【转】iOS游戏/应用的营销及推广技巧（2）
作者：Felipe Laso
本文是ios应用营销系列的第2部分。
在本系列第1部分中，我们谈到要如何在前开发和开发阶段确保自己瞄准正确方向，进而提高应用的成功机会。（请点击此处阅读本系列第3、第4部分）
本系列第2部分主要谈论若干应用发行阶段我们所能够采取的举措，文章将覆盖如下话题：
* 制作宣传资料袋，进行新闻发布
* 创建成功App Store页面
* 制作应用预告片
* 通过赠品进行宣传
* 其他更多话题
现在你的应用已经发行，我们该做些什么？
开始阶段
现在你已完成应用的制作，调查了竞争形势，创造出比别人更优秀的作品。你投入时间完善应用，确保其顺利运作，能够吸引玩家眼球。
你已给应用制造若干话题，还同用户进行沟通，现在你的应用已投放至App Store。
你现在该做些什么？要如何提高作品的销量？
profit from raywenderlich.com
本文将主要着眼于步骤2 ，谈论若干宣传渠道，从宣传资料袋到预告片，再到应用评论。
记住成功没有必胜方法，所以大家不妨尝试适合自己的方式。
1）应用发布日期
作为应用开发者，我们通常倾向在获得评论后自动发行应用，这样应用就能够尽快出现在App Store上。
但自行设定发行日期有其好处（游戏邦注：而不是让苹果随机发行）：
* 发行日期受到热烈讨论。这让你拥有特定的推广日期，能够让用户期待你的作品，能够制作某些话题。头几天相当关键，因为这是你入驻热门榜单的最佳机会。
* 准备时间。它给你额外的时间落实自己的营销计划，而不是到最后一秒才着手。
* 广告集中期。若你选择采用付费广告，你可以在发行日安排集中的广告宣传。
* 促销代码和预告片。你可以在应用审核和发行期间分发自己的促销代码，向用户呈现“预览”版本。给予追随工作室新闻资讯、邮件目录和Facebook页面的用户适当赠品回馈是明智之举。
你应该考虑在星期几发行自己的作品。这存在众多争议：
* 星期天？Techcrunch最近宣布，根据自己的统计数据，星期天是发行应用的最佳时机。
* 星期二？有人觉得在一星期前半段时间发行内容会更好，因为新闻资讯在工作周处于最活跃的状态。
* 星期四？有人觉得临近星期末会更好，因为周末会带来更多下载量。
这一话题在众多论坛上被广泛讨论。
我们的建议是，亲身进行试验，看看什么日期最适合自己。
2）制作宣传资料
宣传资料集合各种材料，方便应用评论者完成自己的工作。这是个托管于你的网站上的.zip文件，包含如下内容：
* 对应用和功能的简单描述。记住这主要针对报刊和公共宣传，所以设法综合材料，保持内容的简洁和通俗性。
* Twitter、Youtube账号或预告片、网站及App Store之类的链接。
* 电子邮件（这非常重要）。
* 产品动态形象、商标，或是游戏角色或相关内容的高分辨率图像。
这主要出于两点考虑：
1. 这能够帮应用评论者省下众多时间，他们无需四处搜寻评论所需的截图和其他资料。媒体工作者的工作越简单，应用获得评论的可能性就越大。
2. 很多评论者会照搬你的内容，这样你就能够以最佳方式呈现自己的作品。
Turbo Action Pig from raywenderlich.com
不是所有人都会制作宣传资料。这并非一种义务，但其无疑能够带来积极作用：
question from raywenderlich.com
“我的宣传资料有相应模板。它们包括综合报道、产品概述、应用图像、网站链接及应用链接。”——Mike Park
记住宣传资料的理念是呈现产品的相关信息和资料，让用户省去收集过程。这能够方便媒体平台、粉丝或博客人撰写有关产品的内容，融入尽可能多的新闻资讯/产品信息。
当然，要做到这点，你首先要有自己的网站。如今这是多数用户获得支持，联系开发者，获取更多产品信息的平台。
yu no make website from raywenderlich.com
博客或网站相当于以前的企业黄页，所以这非常重要。
注意宣传资料本身的作用并不显著。不要将其简单放置于网站中，而是要进行分享。将其发布到用户时常出没的论坛上，邮寄到媒体网站，发送给好友，在Twitter上散布。
同时，有人会觉得这作用不大， 或没有必要，尤其是当你觉得这一投入可以转移到其他地方，能够从中换来更显著的成果，但这并不需要你花费很多精力，而且能够换来相应成果。
3）撰写新闻稿
新闻稿是旨在向众多媒体平台推广自身作品的简短文章。
撰写新闻稿无需花费很多精力，但是个能够有所回报的营销技巧，有超过一半的调查对象都采用这一方式：
question 2 from raywenderlich.com
“是的，它能够宣传你的名称，但最重要的是，它能够促使用户链接至你的网页/登陆页面，这会影响应用的搜索位置。并非所有用户都通过AppStore发现你的作品。”——Justine Pratt
撰写新闻稿作用突出的原因在于，很多新闻和媒体网站没时间撰写有关产品介绍的冗长文章（游戏邦注：除非作品是下款《愤怒的小鸟》）。现成的新闻稿令他们只需编写简短的介绍，然后粘贴你的新闻稿内容，整合出一篇文章。
我们通常不是手动发送新闻稿，而是通过prMac之类的网站向众多媒体平台发布内容。很多媒体平台会自动发布prMac向他们发送的新闻稿，很多调查对象表示这对提高作品下载量和网站访问量起到很大的促进作用。
PRMac from raywenderlich.com
同时，单靠这一方式无法让应用变得家喻户晓，但其能够起到辅助作用。
