What is app store optimization you ask? Basically it’s ensuring that you are using the proper title and keywords in your app store listing to get you as many downloads as possible. But like any tactic for marketing there is a right way to do it…and a wrong way.
Here is a great overview by Dan Counsell about app store optimization and how to use it the right way. He’s also got a great ASO Cheat Sheet.
One of the mistakes I made was not using a major keyword in the name of my apps-period. My app is for people who take part in “Photo365” challenge…which I didn’t have in the name of the app at all. And when you search “Photo365” on the app store, my apps would not come up.
So I renamed the Photography Assignment Generator (with photography really being the only popular keyword…but also meant it would get buried) to the Learn Photo365 Photography Assignment Generator. That change made a difference, as now when you search “Photo365” my apps are all there. Small change, big results. Well, not on the download side really, but at least it comes up now.
But from what I’ve seen on the app store, ASO has gone COMPLETELY INSANE!.
What some developers are doing is using keywords from OTHER apps that are currently popular in their keywords and their app store names in an attempt to get more visibility. (Which you may have noticed I did with the title of this very post!)
A prime example of this is the whole “Flappy Bird” insanity of early 2014.
To recap for those who missed it, this pretty simple free game of flying a bird through pipes all of a sudden became massively popular…and then the developer took it off the app store because he said the popularity of it was ruining his life. It was also reported he was making $50,000 PER DAY on ads…
This lead to a huge volume of (mostly crappy) Flappy Bird clone apps.
But developers also began putting “flappy” into the names of their apps, even though they had nothing to do with a bird…
Mike Wehner of TUAW has a great article here about this topic.
As I write this post, “Clumsy” and “Ninja” are now the hot terms. But there are some rumblings that Apple has begun to reject not only these clone apps, but any attempt to use popular app names in titles or keywords…I’ve seen posts on the official Apple developer forum of users having their apps rejected, or keywords removed. I guess we’ll have to wait and see if that is indeed the case.
Until then, my next update I’m going to change the name of my apps to the Learn Photo365 Clumsy Ninja Flappy Bird Photography Assignment Generator App For Instagram.
Sounds catchy, doesn’t it?
UPDATE:
Finally broke down and started playing the long name full of keywords game. I give you the “Learn Photo365 Photography Assignment Generator for photoaday, photo365, or project365 challenges”
I feel kinda dirty…but we’ll see how it goes. Early results don’t seem to show any really bump…but it might take time for it to take effect.
2015 UPDATE:
Well, I was able to use the keywords in the name for a year or two…but then with my next updates I began getting rejections for using them. So be prepared for potential rejection. The frustrating part is that as always, the rules aren’t consistent. I had a rejection for one of my apps, removed the keywords from the name on the app store, and had it approved. The same day, I got an update on my iPhone for an app…with a huge keyword filled name.
Sigh….
Noel
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