app store seo: google play (android) vs apple app store
DESCRIPTION
Organic search visibility for Google Play Apps higher than iOS Apps In summary, at this time, it feels like vying for discoverability in the Google Play store search is a good investment. Our goal is to help developers track and improve search rankings to grow their businesses. Our vast data does enable us to decode some of the unknown patterns but there’s much more to figure out in terms of search engine biases (revenue bias, social signals, ratings added, reviews entered, download velocity etc). It would benefit the app eco system if all the platforms were more transparent about their search ranking algorithms. 1) Google Play Store offers more search result accessibility for Apps a) More results per page: Google Play store displays 7 to 8 apps per search result page across both smartphones & tablets. iPhone displays 1 result/page and iPad displays 6 results/page. b) Easy to access deeper search results: Google Play store search result pages can scroll endlessly, allowing a user to get to rank # 25 with one flick of the finger in a second. With iOS6, each search results page takes more work and is slower to generate. Fyi, for our visibility score calculation, we assume that the loss of accessibility from one search result page to the next is 5% for Google Play versus 10% for iOS App Store. c) Google Play offers better visibility: The combination of more apps per page & easier to access pages results in greater visibility for an App in the Google Play Store given a specific keyword & search rank 2) Google Play Store Search returns more search results a) Bigger Index of Apps: For several “head” keywords, the number of actual search results returned inside Google Play exceeds that of iOS, even though there are more apps in total for iOS. b) Query expansion with synonyms: Given a search query, Google Play’s search technology seems to “expand” the query and return additional results for synonyms of the original keyword entered, and as a result, the number of actual search results returned inside Google Play exceeds that of iOS. c) Spelling correction: When certain search queries are misspelled, Google Play’s search technology seems to correct this spelling, and as a result, the number of actual search results returned inside Google Play exceeds that of iOS 3) Investing in Google Play market soon may yield great results a) Less competition: Developers seem to be investing more resources to upgrade their iOS apps more frequently than Android Apps b) More monetization imminent: Where Google Play lacks in end-user credit card registrations, it may make up for in carrier reverse billing. Our customers who build & market apps for the Japanese mobile markets tell us that they make more money with carrier billing than credit cards, possibly because users have fewer security concerns. 4) Search Engine Optimization & App Store Optimization in Google Play is easier a) Keyword changes are not subject tTRANSCRIPT
App Store seo: comparing
google play store with
Apple App Store By searchman.com
march 18, 2013 Copyright 2011-2013 SearchMan & AppGrooves Corp. All Rights Reserved. 1
Vs
Recap: search is the biggest driver of app discovery
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Google play: More apps per Search results page
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1 app per page 7-8 apps per page
iphone Google play
Google play: Easier to access Deeper search results
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25 flicks to access app #25 1 flick to access App #25
iphone Google play
Flick Flick
Google play accessibility: more results for less effort
5
Google play: returning many more search results
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Query iPhone Google Play restaurants 8,853 apps 17,321 apps
hotels 6,751 13,888 fashion 4,372 11,515 poker 2,254 6,155
camera 11,263 19,897 shopping 7,956 14,003
news 14,612 20,018 US store search results for March 17, 2013
n Google Might be using synonyms to expand queries and recall
Google Play: spell checker might be working better n Example: 100x more results when you misspell “calendar”
Copyright 2011-2013 SearchMan & AppGrooves Corp. All Rights Reserved. 7 iphone Google play
Spell checker: Number of search results returned
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Misspelled Query iPhone Google Play
resteraunt 1 app 10,523 apps
hotwls 0 15,630
fasion 4,537 11,127
pocker 2,648 16,890
camara 862 20,574
shoping 8,231 14,411
newz 9 19,316 US store search results for March 17, 2013
Google Play: less competition than ios app store?
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0 500 1K 1.5K 2K 2.5K 3K #apps
New apps / day
App updates/day
*US store daily average for the period Feb 18 to March 10, 2013
n Similar # of new apps launched per day
n Far fewer developers updating their apps…it’s less competitive
But What about Google Play Monetization?
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n Apple has credit card info. Google has tried carrier billing
n In japan, Carrier billing accelerated Monetization
SEO for Google Play vs. Apple App store
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Elements iOS App Store Google Play Keyword Relevancy to Search Engine Algorithm
App Name Keywords High (Apple suggests <35 length)
High
Tags (Secret iTunes Keywords)
High (100 characters,
including commas)
Not needed
Description Keywords Unclear Yes Keywords in in-store reviews & 3rd party app review sites Black Box
Quantitative factors that may affect search rankings
Downloads (total, velocity)
Black box Ratings (ave, total, velocity) Revenue (total, velocity) Social Signal (FB, TW, G+)
n No Review Process for google play – can update keywords often n No need for tags or “secret” itunes keywords in Google Play n Descriptions count and are important in Google Play
Summary: google play store seo is a good investment
1. User sees more results per page
2. easier for users to access lower ranked results
3. synonyms & spelling correction à more apps get found 4. Fewer developers updating apps- it’s less competitive
5. carrier billing may improve google play monetization
6. Search engine optimization for google play is easier A. No approvals needed – update keywords as often as needed
B. No tags (i.e. secret itunes keywords) are needed
C. Descriptions count
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How searchman can help you grow in google play?
1. Track your performance in google play daily A. Visibility score – see how discoverable you are
B. Search rank tracking
C. Competitor tracking
2. Improve your keywords regularly A. Research and store keywords in “notepad”
B. Borrow keywords from competing apps
C. Automatically Get re-prioritized keywords in < 30 seconds
3. Update “meta-data” often. Seo is not a “fire and forget” weapon
4. Rinse. Repeat.
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Thanks for your time more in-depth guides at
searchman.com/how-it-works/
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