App Store search placement is a huge driver of iPhone app downloads and sales, especially if you don’t have a big media buy to support the app. If a consumer finds your offering in the App Store, it’s safe to assume they’re a qualified lead, and they’re literally one click away from converting.
But what affects how “findable” an app is in the App Store? If one can’t count on getting in Apple’s “Top 25″ or “What’s Hot” lists, what other options does a fledgling app have to gain consumer visibility?
The answer is keyword search optimization, which is like web SEO, but focused on the nuances of the iTunes App Store search algorithm. The following article provides tips for improving the searchability and findability of your iPhone applications and, ultimately, increasing downloads and sales.
1. Downloads are huge.
The number of downloads is the number one factor in search ranking placement, by a large margin. For this reason, brands should consider launching apps at a low initial price point to help boost the download count as quickly as possible.
2. Ratings don’t matter (for search).
Positive (or negative) consumer ratings and reviews are not included in the calculations for ranking placement (or if they are, it’s a very slight effect). Of course, ratings are still important for conversions, but if your primary objective is search placement, you’ll want to focus your efforts elsewhere.
3. Descriptions don’t matter either.
Due to the emergence of “spammy” app descriptions that go on and on for pages and mention every keyword imaginable, Apple is changing the way keyword search works. Instead of matching against both title and description, the company has added a new “keywords” field and will be phasing out descriptions from consideration in the search algorithm.
According to Apple, “It is important to enter keywords for all applications as soon as possible so your application can continue to be successfully located on the App Store.” Due to these changes, be sure to focus your app descriptions on telling the features-and-benefits story, and not on search placement.
4. Make every keyword count.
The new keywords field can contain a maximum of 100 characters (comma-delimited). So instead of a thousand-word description, you’re down to around 12 keywords. These keywords can only be entered when you upload a new version of your app; at that point, they’re set in stone until the next version.
These 12 keywords are the most important decisions you can make for search placement, so it’s critical to develop a strategy. Come up with a prioritized list, and try searching for various combinations to see what comes up in the store. Some strategies may involve picking keywords where there’s no competition; others may involve piggybacking on the competition.
5. Get creative with the title.
One workaround for the new keyword limitation is to put a short description after the App Store title. For example, I recently changed the title of one of my apps from “On the Clock” to “On the Clock – time tracking for clients, projects and tasks.” However, like keywords, titles are “set in stone” and can’t be changed until you release a new version. Treat them as an extension of your keywords, and if you touch on a target word in your title, don’t waste a keyword on it.
6. Review text is ignored.
Textual consumer reviews are not considered at all in keyword search matching. For example, if a review boasts that “This bird watching app sure beats fishing!” that app will not appear in searches for “fishing.” In other words, worry about what reviews will do for your conversion, not what they’ll do for your search placement.
There are over 65,000 applications available on the App Store today. The vast majority of apps enjoy a brief spike of downloads upon release and then quickly fall off as other newly-released apps fill in behind them.
Optimizing your iPhone applications for search using the guidelines above can help to build and sustain demand for your applications. While these guidelines work for the App Store today, the rules have changed since launch, and they’ll no doubt change again as Apple continues to evolve the App Store. Until that happens, choose your keywords carefully, get creative with the title, and beg, borrow and steal to increase your download count.
