App Builder Appy Pie: So, you have an awesome app in your hands after months of toiling and putting in all your resources. Now that you have published your app to the platform of your choice or maybe more than platforms all that you need is for people to start downloading and using your app so that you can make some money with your app. How do you ensure that it happens? How to make sure that the people download your apps? We have compiled a list of ASO tips to help you with just that! To begin with, let us understand what ASO means. ASO, App Store SEO, App Store Optimization, App Search Optimization, and Mobile App SEO all mean the same thing. ASO is the process of optimization of your mobile app with the intent to achieve a higher ranking in the app store search results and top charts rankings. It does sound good right? But a valid question that arises at this stage is – does it really work? If we were to believe the recent research findings, then yes. As per one of the most recent Google reports, 27% of the users find their apps through a search engine which is an appreciation of about 3% since 2014 and the trend is likely to grow.

(Above video is a part of a more elaborate course on Academy by Appy Pie. To access the complete course, please Click Here, or continue reading below.) Quite like website SEO, there are on page and off page techniques that may be employed to improve app store optimization. Employing the right techniques will help you in two different ways, first is by getting more installs and second – by getting more visibility for your app.

What are keywords?

Before we launch into some super-efficient tips and tactics to get your app listed among the chartbusters, you need to understand what are keywords and what is their significance in getting a high ranking for your app on the app stores. The search engines as well as the app stores like Google Play Store, Apple App Store and others make use of highly complex algorithms to sort or list out the search results which are based on relevance of the query posted by the users. It is tough to say which are the elements that these algorithms take into account while calculating the app store rankings. To determine the relevance, the algorithm takes into account a number of components in accordance to the user search query and the keywords that were used in the app page meta-data. Not all these components or factors incorporated in the algorithm can be identified, but the following do influence your app ranking in a big way!

1. The Name Of Your App & The Keywords Used

Research says that when you include some kind of a keyword in your app title, it can directly translate to a rise in your app ranking by more than 10%. It is a fact that the search algorithms for both Apple & Google scan the app name for keywords whenever a user performs a keyword search on the app store. Both these platforms are known for giving quite a high priority to apps with app names that contain the search input. It is for this reason that it is important to incorporate some of the keywords in your app title as an advantageous App Store SEO practice. Some of the free tools that can help you to come up with the keywords are Keyword Suggestions (only for iOS app developers), Übersuggest, and OneLook Reverse Dictionary. Exercise caution while using keywords though and do not push every keyword in the title. It will only make your app look spammy. It is important that you create a perfect balance between keywords and branding for your app name.(Above video is a part of a more elaborate course on Academy by Appy Pie. To access the complete course, please Click Here, or continue reading below.)

2. The Format Of Your App Name

This is a neat way to include keywords in a way that will help create the coveted balance we were talking about in the previous point. Keep the brand name short and simple, a name that would be easy to pick and pronounce and then append this with well-chosen keywords separated from the app name with a dash or semicolon. So, what we suggest here is naming the app this way – “Name – Keywords” or “Name: Keywords” for a coherent inclusion of keywords. For example – “Google Maps – Navigation & Transit”, or “Amazon App: shop, scan, compare, and read reviews”, or “eBay: Buy, Sell, Save! Electronics, Fashion & More” and many more. Apart from this, while working on the app name format make sure that all the characters used in the app name are URL friendly. This is especially important in case of iOS apps, because Apple uses the app name for creating your app URL. Using any special characters like the copyright or trademark symbol might result in the iTunes referring to your app’s numeric ID for keyword scanning instead of your app name.

3. The Length Of Your App Name

The maximum length of app name allowed on the iOS and Android platforms are different. While iOS allows a maximum of 30 characters, Android allows 50. The brand name should ideally be kept under 23 characters, the shorter the better we’d say. It is a good idea to use at least 20 characters or more of the total limit to include some of the most relevant keywords to follow the name of your app or brand. If you have the app on both the platforms, it makes sense to use the same app or brand name to maintain consistency and uniformity.

4. The Subtitle That You Choose For Your App (iOS)

This is one of the most recent features and is introduced in iOS 11 and is exclusively for the iOS App Store. The App subtitle is a string of words limited to 30 characters or less and appears right under the name of your app. This is a great way to include some relevant keywords in this field which can convey the real value of your app to the customers and help you raise the app store ranking. These keywords that you put in the subtitle would be indexed in the app store search, which means that you can use this special field to your advantage and cover some ever-important keywords.

