With so much emphasis on SEO within iGaming, you may feel like you’re not getting anywhere when compared to your competitors. This is where App Store Optimisation (ASO) can give you the edge by allowing you to think outside of the box. How does ASO work and what best practice pieces of advice can we glean?
Build it bigger and better
If you want to gain this niche traffic, then you need to create something that is useful and better than what your competitors have to offer. The product has to come first and it has to solve a problem for those scouring the App Store. If it doesn’t, then there’s no reason for it to be downloaded.
Your download numbers and app activity play into your ranking status within the App Store. This can sound scary, but actually this means there’s the opportunity to snowball your traffic after just a small number of downloads. This creates a cycle whereby downloads bring you more placement increasing your visibility.
Allow this event to influence how you present your app in the store. Create a visual appeal that will entice users to download your product, then back that up with an app that really succeeds in delivering a service or proposition that adds value or solves a problem. If you build it, they will come, but give your app the tools it needs to truly create a user experience that’s out of this world.
Optimise your description and tags
Just like you do on your site, within your app you want to create content that is easily found. This means creating a compelling, keyword rich description and optimising your tags. These are the basics of SEO, so it’s not too surprising to find them at the heart of ASO.
Remember that you want to encourage people to download your app. For example, if they’re searching for a tipster app, tell them why yours is better than all of the others on the list. Explain why they should go through the process of downloading your app and trusting you as an affiliate.
Test and respond
As much as you would like it to be, your app probably isn’t perfect. While you may have tested it rigorously, it can come under strain when it’s being used by more users on more devices. If a negative review comes in, don’t stress, as this is an opportunity to hack your way up the rankings.
Log the user issue, test and figure out a way to replicate the bug. From there, you can work out why the bug has occurred, fix it and release a new version. Get back to that user and let them know it’s resolved in your latest version. Turn that negative review into a positive boost for your app.
Submit full and detailed change logs for new versions too, as this will also grant you perks. Google and Apple want to prioritise apps with responsive and thorough developers, so show them that you are one.
Diversify what you offer
There’s no real point to creating an app that just displays a slimmed down version of your site, as this is useless to your users. Think back to a time when you downloaded an app that displayed a version of the site, you’re left feeling like you’ve just completed a pointless task. Is this how you want your user to feel?
If you’re answer to this is ‘no’, and we really hope it is, then you have to decide what your app will do that makes it different. Will there be different navigation, new elements or an exclusive service within the app? Think about ways to diversify what you offer to your browser based and app using audience.
There’s a lot to think about when it comes to ASO, so make sure you have your finger on the pulse. If you want to make the investment into creating an app, then do your research make sure you attend our in depth session with ASO guru Nick Duddy from Miratrix at this year’s AffiliateFEST accelerator
