How do I get a promotion in the App Store?

We were lucky: our applications were modified several times. That’s why friends often ask to share a secret, to tell how to get a promotion from Apple. Unfortunately, there is no secret or short path to this.

It is important to understand that Apple does not feature applications to help us, developers, it promotes them because it is interested in making a profit from them, which means it simply needs those applications that users like. As long as you understand this, everything will be tip-top.

There are other things that people often miss when developing. You should pay attention to them in order to increase your chances. So, just below is my short list of recommendations that may help your next application get promoted. 

1. Create a great app

I know it’s corny, hackneyed and, in general, easier said than done, but it’s actually very important. If you create applications purely out of curiosity or want to make money on it, you will not be promoted. If you want to create such applications, if you want to be proud of what you release, your chances of getting promotion are much higher! Sooner or later Apple will notice you, the main thing here is to be consistent. 

Again, looking from Apple’s side, everything is as simple as possible. Representatives of the Apple platform are interested in promoting only those applications that demonstrate how cool their iOS is. 

2. Focus on the latest and best

A visit to WWDC (or watching a video from it) is a great way to find out what kind of API will be in the new version of Apple’s OS, as well as what exactly the company is going to focus on next year. In general, this is an invaluable hint on what exactly your application should support.

For example, one of the APIs that you should definitely pay attention to is iCloud. Today, the cloud is one of the most important strategies for Apple, and I believe that iCloud will be the key to the company’s success. Do you have a place for this service, and you don’t use it? Now is the time to correct this oversight.

Remember, it is in Apple’s interests to highlight applications that use the features of the latest OS version and the company’s hardware.

3. Make it universal

Your app should be immediately available on Mac, iPhone and iPad. By making it universal, your chances of promotion increase. Why? Imagine the following situation: Apple is going to promote a “productive” application. The company’s reviewers have hundreds of suitable candidates. But let’s think for a second, what kind of application will they promote, the one that is also available on Android and iPhone, or a universal iOS application that uses iCloud and is also available on Mac?

If I were Apple, I would know exactly which one to choose.

4. Invest in a good UI and UX   

The competition on the App Store is insane. You are competing with huge companies with endless resources and world-class teams. 

In general, it’s getting harder and harder for small teams to get promoted on the App Store these days. But if I wanted one thing, then I would advise you to find and hire the most expensive UI/UX designer you can afford. 

Can’t hire someone full-time? It doesn’t matter, Dribbble is a wonderful place to find designers who are happy to join you in working on your next project. 

5. Provide yourself with media support

This is quite difficult to do, but absolutely necessary for a successful launch. I know it looks obvious, but you can’t even imagine how many developers leave it “for later”, or start doing it at the last minute, or even after the app appears in the store. 

Ideally, you should start “chasing the wave” so that bloggers and journalists from specialized sites start talking about you even before the release. I would recommend making a teaser page with a video clip or at least a few screenshots and information briefly explaining what your application does and when you plan to release it (pages with less data are useless).

You also need to be sure that you have a working email registration system on your site and all the usual “social” buttons so that users interested in the application can track it. The announcement of the release in this case will affect each of them and, as a result, will allow the application to rise higher in the top on the first day of launch. This will increase the visibility of your project, which means it will increase the chances that the right people at Apple will notice you. 

Don’t announce your app too soon. A couple of weeks is usually enough. If the wait drags on, the project will be forgotten or, even worse, a competitor will steal your idea and launch the project before you. 

And one more thing…

Remember that Apple submits almost a thousand applications a day every day, and the small team responsible for reviewing applications may simply lose your little emerald in a large number of junk. 

Do you want to be sure that Apple has noticed you? Try contacting someone from the company. I know they sometimes look out of this world, but if you really have a good app, Apple will want to know about it. 

How do I get to know the employees of this company? Go to WWDC, talk to Apple developers after lectures, while analyzing errors on Radar Bug Reports, meet other developers. In general, communicate as much as possible! Apple sometimes themselves go out to developers who have appeared in their field of vision. 

Anyway, there are 750 thousand apps in the App Store, so there are few chances to get a feature. The good news is that even without promotion, the app can be successful. A place on the App Store showcase is something like the icing on the cake. As you know, the cake is more important.

Good luck!