5. Your App Description & The Significance Of Keywords

(Above video is a part of a more elaborate course on Academy by Appy Pie. To access the complete course, please Click Here, or continue reading below.) For iOS developers this might not be something of real significance as the Apple App Store doesn’t look for keywords in the app description section of the listing. But other aspects of the app description gain a lot of importance in this case and we shall get to it in the following sections. For Android developers however, the app descriptions gain really high importance, simply because Google pulls the keywords from your description to be included in the keywords for your app. Make sure that you include your app store keywords and construct meaningful sentences from them to be included in the description. It is worth mentioning here that the keywords that you use in the first few lines of your app description carry a lot more weight as compared to those in the rest of the description in Google’s ranking algorithm. Hence, it is a good idea to put your main keywords in this section.

6. The Beginning Of Your App Description

On an average, only 5% of the users click on the “Read More” button that sits below the short description on Google Play Store. On Apple’s App Store, it is further down, a mere 2%. Hence each character on the short description of your app counts quite a lot. This short description allows only 252 characters and you need to make each one of them productive. While writing this one out, make sure that you do not waste even a little of the space, do not leave any blank lines or interrupted sentences, and take care to make it crisp, succinct, and attention grabbing. Through this short description let your customers know why your app is unique and they’d appreciate it too! In this section focus on the app’s values and not the features and end the description with a call to action text to see your customers getting excited!

7. The Expanded Version Of Your App Description

The long description or the expanded version is where you are free to highlight all those awesome features of your app you have been wanting to showcase. In here make use of appropriate spacing, bullet points or lists to make the whole thing more readable. Flaunt user or social proofs or reviews, the awards & recognition that your app has garnered, and the honorable mentions all over the media that it may have received. In this description, make sure that you include all the social media links for your apps. The Google Play Store, in the app description section allows rich formatting and the use of emojis. Use them well to stand apart from the rest of the crowd of apps on the store. Create the description in a tone that is in sync with the content of the app and appeals the most to your users.

8. The Length Of Your App Description

Upon research and analysis of a sample group of top 100 apps and their app descriptions it was established that 90% of the top 100 apps use more than 589 characters whereas the same percentage that is 90% of them use less than 3385 characters in their app descriptions. When compared to the other factors, the length of the app description may not play that big a part, but it is a good idea to stick to this range of characters when it comes to the length of the app description. Additionally, there are a number of tools on the market that can help you benchmark various statistics pertaining to your app that can help you with ways to bring about an improvement in your app ranking.

9. The iOS App Store’s App Promotional Text

Another one of the latest features that have been introduced in iOS 11 and one that is available only in iOS App Store is the App Promotional Text. This promotional text appears at the top of the description and has a limit of 170 characters. Though this is not indexed in the app store search, but this App Promotion Text gives you the freedom and flexibility to change and test it for response without having to release a new version. The promotional text that gives you the best response can then be used to alter keywords in the app store to achieve better conversion rates.

10. Your App Icon & Its Design

Your app icon is of great importance, probably more than you’d think! Research states that a better icon has the potential of boosting your downloads by more than 5 times. A good icon design is simple and catches your eye. This is a small space that you are designing, it is wise to refrain from overdoing it with too many elements or text. A good icon should remain etched in the memory of the user after the very first exposure and should look good even after being scaled down to the smallest required size. The icon should be clearly visible against both, dark and light backgrounds. It is good to get inspired from the icons of your top competitors, but make sure that they do not look so much like each other that they create a confusion in the customer’s mind. If you have an established brand, then you can use your logo as an icon to help the app associate with the brand and any future products. However, if you have an app that is functional, you may use an object to describe the app.

11. Coming Up With App Store Keywords

Initially set out to create a list of keywords at least 50 of them, and you can use the tools mentioned earlier viz. Keyword Suggestions (only for iOS app developers), Übersuggest, and OneLook Reverse Dictionary for app store keyword ideas. While looking through the keywords, make sure that you are only listing out keywords that are relevant to your app. Do not give in to the temptation of using a keyword only because it is a popular one because you would want the app to be found only by the people who would want to download and use it.(Above video is a part of a more elaborate course on Academy by Appy Pie. To access the complete course, please Click Here, or continue reading below.) There is a concept of time sensitive keywords which means that a word like “Ashes” would do well for sports related apps around the time of the tournament and would stand a better chance to get into the feature list for any app store.

