The final version of iOS 15.0 was released on September 20. While there are no major changes in the OS itself, Apple touts this new wave of updates will present faster, more stable and convenient operations for users.
But what’s really important are a number of updates that will greatly affect developers and their apps’ presence on the App Store. There hasn’t been this big of a change since iOS 11 was released over four years ago.
With iOS 15.0’s new updates come new opportunities for developers, giving them more freedom and opportunity to test and market their work across this OS. Let’s break down how developers can make the most of iOS 15.0 and what these updates mean for the wider app community.
Optimizing your product page with A/B testing
Updated product pages are the most anticipated feature of this update. Developers now have access to a tool for testing icons, screenshots and videos that are accessible directly from the App Store Connect management console, which will help gauge the impact of visuals on potential users.
It’s been a long time since the app community has seen such significant updates in the name of user experience.
Within the App Store ecosystem, the icon being tested must be inside the app build and it must successfully pass the App Review approval process before it can become available to all users.
During this process, moderators check the app for prohibited content, inconsistencies, etc. that may impact user experience. How does this impact uploads? We’ve already seen the results through updates within the Google Play Store (which has a similar implementation), where the app icon for testing can be uploaded without an app update and does not require approval from the moderators.
Screenshots and videos have a similar process. All of these elements must be reviewed first, and only then can they be used for testing purposes. The final difference is that the ability to test the subtitle (a brief description of the app) in Google Play is not available in App Store Connect.
This matters because developers can finally try different icons, subtitles, etc. to measure what may have the most impact on consumers checking out a product page. These results are available in the App Analytics section of the App Store Connect console. Developers can evaluate changes in conversion, compare page performance and decide whether to keep the new screenshots/icons or roll back to older assets.
All of that means that there is no more “Live” testing when developers release new app versions with new icons, screenshots or videos and then compare the effects. There will also be an option to optimize graphic metadata with convenient analytics reports.
While we may have a few more weeks to prepare for the new product page, developers must start preparing app creatives now. Keep a close eye on competitors and brainstorm new ideas ahead of your A/B testing. Companies that have two to three sets of creatives ready are going to be ahead of the game, as we know that icons and screenshots can become outdated in just six months.
Once optimized, it’s time to customize the product pages
Personalization is another important facet of this update. Existing app pages can have additional app pages that can be made specifically for a narrow audience or an event. This new option is significant in expanding marketing opportunities around seasonal promotions. Marketers can push out one-day sales or limited-time deals on product pages to increase downloads and gain new customers through targeted offers.
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Later this year, we’ll also see a “custom app pages” feature that allows up to 35 custom pages to be created per app. All of these will have to go through Apple’s review process before publishing.
These custom pages can only be used as touch points for traffic from external ads, which will allow more customized and narrowed targeting for ad traffic. This may result in higher conversion rates for this user acquisition channel.
For example, within a sports app, you can create separate pages for soccer teams. You can highlight one of the teams in the screenshots of the custom page and create a link for ad traffic. That way, users who follow that link from the ads will land on a page with a pre-determined sports team. The Google Play Store’s update is different in this context, as the custom page is made for all types of traffic, including search traffic.
Finally, page analytics will now be available in the App Analytics section. In addition to page views, app installs and conversion rates, it will also be possible to track the app’s internal metrics, like the number of purchases made after conversion from a custom page can be measured.
This is a pivotal update for marketers, as you can better assess the effectiveness of advertising, and, most importantly, the number of targeted actions within the app. Instead of trying to make sense of generic actions taken across your app, you can now clearly see which actions are happening where, allowing you to adjust your marketing strategy to get customers to the desired action more quickly and effectively.
Shopping apps will benefit most from this new feature, as they can create custom pages for various consumer goods. These custom pages will then drive ad traffic, and we expect to see CR-to-downloads outperform any general product page.
A good example to keep an eye out for are Facebook Ads. If you see a special deal on electronics, you may click through to a custom product page that will have discounts on the exact electronic products you just saw. The perfect holiday gift delivered to your feed.
What else can we expect?
Search results have received a facelift
For installed apps, a short card with an icon and name is now shown in the search results without screenshots. In simple terms, this will give more search visibility to apps that are not at the top of the list in search.
AppFollow’s consulting team has seen an increase in conversion rates to installations for small and less popular apps and games that are located far away from the Top 3 search results. Games that are too low in the search results due to usage of common search terms like “match 3 games” or “racing simulators” will benefit from this update, because they’ll be more visible to users that have popular games already installed.
Time to discover new in-app events
If an internal event is planned in the app (for example, a live broadcast), it is now possible to promote it in App Store Connect any time before the event. After review approval, the event card will be shown in search results as well as on the app page. All of this amplifies the event and increases opportunity for event coverage. There’s also an opportunity for the main page of the App Store to promote the event and include a countdown clock.
It’s important to note that this is the only update currently available in the App Store. If you are preparing for a new game launch or running a holiday sale on your shopping app, you will see a huge benefit from this feature. All you have to do is fill in the necessary data in App Store Connect, including graphic assets, titles and dates of the event, and then get ready to be featured on the main page of the App Store. If successful, this can lead to a huge amount of new users and bring back old users who want to try the new game content.
Unlocking new metrics in App Store Connect analytics
To assist marketers in measuring app performance, the following has also been added:
- Average Revenue Per User (ARPU): One of the major metrics used by app industry professionals, ARPU shows how much revenue is generated from each user. One of the main goals of working on creating an app and cultivating it into a business is enhancing this metric. Previously, the metric could only be determined through third-party attribution systems like Appsflyer.
- Re-downloads: This shows how many users reinstalled the app after deleting it. The metric is used to track the results of special re-targeting campaigns, which, among other things, can target previous users and highlight the value of reinstalling the app.
It’s been a long time since the app community has seen such significant updates in the name of user experience. As developers begin to unpack these changes, it’s important to understand how to best market your application in a crowded marketplace.