Experience sharing to improve application store exposure

One of the key lessons I've learned from working with iphone app developers and smartphone security lookout is that there are differences between app stores and how to play the biggest role in applying rankings through smaller marketing inputs. I am more experienced in the Android Market field, but I will share the recommendations of the series that apply to each store.

　　The key to Android market is search

As I learned from Charles Hudson's August Android I fied speech, Android users find apps and games mainly through search, "because this is the Google market." I think it's obvious. The way the app market is created can affect user behavior, and if you've been to Android Market, you'll find a search box at the top of the screen.

Therefore, the key to tapping Android Market market potential is to optimize search engines (game State Note: Just as we often optimize site search). Unfortunately, due to limited marketing materials and lack of links, you can not use the original SEO strategy. Instead, you can optimize applications in the Android Market search results by following these steps:

　　1. Find the game-related keywords in Android Market user search. users usually find your game by searching for these keywords, and you can track the information through Google Analytics. Or you can make reasonable guesses based on keywords that often appear in the same popular application.

　　2. Frequently add these keywords to the game list, preferably the title of the game, the description of the game is also very appropriate. This strategy doesn't sound smart, but it works very well. The Android market search algorithm is very basic compared to the Google homepage algorithm, improving the frequency to improve the search results. Try to incorporate it naturally into the conversation, but don't forget to add it to the bottom of the game description in the keyword section.

　　3. Through the game description of high-quality marketing materials to improve the download rate, at the same time to do these keywords.

　　4. Taking measures to increase retention rates, we find that this is closely linked to market rankings. the simple way to achieve this is based on the intended design description, avoiding excessive commitment, or pandering to the wrong users.

Similarly, since the Android Market still allows incentive downloads, it may be possible to "buy" the top 1000 users of the game, build their own user base, and accelerate the pace of development. This can effectively improve the store rankings for new games, giving you the important information you need to improve your marketing plan.

　　Optimization icon

Now I'm going to transition to some other app store that also applies to recommendations. First of all you can optimize through the marketing program is the important content of the icon. Icons are the only visual memory information that the game brand has on the market and on the user's phone.

In the era of selling boxed content shelves, you can use both sides of the box to promote product content, and perhaps folding aileron. Now you need to pass the brand information through the 80x80 PNG file, prompting the user to test the game in half a second. How do you make sure that the game icon achieves this goal without drowning in the large application bundles?

If you lack the art of making quality icons, you might want to ask someone to do it. Do you remember the importance of icons I mentioned? These reasons also fully demonstrate the value of investing large sums of money in icon design.

In other words, you still need to give designers some guidance, you need to control the game brand's creative perspective.

　　1. Stand out. This sounds simple, straightforward, but hardest to achieve. Refer to the colors, styles, and fonts used in other similar games and choose a different rendering. So that the game can be in the surrounding environment to emerge, access to user attention.

　　2. Selected brands. whether it's lame or shiny, shiny or bleak, the brand is the personality of the game, is the user's most remembered content. Branding is the first element in the application of interacting with users, so it is important to design a representative icon.

　　3. Keep it simple. icons that are prone to visual fatigue often do not receive much attention or convey brand information effectively as simple icons do. Instead, aim for a single object that defines the game (game state Note: Whether it is a game lead, or a number of characters in motion, weapons/equipment symbols, or game logos). Quality games have simple branding icons, which are unique and easy to identify.

　　4. Maintain consistency. you want to create your own brand on the market and on the user's phone, and the redesign icon is actually being reset. In other words, you can update the icon, but start small, step-by-step, do not suddenly present a brand new brand.

Typical examples of good icons include Fruit Ninja (fore), cut rope (brand design highlighting), X construction (Simple), and Words with Friends (consistency).

　　Get recommended

Any app Store's kill skills are recommended, which can help you get a lot of users for 1 days. Unfortunately, the process of getting recommendations is a "black box" operation for developers (game State Note: Black box refers to the internal structure and mechanism is not clear, but can be observed and tested outside, to understand its functions and characteristics of things). Making good content can help, but creating a good relationship with an App store is also essential if you want your application to be recommended.

As far as my work experience in Lookout, the key to resident Android Market is to establish a relationship with the application store representative.

On the recommendation, if your application has just entered the store is much simpler, so to submit the application as early as possible and frequently. The goal is not necessarily to be recommended at once, but to establish a good relationship with the store representatives you have communicated with. Even if you refuse, you can also communicate around the following topics:

* What are your requirements for recommended applications?

* How do I adjust the application to make it more appealing to the user?

* Can I ask you to recommend applications through fans?

* How can I modify my application recommendation to improve my chances of success?

This communication not only allows you to get valuable advice from you, but also allows you to have a close relationship with your representative so that the next time you submit your application, they will remember you and the corresponding improvement you have made according to their suggestions. This increases the likelihood that they will agree to recommend applications, especially if you submit them directly to the representative via email, rather than through the submission process.

In other words, the key to this approach is to get the message that the representative is contacting. I made a lot of new friends when I started a lot of conversations and finally joined Lookout. Here are some suggestions for your reference:

　　1. Make interesting and perfect new applications , they will make time for you (game Bang Note: This is through the production of high-quality applications to get recommendations). In other words, don't just quietly plan to submit your application to them: You can't learn anything without submitting it.

　　2. Keep the message concise. Select one of the above questions for questioning. Instead of talking about worthless content, don't gossip, learn from experience, refine your application, and prepare for your next application.

　　3. Be persistent. This is what I learned from Dean Takahashi's June "Meet the App Press". Although you send them messages without a response, they will remember you, and the next time you see your name in the mail, they may look at the contents of the email.

　　Summarize

I hope these suggestions will help, especially the lack of independent developers and small teams with marketing channels. Marketing is not easy, but as long as you remain open-minded and pay more, you will find it much simpler than you think.

This article is from: http://gamerboom.com/archives/38640

Original English: http://www.gamasutra.com/view/news/37491/Opinion_Finessing_The_App_Stores.php