How to Get Your App Featured on App Stores
Getting your app featured feels like winning the lottery. Luckily, being featured isn’t a matter of luck or chance. There are strategies you can use to make your app attractive to editors.
How to Get Your App Featured on App Stores
Getting your app featured feels like winning the lottery.
Luckily, being featured isn’t a matter of luck or chance.
There are strategies you can use to make your app attractive to editors.
With billions of users, you could see thousands of downloads if you’re covered in “new apps we love” or get an “editor’s choice” banner.
Having your app featured increases its perceived value and trustworthiness by users.
To give an example of this, look at the impact on downloads after being featured on the Today Tab.
Source: AppTweak.
Pitch Your App to the Stores
This plays a significant role in getting featured, so you want to optimize your approach as much as possible.
Prepare at least 3-5 slides that clearly outline the problem your app solves, how it addresses the problem, and your target audience.
Use an iPhone bezel when presenting to Apple, and an Android bezel when pitching to Google. Use the correct screenshots based on who you’re presenting to.
Your app’s value is going to be based on a couple of KPIs, so you want to nail these.
For example, Uber would demonstrate the number of rides. If you’re a guided meditation app, it could be “listen time”.
User engagement and retention are crucial.
AppTweak (2021) discovered that apps featured in the App Store had a median rating of 4.5 or higher. You want to increase your ratings and reviews as much as possible before pitching, even if you’re only relying on friends and family to do this.
Also, don’t forget to include a marketing plan!
This could include influencer marketing, social media campaigns, and media outreach.
Your presentation will stand out if you show a long-term strategy.
Master Storytelling
A strong pitch isn’t only about visuals and metrics.
Apple editors care a lot about your app’s narrative and story.
Your app should be the go-to app for a specific problem or desire.
This is why targeting a niche without a lot of competition is much better than fighting big brands for a large market.
Apple makes it clear that it values innovation and uniqueness in its “Featuring considerations”. This means enhancing user experience by solving a unique problem or providing a fresh approach.
Your positioning should be extremely clear with visuals supporting your app’s theme.
The App Store Today tab looks and functions almost like a news site, and you should treat it as such.
Include user guides and behind-the-scenes material as ways to enhance your pitch and stand out from the competition.
Imagine yourself as the PR agency responsible for pitching your app to the stores.
Submission Tips
If your app is in the education, health & fitness, or entertainment category, you’re at an advantage. These categories are featured as App of the day most often and for longer periods.
Your title, short description, icon, and screenshots need to quickly impress visitors and grab their attention.
Localization is extremely important. Your app should be relevant to the specific geographic area you’re targeting. Google and Apple will only feature apps that are properly localized.
Apple considers things like culturally relevant content and multiple languages.
If Apple invites you to be featured, prepare amazing visuals in advance. Apple shows UI and in-app content in their editorials.
You should create a strong asset library you can use on an ongoing basis.
We’ll be publishing more guides and articles on how to market your app. Stay tuned.
Also, we’re happy to answer any questions you might have, so feel free to reach out!