Apple Search Ads
Apple Search Ads, also known as ASA, is an acquisition channel that connects advertisers with a relevant target audience. With Apple Search Ads, marketers can significantly improve their app visibility in the App Store. The channel works as such: the highest bidder gets their ad placed on the results page for a specific keyword. There are two solutions available to marketers: Apple Search Ads Basic and Apple Search Ads Advanced. The main difference between the solutions involves the tools you wish to have for your campaign.
The ads for your campaign are created automatically – you just have to tell them your app, select a location on where you want to target, select the monthly budget, and Apple will do everything else for you. It is possible to choose whether you want to show your ad on iPhone, iPad, or both devices to make sure your campaign is adjusted to your specific needs.
One important thing to highlight is that this marketing channel currently is not available in all countries around the world. Currently, it covers 61 countries, most of them located in Europe, 26 to be exact. The Apple Search Ads is not available in such regions as the Baltics, Oceania, most of Central America (excluding Mexico) and also most of the African countries. Both types of Apple Search Ads are available for all countries to whom they currently provide this product. This marketing channel is expanding quite vastly, so we can expect huge news coming from Apple in the near future.
Since there are 2 types of products Apple Search Ads offer, there are quite substantial differences between both products. The Apple Search Ads Basic is for app developers, it can drive app downloads with minimal effort at a predictable cost. The pricing consists of CPI (Cost-Per-Install) model and you can get quick-view dashboards tracks for your ad performance. The maximum budget available is 10 000 USD per app per month and you can promote 50 apps at the same time.
With the Advanced version, the product is for both app developers, as well as marketing agencies and advertisers. You pay only when the customer clicks on your ad and only for the impressions. In addition, you get detailed reports of your ad performance, ability to measure value and manage at scale with Apple Attribution API and the Campaign Management API. What we think is a great advantage – unlimited monthly budget and unlimited amount of apps you can promote at the same time.
To make sure that Apple Search Ads are suitable for you, here are 5 main benefits of why Apple Search Ads is a valuable product to consider for your marketing campaigns:
- The easiness to set up the account – the platform is easy to navigate with basic options. There is a possibility to adjust the daily cap for campaigns. The budget can only be increased once you input it (no option of lowering it).
- The Search Match Option – according to Apple, most advertisers use the Search Match targeting and allow Apple’s algorithm to pick the best keywords for their app. (Apple seems to value relevance over how much advertisers are willing to pay). Apple values user experience, therefore, the Search Match option will ensure that you capture the visitors’ search for keywords that are relevant to your app,
- Conversation Rate of 50% or higher – it typically ranges from 50% to 87.5% (it is exceptional since the industry-standard rate is around 5%),
- Inexpensive Cost-Per-Tap and Cost-Per-Install – usually around 50 cents (the CPI on FB is around 13 dollars and 38 dollars on Google). THE REASON – it has uncharted territory with minimal competition & is not saturated by advertisers.
- Over 140 Billion App Downloads in the App Store – mobile versions becoming more widespread through humans, this will be bigger than now. App advertisers will need to utilize platforms to promote their apps across channels.
There are many different strategies to use for promoting your apps. Since there are a lot of them and every business should choose the ones that suit them best, but these are the 6 most interesting ones that we would suggest trying out:
- Review app metadata before starting a campaign – it is essential for advertisers to review their app metadata (it can be found in App Store Connect) prior to starting their campaign. This is because the appearance of your ad creative is based on the metadata, and can’t be changed after this point. It is important to note that there are several types of ads, and variants include the number of screenshots, preview videos, and app descriptions.
- Targeting keywords based on your USP (Unique Selling Proposition) – it is important to understand how your target audience will attempt to find your app. With the chosen specific keywords, you can limit compensation and have a higher chance of winning these bids. You should also monitor the performance of these keywords to test whether they are reaching a sufficient number of users.
- Use both match types for best results – for Apple Search Ads, match types enable you to match user searches with your keywords, with both ‘’broad match’’ and ‘’exact match’’ keywords. For best results, you should run both of these campaigns – the broad match will include your ad related in search terms, while exact match allows you to show ads to users searching that exact term. Using both allows you to see what works best for your app, and discover which terms consistently generate installs.
- Combining and segmenting countries & regions – with the ASA Advanced, advertisers can create campaigns that group countries and regions based on their similarities. This allows you to make optimisations based on specific attributes, such as language and customer value. The value of each country can be learned prior to this by creating and analysing individual campaigns.
- Don’t ignore the relationship between ASA (Advertising Standards Authority) and ASO (Apple Search Optimisation) – to remind, Apple uses information based on your app’s metadata in the App Store, so it is important to ensure that your ASO is strong. This extends to every aspect of ASO, from the relevance of your preview videos to the impact of your screenshots. Make sure your app’s presentation within the App Store is in its optimal state prior to setting up any campaign.
- Optimise your bids over time – one of the features you can use, implementing this marketing channel, Apple’s recommended bid amount will inform you of how much more would be needed for a strong chance of winning those bids. This can be utilised as a baseline before you have confidence in your own Search Ads analysis. To add, the marketer with a better understanding of their app’s product, USP, and how their target audience thinks will gain a competitive edge. With these practices, you are set to take on the competition and generate convert high-value users at the right price.
Apple Search Ads is growing at a vast pace. This marketing channel allows promoting your app within App Store for many people to see how your app will benefit their way. What we suggest – start using this platform as fast as possible, you will see changes in your downloads in a short amount of time.
