When it comes to mobile apps, there are two main components involved to make it a success. First, the content of the app has to be appealing, useful, or interesting. Of course, the app needs to be well-designed and functional, too. But what many people don’t realize is that half the battle of creating a successful app isn’t just in the creation itself. It’s also about how you market that app to your target audience. Just like a blog with great content won’t be successful if people can’t find it, your app also needs to get discovered so it can get downloaded!
Whether you’re an app developer, someone interested in creating mobile apps, or someone who has already paid to have an app developed, there are a few tips you can follow to make sure your mobile app gets noticed, downloaded, and becomes the success you created it to be.
Optimize for App Stores
The first essential tip is that your app needs to be optimized for and submitted to the various app stores. Ideally your mobile app is compatible with multiple devices, so you should submit it to the Apple, Android, Microsoft, Amazon Kindle, and Blackberry stores, or whichever apply to your app.
When it comes to optimizing your app so it can easily get found in those stores, it becomes a little more complex. Luckily though, there are several resources to help guide you in the right direction.
But before you get into the specifics, the two most important factors are the title of your app and the keywords you associate with. Sure, you want the title of your app to be catchy; however, it’s also important that it’s descriptive whenever possible. It can be a huge benefit to have a keyword in your title so that people can easily find it when browsing in app stores. For more details about how to successfully optimize your app, visit KISS Metrics and Moz.
Optimize for Search
App stores aren’t the only place people can potentially find your app. They’re also likely to search for it on Google, Bing! or other search engines, especially if they have a specific tool or resource they’re looking for an app to provide. To make your mobile app SEO-friendly, here are a few things to focus on:
- First, create a new page on your website specifically for your app
- Make sure the meta data on that page, like titles, descriptions, and headers, tell people what your app is and remember to incorporate helpful keywords when you can.
- Create content for that page that gives more of an explanation of what your app is, what it does, and why it’s appealing.
- This is also where you can show off the great design and functionality of your app by including screen shots.
Spread the Word
Getting your app to the top download list is all about awareness. The more people that know about your app, the better! Spreading the word will take some work, but the ROI you’ll see when more people start downloading your app will all be worth it in the long run.
So how exactly can you do this?
Start with the original form of publicity: word of mouth! Stats show that talking with friends and family is the second most popular way that people discover new apps. If you’ve created a great product, don’t be shy about sharing!
Consider tools like announcing the app on your website or blog, and also reaching out to other blog and site admins to spread the word. Guest blogging is a great way to get more visibility for your app. The blog admin gets some great content to share with their readers, and you get to spread the word about your app. New to guest blogging? Get some great details here.
Get Social!
Social media: it’s user-friendly, inexpensive, and with the right strategy can produce a lot of buzz about your app. Beyond just sharing it with your network on Google, Twitter, StumbleUpon, etc, consider reaching out to other niche groups or thought leaders in specific industries via social media to also spread the word.
App Discovery Programs
App discovery, also called app recommendation by some, is an emerging market that’s showing lots of great potential for app developers and marketers. If you haven’t heard of it yet, here’s a short explanation:
An app discovery tool utilizes both app developers and publishers of online content to create a great end benefit for both. Content publishers who opt in to this network are able to show mobile readers recommended apps (which usually appear at the bottom of a post) that are related to the content they consume. If a user downloads one of the recommended apps, the publisher gets a commission. The viewer benefits by finding great new apps without really having to search for them, and app developers gain new, highly engaged users. This isn’t just a win-win situation—it’s win-win-win!
If you’re interested about how this recommendation technology can help your add, visit youAPPi.com.
With how much you invest in creating a great app, don’t just give it half the potential. By following these five steps, you’ll give your app the best chance at getting noticed and ultimately downloaded by users who love it.
Image Source: GatewayTechnoLabs.com