App Store Optimization (ASO)

Google Play Store Ranking Factors

The key ranking factors for Android apps on the Google Play Store, based on the things that you can influence, are:

  • App title
  • App short description
  • App long description
  • The number of installs
  • Reviews and ratings
  • In-app purchases
  • Updates

What is App Store Optimization?

App Store Optimization is the process of increasing the visibility of an app on the major app stores. The two major app stores are Apple's App Store for iOS devices and the Google Play Store for Android devices.

For better visibility and presence in the app stores

Successful apps are apps that are used a lot. But before you start working on the retention of your app, potential users must first discover your app. Many apps fail due to a lack of visibility or poor presentation in the app stores. App Store Optimization (ASO) takes care of precisely these adjusting screws and thus forms an important building block for an app that has been successfully accepted by the market. When it comes to app store optimization, there are basically two levers: Visibility Optimization and Conversion Optimization.

Visibility in the Apple App Store and Google Play Store

The most important app stores are the Apple App Store and the Google Play Store . With a market penetration of 80.5% for Android and 18.8% for iOS ( June 2018 ), these two operating systems cover almost the entire mobile market in Germany. So if you want to reach your users, you should focus on these two stores.

Why is visibility optimization necessary in the app stores?

Together, the two app stores house over 5 million apps. A lot of potential competition, because there is already a mobile solution for almost every use case. For this reason, visibility is a crucial criterion for the success of your app. You should therefore focus on optimizing visibility in order to attract potential users to your app. The visitors to the app stores are roughly divided into Decider and Explorer. While decision makers are looking for an explicit app, explorers are drifting through the range of apps. Both groups have different information needs. Both need to be addressed. It is important to convince both of them. This means that conversion optimization must also be taken into account in visibility optimization.

1.   Improve Your App’s Visibility

2.   Increase Organic Installs Of Your App

3.   Increase Your App’s Revenue and         Conversions

4.   Optimize Your App’s Title and Subtitle

5.   Optimize Your App’s Description

6.   Use Keywords Effectively

7.   Choose The Right Screenshots and Add A Preview Video

8.   Encourage Reviews and Ratings

9.   Work To Maximize Downloads

10. Analyze and Optimize

Optimizing Your Apps for Different Platforms

The Differences Between Apple App Store and Google Play Store

Relevante App Store Optimization-Parameter

ASO works similarly to SEO through an interplay of keyword density, relevance and awareness of the app. The App Store presence consists of different partial aspects. Depending on the app store, other aspects are indexed for the ranking and used for the display in the search results. Both the Apple App Store and the Google Play Store take the app title and sub-title into account. In addition, all keywords in the description text are taken into account in the Google Play Store, while only the keyword list is taken into account in the Apple App Store. As in search engine optimization (SEO), indirectly visible factors also contribute to the ranking with ASO. Therefore, videos that are not indexed, for example, can be a driving force for conversion and therefore lead to a higher ranking.

Keyword optimization within the ASO

Who is the workshop for Mobile First Strategy aimed at?
Identify suitable keywords for yourself. There are various tools that help you to find relevant keywords for the respective platform.
 
Please note that higher-level search terms such as “music” generate a lot of traffic but also cover a large number of different apps.
The chances of a good ranking with these keywords are therefore low. According to this, you should – especially with a low budget – prioritize specific keywords as possible, which are low-scatter and therefore highly relevant for the search of your target group. To do this, you need to find out which keywords your app is ranking well for. Are there any keywords that are only used by a few competitions? They provide a suitable starting point to differentiate yourself and should therefore also be taken into account with a slightly lower search volume. You can also, for example, subject various app titles to A / B tests in order to identify the best variant.

Search Ads as a possibility in addition to organic app store optimization

After Google, the Apple App Store now also offers the option of creating search ads and placing them above the organic search results in the ranking. This works in a similar way to Google AdWords in that you bid on certain keywords with a certain budget. The current highest bidder will then be listed as an advertisement above the organic search results.
There is also some need for optimization in this process. After all, individual ad groups have to be researched, prioritized and evaluated for different keyword groups. These include specifics depending on the country, exact and broad search, click-through rate, traffic and conversion-driving aspects, bid-install ratio of individual keywords and much more.

App Store Optimization Checklist

  • Have you checked all ASO parameters and exhausted all options for app store optimization?
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  •  Which keywords does your app rank well for?
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  • Are your keywords relevant to your app and competitive?
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  • Which keywords do competitors use? Do you use this in your ad campaign?
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  • Is the design of your icon simple and memorable?
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  • Do your screenshots show what the user can expect in your app?
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  • Do you use all the possibilities to communicate with your users in the App Store?