务必在自己的网站上发布新闻稿。用户也许是通过访问网站发现你的新产品，而非通过App Store。就个人来说，我在App Store搜寻应用的唯一方式是通过推荐栏目或热门榜单。但若你的应用被其他网站提及，我也可能通过访问它们发现你的作品。
那么要如何撰写新闻稿？有对调查对象建议撰写突出应用或游戏独特功能的简短、非正式文章。
其他人则借鉴热门作品的新闻稿模板，进行适当调整，然后运用至自己的产品中。要知道，模仿就是一种最佳的恭维方式。
最后，你也可以选择撰写自己的新闻稿。适合这类文章的写作风格很多，没有具体的模式。
iOS Talk UK from raywenderlich.com
4）制作成功的iTunes Store应用页面
Road Inc App Page from raywenderlich.com
无论你的看法是什么，确保iTunes Store应用页面富有吸引力都是获得更多下载量的一大主要途径。
“保持页面的简洁和简单。设法引起读者的情感共鸣——向他们呈现购买应用的益处。”——Ray Wenderlich
潜在用户在iTunes上发现你的应用，然后打开页面寻求更多信息。这单靠iTunes当前的搜索和分类方法很难实现。
如今用户会通过产品的价格和截图信息及查看描述内容判断作品是否值得自己掏钱。你如何撰写出富有吸引力，能够激发用户购买欲望的优质应用描述？
“将用户体验放在第一位，向用户呈现作品将如何简化他们的生活或给他们带来更多乐趣。”——Deiderik Meijer
首先，不要忘记自己的目标用户，在此最糟糕的答案是“我的应用/游戏面向所有用户。”事实并非如此。
记住他们的年龄、品味、偏好和爱好。迎合他们，务必唤起他们的情感共鸣。应该让他们倍感兴奋，饶有兴致，迫不及待地想要立即下载你的应用。
下面是几点建议：
* 牢记自己的目标用户。
* 保持简洁性。年轻一代的注意力持续时间只有几毫秒，他们通常不会费心阅读你精心设计的冗长描述。Plus iTunes默认只显示描述的头1、2句内容，所以头1、2句描述非常重要。
* 设计美观的图标。图标的重要性远超乎你的想象，务必在此投入些许时间。
* 制作装饰性截图。你在iTunes connect中放置的截图不一定要直接来自iPad。你可以通过边框、文本或其他元素装饰它们。
* 重点突出首张截图。确保首张截图外表美观，清晰呈现应用的中心思想，这也许是多数用户看到的唯一截图。
* 本土化。将应用描述转化成尽可能多种的语言，这是提高应用销量最简单但最重要的方式。若应用没有转化成他们的本土语言，很多用户都不会进行下载。
* 罗列功能。若有用户在两种应用中徘徊，那么他们多半会查看应用具体包含什么内容。所以务必列出所有你认为用户颇为关注的功能（游戏邦注：但要记住简洁原则）。
“在用户明确要求阅读更多内容前，查看iTunes应用显示的文本数量。他们多半不会点击按键，而是选择查看截图。”——Carter Allen
确保用户一浏览App Store就能看到你的图标。这本身就能够促使他人打开你的应用页面，这样他们离购买应用就更近一步。
我看到某款应用后直接跳过的情况不胜枚举，因为图标看起来就是匆匆制作而成，丝毫没有用心制作。
你出售的也许是世界上最快、技术最先进的汽车，但它外观丑陋，不像法拉利那么好看，那么没有顾客会关注它。
“确保商标与众不同，外观显眼。我建议Mike抓取iTunes热门应用的图标截图，然后于PhotoShop中将我们的图标填充上。若图标无法脱颖而出，那么其设计就不符要求。”——Chris Wilson
截屏，截屏，截屏。用光你的5种截屏，然后通过额外信息装饰它们，让它们脱颖而出。不要将截图浪费在菜单、介绍页面或是Twitter表单上。
我知道有时候，尤其是作为独立开发者，当你投入数个月完成一款应用后，你会一心想要在10分钟内将作品提交，然后一了百了。
腾出些许时间（游戏邦注：必要时候甚至是1-2天时间）对图标、截图和描述进行最后的润色。App Store页面是作品成败的关键。
5）发送促销代码
发送促销代码是应用开发者经常采用的一种有效手段，其中有69%的调查对象表示自己有采用这一方式：
Question 3 from raywenderlich.com
具体操作方式则因人而异。下面是发送促销代码的常见选择：
* 电子邮件
* 应用或公司新闻通讯
* 评论网站
* 论坛
* 按需分配（例如，有媒体要求获得促销码以便进行评价的时候）
* YouTube应用评论者
* 博客人及热门个人网站
* 本地网站（针对所处国家或目标用户）
PromoCodes CMG from raywenderlich.com
这些都是非常不错的选择，归根到底主要围绕你的联系网络和目标用户。
“在多数情况下，我们最好将促销代码当作提高应用用户数量的竞争奖品，但我会将若干代码留给有这种需要的评论网站。”——Chris Wilson
社交网络是目前的主要方式。我欣赏Crescent Moon Games和Epic Games工作室在发行前几个小时发放促销代码的做法。他们同时还会在假期或特别时刻通过Twitter和Facebook随机共享代码。
若你在某社交网络拥有众多粉丝，务必充分利用这一机会。发送促销代码无需任何成本，而且如果运用得当，这将会是非常好的宣传工具。
PromoCodes CMG 2 from raywenderlich.com
取悦忠实用户非常重要。社交网络让普通用户能够同创造作品的开发者保持联系。
其他选择是联系评论网站（游戏邦注：例如针对游戏的Touch Arcade），发起对话，发送促销代码，尝试创建联系网络。我不建议开发者在应用评论者没有要求的情况下直接发出促销代码，因为你无从知晓自己将获得什么回馈。未来你也许需要若干代码，但若此时你已送出所有代码，那么你将蒙受损失。
