Master The 6 ASO Categories
As the mobile app market continues to grow, it has become increasingly important to optimize your app's visibility in the app store. This is where App Store Optimization (ASO) comes into play. ASO is the process of improving the visibility and discoverability of your app in an app store like Google Play or Apple's App Store. In this blog post, we'll explore what ASO is and how it can help you market your app effectively.
First, let's take a look at the ASO stack developed by Phiture, a mobile growth consultancy firm. The Phiture ASO stack breaks down the ASO process into six categories: Keyword Optimization, Conversion Rate Optimization, Localization, Visuals and Creatives, Ratings and Reviews, and Competitor Analysis.
Keyword Optimization involves identifying and utilizing relevant keywords and phrases that potential users might search for when looking for apps like yours. This involves researching and analyzing popular search terms, incorporating them into your app's metadata (title, subtitle, description, etc.), and tracking their performance.
Conversion Rate Optimization focuses on optimizing your app's listing to maximize downloads and installs. This involves improving the quality of your screenshots, videos, and other visuals, as well as optimizing your app's description and pricing strategy.
Localization involves adapting your app's listing and content to different languages, cultures, and markets. This includes translating your app's metadata, visuals, and creatives, as well as adapting your app's features and functionality to different regions and user preferences.
Visuals and Creatives involve designing and optimizing your app's visual assets to appeal to potential users. This includes creating eye-catching screenshots, videos, icons, and other graphics that showcase your app's features and benefits.
Ratings and Reviews involve monitoring and responding to user feedback, as well as encouraging satisfied users to leave positive reviews and ratings. This can significantly impact your app's overall rating and visibility in the app store.
Competitor Analysis involves analyzing and monitoring the performance of your app's competitors, as well as identifying areas where you can differentiate and improve your app. This includes analyzing their keywords, visuals, pricing, and user feedback.
By optimizing each of these six categories, you can significantly improve your app's visibility and discoverability in the app store. This can lead to increased downloads, installs, and revenue for your app.
Keyword Research:
App Store Optimization (ASO) is crucial for any app developer or marketer looking to boost their app's visibility in the app store. One of the most important aspects of ASO is keyword research, which involves identifying relevant keywords and phrases that potential users might search for when looking for apps like yours. In this blog post, we'll explore how to do keyword research for ASO in detail.
Step 1: Brainstorm Relevant Keywords
The first step in keyword research is to brainstorm a list of relevant keywords and phrases that describe your app's features, benefits, and target audience. This can include product names, categories, and user needs that your app fulfills. For example, if your app is a meditation app, relevant keywords might include "meditation," "mindfulness," "stress relief," "sleep aid," and "anxiety."
Step 2: Research Popular Search Terms
Once you have a list of relevant keywords, the next step is to research and analyze their popularity and competitiveness. There are several tools you can use to do this, including the Google Keyword Planner, Sensor Tower, and App Annie. These tools allow you to see how many users are searching for specific keywords and how competitive they are. You can also use these tools to discover related keywords and phrases that you may have missed.
Step 3: Analyze Competitor Keywords
Another important aspect of keyword research is analyzing your competitors' keywords. This can help you identify areas where you can differentiate and improve your app's listing. You can use the same tools mentioned above to see which keywords your competitors are targeting and how they are performing. This can also help you identify gaps in the market that you can fill with your app.
Step 4: Incorporate Keywords into Your App's Metadata
Once you have identified relevant and popular keywords, the next step is to incorporate them into your app's metadata, including the title, subtitle, and description. It's important to use keywords naturally and strategically, as stuffing them into your metadata can harm your app's visibility and performance. A good rule of thumb is to include your most important keywords in the first 25-30 characters of your title and in the first sentence of your description.
Step 5: Track Your Keyword Performance
Finally, it's important to track and analyze your app's keyword performance over time. This can help you identify which keywords are driving the most downloads and installs, as well as which ones need to be optimized or replaced. You can use the same tools mentioned above to track your keyword rankings and adjust your ASO strategy accordingly.
