How To Create a Great App Store Landing Page

There’s a feature in the Apple mobile ecosystem that can dramatically enhance how you market your app. Custom product pages allow you to segment your digital products in ways that will increase conversions and revenue. You can tailor your landing pages and create custom search ad campaigns that match customer demographics. The App Store hosts over 2 million apps, and users have short attention spans. Employing custom product pages can ensure a uniform and uninterrupted journey for users throughout their acquisition experience—from Apple Search Ads to the App Store. With the right approach, custom product pages can be a game-changer for your app’s success. How can you get the most out of custom product pages with a new or existing app? If you aren‘t currently using custom product pages, now is a great time to implement them to gain an edge over your competition. Beyond user targeting, you can promote a seasonal event, showcase culturally relevant content, and more. What are Apple custom product pages (CPPs)? Every app on the App Store has a product page, also known as an app store listing. Beyond this main page, Apple‘s custom product pages enable you to customize the look and feel of your Apple product for specific audience segments, keywords, or promotions. With Apple’s custom product pages, you can design up to 35 different versions of your app’s store listing. You can use these variations to optimize search ad campaigns and promote unique listings through shareable URLs. Key Features Customization: You can change ‌three assets on the variations of your product page: screenshots, app previews, and promotional text. Discoverability: You can optimize each page using specific keywords for search and messaging that expands your reach. Localizability: You can use different languages, so custom pages reach audiences in multiple countries. Control: You can use the App Store Connect API to make changes across multiple custom pages simultaneously. Android vs. iOS Apple has always been known for its strict control over the user experience of iOS apps. Apple custom product pages enable greater control and creativity to market your app. While Google’s Play Store provides more flexibility through its custom store listings, Apple is catching up with custom product pages. Here, we’re focusing on Apple‘s feature set, but the benefits and best practices apply across platforms. Benefits of Custom Product Pages Improved App Marketing Metrics Custom product pages are crucial in conversion rate optimization (CRO) and app store optimization (ASO). Custom pages can help you to: Increase CRO: By tailoring your messaging and visual design to your target audience, you’ll increase the likelihood that users will download your app. Improve ASO: Multiple versions of your store listing can capture more promotional traffic and improve keyword and engagement metrics. With the right strategy, customer product pages can significantly boost user acquisition and marketing ROI. Targeted Search Ads Custom product pages in Apple’s App Store and Search Ads allow for different ad variations and strategic campaigns targeting different types of users. These features help potential customers better understand the app before downloading it. For instance, the app Mountain Climber can run separate ads targeting cyclists, hikers, and rock climbing enthusiasts. Based on the URL clicked, those ads drive potential users to three tailored custom product pages for the same app. You’re increasing the chances of app conversions by corresponding the custom App Store page with the ad creative that attracted the customer in the first place. Tailored Testing It’s important to note that custom product pages won’t appear in organic search results on the App Store. Of course, the organic experience is still important, and you can improve it using Apple features for testing tailored to your marketing goals. Split Testing Through Product Optimization Using Apple’s product page optimization feature, you can perform split tests on up to three distinct “treatments” of your default page. However, the elements you can adjust are limited to visuals—app icon, preview video, and screenshots. After determining the most successful treatment, you can apply it to your app’s default page, ensuring all users receive the most impactful organic search result. Variable Testing With Custom Pages While Apple‘s split testing tool for product page optimization has benefits, custom product pages may offer a more reliable approach to testing theories about your app page. By designing multiple custom pages with unique designs or copy, you can evaluate which version performs better in engagement metrics, conversion rates, and return on investment. You can then apply those learnings to improve your organic default page. Creating a Custom Apple Product Page Apple provides a detailed technical guide when you are ready to configure your product pages. Before taking that leap, consider the following insights to guide your efforts to success. Identify Your Target Audiences Designing effective pages that resonate with multiple target audiences requires a deep understanding of each audience’s specific needs and preferences. For example, a TikTok user’s preferences will vary based on specific demographics like age. You’ll want to learn those preferences in depth to get the most out of any customized versions of these landing pages. Before embarking on a custom product page project, researching your target audiences is an obvious first step. You