Understand the APP promotion process in one article

After the App is developed, promoting the App naturally becomes the focus of the next step. Before troops move, food and fodder must be prepared first. Here we have compiled a list of things that need to be prepared before App promotion, hoping to be of some help to friends who are preparing to carry out App promotion.

As we all know, the first step in App promotion is to list it on major application download markets, followed by other promotion channels. Therefore, this article is mainly divided into two parts. The first part mainly introduces the preparations for listing on major application markets, and the second part mainly introduces the preparations for promotion through other channels.

1. Preparation before App launch

1.1 Preparation before listing on iOS App Market

A completed App application.

Enterprise-related text information (English): including name, registered address, landline number, website, unified social credit code, scanned copy of business license, etc.

A credit card with visa or master activated, company email address, company website (note: the suffix must be the same as the email address).

Before iOS is released, you need to prepare a developer account. Currently, Apple developer accounts can be divided into three types: personal, company, and enterprise, and the fees and permissions of the three are different. Among these three types of developer accounts, the personal developer account requires the least information and is the easiest to apply for.

You need to apply for a DUNS Number in advance before listing. Except for personal accounts, all other types of developer accounts need to apply for a DUNS Number. After your Dun & Bradstreet code application is approved, you will receive an email telling you that it is best to use it after 14 working days because it takes time for Apple to synchronize data. If you want to use it in advance, the number of failures cannot exceed 3 times.

App application related information: signed ipa software package, recommendation, application introduction, application icon (usually requires 1024x1024px), iPhone 5.5-inch application screenshots (3-5 photos), iPad 12.9-inch application screenshots (3-5 photos).

Before putting the App on the App Store, you must first install it on an Apple phone to test and debug the App to ensure that there are no problems with the App and it can run normally before putting it on the store. Otherwise, if the App has a bunch of bugs, it will be removed from the shelves immediately.

Five steps for real device testing of App:

1. Install iOS listing auxiliary software Appuploader
2. Log in to Appuploader to apply for iOS development certificate file p12
3. Log in to Appuploader to apply for iOS development certificate description file mobileprovision
4. Use iOS certificate files to package Apple App
5. Install the packaged App to the Apple phone for testing

Self-censor to avoid rejection

The iOS app submission review process takes a long time. Before submitting, we must conduct self-examination to avoid rejection. There are two types of application rejections: Binary Rejected and Metadata Rejected. The former requires re-uploading the application and re-queuing, while the latter only requires modifying the information and does not require re-uploading the application.

Here we have collected and sorted out some common App Store review rejection situations for you to check when uploading your application.

1. The app contains a check for updates function: iOS app version updates must be done through the App Store, and the app itself cannot contain an update prompt function.
2. Collecting device IDFA but the app has no advertising function: Apple refuses to allow apps that collect IDFA (identifier for advertising) but do not integrate any advertising services to enter the App Store.
3. Contains UGC but does not provide a user agreement and reporting function: If your App has UGC (user-generated content) functions such as posting, you must provide a user agreement and leave a content reporting function, otherwise it will be rejected during review.
4. Not using real app screenshots when uploading: App names, descriptions, screenshots, or previews that are not relevant to the app’s content and functionality will be rejected. Some apps were rejected because they used self-designed illustrations in their screenshots.
5. iPhone apps do not display properly on iPad: iPhone apps must run unmodified on iPad at iPhone resolution and at 2x iPhone 3GS resolution. Even if your app is only available for iPhone users, it must be displayed properly on iPad, otherwise the review will be rejected.
6. The words "beta version" or "test version" appear in the app: Don't be overly modest and add the word "beta" to the startup screen or app name. Apple does not allow beta products to be put on the shelves.
7. Registration lacks a privacy policy: If the app contains a registration function, the registration page must provide a privacy agreement button or link. In addition, when submitting a new version in iTunes connect, the Privacy Policy URL must be filled in.
8. Crashes and bugs: When you have completed your app development and are ready to release it, you should submit your app for review. Before submitting for review, make sure you have thoroughly tested your app on a device and fixed any bugs.

1.2 Preparation before listing on Android App Market

The first step is to develop a successful App application.