开发者称自己将不再送出代码，多半是因为他们过去曾送出过代码，但没有收到任何回应。这也是为什么我建议你同评论网站的人士进行联系，这样你才能够首先确保他们对你的产品感兴趣。
“我过去送出过代码，但之后再也没有这么做。我更希望网站同我联系，索要代码，或者自己购买产品。”——David McGraw
论坛和电子邮件也是共享代码或发动比赛的有效方式。竞赛能够让你在发行作品时制造出话题，同时还能够吸引众多新用户。
我们再次陷入多元化的困境。单靠促销代码很难获得显著成绩，除非你在Twitter或Facebook等平台拥有庞大的用户基础。营销就是融汇及发挥手边的所有工具。
6）如何获得热门网站的评论
我们之前已详细谈论过这一话题，所以这里就不再重复。
这里我要提的一点是：
“在我看来，制作优质应用就能够获得评论。”——Ray Wenderlich
虽然这一调查反馈听起来有些平淡无奇，但若你的作品足够优秀，那么你将轻松获得评论和曝光。营销活动并非始于最终完成作品，而是源自于工作室的首次头脑风暴会议，首次建模，首个模型等……
你不仅要通过促销代码及联系评论网站推广自己的应用，你的应用还需要自行进行推广和宣传。没有人会想要评论未经推敲，缺乏有趣功能，采用粗糙UI，且还存在漏洞的作品。
《翼飞冲天》开发者Andres Illiger从未给自己的作品发送过邮件或促销代码。他甚至没有对游戏进行营销。尽管如此，他制作的这款游戏构思巧妙，制作精良，因此能够独立腾飞。若你能够在一开始就多花心思和精力，这也能够发生在你的作品上。
Tiny Wings from raywenderlich.com
初次接触应用制作时，实际操作能力和预期操作能力总是存在落差。
若你一开始存在技术水平差距，且首款应用未能获得众多评论，请不要担心——不要放弃，继续学习和进步。记住1万小时的训练方能成就大师的理论。
7）制作应用预告片
预告片、预览和抢先预告视频是另一激发用户兴趣的有效途径。这不仅体现在游戏上，有些时候图片无法充分表现出应用。你需要亲眼目睹动态画面。
Shinobi Charts堪称运用视频元素方面的典范。它们的制图API不是游戏或应用，是供iOS开发者将图表植入应用中的工具。
Shinobi Charts from raywenderlich.com
通过观看动态视频，你可以预览内容的运作方式、最终结果、最终发展程度及其在iOS的运作情况。
这不仅呈现出其API的强大功能和杰出性能，还让你能够做出明智决策，决定是否购买他们的SDK。
Question 4 from raywenderlich.com
关于是否制作视频，正反态度各占一半。记住制作视频不仅适用于游戏作品，这甚至无需是完整的预告片。
有些应用，因本质属性和操作任务差异，显得相当复杂和稳固。指示视频能够让用户轻松操作你的产品，解释若干杰出但晦涩的功能。
而诸如Road Inc.或Clear之类的功能就需要以动态方式呈现，这样用户才能够欣赏到它们的美妙和独特之处。
“我们制作指示视频，呈现专业人士如何在应用中完成各种操作。展示应用如何实现目标的简单分步视频能够让用户充分把握产品，将求助邮件降到最低。”——Survey Respondent
几个月前，当Clear在Engadget和TUAW预演时，我只是觉得它的界面非常美观。直到看到动态应用视频，我才有为之一振的感觉。
“无论你制作什么视频，你都需要呈现内容，内容要能够在游戏网页上呈现，我通常会选择将视频上传至Youtube，嵌入这一平台。同时要允许用户进行评论和分享，确保视频具有高度的可访问性。”——Lynn Pye
最后，就如上述评论所述，务必将视频上传至YouTube、自己的网站或其他便捷平台。YouTube是个不错选择，因为它能够轻松嵌入网站中（游戏邦注：只要你在视频设置中允许这一操作）。这能够促使评论者或博客人将你的视频放置到他们的网站中。
YouTube也有评论功能，让你更贴近自己的用户，而且提供无限带宽，以防1个月获得300万浏览量的情况。这有些不切实际，但相信我，若网站没有因超出托管计划的月宽带限制而出现崩溃，你会倍感高兴。
确保视频内容的访问便捷性非常重要，这不仅能够帮你获得评论和用户反馈信息，而且能够充分展示你的作品，提高应用的销量。
8）利用促销赠品
Question 5 from raywenderlich.com
赠品无需耗费任何成本，且能够有效提高应用的曝光度。赠品可以是促销代码、礼品券、服饰、免费应用或软件、专属内容或应用/游戏折扣。
“我在AppAdvice.com发起促销代码馈赠活动，而且非常成功。我觉得这是他们当时最有效的赠品之一。”——David McGraw
有许多网站，如AppAdvice，会监测应用价格跌落信息，告知用户销量情况。我通过AppAdvice和Apps消息动态获悉Flipboard的日常交易量和退款情况。从中我发现若干原本可能错过的优质应用，这令我得以获得平价（或者甚至是免费）的优质内容。
App Advice from raywenderlich.com
不妨在赠品方面充分发挥自己的想象力。就如之前提到的，你可以将促销代码放到Twitter或Facebook上，但不要只是停留于此。试着同其他开发者一起进行交叉推广，互相交换促销代码。这能够帮你建立起良好的关系网络，扶持独立/小型开发者伙伴。
降低游戏或应用价格也是应该考虑的方面，这是另一馈赠方式，能够提高应用的销量和名气。
