The Practical Guide to Get the Most Downloads in Apple App Store

Creating an app is hard. You will have to compete with millions of apps in the Apple App Store. Apple App Store has approximately 2.22 million apps for iOS users across a variety of categories.

If your iOS app is not able to stand out among these millions of apps, it is bound to fail. This is where app store optimization (ASO) is so important.

We created this practical guide to help you understand how app store optimization works in Apple’s App Store and how it can be leveraged to get more installs or downloads. In this article, you’ll learn:

• What is app store optimization?
• How to optimize your iOS app to achieve higher rankings?
• How do users search on the App Store?
• Tactics to improve your organic downloads for apps?
• How to get featured on the App Store?
• How to promote your app?

What is app store optimization?

App Store Optimization (ASO) is the process of improving an app’s rankings and discoverability. It is a crucial piece of app marketing that involves strategizing in a way that compels users to find and download your app.

Research shows that ASO is the crucial factor behind 68% of all new app discoveries. When done right with the help of a professional ASO company, it can help your app get:

• The app becomes more discoverable
• Drives more traffic to your app’s landing page
• Boosts the number of organic downloads
• Expands user base
• Cuts user acquisition costs
• Helps grow your mobile business

How to optimize your iOS app to achieve higher rankings?

Your strategy for getting more traffic or downloads in Apple App Store depends on a number of factors. This includes optimizing your app’s title, subtitle, and description, choosing the right keywords and categories, encouraging reviews, and much more.

Let’s discuss in detail how you should do it for App Store.

1. Keywords

In Apple App Store, there is a limit of characters for keywords – 100 characters. You need to be as concise and accurate as possible when describing your app.

Each word should be separated by a comma without any space. For example, for an app related to real estate, keywords should be added like this –

Property, Real Estate, House, Property Search.

When choosing phrases for keywords, remember these two things:
• Common and functional terms may drive a lot of traffic, but they are highly competitive in the rankings.
• Less common terms drive lower traffic, but are less competitive.
• Never use celebrity names, trademarks, and special characters.
• Avoid keyword stuffing and repeating the same terms again.

2. App Name, Description, and Subtitle

App Store allows app names with up to 30 characters so make sure to use a simple and memorable name. Your app name should not be too generic or copy other existing app names.

The subtitle gives you an opportunity to add value to your app name. Do not use generic phrases to describe your app’s value. Instead, highlight your app’s features that catch your audience’s attention.

The app description should provide users with the ability to understand what your app does. Start with a concise statement about your app’s main feature and follow that with an attention-grabbing paragraph discussing everything your app can do.

3. App Category

Your appʼs discoverability on the App Store depends on the primary category you select. The primary category also determines whether your app appears in the Apps tab or Games tab on the App Store.

Your app category should be the one that best describes the main function or subject matter of your app. You can choose from the following app categories:
• Books
• Medical
• Business
• Music
• News
• Entertainment
• Finance
• Photo & Video
• Social Networking
• Food & Drink
• Games
• Shopping
• Lifestyle
• Sports
• Travel
• And more…

Just to make you know what are the most popular app categories, check this statistic:

The top 5 most popular Apple App Store categories in March 2021 were:

1. Games (21.53%).
2. Business (10.11%).
3. Education (8.67%).
4. Lifestyle (8.62%).
5. Utilities (6.24%).

4. Reviews and ratings

If your app offers a great app experience, it will motivate them to leave positive reviews. It is important that you choose an appropriate time to make a review request. You can use the SKStoreReviewController API to make it easy for users to give their feedback.

5. Promote In-App Purchases

This is another important factor in optimizing your app for the App Store. You can promote our in-app purchases appear and they will appear in search results on the App Store.

The moment a user taps on the in-app purchase link, they’re taken directly to your product page. Then product page can show up to 20 total items with a unique display name, promotional image, and description. Ensure that you highlight the benefits of your in-app purchases.

How do users search on the App Store?

A whopping 70% of mobile users utilize search to find new apps. And, 65% of all downloads occur directly after a search.

The search feature on the App Store allows users to find apps, games, stories, in-app purchases, and categories. Search results are derived from the app’s metadata from your product page.

When customers search for an app, the App Store provides them with a list of apps that are ranked based on a number of factors, such as text relevance in terms of app’s title, keywords, and primary category and customer behavior such as the number and quality of ratings and reviews.

App Store provides suggested search terms to users based on their specific search query. The App Store provides Trending Searches to help users find what’s trending in their region.

