Yes, your app is ready for launch! The design is polished, the concept is rock-solid and the app is ready for millions of users! Users…? How do you reach them? What are they searching for? How do you get the app 'out there'? This is where app marketing comes around the corner. In this blog we focus specifically on two of the most important channels of app marketing: App Store Optimization (ASO) and App Store Advertising (ASA).
Of course there are all kinds of other channels that can get your app on the screen of your target audience, think of Meta app campaigns and Google app campaigns. But the two specific channels that really focus on apps are ASO and ASA. Want to quickly know how your app performs in the app stores? Calculate your ASO score with this tool!
App Store Optimization: SEO for AppsSEO for apps
In other words, organic discoverability for apps. This is the principle of ASO. It is a continuous process of improvement to adjust your app store listing and thus rank higher on certain keywords. Because with 5 million other apps in the app store, you need to invest in the discoverability and visibility of your app.
The app stores, Google Play Store and Apple App Store, contain search engines just as complex as Google. Ranking factors and good keyword research play an important role in this.
Ranking Factors
What determines whether your app is #1, #10 or #100 in the charts? Quite a few ranking factors come into play here. These factors differ for the Google Play Store and Apple App Store. Let's look at these factors and then the differences for the two stores:
✅ App name (30 characters): The app name is the most important ranking factor of your listing. This may be a maximum of 30 characters long. Therefore choose your keyword(s) strategically.
✅ Subtitle Apple App Store (30 characters): This title appears right below your app and is visible to visitors.
✅ Short description Google Play Store (80 characters): This is the piece of text that a user sees before they open the full description.
✅ Long description (4000 characters): Here you have 4000 characters of space to tell users what they can do with your app and what makes it unique. On the Apple App Store this is not a ranking factor, on the Play Store it is. This is indexed by Google's algorithm. This is a good place to add the long-tail keywords that don't fit in your title or short description.
Did you know that on average only 5% of visitors click "Read more" to view the full description? Our tip: Use the first paragraph (above "read more") to persuade readers to download the app. Start with the features of your app.
Another important field is the 'Promotional text' (170 characters) for the Apple App Store. This text is comparable to the short description for the Play Store. However, this has no influence on your ranking, but it does on your conversion rate.
In addition, the factors mentioned below also influence the ASO score of your app:
✅ The number of downloads
✅ The revenues (Apple only)
✅ Recent updates
✅ Retention / uninstalls (Google Play only)
✅ The number of reviews and your response to them
✅ App starts - how often an app is used
✅ Google Core VitalsWant to know more? Read about the ranking factors for the Apple App Store and Google Play Store
Keyword Research
The right keywords for your listing ensure that your app is visible in the right places. That's why keyword research is so important. The golden grail for keywords? Low competition and high search volume, of course. But how do you find these keywords? With handy tools such as the ASO tool from Coffee Digital or AppTweak, you select the right keywords that suit your app. Also look at your competition; what do they rank for?
Pay close attention when selecting keywords to:
✅ The volume (how popular a keyword is in terms of searches)
✅ The difficulty (how much competition ranks for this keyword)
✅ The reach (how many impressions your app can receive on this keyword)
When can you expect results from your ASO improvements? This depends heavily on the strength and niche of your app. If you have just brought an app to market, the 'strength' of your app is not yet very high. The impact of ASO will therefore also be lower. Below you'll find a handy overview of the ASO results you can expect based on the situation of your app.
App Store Advertising
As the name already indicates, this term focuses on advertising within the app stores. An important channel for your app since 70% of app store visitors use the search function to find new apps. And did you know that 65% of all downloads happen after a search query in the Apple App Store? We focus on the Apple App Store since advertising in the Google Play Store is still very limited.
Apple Search Ads
One way to promote your app on the Apple App Store is Apple Search Ads (we recommend Advanced). Apple Search Ads is an advertising platform designed to promote your app in App Store search results.
Set up keywords (exact or broad) and have your advertisements shown in a targeted way to users searching for specific keywords. You set up keywords across four campaign types:
- Brand Campaigns (branded keywords)
- Category Campaigns (generic keywords)
- Competitor Campaigns (competitors)
- Discovery Campaigns (goal: discovering keywords)
You pay per click (CPC model) and you can optimize campaigns based on location, demographics and search behavior. Apple Search Ads offers reports to measure and improve the performance of campaigns. This allows you to effectively increase the visibility and discoverability of your app.
Start Now and Make Your App Discoverable!
The first step is ASO and the second is ASA. Namely, first ensure an optimized store listing and then attract visitors. In addition, you can focus on other aspects to promote your app and improve conversion rate. Think of In-app events, Custom Product Pages or A/B testing your store listing.
ASO is a continuous process and, just like SEO, requires regular evaluation and adjustments to rank well. The sooner you start, the better. Get started with ASO now and then focus on ASA. Good luck!