12. Choosing The Apt App Store Keywords

Now that you have an initial set of app store keywords, it is time you picked or formulated a strategy to optimize the appropriate keywords. You can always opt for some of the keyword research tools that are available online to help you with the process of keyword optimization by providing the search traffic and the difficulties concerning the keywords you are looking for. At this stage you can select 25 app store keywords before proceeding to the next level. When you are developing a new app, it is a good idea to go with the keywords that have a reasonable popularity and low difficulty as it helps the app gain the initial momentum. Once you have achieved the initial momentum, it is time to go for the keywords that are high in popularity and have reasonable difficulty levels which would help your app gain more downloads.(Above video is a part of a more elaborate course on Academy by Appy Pie. To access the complete course, please Click Here, or continue reading below.)

13. App Store Keyword Optimization

After choosing the apt keywords, it is now time to learn how to use them in the right way. The technique of keyword optimization is a little different for iOS developers as compared to the techniques that work for Android developers.For iOS developers it is important that the keyword metadata is filled up with the app store keywords that you have chosen in the previous step. It is this metadata that would determine the way your app would get discovered. Listed hereunder are the rules that you as an iOS developer needs to follow:

• Make use of each of the 100 characters that are available to you.
• Use commas to separate each keyword from another.
• Do not use any space, articles, or prepositions.
• Depending on which form is easier to rank, either use singular or plural form.
• Use every keyword only once.
• When it is numbers use numeric characters, instead of spelling them out into words.
• The words that are used in your company name, app name, or app category name need not be included again.

Since Google Play doesn’t have metadata and pulls keywords from the description of the app and uses them as the app store keywords, Android developers need to pay special attention to this description that they write out. However, while incorporating these keywords in the description it is important to put out meaningful sentences that would make sense for the user to read. Also, it is prudent to remember that the keywords that you use in above-the-fold section or the first few lines of your description would carry a lot more weight for Google’s algorithm than the ones in the rest of the description.

14. Let your app description stand apart

Creating an app has become as easy as pie with Appy Pie AppMakr, hence there are millions of apps that are crowding the app market. It is, therefore, important to set yourself apart from the crowd by creating an app description that is entirely different. Of course, you must take a look at the keywords your competitors are using, but what may work better for you is to choose synonyms of those keywords and avoid becoming a blind spot among them all.

15. Make the description easy to read

Remember that not everyone is using a big screen. They may be using a small smartphone and not an iPad. While writing your app description, bear the screen sizes in mind. Instead of presenting a wall of text, break it down into smaller bites which are consumable. Here is the example of Appy Pie app for you to understand it better.

16. Include some positive reviews

Genuine reviews are a great addition to your app’s description. Not only do your prospects get reassured by the fact that people are using your app, but also that they are enjoying it. If your app was reviewed by a popular publication or an obscure niche one, any positive review is better than no review at all! In case you are only starting out, you can include the quotes or positive reviews that you received from the people who tested it first and liked it! Even if it is from friends and family, remember, any positive review is better than no review at all!

17. In-App Purchases

The in-app purchases do a lot more than sell products and services. The names of the in-app purchases in your app would be indexed by both Apple and Google in the app store search. In iOS 11, this goes even further as each in-app purchases here gets its own display name, promotional image, and description. Your in-app purchases can even come up in the search results and may even be featured in the tabs like Today, Games, and Apps helping your app gain a higher visibility and ranking. You have the option to display 20 IAPs (in-app purchases) max on your product page. When you go creative and manage to include at least some of your keywords while naming your IAP elements, you help your app get a higher search exposure.

18. Well Planned & Well-Designed App Screenshots

Research says that more than 60% of the users do not look past the first two screenshots that you have put up in your app listing or description. Also, the number of conversions go up by 25% when the first two screenshots are improved. A good screenshot would be the one that conveys just one message – loud & clear! In line with the statistics, it is wise to convey the strongest of your messages across the first two screenshots. However, if you are aiming to become the best and really impress the users, make all five of your screenshots amazing and worthy of attention. At times the screenshots are enhanced by short captions displayed at the bottom, but if you are doing that, do it right and make sure that the text is on a clean background and creates a favourable image for the users. These screenshots are your opportunities to let the users know why they should fall in love with your app, hence do not put in login screens, purchase forms, registration forms, ads or the welcome screens here!

Here are some tips to step up your screenshot game:

• Focus on your strengths

Just a screenshot may not be enough to explain what your strengths are. You can take care of this by adding a short text blurb.