Secondly, you need to register a developer account in each major app store. To register a company entity, you need an email address, a QQ number, a mobile phone number, a business license, a tax registration certificate, an organization code (if you want to combine the three certificates into one, you only need the business license), the front and back of the corporate legal person’s ID card, and a photo of the legal person holding the ID card.

When listing on Android, a "Software Copyright" certificate is required, which needs to be applied for in advance, and the name must be consistent with the future App name. Generally speaking, apps need to apply for software copyright before they can be put on the shelves. Although apps can be put on Baidu, 360, App Store, Meizu and other app stores without software copyright, apps cannot be officialized and cannot apply for promotion such as first release. So it is best for everyone to apply for a soft copyright certificate.

In addition, some applications may have other qualification requirements. For example, film and television applications require an "Information Network Audiovisual Program Transmission License", novels require a "Publication Business License of the People's Republic of China", news requires an "Internet News Information Service License", and so on.

App related information: signed apk package, recommendation, app introduction, app icon (usually 512x512px), app screenshots (4-5 photos).

Icon and screenshot requirements for major app markets:

As we all know, the domestic Android application distribution market is severely fragmented. Before the App is launched, it is generally necessary to create multiple channel packages. These channel packages need to carry different channel parameter information so that when the App and the backend interact or report data, each one can carry parameter information used to distinguish different channels. In this way, we can count important data such as installation volume and registration volume in each distribution market.

There are many channel packaging tools on the market. The simplest and fastest one only requires uploading a standard installation package, and then you can export multiple channel packages for sub-package statistics with one click according to your needs. At the same time, each product update does not require the participation of development technicians. Anyone can easily and quickly complete the generation of channel packages and export APK.

Note: When you submit an app for the first time, you must not delete it casually. Otherwise, if you submit it later, it will show an app conflict and you will be required to go through the app claim process, which will be quite troublesome.

2. Preparation before promotion through other channels

2.1 Preparation before event promotion

(1) First, develop an activity plan

The process of developing an event plan is also called event planning. An activity plan that is creative, executable and operational can help the App better achieve its promotion goals.

So what does it take to develop an activity plan?

• Purpose of the activity: For activity operations, any activity is carried out with a certain purpose. The essence of the activity is to motivate users to perform certain specific behaviors through a certain reward mechanism. Therefore, the activities we can see are all purposeful, such as sharing invitation activities based on attracting new users, etc.
• Activity creativity: Creativity can be said to be the soul of an activity. A good activity idea can not only increase users’ interest in participating, but also help the App achieve the purpose of the activity and spread the brand.
• Activity type: There are many types of App activities nowadays. For example, the mainstream activities include: old-customer-new activities, group buying activities, friend support activities, discount activities, etc. We can choose the type of event based on the purpose of the event and the needs of the target audience.
• Activity time: includes: activity warm-up time, activity start time, activity end time, and reward collection time. Setting a deadline for an event is done, firstly, to maintain its attractiveness and give participants a feeling or hint that “once this opportunity is missed, it will never come back again”; secondly, it is done to control the cost of the event, as the cost of an indefinite event is uncontrollable.
• Activity process: The purpose of formulating an activity process is to visualize the entire process of the activity so that the participants of the activity can clearly understand how the activity should proceed. It is best to list the activity process, such as the flowchart of the user sharing invitation activity shown in the figure below. Regarding user sharing invitation activities, it is recommended to use the recently popular invitation code-free function on the market, which can reduce the user's operation process, optimize the user experience, and improve the conversion rate.

• Event staff arrangement: Although the App's activities are mainly the responsibility of operations and promotion personnel, the process from event planning to execution may involve design and development aspects, such as who is responsible for the event UI design, who is responsible for event page development, etc. Therefore, we need to make arrangements for the event personnel before the event starts.
• Activity budget: Activity budget is a rough estimate of the cost of the entire activity. For example, the budget for an online activity should start from the activity type, activity prizes, activity cycle, activity personnel, activity purpose, etc., and clarify how much each activity link will cost.

(2) Event crisis resolution plan

Various problems may be encountered during the course of the event, so we need to prepare solutions to the problems in advance, be prepared for a rainy day, and ensure that the event can proceed smoothly. For example, if an e-commerce app conducts a simple sharing activity and encounters problems such as users failing to share or being unable to claim activity rewards, what is your solution?