你可以随机提供赠品，在假期，在自己或公司的重要日子，或者根据具体销售情况。
提供赠品和降低价格是扭转销量下滑局面，保持发展势头的绝佳时机。在此运用分析方法及在iTunes Connect中监测销售情况能够起到很大的促进作用。
“我们曾在Moms With Apps发起的App Friday促销活动中降低应用的价格。这有效提高运用初期的曝光度。”——Survey Respondent
要记得锁定自己的目标用户。访问属于应用类型的论坛和网站，发布降价信息，或者在此分发促销代码。
另一主要的赠品形式是竞赛。从简单的生活琐事到绘画比赛，这些都不错的选择，能够帮你团结自己的用户基础。若你制作的是一款杰出的游戏，那么也许绘制出最佳壁纸的用户将赢得免费的游戏，或印有主角形象的T恤。
无论你决定采用什么样的赠品或竞赛形式，确保经常发起这类活动。有时候，尤其是作为独立开发者，我们会急切想要发行自己的作品，因此一旦作品入驻应用商店，我们就会完全将其抛到脑后。
你的作品拥有更持久的寿命。持续更新能够刷新作品的用户评论，提高应用在新发行iTunes作品榜单上的位置。向用户呈现你非常关心自己的作品是另一提高知名度和销量的方式。
看看Firemint，他们持续更新作品，陆续推出《实况赛车》、《实况赛车2》、《Spy mouse》和《飞行控制》，远超出大家的预期。众多的免费内容，新的轨道和地图，借助iOS新功能，进行相应调整以适应最新设备。这本身就属于赠品，玩家免费获得越来越多的内容及升级版体验。
9）那么进行广告呢？
打广告非常棘手，尤其是对独立开发者来说。这是片独立的世界，有许多公司专门投身于此。举个例子，即便是拥有丰富内部资源、人才和资金的大型公司也会选择给自己的产品和品牌聘请广告中介。
若你是具有一定规模的开发公司或工作室，那么你多半设有专门负责PR和广告事务的部门。但若你是独立工作室，这里有几点建议，旨在帮你充分发挥广告的作用。
调查对象的一致看法是，鲜少有人会真正花钱推广自己的应用，他们通常无法从中获得相应回馈。
“我们投入约800美元在Fusion广告上。总而言之：结果糟透了。网站运作时每天约有70位访问用户。这甚至还无法让我们实现收支平衡，没有给应用带来任何收益。我不推荐采用这一方式。”——Carter Allen
“旗帜广告效果并不显著，除非你愿意投入巨额资金（1万美元以上），但奖励安装（TapJoy和Flurry AppCircle等）的成果就非常突出。这取决于你的具体目标。在热门应用中进行交叉推广成本更低。”——Anonymous
但若你想要继续采用广告手段，你需要具备充足的预算，愿意进行大量试验。下面是几点有用的建议：
* 牢记自己的目标用户，尤其是在开展广告活动的时候。应用的目标用户将决定广告活动的具体类型。
* 若你想要聘请广告专家或中介机构，不妨事前进行调查研究。查看他们的客户、经验和对比价格。这里你无疑可以进行讨价还价，因为没有所谓的固定价格。
* 我们鲜少看到应用在电视、报纸或电台打广告。网络平台是我们的主要选择。
* 确定最适合目标用户的广告地点。若用户是孩子，你多半会瞄准Club Penguin或Cartoon Network之类的在线网站。若这是个烹饪应用，你定会希望瞄准food.com或同网站相关的博客/食谱。
* Facebook或Twitter也是非常适合做广告的地方。我之前曾借助过Facebook平台，在此你可以设定预算，根据性别、年龄和国籍锁定目标用户。这一方式的优点是，我们知道很多用户使用Facebook，所以曝光度绝对不成问题。能够设定固定预算也是优点之一，这引出下一点内容。
* 设定预算。这是非常重要的一点。虽然你没有聘请中介或个人处理广告事务，但你得获取目标广告网站的相关数据。询问月访问量、月有效点击、旗帜/广告点击率及价格等。从中你可以进行比较，进而确定最佳广告地点。
* 设计吸引用户眼球的独特横幅广告。和应用图标一样，若你的广告横幅看起来略欠妥当，那么用户多半不会进行点击或了解相关信息。腾出些许广告费用，聘请设计师制作1-2个亮眼的广告横幅。
* 在网站上购买广告或在Facebook进行推广后，务必收集有关运作情况的数据。保存这些数据，然后进行分析（游戏邦注：A/B测试法在此非常管用）。从错误中学习是成功的最佳途径。
* 诸如Free App a Day之类的网站也是推广应用的平台。记住他们收取较多的使用费，但最终将有更多用户下载和试验你的应用，这能够形成很好的口头宣传。最终结论是——有人觉得这物有所值，有人则不以为然。
* 记住单靠广告让应用挤入应用商店的前100名榜单完全有可能。投入些许广告费用让应用挤入前100榜单非常值得，这能够带来曝光度，而且还有其他后续益处。但你需要保证，当广告活动结束后，应用能够持续留在列表当中。
总之，对独立开发者来说，我们需要找出性价比最高的方案。我们没有数千美元的广告预算，也承受不起1000-2000美元一去不复返的后果。
正是由于这点，很多独立开发者倾向选择免费营销渠道，而不是通过广告手段。（本文为游戏邦/gamerboom.com编译，拒绝任何不保留版权的转载，如需转载请联系：游戏邦）
How to Market and Promote your Games and Apps: Part 2/4
By Felipe Laso
This is a post by iOS Tutorial Team Member Felipe Laso, an iOS developer working at Lextech Global Services.