can effectively focus your efforts where they’ll have the most impact through user surveys, testing, and analysis. Surveys User surveys can help you gather feedback and insights from your target audience on their needs, preferences, and pain points. You can use online survey tools like SurveyMonkey or Google Forms to create and distribute surveys to your target audience. Testing User testing involves observing users as they interact with your app to identify areas of improvement and gather feedback. You can use remote user testing tools like UserTesting or Userlytics to conduct user testing sessions with your target audience. Analysis App Store analytics can provide valuable insights into your target audience’s behavior and preferences. By analyzing App Store data such as user reviews, ratings, and search queries, you can better understand your audience‘s needs and preferences. Impact Creating multiple versions of your app page can be time-consuming and may require additional resources. Consider focusing your efforts on your most valuable audience segments, where you can maximize the impact of your custom product pages while minimizing the resources required to create them. Choose Strategic App Previews & Screenshots The key benefit of custom product pages is the ability to segment what each user sees when they preview your app. Here are some tips to choose assets that will attract and convert your target user. Emphasize features: Use your media to highlight your app’s key features and benefits. Targeted images and videos can catch the attention of different user segments. Keep it concise: Use short video clips and images. Quickly and effectively communicate your app’s target value proposition to each of your audiences. For instance, let’s consider a “Fitness Tracker” app targeting two user types: gym enthusiasts and busy professionals. For the gym enthusiast audience, you can use app previews to show users how to set up and customize their workout plans, track their progress, and view their stats and achievements. For the busy professional audience, you can use screenshots to showcase the app’s meal planning and nutrition features. For either audience, users can see firsthand how the app can help them achieve their fitness goals at first glance. Provide Relevant Content & Keywords in Promotional Text Content about your app and relevant keywords in the promotional text help you attract the right users and increase conversions. For example, if you’re developing three custom product pages for a healthcare app—one for patients, one for doctors and clinicians, and one for health organizations—here is how the promotional text and keywords might vary per page. Custom Page for Patients Promotional Text: Take control of your health with our intuitive healthcare app Access personalized health information and track your progress Connect with healthcare professionals and schedule appointments easily Keywords: Healthcare app, personalized health information, track health progress, connect with healthcare professionals, schedule appointments Custom Page for Doctors & Clinicians Promotional Text: Streamline your practice with our advanced healthcare app Efficiently manage patient records and appointments Access medical resources and collaborate with colleagues Keywords: Advanced healthcare app, practice management, patient records, appointments management, medical resources, collaboration tools for doctors Custom Page for Health Organizations Promotional Text: Transform your healthcare organization with our comprehensive app Improve patient outcomes and streamline operations Gain insights through data analytics and reporting tools Keywords: Comprehensive healthcare app, patient outcomes, streamline operations, data analytics, reporting tools, health organization management Measure & Optimize After your customized product pages go live, you can gauge their effectiveness using App Analytics in App Store Connect. You can track product page impressions, downloads, re-downloads, and conversion rates to assess how well each page motivates app downloads. You can also measure retention and the average proceeds per paying user for each custom product page. Another way to gain insights is to compare your custom product pages to your default. Doing so lets you determine whether users who downloaded your app through a custom product page tend to stay engaged longer or spend more on in-app purchases. This information can help you make informed decisions on how to optimize your app‘s marketing strategy. Promoting Your Custom Product Page Reach Broader Audiences With Distributed Campaigns After developing a custom product page, you can share it through your promotional communications and marketing efforts with its distinct URL. Your app‘s marketing channels might include email marketing, social media, digital advertising, influencer programs, and promotions—the possibilities are endless. For instance, an app that caters to sports enthusiasts might showcase the latest Superbowl champions in an email promotion and connect to the tailor-made product page that spotlights that team. The exclusive URL incorporates a new product page ID parameter into the standard product page URL. Increase Impressions With Apple Search Ads Apple Search Ads enable you to produce ad variations for App Store Today tabs and search results for eligible custom product pages. When you establish your ads campaign, you can customize your ad message and visuals for different audiences, product launches, or seasonal promotions. Tailored product pages can