Apple has unveiled their latest iOS that comes with new features, improvements and added supported system in the new iOS 15. It is considered by many app marketers to be one of the most pertinent to them since the unveiling of iOS 11.
App Store A/B Testing
Apple?s new iOS 15 changes the landscape for action based user acquisition techniques in the iOS App Store. Along with the ability to run A/B testing, the iOS 15 allows developers to implement custom product pages that promote external marketing efforts. New metrics have been also incorporated to give developers more performance insight.
The iOS 15 allows the developers to have a streamlined way to test changes to their creative sets. In the past, iOS developers had to fully deploy their creative changes to the iOS app store, then use them to measure traffic after and before deployment.
The past process did not actually provide the best insight because traffic and trends are dynamic and can change significantly from the pre-deployment to post deployment duration. The iOS 15 enables product page optimization that enables A/B testing to take place live, directly on the app's default product page.
Testing of new icons requires them to be integrated with the app binary during the development phase. Any assets that are submitted by developers will undergo a review process by the Apple team before any testing can be done.
The developers will also test the Apple creatives excluding descriptions, tiles and subtitles. Altogether, this change will considerably streamline the process of app optimization for app developers and is going to be something to strongly consider integrating into app development strategy.
Product Page Optimization
Product Page optimization will enable developers to test variations of app screenshots, icons as well as preview videos. Apple's iOS 15 allows three different treatments to be applied simultaneously, with each test spanning a maximum duration of 90 days. The metadata used in the experiments should be reviewed by Apple and testing of icons requires an update.
Unique Product Pages
Another new feature of the new iOS 15 is Custom Product Pages. It is a novel way to curate a listing to be simultaneously relevant across different demographics. It enables the developers to showcase the most relevant positioning to different sets of audience, all converging to the same application.
It allows 35 unique Custom Product Pages, each one showcasing insights into various features through distinct screenshots, promotional texts and app reviews. The developers can now drive traffic to the desired pages using unique URLs which are placed in third party referrals or relevant advertisements.
Developer Metrics
The iOS 15 comes with new metrics that enable developers to understand performance in ways previously unavailable from App analytics. Apple will now be keeping familiar metrics like App units and impressions, while adding new ones.
The developers are provided with a dedicated pre-order dashboard that is separated by familiar metrics like device type and territory- with the type of device now including macOS for compatible apps. On the metrics tab, pre-orders can be seen in a line graph over time to help in visualizing engagement at the beginning of the pre-order up to the day it launches.
The App analytics also presents the proceeds along with the existing "In-App Purchases" and "Sales". Further insight into how the app monetizes helps developers get a better understanding of how to optimize towards improving the rate of purchase.
The iOS 15 also introduces Apple Search Ads which incorporates ads in the ?Suggested? list on the search tab. The results are featured as the first result in the suggested area, unlike previous existing search ads that only appear when the user conducts a search containing the relevant keywords. The new slot will be constantly populated with ads without any input by the user.
Inclusivity
The iOS 15 changes the landscape for data collection and digital advertising protocols, these are the additional appealing features for users. There is a focus on inclusion and diversity, as well as an updated functionality to reflect the changes brought about by COVID-19 pandemic.
In terms of inclusivity, the iOS 15 has added new voices for Siri. Instead of using the preconfigured default voice, users are now in a position to choose one of the four voices for Siri during the device setup process. The terms used in Siri have been also updated with "accent" now labelled "variety" and "gender" being changed to "voice".
Conclusion
Overall, iOS 15 changes numerous aspects of the iOS landscape, many of particular interest to mobile marketing firms and app developers. These upgrades ensure that Apple stays ahead of the curve and adjusts App Store optimization strategies accordingly.
Developers and advertisers can now maintain optimization of apps within the Apple App Store by employing the diversity of marketing strategies and tools, deploying campaigns and measuring the impact and always adapting to the new ways of analyzing essential data.