Welcome back to part 2 of the iOS App Marketing series!
In the first part of the series, we gave some ideas of things you can do during the pre-development and development phases to make sure you’re on the right track, and increase the chances of success for your app.
In this second part of the series, we’ll give some ideas of things you can do when your app is released. We’ll cover the following topics:
* Creating a Press Kit and Press Release
* Making a Successful App Store Page
* Making App Trailers
* Using Giveaways for Promotion
* And much more!
Thank you all for your tweets, comments and feedback on part 1, none of this would be possible without your continued support!
So let’s get onto the fun stuff. Your app is released… now what?
Getting Started
OK, so you’ve finished your app, having researched the competition and created something cooler and better. You spent time polishing the app, making sure it works well and looks great.
You’ve created some initial buzz, and have some ways to communicate with your customers, and now your app is out on the App Store.
What do you do now? How do you get it to sell?
This article will focus on step 2 We’ll cover some things you might want to try, from press kits to trailers to app reviews.
Keep in mind that there’s no surefire way to success (other than to never give up), so read through and try what you think is the best fit for your app!
1) App Launch Day
As an app developer, it’s often tempting to let your app be automatically released as soon as the review is finished, so it’s out on the App Store as soon as possible.
However, there are a number of advantages to setting the launch day yourself (after it is approved) rather than letting it being set semi-randomly by Apple:
* Buzz spike on launch date. It gives you a particular day you can market to and have people anticipating your app, allowing you to build some buzz. The first few days are really important, because it’s your best chance to get into the top charts.
* Time for preparation. It gives you extra time to get all your marketing plans in motion, rather than scrambling at the last minute.
* Advertising spike. If you choose to go with paid advertising, you can schedule an advertising spike starting on the scheduled release date.
* Promo codes and previews. You can hand out promo codes in the period between the app being approved and the release date to give people a “preview” copy. This is great for giveaways to reward people who follow your newsletter, mailing list, Facebook page, etc.
You should also consider which day of the week to release your app. This is a matter of some debate:
* Sunday? Techcrunch had a recent article that said statistically Sunday is the best day to launch your app.
* Tuesday? Some people argue earlier in the week is good (i.e. Tuesday), as the press is most active during the work week.
* Thursday? Some people argue that toward the end of the week is good (i.e Thursday), as there are more downloads on weekends.
For more reading, this subject has been debated to death in various forums.
Our advice is to experiment and see what works for you. If you have any particular notes or advice in the matter, please join our forum discussion below
2) Creating a Press Kit
A press kit is a collection of materials that make it easier for app reviewers to do their jobs. It is usually just a simple .zip file hosted on your website containing:
* A brief description of your app and its features. Remember this is for the press or for publicity so try to synthesize things and keep them short and simple.
* Useful links like Twitter, Youtube account or trailer, website, App Store.
* Contact emails (this is very important!).
* Images of the product in action, logos and perhaps high resolution art for any game characters or relevant content.
The idea is twofold:
1. This saves app reviewers a lot of time rather than having to hunt around for screenshots and the other materials they ned while doing reviews. And the easier you make it for the press to do their jobs, the more likely your app is to get reviewed.
2. Many reviewers will use your content verbatim, allowing you to present your app in the best possible way.
For an example of a Press Kit, check out this fantastic press kit for Super Turbo Action Pig by Cocos2D developer Chris Wilson.
Not all who replied to our survey have created a press kit. It’s certainly not an obligation or something you must do with every app you release but it can definitely help:
“I have templates [for press kits] that I use. [They include] Press Release, Product overview, Graphics they can use, Links to web site, Links to app.” – Mike Park
Remember that the idea of a Press Kit is to make info and resources about your product available without having to dig for it. It just makes it easy for any media outlets, fans or bloggers to be able to write about your product and include as much media/information as possible.
Of course, for this to all work your game/app needs a website! Nowadays it’s how most people get support, contact the developers and find out more information about a product. In part 1, we covered some tips and suggestions about creating a web site for your app.
A blog or website is our generation’s Yellow Pages, so it’s very important!
Note a press kit is not very useful by itself. Don’t let it sit on your website, share it! Post it to the forums your customers hang out in, email it to media outlets, send it to your friends, and tweet it around!
Again, some might think this is not really useful or necessary, especially when you consider that this effort could be put elsewhere and be of more help, but this isn’t a lot of effort for you and can reap dividends down the line.
Remember that marketing is not about doing a single thing. It’s about using all the tools and resources at your disposal to generate as much buzz and publicity for your product.
3) Writing a Press Release
A press release is a short article intended for distribution to a wide range of media outlets. As an example, I searched for a recent app release and found this one for Suicide Kings 2 for iOS.
Writing a press release is a low-effort but potentially decent payout marketing technique, and over half of the survey respondents are taking advantage of it:
“Yes. It gets your name out there, but most importantly it drives links to your website/landing page, which helps for placement on search. Not everyone finds you via the AppStore.” – Justine Pratt
The reason why writing a press release is helpful is because a lot of the news and media sites don’t have the time to write long articles about your product (unless it’s the next Angry Birds). Having a press release will allow them to write a short intro, paste your press release, and wrap up the article.
Rather than sending out the press release manually, you can use websites like prMac to send out your press release to a wide variety of media outlets for you. Many news outlets automatically post press releases sent by prMac to their websites, and many survey respondents found this very useful in generating more downloads and visits to their websites.
Again, this single thing will not make your app be known to everybody out there but it adds up with everything else we’ve been doing.