• Illustrate the user journey

Upload your screenshots in an order that would explain how users can use your app to get the most out of it.

• Get creative

Simple is great, but that shouldn’t stop you from getting creative. You can use images to showcase multiple devices from different angles.

19. An Informative Or Demonstrative App Preview Video

It’s not as easy as screenshots, but videos do work and have the ability to raise the install or download rates by more than 24% especially when you use a good poster frame in case of iOS apps, and an impressive feature graphic in case of a Google Play app. It is this graphic that would finally make your user want to check the video out! When you set out to plan and make your app promotional or marketing video, you would do well to keep the following in mind:

• The first 5 seconds of the video must grab the users’ attention.
• Refrain from using any face in effects or any welcome sort of a message.
• Do not cram in all your features in the video, only showcase the best ones.
• The video you make should not depend on the audio to make sense.
• Make sure that there is a call to action included in the video.

It is worth noting that 80% of the users stop watching the video after 12 seconds, so it is imperative that you make your video crisp and to the point. In iOS 11 search result page, you may exhibit up to three App Preview or promotional videos or screenshots, which is one more than iOS 10. The videos appear before the screenshots and the first one auto plays, albeit without audio. This feature expands your possibilities by giving you more space for alluring your users.

20. The Impact Of App Store Ratings

The ratings and the reviews that your app garners cast a strong impact on the number of times your app is downloaded. It has been observed that only less than 50% of the users would be willing to download an app that has anything less than a 4-star rating. Further when the rating of a 2-star app changes to 3 star the conversion goes up by more than 285%, whereas when the same 2-star app goes up to 4-star app, the conversion rate goes higher than 550%. In order to improve the ratings for your app make sure that every onboarding experience delivers value to the users. The experience should be formalised and automated in a manner that would encourage the new customers to take in-app actions and make them stay longer. It is a good idea to wait for the perfect time, based on the in-app behaviour and then ask the user to rate and review your app. It is a good idea to prompt them right after an in-app purchase or at the completion of a level, as it is usually a euphoric moment for the user.

21. Getting Five-Star Ratings To Better The App Store Ratings

The holy grail of app ratings the 5-star rating is rare yet coveted by every app developer. So how do we go about it? One of the most important factors here is the timing. Time your request for the rating at a time when the users is supposed to be the most pleased. This might be at the end of a game mission, or at the end of a booking. Make sure that your request is polite, but do not beg!

22. Respond To The Reviews For Higher App Store Ratings

It is only those care about your app would take the time out to write a review for your app and it is only natural for them to want to be acknowledged. Always go through the reviews and feedback and reply to them in a constructive manner. When you do this, the users feel that you care about them and the visitors get a sense that the developer is active on their own app. Right after a major release of the app, try and reply to all the feedback letting them know of the release in the process. If it is impossible for you to respond to each of the reviews, you can always prioritise the replies addressing the ones with the lowest ratings that mention technical issues with the recent version of your app. After the release of an app update that addresses and rectifies a technical problem, consider replying to the relevant reviews letting them know that the issue is resolved.

23. Using The One-Star Reviews To Work On Your App Store Ratings

The one-star reviews are a rich pool of knowledge for you and when you treat them as such, you also get feedback that can help you improve. In a manner, the one-star reviews you receive are those friends of yours that give you an honest feedback. Read all the one-star reviews well and figure out ways to convert them to five-star reviews, and in the process, you would be working towards improving your app from the perspective of the user while fixing your usual bugs, crashes, or other performance issues. Keep your eyes and ears open in your journey to reaching the top of the charts.

24. Work Out An Efficient App Localization Strategy

The most obvious advantage of localising your app is that it would exponentially increase your audience who may download your app. However, it is a tough task to accomplish the localisation of an entire app. It might be a lot more manageable if you were to localise just your app listing which includes your app name, the keywords, and the screenshots that you would be putting up. It was observed that when the app name, keywords and only the first line of the app was localised, there was a massive 767% increase in the number of downloads. Research says that only 31% of the world’s app revenue comes from the US, while 41% comes from Asia and 23% from Europe.

25. Figure Out The Best Countries For Your App Before Opting For App Localization

So, you have your app localisation strategy in place, now what? Now comes the decision of choosing which countries would be the best for you to focus on? If your app is available in multiple countries, you can look at the top countries according to the number of downloads, check the official languages for the top 5 countries and then localise your app listing in these five languages to begin with. You can also choose the top 5 based on the revenue, conversion rate, retention or any of the various factors that are relevant for you.

