Why is it so important for any type of business to launch a mobile app and make money with it?
ASO is for apps what SEO is for web pages. As its name suggests, ASO- or positioning in application stores- is the optimization process of an app that aims to make it appear among the first results when the user searches in application stores.
The ASO is essential since, the greater the visibility of a mobile application in the markets, the more possibilities it will have for users to find it, achieving a greater number of downloads and, therefore, more income.
To carry out an effective ASO positioning strategy, it must be taken into account that each application store has its own requirements and limitations . You can see what each market requires in their respective Guides: Google Play Developer Console and Marketing Resources and Identity Guidelines (App Store).
However, at a general level, these are the 15 steps that help boost the positioning of an app. In the following image you can see how important each of these steps are for each of the markets.
There are a series of ASO On Site positioning steps, which are those that can be carried out within the App tab and are applied instantly. Its main feature is that, as with the On-Page steps in SEO, they depend solely on you.
To create an attractive title or name for a mobile application - which is optimized for markets - you must include, at least, one keyword or keyword related to the theme of the app. At this point, it is advisable to do an App Keyword Research- that is, an exhaustive study of keywords for applications- and identify how your competition is positioned to draw conclusions about how you should position yourself. Also, the title should be short, attractive, and easy to remember.
Simplicity, clarity and cleanliness are three key requirements for any mobile app icon. Creating a timeless logo that is understood the first time helps users to identify an icon with a brand unequivocally.
Video is a format that is gaining strength in digital marketing and app marketing was not going to be less. For this reason, if in addition to screenshots you attach a promotional video for the mobile application in the market, you will be giving users much more information.
In this case, the same happens as with the logo. The design of a mobile application is generally more attractive the simpler it is. It is important that:
Be easily distinguishable from other Apps Be easily remembered Have a nice clean design Be related to the activity and the type of App Have a simple and intuitive structure favoring user usability.
This step may seem very simple but it should not be overlooked. It is advisable to classify the App in the corresponding category or categories within the Apps stores (music, fashion, health ...) since it favors the ASO positioning based on the search terms of the users.
You have 255 characters to convey the value of your application. That is about 3-4 lines of text that a user can see in the App profile without having to open the full description. Keep in mind that less than 2% of users open the full description of the application . So, the description of your app, especially the first three sentences, should convey its value and appeal to the needs of your customers.
Include the most important keywords in the name of the App, in the subtitle or short description and in the " Keywords " field , and make sure to include the most important keywords and the rest of the long-tail keyword combinations in the description.
For the App Store, the process is different. Do not repeat keywords that you have already used in the fields that have a greater weight in the search ranking algorithms. This means that, if you have already used a keyword in the App Name, don't use it in the subtitle or in the «Keywords» section. These fields have limited space, so use them strategically and add as many and as many keywords as possible.
The name and seniority of the developer is a factor recently incorporated by Google. If the developer's account has launched several apps and they have not caused problems, this gives you reliability as a programmer on these sites, which after all are the ones that position the application.
The first thing the user will look at when searching for an App are its screenshots or screenshots, as well as comments and reviews from other users, so they should highlight the benefits of the app using a design striking and different.
On the other hand, in the ASO Off Site positioning there are the steps that are those that do not depend on us 100% but that it is convenient to work constantly.
This factor directly influences the success of an ASO strategy, since the greater the number of downloads, the better an app will have in a store.
In fact, there are search categories that filter users only by showing the most downloaded apps and many users decide to download and test them. On the contrary, uninstalls negatively affect positioning, especially if they occur shortly after a user has downloaded the app.
A high Click Through Rate (percentage of clicks to the number of impressions) positively influences the ASO.
For clicks to be translated into downloads, a good option may be to offer the app for free to increase the number of downloads - even if there are later in-app purchases - and in this way boost positioning.
Positive reviews directly affect the ASO of an app as they are important to the algorithms while generating trust in users, motivating them to download and test an app. Do not miss the opportunity to ask your users to leave a review in the good moments of use within the app.
Buying valuations is not recommended because it can be understood as “Black Hat ASO” and is punishable by both Google and Apple.
No matter where the traffic comes from, it helps improve positioning so it is a factor that you should not neglect.
19% of iOS downloads and 15% of Android downloads come directly from social networks , so you can use these platforms to promote an application. Some social networks have specific advertising formats to promote applications (a good example is Twitter with its App Cards) and it may be interesting to explore them to get more downloads.
PS: Don't forget to include buttons for the different social networks since this way the users themselves can share the app
Another step that can help the ASO positioning of any app is to have an optimized landing page that allows the business to attract traffic, generate new downloads and even offer a web version of the application, such as WhatsApp, for example.
The landing page or landing page should have the mission of making the existence of the app known and explaining the functionalities it offers in terms of benefits. That users know how having the app can improve their lives is a decisive factor when they decide to download it or not on their phones.
As you can see, improving App Store Optimization ASO positioning is necessary to improve positioning, improve your position within search results in application stores and start making money with apps.