While the iOS 12 Announcements during WWDC were mostly about Facetime and animated emojis 🐯 there were also some unannounced changes important for ASO marketers.

Google now allows registering .app domains. Continuing on the encouraging safety in mobile web and adoption of HTTPS, Google is requiring HTTPS for all .app websites.

The web apps were made available for iOS in 2007, introduced back then by Steve Jobs, and long forgotten and not supported. Now, with their iOS 11.3 update, Apple makes Progressive Web Apps available for iOS users.

Good news! Apple Search Ads Basic will be expanded globally, as informed by Apple. Those running their campaigns in the Search Ads Basic console can expand their target markets.

As Apple reported, App Store kicks off 2018 with record-breaking Holiday season of $300 Million in Purchases. Altogether over $890 million in Christmas seven-day period was spent by App Store visitors. It was also mentioned that developers have earned around $86 billion since the launch of App Store in 2008.

Similar to App of the Year featuring in the App Store, the Google Play store wraps up the year with the Best of 2017 charts, featuring the best and most popular apps, games, music, movies, TV shows and books of the past year. Ratings were available in a form of carousel on top of Play Store front page.

Apple made their next step towards controlling and encouraging apps quality, displaying new badges instead of star rating in the App Store search. Applications with higher ratings (not necessarily with a high number of ratings) are getting the badge “Editor’s Choice”. This could positively affect apps’ conversion rate, as additional social proof can convince users to download the app.

That excitement when you receive an email from the sender “iTunes Store”titled “App Store: Promotional artwork request for ….”
While the second sentence in this email reads “while the promotion is not guaranteed, artwork is required if your app is selected” it rarely if ever happens that you will not get the featuring after this email and submitting guideline conform artwork.

The complete 370-page guide to App Store Optimization (ASO) by Moritz Daan and Gabe Kwakyi has been published. Experience of top experts in the mobile marketing industry, and particularly ASO, spiced up with some pro-tips for advanced optimization, form a proper core for creating ASO strategy.