However, not just the Search box, but there are other ways by which users can discover your app.

1. Today Tab
The Today tab on the App Store features stories from Apple’s editors around the world. This tab shows exclusive premieres, new releases, an App of the Day, a Game of the Day, and more. The Apple Team shares their unique perspectives about apps that impact people’s lives using images, videos, and developer quotes.

2. Apps and Games Tab
Apple’s App Store is considered the world’s best game store. This tab provides recommendations for games and apps that engage customers. You will find new releases and updates, videos, top charts, and handpicked collections and categories, and selected in-app purchases.

3. Discover
Well, Discover is for Mac users where customers find the best new releases and updates. Apple’s editors share their stories on some incredible apps and games with behind-the-scenes interviews and curated collections. what they love with their Mac.

Now comes the next question how can you get your app featured in Today Tab, Discover or Apps & Games tab?

How to get featured on the App Store?

Getting featured on the App Store provides you with an opportunity to get your app in front of the right users, at the right times.

The simplest way to get featured on the App Store is to submit your app story to Apple’s editors. If your app or game has a unique story, tell it to their editorial team.

For a new app or significant update, the Apple team should be informed six to eight weeks before your launch.

Remember, Apple never promotes apps by taking money from app developers. There is no paid placement. The team selects apps or games based on a variety of factors and they are:

• UI design. Great usability, appeal, and overall quality
• User experience. Easy to use, efficient, and valuable functionality
• Innovation. Solves a unique problem for users
• Uniqueness. How your app stands out from the crowd
• Accessibility. Well-integrated features that provide a great experience
• Localization. High-quality and relevant localizations
• App Store product page. Compelling screenshots, app previews, and descriptions

If your app meets the above criteria and has a unique story to tell, your app can get featured on App Store’s Today Tab, Apps & Games Tab, or Discover Tab.

How to promote your app on App Store?

Apple App Store offers a number of tools and features to promote your iOS app. Here is how you can use different tools to promote your app effectively:

• App Store Marketing Tools – You can boost your app content with custom assets and links. Just enter your app name in the Search box and the tool generates embeddable widgets, QR codes, badges and lockups.

• Smart App Banners – Use Safari’s Smart App Banner to display a banner of your app. The banner will provide a direct link to your app on your website where users can download it.

• Apple Search Ads – This tool lets you promote your app at the top of App Store search, right when customers search for a term that matches your app title, description, or category. To see if it works for you, you can try it for free with a 100 USD credit.

• App Clip Codes -Apple Clips provides an easy way for users to discover your app. Apple Clips are visually distinctive and contain an NFC tag. If you use Apple Clip Code, it will allow your target users to launch your App Clip by holding their iPhone near the App Clip Code or by scanning it through the camera.

• Promo codes – You can take leverage of promo codes by giving early access to your app or your app’s in-app purchases. Search for top influencers or press professionals and give them up to 100 promo codes per version of your app.

• Subscription Codes – Apple allows you to generate one-time use codes that you can share digitally or offline at physical events with users. This will allow you to increase the customer base for auto-renewable subscriptions as they will get discounts through this code.

• App Bundles – Apple offers App Bundles feature. Utilize it to make it easy for customers to buy up to 10 of your apps or games in a single purchase.

• Additional capabilities – Let customers know that your app provides additional features with Apple technologies, such as Apple Health, Apple Wallet, and Apple Pay.

Conclusion

Having an app can be a valuable asset to your business, but you need to know how you can drive more traffic and downloads. If you follow the following checklist, you can make your app it next Facebook, WhatsApp, or PubG.

• App Store Optimization Strategy is a vital part of your marketing success.

• Winning at ASO strategy isn’t only about finding the right keywords, it should also include choosing the right app name, title, subtitle, description, and icon design.

• More reviews and ratings lead to more trustworthiness and visibility – more visibility leads to more downloads.

• Apple’s app marketing tools can help you in every step of the journey.

• Get your app featured by the Apple App Store, but make sure your app has excellent UI design, features, accessibility, user experience, and product page.

• You can promote your in-app purchases and charge users for special features and upgrades.

• Hire a professional ASO company to turn this checklist into a winning strategy and get a better ROI from your ASO efforts.

About the Author

Naveen Gupta is the founder & CEO of Fuel4Media Technologies. Fuel4Media is India’s fastest growing Mobile App Development, App Store Optimization, Mobile App Marketing, and Digital Marketing company. His forte lies in developing and executing innovative mobile and web technologies, digital marketing and mobile marketing strategies, and everything related to digital.