greatly enhance the effectiveness of Apple Search Ads and thereby increase the ROI of your paid campaigns. Giving users a more relevant and individualized experience boosts the conversion rate of keywords and reduces the cost per install. Ultimately, you‘ll obtain more downloads—while paying less for each. Promote Events for Maximum Exposure Certain seasons, holidays, and events present great opportunities for increasing downloads. To capitalize on these moments, you can create custom product pages that showcase them. These pages can be tailored to highlight relevant features, promotions, or content related to the specific occasion, making your app more appealing to visitors. There has been a lot of excitement around in-app events, as well. Adding to the iOS marketing arsenal are these timely in-app experiences, such as challenges, competitions, or special content launches, featured on your product page. In-app events have unique promotional capabilities and App Store discoverability. Notably, all visitors to the custom or default product page will see the same in-app events. Understanding the diverse needs and motivations of your target audience can help in tailoring your marketing approach accordingly. These are just a few examples of how in-app events and custom product pages can be used together strategically: Engage existing users: You can re-engage existing customers through a pairing that piques their interest and encourages further engagement. For example, a user-targeted custom product page alongside an in-app event challenge. Attract new users: You can target an untapped demographic by marketing specific promotions that expand reach. For example, a seasonal custom product page alongside a special in-app event featuring new holiday releases. Whether for seasonal promotions alone or combined with in-app events, the specific implementation of custom product pages is in your hands. It’s important to adapt to your unique business context, promotional timelines, creative assets, and advertising approach to ensure success. Final Thoughts Improving Conversion Rates With Custom Product Pages Custom product pages offer powerful freedom and flexibility, allowing you to segment your digital products in ways that boost conversions and increase revenue. You can use custom product pages to engage with users at any level and tailor your approach to your specific marketing goals. With the fast-paced and competitive app landscape, innovating and adapting are crucial. By embracing the power of custom product pages, you can stand out from the crowd, captivate your target audience, and achieve significant growth for your app. List of Additional Resources For implementation support, Apple’s developer site has a step-by-step technical breakdown to configure multiple product page versions. Learn more about the unique promotional opportunities and guidelines for Apple in-app events. InspiringApps’ Complete Guide to the App Store & Google Play is the ultimate technical playbook for setup and navigation of the digital marketplace. For more insights on identifying your target audience(s), download our free ebook InspiringApps: A Business Perspective on Building Mobile Apps.

It’s no secret that mobile apps can serve as a solid source of revenue. By the numbers: In 2021, Android app and iOS app revenues reached $133 billion globally.  That same year, iOS app developers in the United States saw 118% growth in earnings. By 2026, forecasters project spending on mobile apps to reach $233 billion globally across Apple’s App Store and Google Play.  How do you build a sustainable business that captures this competitive but lucrative source of revenue?  As a mobile app owner, your objective is to grow your app traffic, downloads, and installations and turn that into profits and conversions. To succeed, you need to know the leading app monetization strategies available and determine the best way to make money off your mobile app. The Market for Free Apps Free apps are the vast majority of available apps on both the App Store and Google Play. Paid apps represent less than 7% on the Apple App Store and 4% on Google Play Store.  According to some estimates, only 1 in 2 people have ever paid for a mobile app.  These numbers speak volumes about the market for free apps compared to paid apps. But with so many free apps available through the app stores, many clients wonder, “How can I make money from free apps?” People love free apps. The good news is that app developers can leverage several app monetization models for mobile applications to tap into this market.  However, you’ll need to carefully consider several factors and choose the monetization method or combination of methods before you begin app development.  Factors in Selecting an App Monetization Strategy Market Considerations What’s unique about your mobile app idea? What is happening in the industry niche you’re targeting? Who would pay for the ability to use your free mobile app?  When it comes to app revenue and price, it’s vital to understand the market, your target audience, and how your mobile app fits in compared to the competition.  For example, in the wake of pandemic recovery, the market has normalized with new consumer habits—like a willingness to spend on non-game apps.  Furthermore, different audiences have different needs, and it’s essential that you cater to them by aligning with what they value. Business users may pay for time savings; gamers may be more willing to pay for features that help them level up.  