Conversion Rate Optimization CRO
Conversion Rate Optimization (CRO) is another important aspect of App Store Optimization (ASO) that involves optimizing your app's listing to maximize downloads and installs. In this blog post, we'll explore how to do CRO for ASO in detail.
Step 1: Analyze Your App's Current Listing
The first step in CRO is to analyze your app's current listing and identify areas for improvement. This can include analyzing your screenshots, videos, and other visual assets, as well as your app's description, pricing strategy, and user ratings and reviews. This will help you identify areas where your app is underperforming and where you can make changes to improve your conversion rate.
Step 2: Optimize Your App's Visual Assets
One of the most important aspects of CRO is optimizing your app's visual assets, including screenshots, videos, icons, and other graphics. Your visual assets should showcase your app's features and benefits in a clear and compelling way, while also standing out from your competitors. A good rule of thumb is to use high-quality visuals that accurately reflect your app's functionality and highlight your unique selling points.
Step 3: Optimize Your App's Description
Your app's description is another important aspect of CRO that can significantly impact your conversion rate. Your description should be concise, clear, and informative, while also highlighting your app's unique features and benefits. A good practice is to use bullet points to break up your description and make it easier to read. You should also use keywords strategically, as discussed in the previous blog post.
Step 4: Optimize Your App's Pricing Strategy
Pricing is another important factor that can impact your conversion rate. You should analyze your competitors' pricing strategies and adjust your own accordingly. This can include offering free trials, limited-time discounts, and other promotions to entice users to download and install your app.
Step 5: Monitor and Respond to User Feedback
Finally, it's important to monitor and respond to user feedback, including ratings and reviews. Positive feedback can significantly impact your conversion rate, while negative feedback can harm it. You should respond promptly and professionally to negative feedback, while also encouraging satisfied users to leave positive reviews and ratings.
Localization
Localization is the process of adapting your app's listing to different languages and cultures, with the goal of reaching a wider audience and improving your app's downloads and installs in different markets. In this blog post, we'll explore how to do localization for App Store Optimization (ASO) in detail.
Step 1: Identify Target Markets The first step in localization is to identify your target markets, which can include different countries, regions, and languages. You should research the demographics and preferences of each market, as well as any cultural or linguistic nuances that may affect your app's performance. This will help you tailor your app's listing to the needs and preferences of each market.
Step 2: Translate Your App's Listing Once you have identified your target markets, the next step is to translate your app's listing into the appropriate languages. This includes your app's title, subtitle, description, screenshots, and other visual assets. You should work with professional translators who are native speakers of the target language and have experience translating app listings. It's important to ensure that your translations are accurate, clear, and culturally appropriate.
Step 3: Optimize Your App's Listing for Each Market In addition to translating your app's listing, you should also optimize it for each market. This can include using keywords and phrases that are popular in each market, highlighting features and benefits that are relevant to local users, and using visual assets that resonate with local cultures. You should also adjust your pricing strategy and promotions to reflect local market conditions.
Step 4: Monitor and Adjust Your Localization Strategy Once you have localized your app's listing, it's important to monitor and adjust your localization strategy based on performance data. This can include tracking your app's downloads and installs in each market, analyzing user feedback and reviews, and adjusting your app's listing based on this feedback. You may also need to make adjustments to your translation and optimization strategies based on local market conditions and user preferences.
Step 5: Continue to Improve Your Localization Strategy Localization is an ongoing process, and it's important to continue to improve your localization strategy over time. This can include updating your app's listing as new features and benefits become available, expanding into new markets, and adjusting your localization strategy based on changes in user preferences and market conditions.
In conclusion, Localization is a critical part of App Store Optimization that can significantly impact your app's downloads and installs in different markets. By following these steps and identifying your target markets, translating your app's listing, optimizing it for each market, monitoring and adjusting your localization strategy, and continuing to improve your localization over time, you can improve your app's performance and reach a wider audience.