(3) Activity executable evaluation

In order to ensure that an activity can be implemented, the feasibility of the activity is generally evaluated before it is launched, such as whether the activity distribution platform meets the needs of the activity, whether the activity personnel are reasonably configured, and whether the activity funding preparation is proportional to the activity effect.

(4) Activity warm-up

After completing the above steps, we need to spread the event pre-promotion form before the event starts, using all available channels. For example, internal channels: official website notifications, official Weibo, official WeChat public accounts, etc.; external channels: media exposure, self-media platforms, event marketing platforms, vertical industry platforms, social platforms, celebrity endorsements, etc.

2.2 Preparation before offline promotion

1. Determine the target user group: The gender, age, income, work and rest schedule, occupation, etc. of the product's target user group all need to be analyzed based on the product's positioning.
2. Select the area for ground promotion: choose the area for ground promotion according to the living and activity range of the target user group. Generally, you can choose places with concentrated traffic such as subway entrances, supermarket entrances and exits, and restaurants.
3. Production of promotional materials: Promotional materials for App marketing are generally promoted through flyers and roll-up banners. The promotional materials should be concise in content and clear in theme, and quickly catch the attention of the target user group. It is best to find some professional companies to design them.
4. Product channel: The product channel for ground promotion generally refers to adding a WeChat public account, downloading an app, or jumping to a browser web interface by scanning a QR code. In this step, you can use a QR code generated by a channel link that carries statistical parameters. This QR code can not only provide a jump channel, but also count statistics, helping field sales personnel to better promote products and provide reference data for subsequent field sales strategies.
5. Arrangement of field sales personnel: Usually more than 4 people will be arranged for field sales activities, because if there are too few people, they will definitely not be able to handle the work. More people will make it more lively and can attract the attention of the crowd. It is best for every ground promotion activity to have professionals who are very familiar with the App product to explain it to users on site. This will make it appear more professional and increase people's credibility in the product, thereby improving user conversion rates.
6. Material preparation: The simplest material preparation for ground promotion is: tables and chairs + banners + tents + flyers + small gifts. In terms of materials, we should prepare as many small gifts as possible, which will have a good effect on brand exposure for App promotion. We can add relevant information of the product to the small gifts, which can help the product achieve brand exposure.
7. Preparation of local resources: Before going to the local market, you must understand some local conditions, such as what the local system is like? Where can I post advertisements? Where can banners be hung? Which places require approval from the Urban Management Bureau before they can carry out ground marketing activities? etc. The population attributes in each place are different, so we must fully investigate the local situation before launching ground promotion activities. Of course, you can also choose to cooperate with local marketing organizations, after all, local people have the advantage of connections.

2.3 Preparation before launching information flow advertising

With the rapid development of mobile Internet, information flow advertising has become the mainstream promotion method. Information flow advertising is similar to bidding promotion, but there is an essential difference in the thinking behind the delivery. Information flow advertising is a form of advertising that relies on massive user data and the information flow ecosystem. It can accurately capture user intentions and combine the attributes of different channels to display product advertisements to target users, so we need to understand the needs of each group of people.

Moreover, due to the different characteristics of the channels and the different target groups, the traffic carrying capacity and conversion methods are also different. These are all things we need to pay attention to and prepare in advance. Therefore, it is extremely important to do preparation work before launching the information flow.

How to prepare before information flow delivery?

(1) Population segmentation

For information flow advertising, any placement that is not aimed at the target audience is considered rogue. If you want to do a good job in information flow advertising, crowd segmentation is a must. Whether it is targeted delivery, advertising creativity, page conversion, etc., they are all based on population segmentation.

How to divide the population? We can divide people into groups based on their age, gender, occupation, region, interests, and education level.

(2) Choose the display format of the advertisement

After making preparations for crowd segmentation, the next step is to design the display format for information flow ads. There are generally four display formats for information flow ads: three small pictures, single small picture, large picture, and video. The specific form to be adopted can be considered based on product characteristics, target groups, channels, etc. What needs to be noted here is that the content and creativity of the advertisement should be related to the product.

