Rules for mining leaderboards
First of all, of course, we should always pay attention to this straightforward and mysterious ranking, saying that it is straightforward because everyone can see it, and that it is mysterious because no one knows the rules behind it except Apple itself. The ranking list can be seen on iOS devices or iTunes on computers: each country has its own ranking list, which is divided into three, and each list now provides 200 product lists.
These three rankings are the highest paid, the highest free and the highest box office. The first two rankings were available when the App Store opened, but the third one was added almost a year later. We can roughly understand these three lists as the highest paid download, the highest free download and the highest income, but the fact is far more complicated than this. If we observe the list for a period of time and keep it refreshed every half hour, we can find that the list is constantly changing. So did the change of download volume in this half hour lead to the change of the list? We don't know that Apple has been adjusting its ranking rules. It is estimated that it is related to the download volume and increment in a few days. In April this year, the change in ranking made people wonder whether Apple increased the proportion of user activity. All this is speculation, but in any case, we can see that Apple is invisibly asking developers to make better products.
Strategies for successful playlist
Then, if the developer makes a full analysis of the leaderboard, determines the development direction of the product, and makes an excellent product through excellent efforts, how can he make his product enter the leaderboard? First of all, the most direct and effective way is recommended by Apple editors. After entering the recommendation list (recommended every Friday in Beijing time), there will be more opportunities to hit the list. Last year, finger balance, a product of Shanghai coconut island Company, rushed to top paid 6 because it was recommended. As for how to be recommended, I asked the head of Apple's global developer relations, and his answer was simple: "Excellent works!" After all, the number of products that can be recommended every week is limited. Even if it is recommended, the recommended position will also affect the efficiency of the list. For example, the same game, if you enter the homepage recommendation, you have a greater chance than entering the game recommendation; It is also recommended by the home page, and the front naturally has more exposure opportunities than the back. Unfortunately, whether it can be recommended or not, and the location after it is recommended, are completely beyond our control and prediction, which is why many developers call the day when the recommendation list changes "Magic Friday". Apple exposes excellent products in this way every week, so there are many examples of entering the rankings. Once recommended, in order to increase the success rate of the list, it is also a very effective way to temporarily reduce the price of the product. However, if you find that even if the price is reduced, you can change the price back to maximize profits, because the week recommended by the world is often the week with the highest profit for developers. The effect of "recommendation" can last for one month, but with more and more products, Apple will greatly shorten the cycle, and Apple has been adjusting relevant strategies. As a developer, the best choice is to accept change and adapt to it.
If you don't get the favor of Apple editors because of bad luck, you need to use promotion to increase the exposure of products. According to the statistics of many data analysis companies, more than 90% of all users buy directly on iOS devices, so the promotion method should also focus on services for iOS devices. As for web advertising, using public relations companies and other means is not recommended for small studios, which will basically lead to making ends meet.
The easiest way to promote paid products is to make a free version with limited functions.
As early as 2009, the legendary work ifighter from epicforce Company in Hong Kong pushed the paid version to the highest position of top paid 2 by grabbing the free version of top free 1, creating the myth of overseas developers. So, the free version should be done anyway. As for whether the paid version will be launched before, after or at the same time, there is no certain rule, and developers can decide according to the actual situation. The design point of the free version is just right to arouse users' interest. Take ifighter as an example, the official version has four levels, and the free version has only one level, but the effect is very good. If the free version gives three grades, some users will feel that it is not cost-effective to pay only one grade; Similarly, if the free version only has the first part of the first level, it is not appropriate for users to end the game before they feel the fun of the game.
Because almost everyone is aware of the importance of free version, the competition for free application ranking is extremely fierce. The daily downloads of the first top-level free iPhone in the United States exceeded100,000, the daily downloads of iPads exceeded 20,000, the daily downloads of the first top-level free iPhone in China exceeded 50,000, and the daily downloads of iPads also exceeded 20,000 (yes, the number of iPads in China is equivalent to that in the United States). Therefore, although it is a free product, to achieve a large-scale download, sometimes advertising fees are needed to push the product to a better position. Moreover, it is not only the free version that participates in the competition in the free list, but also the limited-time free version of the charged products to join in the fun.
Some developers don't understand why they charge for free. They think it will reduce potential users. In fact, this kind of worry is completely unnecessary. Even the first download that costs more than100000 yuan per day is only nine Niu Yi hairs for Apple's huge user base. Basically, if the charged products can enter the top position of top free after free, you can get good results after switching back to charging. Almost every week, we can see products returning to the charge list in this way. It should be noted here that the free time must not be short. If we change it back in a hurry in just a few hours, it will be completely ineffective. Don't stop as long as the product keeps climbing on the list. The more people you see and download your product, the better the effect of word-of-mouth communication. Of course, we can't go on for free indefinitely. Basically, three days to a week is a more suitable time. After the price is revised, many websites will include the news of price changes, because many users know that this has also prompted some companies to do related promotion. In China, iapps.im and ewtang.com did better. If you want to hit the free list in China, you can contact these two companies.
Back to the free version, if the free version occupies the free list for a long time, it can basically guarantee that the paid version will occupy the charge list for a long time. This is the healthiest survival mode in the App Store, but even when the product was released, the free version entered the list. If you want to stay on the list for a long time, you sometimes need to buy advertisements. At present, there are many companies providing this service, among which Apple's own iAd is one, and AdMob is the most famous one. The services they provide are calculated according to the number of clicks by a user, and an effective free download may cost one yuan or more. This requires developers to consider the ARPU of products before deciding whether to put advertisements. There is a misunderstanding in this. The main purpose of advertising is not to earn back the advertising fee immediately, but to push the product to a better position in the leaderboard, so that the download can enter a virtuous circle and gain more exposure. If the advertising stops falling rapidly after the product is pushed up, it shows that there are still some problems in the product itself. It is up to the developer to decide whether to continue to promote or simply give up new product development after modification. It should be emphasized that sometimes products are well-made, but the so-called "superficial skills" such as icons, names, screenshots and descriptions are not in place, which will also affect users' desire to download. After all, many users download on impulse. If there are defects in the above parts, users may choose other products on the premise of very large choice. This situation is not uncommon, please pay attention.
Another effective way is the mutual promotion of serialized products. Skynet's Zombie Crisis series has already published a trilogy, and in April, it successfully pushed the first generation into the top pay 100 through free introduction. This method can also be used in the same type of products, such as the chop chop series in the United States, which often promotes other works for free, and the effect is not bad. The reason why this method can succeed is simple. Users get one of the products for free. If they feel good, they will naturally think that another product of the same series or type will be excellent, so they will be willing to pay.
The competition of free list is more or less regular, and it is more difficult to rely solely on advertising mode to charge list. As mentioned above, the cost of a free download may be more than one yuan, and the cost of a paid version of the same advertising resources may be more than ten times more expensive, so relatively speaking, it will be more effective to promote the free version.