Visuals and Creative
Visuals and creatives are a critical aspect of App Store Optimization (ASO), as they play a major role in attracting users and convincing them to download and install your app. In this blog post, we'll explore how to optimize your app's visuals and creatives for ASO in detail
Step 1: Analyze Your Competitors
The first step in optimizing your visuals and creatives is to analyze your competitors and identify what works well in their listings. This can include analyzing their screenshots, videos, icons, and other graphics. You should identify what sets your app apart from your competitors and highlight these unique selling points in your visuals and creatives.
Step 2: Create High-Quality Visuals and Creatives
Once you have analyzed your competitors and identified your unique selling points, the next step is to create high-quality visuals and creatives that accurately reflect your app's features and benefits. This can include screenshots, videos, icons, and other graphics. You should use high-resolution images and videos, as well as clear and legible text, to make your app's features and benefits stand out.
Step 3: Highlight Your Unique Selling Points
Your visuals and creatives should highlight your app's unique selling points and benefits. This can include showcasing your app's functionality, user interface, and key features. You should use your visuals and creatives to tell a story and engage users, rather than simply listing features and benefits.
Step 4: Optimize Your Visuals and Creatives for Each Platform
Different app stores and platforms may have different requirements for visuals and creatives. For example, the App Store may require screenshots in specific sizes, while the Google Play Store may require different video formats. It's important to optimize your visuals and creatives for each platform to ensure they display correctly and are effective in attracting users.
Step 5: Test and Optimize Your Visuals and Creatives
Finally, it's important to test and optimize your visuals and creatives based on performance data. This can include analyzing user feedback and reviews, monitoring downloads and installs, and adjusting your visuals and creatives based on this feedback. You may also need to test different variations of your visuals and creatives to see which ones perform best.
Ratings and Reviews
Ratings and reviews are an essential aspect of App Store Optimization (ASO). They not only provide feedback on your app's performance but also serve as a social proof for new users. In this blog post, we'll explore how to optimize your app's ratings and reviews for ASO in detail.
Step 1: Encourage Ratings and Reviews
The first step in optimizing your app's ratings and reviews is to encourage users to rate and review your app. You can prompt users to rate and review your app within the app itself, as well as in your app store listing. You should also make it easy for users to provide feedback by offering a clear and accessible feedback mechanism.
Step 2: Respond to Feedback
It's important to respond to user feedback, both positive and negative. Responding to feedback shows that you care about your users and are committed to improving your app. It can also help mitigate negative reviews by addressing user concerns and resolving issues.
Step 3: Monitor and Analyze Feedback
You should monitor and analyze user feedback regularly to identify trends and areas for improvement. This can include analyzing the frequency and severity of negative reviews, as well as identifying common user complaints or suggestions. You can use this feedback to make improvements to your app and address user concerns.
Step 4: Incorporate Feedback into App Updates
Incorporating user feedback into your app updates can help improve your app's performance and address user concerns. You should prioritize feedback based on its impact on user experience and make necessary changes in future app updates.
Step 5: Promote Positive Reviews
Promoting positive reviews can help improve your app's ASO. You can feature positive reviews in your app store listing, as well as on your website and social media channels. You can also use user testimonials in your marketing materials to help build credibility and trust with potential users.
Implementing in-app review prompts in your app can be done in a few simple steps. Here's how to do it:
Step 1: Check the Requirements
Before you implement the in-app review prompt in your app, you need to make sure that your app meets the requirements for displaying the prompt. Currently, the prompt is only available on devices running iOS 10.3 or later and Android 5.0 or later. Additionally, your app must be published on the App Store or Google Play, respectively.
Step 2: Choose Your Platform
Next, you need to choose the platform for the in-app review prompt. For iOS, you can use the SKStoreReviewController API, while for Android, you can use the In-App Review API.