(3) Prepare the landing page

People with different needs require landing pages with different content. Only by allowing users to see content that they are interested in can we reduce unnecessary waste of resources; only by satisfying users can we retain them. After setting up the hosting page of the landing page according to the user's interests and hobbies, the next step is to set the logical order of the landing page. After all, the longer the user visits, the lower the bounce rate, and the greater the possibility of achieving the purpose of advertising. The logical order I often use is:

• Description of the user's pain point scenario. (Arouse user resonance)
• The troubles and consequences caused by these pain points. (Worried state of mind)
• The solutions that the product can provide. (Solve user problems)
• Brand endorsement of the product. (Increase user trust)

At this stage, it is necessary to add appropriate conversion buttons based on the design of the landing page to avoid making it inconvenient for users to find them. At the same time, you should also pay attention to the fact that too frequent conversion entrances may cause user disgust.

(4) Select channels for placing information flow ads

The more mainstream channels for information flow advertising now include Toutiao, Baidu, Zhihuitui, Sina and other platforms. These platforms are relatively similar. I would like to mention here that the most important thing is to present the screening criteria to the target users, so that the previous population segmentation can come in handy.

Choose advertising channels based on the target user attributes of the product. The main dimensions are as follows:

1. Choose according to age
2. Choose by gender
3. Choose according to your interests
4. Choose by occupation

How to deliver information flow ads is a profound issue. In addition to the above-mentioned pre-delivery preparations, delivery optimization is also required during delivery.

2.4 Preparation of channel statistics outside the app market

The traffic dividend of mobile Internet is gradually fading, and millions of apps are competing for users in a stock market; whoever can improve the efficiency of customer acquisition will have the chance to win in the fierce competition. In the process of App promotion, we need to identify the quality of channels based on data, so as to select high-quality promotion channels suitable for our own products and carry out targeted promotion.

The data for iOS is provided by Apple officially. Since Apple's official iOS channel statistics are based on its own operating system, they are undoubtedly authoritative. However, due to the huge iOS ecosystem, Apple currently does not provide a complete solution.

Although Apple's official iTunes Connect can provide channel statistics for marketing campaign links, its data has a certain delay, and channel links need to be created manually. In addition, statistics will not be displayed if the number of installations is less than 5. Of course, it is not compatible with the Android system.

The Android system has a serious fragmentation problem in the domestic application distribution market. The traditional channel statistics method is channel packaging, which has been mentioned in the preparations before listing on the Android application market, so I will not explain it in detail here. Although this method can count the source data from different channels, when the number of channels increases or when promotion is carried out on multiple channels at the same time, the channel packaging approach becomes a bit stretched.

So for those who have many promotion channels, the best way is to use openinstall. Counting statistics through channel links instead of channel packages is simple, convenient and flexible. You only need to upload a standard installation package to generate unlimited channel links or QR codes with different parameters, which are compatible with iOS/Android. Then, you can distribute the channel links or QR codes to various channels and collect statistical data according to your needs.

References

(1) App store listing platform

• AppleStore (Apple software developer platform): https://developer.apple.com/cn/
• Huawei Developer Platform: https://developer.huawei.com/consumer/cn/
• Xiaomi Developer Platform: https://dev.mi.com/console/
• Meizu Developer Platform: http://open.flyme.cn/
• OPPO Developer Platform: https://open.oppomobile.com/
• Application treasure listing platform: http://open.qq.com/
• Wandoujia: https://www.wandoujia.com/
• 360 Mobile Assistant is available on: http://dev.360.cn/
• Baidu Mobile Assistant is available on: http://app.baidu.com/
• Anzhi Marketplace: http://www.anzhi.com/

(2) Other platforms

Apple's official management and tracking statistics website

Third-party channel link suppliers with statistical parameters

Related reading:

1. APP promotion and operation: How to maximize the effect of your activities?

2. APP promotion planning: 60,000 paying users increased within 7 days of beta testing!

3. APP promotion activities: How to plan a screen-sweeping event?

4. A complete list of APP promotion methods in 2019, take it and don’t thank me!

5. How to carry out APP promotion and marketing? What are the common methods?

6. APP promotion case: How to go from 0 to millions of users?

Author: Big fish eat small fish

Source: Big Fish Eat Small Fish