Don’t forget to post the press release on your website. People might visit and find out about your new product there instead of the App Store. Personally, on the App Store the only way I’d find out about your app is if it was featured or in the top app lists. However, if your app is mentioned on some of the websites I read I might find about it that way as well.
So, how do you write a press release? Some respondents suggest writing something brief and informal highlighting your app or game’s unique features.
Others have taken press releases of popular products and adapted them to their own product. Don’t be afraid to do this, copying is the best form of flattery and, as it’s been said countless times, “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it!”.
Finally, you can write your own press release as you see fit. There are certain writing styles that are more suited for this purpose but there is no single way to do it.
Handy Link: I’d like to share a link that was provided to us by one of our survey respondents. It’s from a talk by Chris Phin at iOSDevUK on how to handle the press: iOS Dev UK
4) Making A Successful iTunes Store App Page
No matter what you may think, making sure your iTunes Store App Page is attractive is one of the most important things you can do in order to achieve more downloads.
“Keep it short and simple. Try to evoke emotions to the reader – show them what benefits they will get from purchasing your app.” – Ray Wenderlich
Potential customers have found your app on iTunes and opened its page for more info. This is hard enough by itself with the current search and sorting methods on iTunes (here’s hoping Apple revamps it in 2012).
Now they see the price, screenshots and read the description to see if it’s worth their hard earned money. How can you write a good app description that’s entrancing and will make customers want to buy your app?
“Put user experience first and tell customers how the app will make their lives easier or more fun.” – Deiderik Meijer
First, never forget about your target audience, the worst type of response to this is “my app/game is for everyone”…It isn’t!
Remember their age, tastes, preferences, hobbies, etc. Appeal to THEM and make sure to awaken emotions within. Make them feel excited, interested and eager to download your app right away.
Here are some tips:
* Remember your target audience. As we discussed in above and in part 1!
* Keep it short. Younger generations have attention spans of milliseconds and will not bother to read your long and lovingly crafted description. Plus iTunes by default only shows the first sentence or two of your description, so the beginning sentence or two is the most critical part (and often the only part read!)
* Have a good looking icon. Your icon is more important than you think, dedicate some time (and $$$ if necessary) towards it. Vicki has some game icon tips on her site, and Jeybee has some excellent advice as well.
* Make decorative screenshots. The screenshots you put in iTunes connect don’t necessarily have to be just direct screenshots from our iPad. You can decorate them with borders, text, and other information. Jeybee also has an excellent article on the matter.
* Prioritize the first screenshot. Make the first screenshot look particularly good and make the central idea of your app clear, it might be the only screenshot most people see!
* Localize. Localizing your app description (and app itself) into as many languages as possible is an easy and important way to increase sales. Many people won’t bother to download an app if it isn’t localized to their language.
* List the features. If someone is on the fence between two apps, they might want to see what one app has versus another. So be sure to list out all the features you think people will care about (but remember the keep it short rule).
“Take note of how much text is displayed in the iTunes app before a user explicitly asks to read more. They probably won’t hit the button, they’ll look at screenshots.” – Carter Allen
Your icon should stand out the minute someone is browsing the App Store. This in itself can make someone open your app page, putting them one step closer to purchasing your product.
I cannot count the number of times I’ve skipped seeing an app because the icon looks like it was made in a hurry or without any care whatsoever.
You could be trying to sell the fastest, most technical car in the world, but if it’s uglier than a brick and isn’t good looking like a Ferrari, no one will even notice it.
“Make your logo distinctive, obvious but key. I suggested to Mike, the designer, that he take a screen shot of the top apps in a grid from iTunes and overlay our icon in PhotoShop. if it didn’t jump out it wasn’t right.” – Chris Wilson
Screenshots, screenshots, screenshots. Use up all 5 of your screenshots, and decorate them with extra info to make them stand out. Don’t waste screenshots on menus, the about page or a Tweet Sheet (I’m guilty of the latter).
Handy Link: Justine Pratt has written a great (I mean great) article regarding your App Store Page: Marketing Apps
I know that sometimes, especially as a single developer, when you finish an app after spending months and months on it, you just want to get it submitted and be done within 10 minutes.
Take some time, even a day or two if necessary, to give that final bit of polish to your icon, screenshots, and descriptions. The App Store page can either make or break your product!
5) Sending Promo Codes
Sending promo codes is a popular marketing technique for app developers, with 69% of respondents sending out promo codes:
How they did this was completely different from each person (or company) to the next. Here are some of the most prominent choices when it comes to sending out promo codes:
* App or Company Newsletter
* Review Sites
* Forums
* On demand (when someone requests a code for a review, for example)
* YouTube App Reviewers
* To Bloggers and popular personal sites
* Local Sites (for your country or your target audience)
All of these are fantastic choices and it all comes down to a few things. Mainly your connections and target audience.
“It’s probably better to use the promo’s as competition prizes to increase your following in most cases but I would hold some back for those review sites that insist on having them provided.” – Chris Wilson
Social networks are the way to go these days. I love how the guys at Crescent Moon Games or Epic Games always give out promo codes a few hours (or days) before release. They also share codes randomly on holidays or special occasions via Twitter and Facebook.
If you have a lot of followers on either one then by all means take advantage of this opportunity. Giving out promo codes doesn’t cost a single thing and, if used properly, can be a great promotion tool.
Keeping your loyal customers happy is very important. Social networks offer a fantastic opportunity for a regular person to get in touch with the people who make the fantastic products the use and love.
Other options are to contact review sites (like Touch Arcade for games) and initiate a conversation, offer to send a promo code and try to begin creating a network of connections. I wouldn’t advise sending promo codes out without being requested directly for one by an app reviewer, since you never know what you’ll get in return. Not having those codes could also hurt you in the future when you need to send some.