To tailor your mobile application for a particular app monetization strategy during the app development phase, you should come prepared with the best strategy that considers these factors. Timing Considerations What is your app development, launch, marketing, and maintenance timetable? When do you need to show a profit? Striking the right balance between the time it takes you to grow revenue and your user base will help ensure your app—and your budget—succeed.  Some app monetization models earn more money initially, while profits come later in others. If you can initially forego revenue, you may be able to gather more users and gain more revenue overall.  Building a successful revenue-generating app takes considerable time and, of course, investment. If you’re new to app development, our free eBook InspiringApps: A Business Perspective on Building Mobile Apps describes key mobile app development considerations in detail—and we encourage you to start here first. App Store Considerations How will you collect payment? What is the share fee? What are the store’s guidelines for your type of app and monetization model? App developers have been working with Apple and Google to reduce the percentage of revenue they take for in-app purchases and to provide other ways for users to pay for subscriptions. The percentage has adjusted from 30% to 15% for subscribers in their second year and for small developers applied to the first $1 million in earnings.  There are other ways to reduce or eliminate the share fee. Collecting payments outside of apps may be an approach you’d want to consider if you don’t use your app to direct users to external payment processes.  But there are other restrictions placed by the stores. For example, App Store Review Guideline 3.11 requires apps offering paid online group services to do so via in-app purchases. Free App Monetization Models Advertising In-app ads are the most popular monetization model as of July 2022. App advertising enables you to make money by selling advertising space within otherwise free apps. In-app mobile ads come in all shapes and sizes, typically commanding different values. Various placements and formats range from an interstitial ad, video ad, native ad, and banner ad.  App developers monetize ads in a mobile app in multiple ways: Cost per thousand (CPM), based on the number of impressions through the ads Cost per click (CPC), based on the number of clicks the ads deliver Cost per view (CPV), based on the number of views by the app users Cost per action (CPA), based on the users’ actions, such as installing the advertised app or purchasing through the link, which lead to the developer’s commission The benefit to users is that not only the app but also all its features are free. Multiple services connect app publishers to advertisers. It’s a quick way to grow your user base. However, ads may impact mobile app retention. People can be annoyed enough by the ads to stop using free apps that employ app advertising.  (Interestingly, this has led to another revenue stream—paying for an “ad-free” experience!) Examples There are so many examples that it’s challenging to carve one out. A few notables include the following: Paid Advertising Google Maps is an example of a free app that does app advertising well.  Businesses can list their ads on Google Maps, even creating profiles that allow their businesses to be found more easily. Google Maps also allows businesses to use their company logos instead of generic icons—for a fee. Native Ad + Data Monetization Another example is Instagram, a free app whose main source of revenue is advertising. Instagram gathers vast amounts of data, enabling the app to serve highly targeted ads. Brands are willing to pay because they feel confident that the right people will see their ad. Visual ads work well on the platform; they appear seamless next to the visuals people are scrolling through as they use the free app. Incentivized Ads Duolingo also uses advertising—in particular, you’ll see a video ad prompting you to download another app, with a reward for watching the ad to entice users. Freemium & Free Trial Apps The free app market is also split into freemium and free trial apps with the added options of in-app purchases and subscriptions.  Freemium and free trial apps can be a great way to get users hooked on your product. However, compared to apps that use advertising, freemium and free trial apps do not generate revenue until users start paying to access premium features, pay for in-app goods, or continue using the service through subscription.  The good news is that there are numerous avenues for revenue opportunities providing quite a bit of opportunity for app publishers to create the right model for their business. Freemium Apps Freemium apps allow users access to basic features for free, with or without additional in-app purchases.  Users download the app for free, but certain gated features require them to convert to a paid app or subscription model to use the premium feature. Customers find indefinite free access more appealing than time-delimited trials.  Free Trial Apps A free trial app usually allows full access to the features but within a limited period.  Because there’s no risk to downloading a freemium app from the app store, users are more likely to try freemium over trial apps. However, conversion rates are usually higher with free trials compared to freemiums. In App Purchases Through in-app purchases, users can buy digital goods for a specific price. Popular in mobile gaming, the in-app purchase experience can feel like a natural part of the app. In-app purchases in most gaming apps are consumable; players buy items or gear, such as a sword that offers special powers or virtual currency, to increase their success.  