Mobile App SEO & Advertising in 2018: What You Need to Know

What is your favorite navigation app? We love Waze for its accuracy and ease-of use. We're not alone: Waze has 100 million users who use the app, on average, 11 hours per month, according to the company's global small business chief, Matt Phillips (source).

This sort of engagement, which Greg Sterling notes, "gives it...parity with Instagram," is an advertising goldmine for local businesses. In fact, as Sterling recently reported for Search Engine Land, Waze is now selling ad space to local businesses. For as little as $2 per day, a small business can take advantage of "20.4 percent more monthly navigations," according to Waze's beta tasting.

Of course, Waze is only one of many mobile marketing opportunities--and, as Smart Insights notes, "If you're not able to reach your audience through mobile search or display, or you're not providing a satisfactory mobile experience you will miss out compared to competitors who are."

Earlier this year, Smart Insights posted a Mobile Marketing Statistics Compilation, which hammered home the point. The simplest of stats may be the most important: "Mobile digital media time in the US is now significantly higher at 51% compared to desktop (42%)."

Of this time spent on mobile, the most recent stats (from 2017) show that "among mobile...users, mobile apps will account for 84.9% of total mobile time spent, with mobile web browsing making up the remainder" (source).

The upshot is clear: mobile apps offer tremendous opportunities for brands, especially the small, local businesses that can now advertise on Waze.

Are you in the app business? If not, frankly, you are behind the curve.

Nearly three years ago, in June, 2015, Criteo published a study that revealed conversions on mobile apps were higher for both the retail and travel industries when compared to the mobile website. As Marketing Land reported:

"Apps are becoming an increasingly important channel for many retailers. Retailers that have made app experiences a priority and generate over 25 percent of their ecommerce transactions come through mobile, saw their apps drive nearly 50 percent of total mobile transactions."

So what can you do to take advantage of this new marketing paradigm? If you're not yet in the app business, you have a few possible entry points.

Everyone's using mobile apps. How can you take advantage of this new marketing paradigm? [Photo Source]

Build & Optimize Your Own App

Many businesses, both local and national, have experienced the benefits of creating simple, streamlined apps. The field is crowded: As of last March, Android users had access to 2.8 millions apps and Apple users had access to 2.2 millions apps (source). However, mobile apps are still somewhat rare for small, local businesses--not even half of small businesses have an app, according to statistics from last year (source).

Even then, to stand out in a sea of apps, you will need to develop a useful app that will a) help your users live an easier life, or b) help your users interact with your brand more easily.

You will be entering a competitive field, but with mobile app optimization you will have a distinctive advantage. SEO for apps is new, so focusing on SEO basics will yield the best advantage--advantages that may pay dividends for your overall organic search strategy. Again, this is old news. Search Engine Land reported a full three years ago:

"Google recently announced that suggestions for new apps to install will now appear in mobile organic search results for relevant search queries. That means that content previously locked away in apps can now be found through organic search just like traditional web pages, encouraging new users to download the app to engage with the content."

Once you've created a useful app, design an attractive icon and describe your app with simple, relevant keywords. Make sure you address any issues that come up in reviews. The best apps continue to improve based on user reviews. Finally, just like your website, make sure that your app is indexed. As Search Engine Land noted:

"Brands that want their app to appear within...mobile organic search results must implement app indexing, which allows search engine crawlers to index your app content via deep links."

Advertise On Popular Apps Like Waze 

Advertising on mobile apps is easier than you might expect--as easy as starting a new Google AdWords campaign:

"Display Network campaigns are designed to show your ads in apps by default if the placement (the destination for your ad) matches the targeting you've set for your campaign."


Of course, too, you can work with individual apps, like Waze, to promote your content to specific audiences.

This article from Mobyaffiliates offers a good introduction to the finer points of mobile app advertising: Mobile App Advertising Rates (2018).

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So what do you think? Are you in the app game? Do you want to be? Let us know in the comments below!

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