Most of the people who said they don’t send out promo codes is because they’ve done so in the past and have never received a review. This is why I suggest you actually contact people at review sites so you make sure they are interested in your product to begin with.
“I used to send promo code but not any longer. I prefer to have websites contact me for a promo code or buy the product.” – David McGraw
Forums and email are also a great way to share codes or run contests. A contest can help generate a lot of buzz when you release a new product and can attract a lot of first time customers as well.
Once again we come to the predicament of diversifying. The use promo codes on their own is most likely not going to yield impressive results unless you have a huge fan base on Twitter, Facebook and the likes. Marketing is all about mixing and exploiting all the tools at your disposal.
6) How To Get Reviews On Popular Sites
We’ve already discussed this subject in great detail in the “App Previews” section in part 1, so we won’t discuss this much further here.
The one thing I will mention is the following:
“Making a good enough app leads to reviews in my honest opinion.” – Ray Wenderlich
As obvious as this survey response may sound, if your product is good enough then you will pick up reviews and exposure without trying. Marketing doesn’t just start when you have a finished product, it starts with your first brainstorming session, first mockups, first prototype, etc.
You not only have to market your app via promo codes and contacting review sites, your app has to market and promote itself! No one is going to want to review something that hasn’t been thought out well, lacks attracting features, uses a generic and clumsy UI, has bugs!
Andres Illiger, maker of the incredibly popular Tiny Wings, never sent a single email or promo code for his app. Heck he didn’t even market his game at all! Despite of this, the product he created was so well thought out, so beautifully crafted, that things just took off on their own. This can happen to your product if you put some thought and effort into it from day one.
When you’re first starting making apps, there’s often a gap between what you can do, and what you wish you could do. Check out this inspirational video by Ira Glass, who explained it really well in an interview.
So don’t worry if you have an initial skill gap and don’t get as many reviews as you’d like for your first app – don’t give up, and keep learning and growing! Remember it takes 10,000 hours of practice to achieve mastery
7) Making an App Trailer
Trailers, previews and sneak-peak videos are another great way to get customers excited. This doesn’t apply just for games, there are situations when pictures don’t do an app any justice. You really have to see it in action to believe it!
Shinobi Charts is a good example of a product that makes great use of a video. Their charting API is not an App or Game, it’s a tool for iOS developers to incorporate charts and graphs into their apps.
By watching a video of it in action, you get a preview of how things work, what the end results look like, how far things can be taken and how smooth it all runs on iOS.
Not only does this show the powerful features and capabilities of their API, it allows you to make an informed decision should you decide to purchase their SDK.
Our survey showed close to a 50-50 split when it comes to making videos. Keep in mind that making a video doesn’t just apply to games. It doesn’t even have to be a trailer at all!
Some apps, because of their nature and what they are supposed to do, are rather complex and robust. A how-to video is a great way to ease your customers into using your product and explaining some of the coolest and/or most obscure features available.
Other apps, like Road Inc. or Clear, need to be seen in motion to really appreciate their beauty and unique experience.
“We made HOW TO videos showing professionals how to do various tasks in the apps. A simple step by step video showing how the app accomplishes it’s goal seems to help get the word out, and minimize support emails.” – Survey Respondent
A few months ago when Clear was being previewed in articles at Engadget and TUAW I thought the interface looked very elegant but nothing more. It wasn’t until I saw a video of the app in action that I was left awestruck.
For tips on how to create the video itself, check out the “Creating a Teaser Trailer” section in the first part of the series.
“Whatever video you create, and you really should create something, should be available for viewing on the web page for your game (you DID create a webpage for your game didn’t you?) and I chose to upload mine to Youtube and embed that. It allows for comments, sharing and a broad accessibility with minimal effort on your part.” – Lynn Pye
Finally, as the comment above suggests, be sure to put your video on YouTube, your website or places where it’s easy to find. YouTube is a fantastic choice because it can easily be embedded (as long as you allow this in your video settings) within any website. This could lead to reviewers or bloggers putting your video on their sites!
YouTube also has comments, which allow you to connect with your users, and unlimited bandwidth in case you get 3 million views in a month. This might seem unlikely but trust me, you’ll be thankful that your website didn’t collapse because you exceeded your hosting plan’s monthly bandwidth limit!
Making your video easily available is very important both for getting reviews and user feedback and it can be another great way to showcase your product and increase sales!
8）Using Giveaways for Promotion
Giveaways are something that can cost you nothing at all but can dramatically improve awareness of your app. A giveaway can be a promo code, gift certificate, clothing or apparel, free apps or software, exclusive content, discount on your apps or games, etc.
“I ran promotional code giveaways on AppAdvice.com and they were incredibly successful. From what I could tell it was one of their most active giveaways at the time.” – David McGraw
There are plenty of websites, such as AppAdvice, that are constantly monitoring for price drops and informing users of sales. I get daily deals and rebates on Flipboard via AppAdvice and the Apps feed. I’ve found some very good offers I might have otherwise missed and it’s allowed me to find good content for a low price (or even free).
Use your imagination when it comes to giveaways. As mentioned before, you can use promo codes on Twitter or Facebook but don’t just stop there. Try cross promotion with other developers and offer to exchange promo codes. This is a fantastic way to build a good network of connections and to help fellow indie/small developers.
Lowering the price of your game or application is also something to be aware of, it’s another form of a giveaway and can help boost sales and popularity of your app.
You can do this randomly, on holidays, important dates for you and your company, or depending on how your sales are doing.
Giveaways and price drops are a fantastic opportunity for you to take control of decreasing sales and keep momentum going. This is where using analytics and monitoring your sales on iTunes Connect can be a lot of help.
