Combining user acquisition (UA) and App Store Optimization (ASO) is among the best strategies you should consider. It allows you to leverage each of these app marketing frontiers and maximize your resources.
The question now is, “How can you create a holistic UA-ASO strategy?” That’s exactly what you’re going to learn today.
What is user acquisition (UA)?
User acquisition, in terms of app marketing, is planning effective strategies that would drive downloads and installs. As its name implies, it’s the process of acquiring users.
When it comes to promoting your app, there are two ways how to perform user acquisition. These are organic user acquisition and paid user acquisition.
Organic UA refers to app marketing strategies that you perform without paying for them. In essence, App Store Optimization is a form of organic UA since ASO relies heavily on the platform itself to gain more users.
On the other hand, paid UA refers to marketing strategies that involve spending money primarily on ads to gain more users. Examples of paid UA are when you use Apple Search Ads on the App Store and Google Ads on the Play Store.
For the purpose of this discussion, let’s focus on paid user acquisition.
What is ASO?
App Store Optimization (ASO) is the process of designing and setting your app store listing in such a way that it attracts more users. With ASO, you try to influence app ranking factors to increase your app’s visibility in app stores.
These app ranking factors include app name or app title, subtitle, description, keywords, screenshots, and app icon, to name a few. When done right, ASO can help you gain more users in the most cost-effective way possible.
Why should you create combined UA and ASO strategies?
When app marketing started, most people believed that paid UA and ASO were two different aspects, which were less likely to touch each other. That’s why most app owners have their different sets of teams, budgets, and planning for paid UA and ASO.
Image source: Vecteezy
However, this is an outdated strategy that, if you’re still doing it, you’re most likely missing many opportunities. Today, more than ever, those who found a way to intertwine both paid UA synergistically and ASO created a brand new way of improving their installs and downloads.
For one, you need to understand how both UA and ASO share the same goals. These are the following:
- Increase app store visibility
- Acquire more users
- Decrease cost per install (CPI)
- Improve conversion rate
- Improve profit
So, it makes sense to consider both UA and ASO on the planning table simultaneously to ensure you got cover everything that needs to be covered.
What is the correlation between paid UA and ASO?
You need to understand how paid UA and ASO affect each other before you can genuinely make ASO-AU work together.
How paid UA affects ASO
Now, here’s how it works: your paid UA helps improve your ASO effort. With ASO, you laid out the foundation of increased visibility in app stores. You don’t need to pay the app store directly for this. All you need is to ensure you have the right keywords, app icons, screenshots, and other elements.
Now, imagine the massive competition you need to go against with. That makes it so difficult to rank better with just ASO. That’s where paid UA comes in.
Paid UA allows you to get your needed exposure which your ASO can’t provide immediately. Paid UA gives you the necessary boost to improve your overall app visibility and get more users.
Here’s where things get more interesting: the more users you get, the more the app store will notice your app. Increased installs send a stronger signal to the app store that you’re also worth featuring in browse and search results. What’s more, you might even be included in the feature section of an app store.
Your increased number of installs could come from paid UA, and with its help, your ASO would also improve.
How ASO affects paid UA
On the flip side, ASO can also help your paid UA. You see, the app stores follow an algorithm to determine which ads to show users. ASO sets your metadata and even produces the creatives that should be used in your ads.
Now, you can’t simply ignore ASO and focus on paid UA. In the same manner, you can’t ignore paid UA and focus on ASO. Both work hand in hand. One gives you a short-term boost, while the other gives you a long-term boost.
How to create a holistic UA-ASO strategy?
When planning a marketing strategy, you need to consider both paid user acquisition and ASO.
Start with ASO
First and foremost, you must ensure that your ASO is already set in place. It’s difficult to start with paid UA when you haven’t settled your ASO yet.
Make sure that you perform the basics of ASO. For example, you need to choose the right app name, which includes your most important keywords. Next, you need to add your second most important keywords in the subtitle.
Your app icon should also look simple but eye-grabbing at the same time. It should quickly give your users an idea of what your app is all about.
For the App Store, you need to add all the rest of your essential keywords in the keyword field. You don’t need to worry about adding keywords in your description since Apple doesn’t consider the description as a ranking factor.
However, it’s a different story for Google Play Store. You need to add keywords to your description while making sure that it looks natural.
Choose the right screenshots as well. These images should be able to explain to your users what your app looks like inside. While optional, you should also add app videos to improve engagement and conversion rate.
Now, ASO is a huge topic. So, don’t hesitate to read the guide “App Store Optimization Strategy” to learn more.
Combining paid UA with ASO
Once you’re done doing your ASO, you should see that an increase in your installs. Eventually, you might see a plateau in your installs, or you’re seeing slow growth. That’s when you should now include paid UA in the picture.
Paid UA puts your app at the forefront of your users. With the right budget and settings, you should see an increase in your app installs.
There are two main paid UA services that you should know. This would, of course, depend on which platform you are using. Here’s a quick look at them:
- Apple Search Ads – the advertising program of Apple on their App Store is called Search Ads. Search Ads come with two plans, the Basic and Advanced. The Basic is simple to use. You simply need to specify a few details, and Search Ads will do the rest for you. Advanced allows you to specifically modify your campaigns and manage how your app would appear on App Store. To learn more, read the complete guide for Apple Search Ads.
- Google Ads – Google Ads has a more far-reaching influence than Apple. As you may know, Google owns a network of services and products. That’s why, when you use Google Ads, it will not only appear on Play Store, but users can discover your app through YouTube and Google Search. All you need to do is create your app ad, choose a budget, and set up goals. From there, Google will take all the details you have sent, and they will create ad campaigns for you. You can read this Google Ads guide to learn more.
Making the best UA-ASO strategy for your app
There’s no doubt: user acquisition and App Store Optimization are both sides of the same coin. This means that they work together to achieve a common goal.
The actual creation of the UA-ASO strategy can be overwhelming, especially if it is your first time or you don’t have prior knowledge about it. Even if you already know how to create a UA-ASO strategy, you would still benefit from getting the right help.
Thankfully, you don’t have to do it alone. ShyftUp is here for you.
ShyftUp is among the best user acquisition agencies today that have a proven track record and impressive results. They specialize in helping app developers increase their app store visibility while ensuring that their cost would stay at a minimum level.
If you want to improve your overall app performance, then you need to get in touch with ShyftUp today!
How to create a user funnel by leveraging UA and ASO?
Your paid UA is there to increase your app visibility. Once your user interacted with ad and they are redirected to your user funnel, which in this case is more like your app store page, they should find the same promises in both of your ads and app page.
Which is better, paid UA or ASO?
Ultimately, ASO is more important than paid UA. However, one should not think of ASO and paid UA as something that oppose each other. Rather, these two complement each other and by using both marketing strategies, you’ll get maximum results.
What is the impact of paid UA on ASO?
Paid UA boosts installs. With increased installs, paid UA can dramatically improve your ASO.
