Like any other product, applications need the support of solid marketing copy and eye catching visual advertisement/ promotional components. Whether it’s via social media, right on the app store, or anywhere online these materials are normally the first point of consumer-product interaction and they need to pique their interest.

Your copy needs be engaging, built around effective SEO keywords, and optimized so shoppers are primed to stumble across it searching app stores and the web alike for products like yours. It’s also important to outline your marketing budget before you start and to test your app in a controlled environment (i.e. via Focus Groups) to ensure all bugs and pitfalls are fixed by the time you’re set to launch. With this in mind the following components are crucial to account for before you set out on your product’s

Pre-Launch campaign:

• An App Name – Preferably a small title that rolls off the tongue and sounds memorable. Avoid using more than 1 or 2 words maximum and be original, names that sound like riffs on other product names tend to be a turnoff.
• An App Icon – Seemingly a no-brainer, designing an app icon that’s both eye popping and representative of what your product’s goal/ function is a must as it’s the first visual reference point for consumers.
• A Good SEO Keyword Set – Take time to figure out what terms your target audience searches for when looking for solutions or experiences your app provides and integrate them in all of the written content associated with your product.
• A Professional App Marketplace Description – Going beyond a few small blurbs on the quality of your app, you’ll need to create:
• Promotional Screenshots that visually highlight your product’s positives.
• Analyze the Mobile marketplace you want to launch your app in thoroughly and pick the right category to submit it under to maximize potential traffic & interest.
• Develop a well designed landing page for your app that can attract browsers and funnel them directly to its app store page where they can download it.
• Social Media Accounts – Your app needs them to maintain a presence in the digital world, and it will if you use them to actively engage and update potential consumers on news regarding your product, special promotions, and most important keep them in the loop on when launch day is. At minimum you need to create accounts for your product on Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube.
• Promotional Video – Apps exist in the digital arena and likewise the best place to advertise them is online. Promotional videos are a powerful and cost effective way to introduce the world at large to your product, what the concept behind it is, and why consumers out to be interested via popular outlets such as YouTube and Vimeo.

For more App Marketing essentials, initial and post launch tips, download this whitepaper. 

ComboApp is exhibiting at Apps World in San Francisco on 7-8 February next week. To learn more about how to attend for free, visit: http://www.apps-world.net/northamerica/