffic.
Research Your Competitors’ Keywords – The keywords that your competitors use can be valuable for your user acquisition strategy. Our Keyword Spy tool will allow you to see the keywords your competitors are using in their metadata as well as the keywords that they organically rank for, making the whole process a lot more efficient.
Find Keywords From Competing Apps That Get the Most Organic Downloads – You can use our Keyword Intelligence module to determine exactly which of their keywords can potentially drive the most downloads. If relevant to your app as well, you can use some of these keywords in your strategy to boost your app growth.
Use Long-Tail Keywords – They’re effective, and it’s possible to find low competition keywords. These longer keywords usually signal higher user intent, meaning that impressions coming from these searches are more likely to end up in downloads.
So rather than targeting keywords just because they are popular, you can utilize long-tail keywords to increase the effectiveness of your mobile user acquisition strategy. Our Keyword Research tool is the perfect way to discover long-tail keywords with high potential!
Consider Generic Keywords – Use them in combination with the keywords you’ve researched to increase the effectiveness of existing keywords. Remember that not everyone searches for a brand name in the App Store.
Plural vs. Singular – Research whether or not to include plural forms of your keywords. Yes, it can make a difference
Some App Store Optimization Best Practices to Follow
App Icon
Create an Awesome App Icon – Your app icon is the most important graphic element on your app page. It will attract potential users, be pleasing to the eye and even get you good reviews (if you keep up the good designs in your app as well).
App Title
Check Your App Name – Keywords in your app name will carry the most weight. Add your most important keywords as a descriptive phrase. Remember, you only have 30 characters.
Track the Competition
Your competitor’s success may inspire you along with their newest updates and features. Track their Visibility Scores, category performance and more. As MobileAction, we provide you with the tools necessary to keep track of your competitors every move.
App Description
Craft Your App Description – The keywords in your app’s description do not help you rank in keyword searches. Nonetheless, your description is your last chance to draw your potential user’s attention, so make it count.
Make sure that the first 3 lines are attention grabbing and format your description for easy reading. Also, be honest with your potential users, let your description of the app be consistent with the reality. By doing this, you will hopefully increase your conversion rates.
Localization
Decide if Localization Makes Sense – For most apps, localization doesn’t make sense for the initial launch because it adds unnecessary overhead. But if you do have the resources to do it, you could multiply your downloads by increasing your local rankings.
Screenshots / Video
Optimize Your Screenshots – Double check them to make sure everything is current and fits guidelines. Again, keep it honest. Don’t create unrealistic expectations with edited screenshots (or just fake ones). Give an actual glimpse of your app. Make sure that they are descriptively labeled and learn how to optimize your app screenshots.
Create an App Preview Video – Make sure you meet Apple’s guidelines and optimize it even further with our tips.
Verdict
All in all, there are many important tasks to tackle before you launch your app, and even more so to promote it. Even though ASO is a process that requires regular tracking and optimization, making sure everything is set before your launch can help your efforts tremendously.
To learn more about App Store ASO and how it can help to promote your app, schedule a demo with our experts today!