Step 3: Implement the Code
Once you have chosen your platform, you can implement the code to display the in-app review prompt. Here's an example of how to implement it for iOS:
import StoreKit
class ViewController: UIViewController {
func requestReview() {
if #available(iOS 10.3, *)
else {
// Fallback on earlier versions
}
}
}
And here's an example of how to implement it for Android:
import com.google.android.play.core.review.ReviewManager
import com.google.android.play.core.review.ReviewManagerFactory
import com.google.android.play.core.review.ReviewInfo
import com.google.android.play.core.tasks.Task
class MainActivity : AppCompatActivity() {
private lateinit var reviewManager: ReviewManager
private lateinit var reviewInfo: ReviewInfo
override fun onCreate(savedInstanceState: Bundle?) {
super.onCreate(savedInstanceState)
setContentView(R.layout.activity_main)
reviewManager = ReviewManagerFactory.create(this)
val request: Task<ReviewInfo> = reviewManager.requestReviewFlow()
request.addOnCompleteListener { task ->
if (task.isSuccessful) {
reviewInfo = task.result
}
}
}
private fun launchReview() {
val flow = reviewManager.launchReviewFlow(this, reviewInfo)
flow.addOnCompleteListener { _ ->
// The flow has finished. The API does not indicate whether the user
// reviewed or not, or even whether the review dialog was shown. Thus, no
// matter the result, we will treat it as successful.
}
}
}
Step 4: Customize the Prompt
Once you have implemented the code, you can customize the prompt to match your app's branding and user experience. This can include customizing the text, colors, and graphics used in the prompt.
Step 5: Test and Optimize
Finally, it's important to test the in-app review prompt and optimize it based on user feedback and data. You may need to adjust the timing, frequency, and content of the prompt to ensure it is effective in generating reviews and ratings.
Competitor Research
Why is Competitor Research is Important for ASO?
Competitor research allows you to gain a better understanding of the market landscape and identify areas where you can differentiate your app from the competition. By analyzing your competitors' app store listings, you can gain insights into their keyword strategies, user reviews, and ratings, as well as their visual and creative assets. This information can help you make informed decisions about your own app's ASO strategy, including your keyword targeting, app name, and visuals.
Additionally, competitor research can help you identify gaps in the market that your app can fill. By analyzing your competitors' apps, you can identify areas where they may be weak or where there is an unmet need among users. This can help you develop a unique selling proposition for your app that sets it apart from the competition.
Tips for Conducting Effective Competitor Research
Identify Your Competitors The first step in conducting effective competitor research is to identify your competitors. This can be done by searching for apps that are similar to yours in the app store and reviewing their app store listings. Look for apps that target similar keywords, have similar functionality, or target a similar audience.
Analyze Their Keyword Strategies Once you have identified your competitors, you can analyze their keyword strategies to identify opportunities for your own app. Look for the keywords they are targeting in their app name, title, and description, as well as the keywords they are using in their metadata. You can use keyword research tools such as Sensor Tower, App Annie, or Phiture's ASO tool to help you identify the keywords they are targeting.
Review Their User Reviews and Ratings Another important component of competitor research is analyzing their user reviews and ratings. Look for common themes among the reviews, such as areas where users are dissatisfied with the app's functionality or features. This information can help you identify areas where you can differentiate your app and improve the user experience.
Analyze Their Visuals and Creatives Finally, you should analyze your competitors' visuals and creatives to identify opportunities for your own app. Look at the screenshots and videos they are using to promote their app and consider how you can differentiate your own app's visuals to stand out from the competition.
While app marketing can be complex and challenging, the good news is that all the information and resources needed to optimize your app's ASO strategy are out there. With a learning mentality and the willingness to execute diligently, app developers and marketers can effectively promote their apps and achieve success in the app stores. So don't be discouraged, take on the challenge with enthusiasm, and leverage the available knowledge to optimize your app's ASO strategy and drive success.