Subscriptions Subscriptions enable the app developer to target app features to specific user groups or businesses or for a specified time period.  Subscription revenues have increased rapidly over the past few years. That’s likely because subscription-based apps offer a steady source of reliable income, which makes planning and investing in upgrades much less risky.  Software-as-a-service models provide different pricing levels, for example, free, premium, and enterprise, as is common practice with productivity and business apps. Many subscription models also offer discounts for longer subscriptions, which is a win-win for both parties.  Examples Freemium + Free Trial The popular app Calm is built on a freemium model with a free trial option. Users can access either a 7-day free trial or the free version of the app without paying for premium content. After the free trial ends, users can choose from various subscription options, from a monthly membership to a lifetime one.  Software as a Service Asana offers a basic version for free. Some features are only available through higher tier pricing, enticing users to consider paying for an app subscription for an enterprise experience. In App Expendables In the gaming app Plants vs. Zombies 2, users need to purchase upgraded, premium plants to advance to a higher level.  In App Unlockables In-app purchases are not limited to gaming. For example, you can still buy individual songs from Apple iTunes. And cooking apps like The Photo Cookbook allow you to unlock individual sets of recipes via in-app purchases. Content Subscription Certain app subscriptions may be considered free because they gate specific content—in other words, they offer content subscriptions.  With this type of app subscription, the focus is to allow brands to earn revenue on a recurring basis for providing content. Paywalls allow app users to view a predetermined amount of content for free and then ask users to opt into a paid subscription to get more.  Model Limitations While many freemium models have subscription options that offer flexible payment, the gated content model is increasingly limited to news, learning, and academic sites. Most streaming services utilize advertising or require upfront payment with a trial period (no free lunch).  Costs to operate this model can be high because it requires substantial investment in content. To encourage user signups, the app publisher limits articles read. App publishers often combine the model with advertising to keep the price point attractive to the app user. Examples Harvard Business Review, the LA Times, and the New York Times are all examples of a free subscription model. Users have access to a limited number of free articles they can read monthly without a fee. Sponsorship App sponsorship involves partnering with brands that are a good fit for your niche; it’s more exclusive than advertising generally.  In this model, brands pay to be a part of free apps. This type of advertising strategy is likely to be better received by app users because it’s relevant and connected to your app’s purpose.  Sponsorship can earn revenue by dividing revenue from the mobile app with the sponsor, having an app sponsor for launch, or setting a monthly sponsorship fee. Brands use free apps to reach their target audiences and vice versa, creating a win-win for the sponsor and your business.  Model Limitations To succeed with sponsors, you need strong networking skills and a narrow focus. Sponsors can be notoriously difficult to find and pitch.  Sponsorship is usually incorporated with those applications that already have regular users and lots of data on those users—in other words, apps that are already mature in their market niche.  So if you have significantly grown your user base over time, have significant data on those users, and have created a well-established business, brands may be interested in establishing a sponsorship deal with you.  An Alternative: Affiliate Marketing Affiliate links are another variation of sponsorship, but instead of granting sponsorship rights exclusively to one organization, you’ll negotiate with a few interested partners and agree to place their reference links in your free app.  App affiliate marketing can be a great way to increase income from apps if you lack a market sponsor who is ready to cover your costs. App affiliates act as marketers and are rewarded for doing so.  Examples Mobile event apps like EventMobi enable event planners to offer exclusive sponsorship on the app or offer several tiers of visibility for sponsor listings. Apple’s affiliate program allows app publishers to promote products that people purchase through the App Store through their free apps. Concluding Thoughts on App Monetization Free apps and paid apps have costs associated with using them—whether behind the scenes, in the available features or content, upfront, or somewhere in between.  That being said, money shouldn’t be on your user’s minds but rather how much value and joy your app brings them. While there’s no silver bullet, the most successful monetization strategy for your app will be the one that integrates well enough that it feels like a normal part of the app experience.  We’re always happy to talk with our clients about which model—or combination of models—could be most effective for you. If you need help to decide, please reach out for a free consultation.