October 19, 2012
Bryson Meunier from Search Engine Land compiled a list of the 100 most searched for keywords in both Apple’s App Store and Google’s Play Store, for new apps. The data was gathered in June using Google’s keyword tool, so it isn’t exactly perfect, but it’s good enough to have a discussion about what works and what doesn’t. Surprisingly, only 22 keyboards appear on both lists, which suggests that Google and Apple uses different algorithms to display apps. It also implies that Android users and iOS users look for different things. Take the search query “games” for example: it’s the 5th most popular term for Apple’s App Store, but on the Google Play Store it’s 15th. The top result in both stores is, unsurprisingly, Facebook.
As a developer, the key takeaway is that you should really be familiar with how to optimize the names and description of your apps. Make sure you make tell people what your app does in plain English instead of trying to use colorful language that was conjured up by the marketing department. It may seem rather obvious, but then again one shouldn’t make assumptions.
Also, it looks like Apple is weighing reviews and ratings more heavily now. Translation: It doesn’t matter if you’ve got the right “App SEO” if your users don’t review your app or tell their friends to download it. That means you should think of investing more in marketing your app. Simple thing like making a demo video and reaching out to a few members of the press certainly helps.
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