Many years ago, just developing a workable app guaranteed decent success. But, today, you need a lot more than just app development to make your app shine and be valuable.

This is where app marketing comes into the picture.

Every aspect of your app development must also consider the marketing efforts that will be required after the development is complete.

You should thus have the necessary knowledge about the market, its trends and your competitors’ strategies to ensure a better future in the world of mobile apps.

So, here are few things that need your immediate attention to improve your mobile app marketing.

1. App Visuals

Love at first sight may not be a real thing for people falling in love. But, in the case of mobile apps, it is very real. The visual appeal of your mobile app for its users will thus have a say in its success.

So, you need to look into all the ways you could win over your users with an attractive look and user interface (UI) that would give the most useful user experience.

You can score well by focusing on the following areas with regard to your app’s UI:

• Icons – Users should readily identify your app with its icons. So, use them effectively to portray the functionality of your app accurately. Also, avoid using company logos and abstract icons. You can also test your icons by running some alpha or beta tests.
• Screenshots – Screenshots are very important to make a good impression. They should be able to tell a good story about your app and illustrate all the major features and the functionality of your app in a beautiful way.

You do not need to be a great photographer to make stunning screenshots. You just need to pick the best software meant for taking screenshots and a little bit of creativity to make them work.

It could be a while before you know how to make your app appear convincing to users. But, take the time to make perfect screenshots that are adaptive to all types of mobile operating systems.

2. Conversion Optimization

Next, you need to focus on optimizing your conversion opportunities in any way possible.

You can do this by starting with a short and sweet description of your app. Use your app’s keywords sparingly (five to six keywords per description is more than enough) and don’t do keyword stuffing.

Also include the major functionalities, the app’s purpose and the major plus points in the short, concise and comprehensible description.

The description should be written in marketing language and should push your target audience into clicking the download button. If you struggle to write a good description yourself, you can get help from professional copywriters.

You can also optimize your conversion opportunities with the app landing page. Here you can include the details that were left out due to constraints in the app market description.

App cross promotion is another way in which you can ensure a good conversion rate. You can offer incentives for each referral and each new download.

Other techniques, such as app videos and the release of a light version of your app, can also help you optimize your conversion rates.

3. App Store Ranking

Understanding app store ranking can be difficult. When you add to that the fact that every app store has its own algorithm for ranking apps, your job can become even more daunting.

But, there are a few common things that are applicable in all app markets. So, if you ensure your app is strong in the following areas, you will have fewer worries:

• Search visibility
• App visibility
• App usability
• User experiences
• Social channels

4. The Viral Phenomenon

Getting something to go viral has become the latest trend to achieve overnight online fame and there is a certain recipe to ensure your app goes viral. So, to create a buzz about your app, you need to ensure it has solid technicality, usability, excellent customer support, and an impressive user experience.

Techniques like freemium and logical incentives can also help you make your app go viral.

5. Mobile Analytics and Analysis

A scientific approach always gives better results. So, you should not make app marketing decisions based on assumptions; rather base such decisions on sound analytics.

In the case of mobile app marketing, you can get the numbers, figures and calculations with the help of mobile analytics. You can also follow the right metrics and get meaningful insights into the real world usage of your app.

There are several tools available which can help you with mobile analytics, such as Flurry and Localytics.