“We discounted our app as part of the App Friday promotion for Moms With Apps. It significantly helped get the word out early on.” – Survey Respondent
Remember to always focus on your target audience. Go to forums and websites that belong in your app’s category and announce your price drop or hand out promo codes there.
Another great form of giveaways are contests. From simple trivias to drawing contests, they’re all very cool and can bring your user base together. If you are making an awesome game then perhaps the best wallpaper wins a free copy of the game, or a signed T-Shirt with the main character’s image.
Whatever you decide to do as a giveaway or contest be sure to do it often. Sometimes, especially when working as a solo developer, we are so eager to release our product that once it’s on the app store we forget about it all together.
Your product has a longer life than that. Constant updates will refresh your user reviews and give your app a boost on the recently released iTunes charts. Showing your users that you care about your product is another way to gain popularity and increase your sales.
Look at Firemint, they’ve continually updated Real Racing, Real Racing 2, Spy mouse, and Flight Control way beyond what anyone expected. Ton’s of free content, new tracks and maps, using new features of iOS and updating for the latest devices. This on itself is a giveaway, users getting more content and an improved experience for no extra money!
9) What About Advertising?
Advertising is a tricky one, especially for indie developers. It’s a world of its own and there are companies dedicated solely to this. Just to give an example, even large companies with lots of internal resources, talented people and money, choose to hire an advertising agency for their products and brand.
If you are an established developer or studio then you probably have a division or agency handling your PR and advertising. If you are an indie though, here are some tips and suggestions in order to get the most out of advertising.
The general consensus among the survey respondents was very few people are actually spending money advertising their apps, and those that are had a lot of troubles getting enough value for their money.
“We spent around $800 on one burst of Fusion advertising. In short: it sucked. We got around 70 visitors to the site per day while it was running. It didn’t even come close to breaking even, and failed to drive any interest for the app. I wouldn’t recommend it at all.” –Carter Allen
“Banner ads aren’t very effective unless you want to spend BIG ($10,000+), but incentivized installs (TapJoy and Flurry AppCircle, etc.) can be most cost effective. Depends on what your goals are. Cheaper to be able to get cross-promotion inside popular apps.” – Anonymous
If you do want to proceed with advertising though, you’re going to need a good budget, and the willingness to do a lot of experimentation. Here are some tips that might be helpful:
* Always remember your target audience, especially when advertising. Depending on who you’ve made the app for will determine the type of advertising you will do.
* If you want to hire an advertising expert or agency, do some scouting. Look at their clients, portfolio, experience and compare rates. Bargaining is definitely something you can do here because there aren’t always fixed rates.
* Advertising on TV, newspapers or radio is something we barely see with apps. Internet is the way to go for our products.
* Determine the best places to advertise for your audience. If it’s kids then you might wanna target online websites like Club Penguin or Cartoon Network. If it’s a cooking app you will probably want food.com or blogs/recipe related websites.
* Facebook or Twitter could also be a great way of advertising. I’ve used Facebook before and it lets you set a budget, target your audience by gender, age, country etc. the great thing is that we know plenty of people are on Facebook so exposure will not be an issue. Being able to establish a set amount of money is also great. Which leads us to our next point.
* Establish a budget! This is one of the most important things you can do here. Even if you don’t hire an agency or a person to handle your advertising, you should be able to acquire stats from the site you’re trying to advertise on. Ask for info like visits per month, unique hits per month, clicks per banner/ad, prices, etc. This will allow you to compare against other websites and determine where you are getting the best deal.
* Design a eye-catching, unique banner. Just like your app icon, if your banner doesn’t look good there’s a big chance people will not even bother clicking it or learning about your app. Use some of that advertising money and hire a designer to make two or three awesome banners you can use and be proud of.
* After buying some ads on a website or doing advertising on Facebook, be sure to acquire stats and info on how everything is doing. Save these stats and analyze them – the A/B testing technique is useful here. Learning from our mistakes is the best way to succeed!
* Sites like Free App a Day are also ways to advertise your app. Keep in mind they charge you a hefty fee to be included in this site, but it can result in a lot of people downloading and trying your app, which can lead to good word of mouth. The verdict is out for this – some people have found it worth the money, and some have not.
* Keep in mind that it is mathematically possible to get your app in the top 100 list of an app store just through advertising. It may be worthwhile to spend a good bit of money advertising your app to get it into the top 100 list, for the exposure and continued benefits of being in the top 100. However, you need to be confident that your app has enough staying power to stay in that list once your advertising list ends.
In the end, for us independent developers, it’s all about getting the best bang for our buck. We don’t have thousands of dollars to spend on advertising nor can we afford the luxury of wasting 1 or 2 grand.
Because of this (and because it’s difficult to get enough sales from advertising to justify the cost), many indies prefer to go with free marketing techniques instead of ads.
If you have any good tips or suggestions about advertising techniques that have worked for you, please join the forum discussion below!
Where to Go From Here?
In this section we’ve covered what you can do when your product is on the App Store or ready to be released. You can certainly be more aggressive here with your marketing considering you now have a complete product (or at least close to completion) and can easily divulge features, screenshots, videos and more without fear of delays or failing to deliver.
You’ve also seen some advice from fellow developers on the usage of trailers, promo codes, contests, giveaways and getting reviews!
Once again we go back to our mantra of focusing on your target audience, always keep them in mind when marketing and publicizing your product.
Stay tuned for part 3 where we’ll cover a few of the things you can do well after release in order to keep your app alive and maintain a steady number of downloads.
If you have any tips or advice for other developers about effective ways to market your apps in the release phase, please join the forum discussion below!（Source：raywenderlich）