26. Spotlight Search For App Indexing (iOS)

Spotlight Search from Apple lets the users search for their iOS apps installed on their device. This is a highly useful feature for the app developers as they can now engage a lot more frequently with the existing users. Features like Core Spotlight and NSUserActivity are great when it comes to enhancing the levels of user engagement, which in turn has a positive impact on the app’s iOS App Store search ranking.

27. Firebase App Indexing For App Indexing

Firebase App Indexing from Google lets the users search the dynamic content in your app and the best part is that it works for both the devices – Android & Google. The firebase app indexing does more than just help you improve your user engagement, it also provides you ample opportunity for user acquisition. This is primarily because this feature lets the users discover the content of your app, irrespective of whether they have installed the app or not. This is especially of great use when you have a content-rich app.

28. The Impact Of App Conversion Rates

The page view conversion rate is the percentage of people who discover your app through any of the mediums like rank listings, search results on the app store and then tap the icon in order to take a peek into what your app is all about. The download conversion rate is the percentage of people who, after taking a look at your app page and then download it. The kind of impact CR or Conversion Rate has is paramount. They are independent of the competition in the market or the source of traffic which means that they would always give you a true picture of the effectiveness of your ASO proving to be a stronger metric than keywords or the absolute number of downloads. A strong CR can become a natural ranking signal in app store search. What we mean by this is that if a great number of people are searching for certain keywords, are inclined to click on the same icons, and end up downloading the same app, it says a lot and sends a favourable message to Google Play and to the Apple App Store. This might give your app a better chance of getting ranked higher or featured by the app stores. CR is one of the most effective methods of saving money too! If you have optimised your CR well, it means that if your CR is doubled, your advertising costs for the same number of downloads is effectively halved.

29. Improving Page View CR For Better App Conversion Rates

We have established the importance and impact of CR on your ASO. So, what is it that you can do to improve your page view CR? Page View CR is calculated with the following formula. Page View CR = Product Page Views/Impressions x 100% If your Page View CR is less than 3%, it needs to be improved. The Page View CR may be improved by focusing on optimizing the following metadata.

• Name of the App
• Subtitle (for iOS only)
• The App Icon
• The first 3 lines in the description
• The first 3 screenshots or the preview video
• Your app ratings

These are the pieces of information that are visible to the prospective users or customers and these are the things that you can manipulate in order to bait and hook new users for your app.

30. The Relationship Between Download CR & App Conversion Rates

Download CR = App Units/Product Page Views x 100% Your download CR target should be benchmarked at 60%, then it is a matter of concern and this whole article is a lot more important for you than you thought.

31. The Size Of Your App

People using cellular internet service are not allowed to download an app that exceeds 100 MB in size. A user who is on the move and cannot download your app right then, the chances of them coming back to download it later when they are connected to a Wi-Fi are really thin. You can reduce the app size by compressing some of the graphical assets, or you can even make some of the content downloadable after install.

32. The Issue Of Pricing The App – Free App With In-App Purchases As A Revenue Model

Ideally, there is nothing better than a free app for the users and a free app has a lot more chances to be downloaded by a user. However, if you are looking to make some money from the app, you can opt for the In-App Purchase Revenue Model if it fits in with the kind of app you have. Around 80% of the app store revenue comes from IAP.

33. The Issue Of Pricing The App – Free App With Ads As A Revenue Model

If you are looking to make in-app advertising as your revenue model, then it is better to opt for native ads. These native ads are created to fit in with the exact context of the app which makes it almost an extension of the content offered on the app, instead of a random piece of promotional content.

34. The Issue Of Pricing The App – Paid Apps As A Revenue Model

This is one of the popular modes of revenue for iOS developers in comparison to the Android developers. When your revenue model is a paid app, take care that the app is priced reasonably when compared to the other apps in the same category. Do a deep research of the top paid apps in your category and price your app preferably lower than them, as you are still only a newbie.

35. Timely & Frequent App Updates

It has been observed and established that there is a strong correlation between the app ratings and the frequency of the app updates. Releasing regular and frequent updates brings in quite a few advantages as it improves user loyalty by keeping it fresh in their memory as it shows up on top of their updates list. Even the platforms like Apple & Google are happier to see you making regular updates, as it sends them a message that the app is being maintained regularly. The top apps send out updates at least once in a month and we’d recommend that too. Sending out personalised push notifications to let the users know of the recent updates goes a long way in increasing the number of update downloads. Make sure that each of your update makes a difference and brings in an improvement in the app.

Summing Up For iOS App Store vs. Google Play

iOS

• Metadata requires approval
• The description can only be changed with a new update.
• There is a 30 characters limit for the App Name as well as the Subtitle.
• There is a specified keywords field with a 100 characters limit.
• There is no impact of social and links on the app ranking.

Google Play Store

• No metadata review process.
• The description can be changed any time.
• There is a 50 characters limit for the App Name.
• The keywords are only incorporated in the title and in the app description.
• The App rankings are affected by social and links.

Top Tips for Developing a Brand Voice for Your App

The world today thrives on marketing and it is marketing that ensures the discovery of different products in any industry where competition is rife. In this business environment, finding and developing the right brand voice for your app can become a game changing differentiator. Branding for any product, even your app, is based on developing the right voice for all the external communication of your app. This voice needs to be consistent across all the other marketing channels. It is only natural that the users you are targeting would want to understand your brand, its values, and its philosophy, to understand the kind of value you would provide your customers. While developing the brand voice for your app, you must also pay attention to the tone of voice. It is not just about what you are saying as a brand, it is also about how you are saying it! Brand voice is essentially the consistency with which you select the words, the attitude, and values of the brand while you are addressing the audience and others through your chosen medium or channel. The brand voice determines the personality of your brand that would be reflected to the audience.

Your Brand Voice is All About You!

The brand voice that you develop needs to be honest, and that can only happen when it reflects the inherent, real-life personality of the organization or your company. One of the ways to do this is by sharing the story of your company and becoming adept at this telling & retelling. The brand voice and tone should have an ability to attract anyone who is curious about your app and be able to forge an emotional connect. Make use of different media like blog, social media pages, and even your personal or in-person networking to effectively tell your story and weave it into your marketing strategies seamlessly. However, storytelling doesn’t mean telling tall tales, there has to an element of honesty and transparency in the way you tell your story. Be confident, open, & honest, and this world would be ready to hear your brand voice.

Why is Tone of Voice Important?

The tone and feel of your brand constitutes the way your app communicates with your audience, offers to your users an opportunity to connect with and identify your brand, and eventually accomplishes the task of accurately recognizing the target audience you would be catering to in the future. The tone of your brand voice is how you say it, not what you say, and this is what leaves a lasting impact and impression on your customers and your target user groups. If you were to develop a sophisticated and polished brand voice, it would probably completely conceal the real personality of your brand, making it tough for the users to establish any kind of a connection with the app. It will be difficult for them to relate to your app or trust it. Alternatively, if you were to make the brand voice way too casual, it might come off as a red flag for those who value professionalism.

1. Humanizes the Brand

What is it that makes a brand? It is rarely what your app does that makes the brand, it is in fact who it is that makes the brand. The tone of voice that you use for your app would embody and express the personality of the brand and the value system that it follows. it is always about the people who constitute the brand. Their choices, their likes, the things that they hate, and the things that they want to share with the world all come together to build the tone & voice of the brand.

2. Differentiates You from the Crowd

The tone of your brand’s voice gives you an opportunity to set yourself apart making your brand dissimilar, identifiable, and inimitable. Each one of us applies our language skills in the written and spoken format, in a distinctive manner. The surrounding culture, and the language or dialect that you use may be two of the defining factors here, but you cannot deny the part played by some of the favorite expressions we tend to have, some idiosyncrasies, certain inflections, and pace that differentiate us from a million others!

3. Builds Trust

It has oft been quoted that there is quite a strong relationship between familiarity & trust. It is simply because of the comfort we develop around things we are familiar with, hence needing lesser and lesser efforts to process them mentally. This is something that must be kept in mind by a brand while developing a brand voice so that the language you use is consistent, gaining a certain familiarity among the customers. For this to happen it is absolutely essential that you are able to create a certain tone of voice.

4. Great Medium to Influence & Persuade

Maya Angelou, the renowned author once said, “People don’t always remember what you say or even what you do, but they always remember how you made them feel.” The way people feel after hearing what you had to say, is often because of the way we say it, or the tone of voice. The language that you use in spoken or written form plays a big part in the impression people form about your app or brand. When you use small, succinct sentences with crisp information, you reflect honesty and forthrightness. However, if you were to use heavy and jargon filled language, chances are, you would be perceived as someone with a certain authority, and if you are not careful then maybe a little condescending. The most successful tone of voice would be the one that goes without notice, so that people notice how well you conduct your business, instead of noticing how well you write.

Tips to Develop a Brand Voice for Your App

1. Spend Some Time Chatting Up Your Customers

The voice and tone of your brand matter a lot because they humanize your brand and help you become a part of your conversation. Spend some time to hold a genuine conversation with the users which are authentic and offer you an opportunity to position your brand in a better way. Make sure that you develop an equally strong marketing voice on the social media. Doing this would encourage your customers or app users to join in and help you with your marketing efforts. When you are chatting up your customers, it is important that you listen. Channelize your efforts towards developing an understanding of what the customers are saying, when they are talking about you, your brand, and your app. Leverage the numerous social media tools that are available today and find the conversations that are taking place even though your brand might not have been tagged directly on it. Find out what they like, and more importantly what they do not like about your brand so that you can deal with the concerns at the earliest.

2. Be Honest & Original

Let your communication be just that, communication. Refrain from talking at them and opt for an authentic communication which is two ways, making the customers or your app users feel involved. Adopt a genuine tone and irrespective of whether you are online or talking in person, you must always communicate like a human being. When you humanize the brand, you would be able to interact in a much better manner with every customer allowing every representative of the organization to adopt the brand voice.

3. Offer Pertinent Content

Creative content on its own is not enough and to make it effective you would have to ensure that it is relevant and resounds with the targeted app users. Conduct deep user research to understand their needs, problems, wants, and aspirations. Once you have a clear understanding about it all, you would then need to post only that content which would speak directly with them and figure out when and how they would like to be reached. Make use of a good customer relationship management software to understand your customer and record their specific needs that can be addressed through the product.

4. Offer Help

When you lend a helping hand and offer people any kind of help, you stand to gain the benefits of establishing an online presence in various communities on different channels of the social media. When you are replying or responding to any query, you must take some time and draft them in a way that they actually help you out. When you invest in building and nurturing these key relationships, you get a lot of scope to carry your brand further. While it is important that you write some informative and helping blogs, it is also important to stay active on platforms like Quora and Reddit which are haunted people who are desperate for solutions.

5. Identify Places Where Your Brand Voice Matters

When you are trying to cast an impact on the audience that you are targeting and are creating a consistent voice, you need to be aware of the channels of communication which works the best for your brand. When you use the right kind of voice, on the right channel, you are sure to increase the extent of your influence. When a brand is responding to their customer messages on any forum, or social media channel, it is natural that they employ their brand voice while doing so. The brands need to create apt call to action buttons, share content, share photo or video content keeping their brand voice as the guide. Apart from this you must consider the bios you create on the social media as one of the prime places where you can showcase your brand voice.

6. Analyze Your Brand

Look into the different interactions that have been happening between your brand and your app users or targeted users. This can be done by asking yourself the following questions:

• Has your online presence been able to reflect your brand’s core values?
• Has your in-person communication been reflecting the core values of your brand as well?
• Irrespective of the communication style and channel, has the standard of your customer service remained consistent?
• Can your customers describe the values of your brand with ease?
• Can your customers easily recognize your brand by looking at your marketing materials?

In order to establish yourself as a reputable brand it is critical that you maintain a certain level of consistency all across the marketing strategies. The brand’s online and offline personalities must match.

7. Post Some Engaging Pieces

While it is important to talk about your brand, but make sure that you also post some other albeit engaging content. When you post content that is in tune with the latest news and current events you attract a larger audience base who understand that you care about what kind of content they would like to be exposed to. When the content you post if fresh and engaging, you would be able to keep the users hooked. When the content you post is relevant, you can attract your audience and keep them coming back for more.

8. Set Yourself Apart

Conduct a deep market research and study your competitors and understand their attitude, tone & voice. You do not want to come across as just another one of them but set yourself apart from the others. If you choose to be a stickler and only stay within the industry standards and guidelines, you would be establishing yourself as someone who is just like anyone else. This means not many people would be interested in you or your product. If your brand voice sounds just like any other in the market, there isn’t much value to it, is there? The brand voice that you develop must have the ability to help you differentiate yourself and your app from others while making your brand recognizable. Make sure that you are following the core standards of the industry and best practices of the trade but also find your own niche for higher audience engagement and conversion.  

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