Screenshots are some of the essential parts in your app web page to assist customers resolve whether or not or to not obtain your app. In case you are trying to improve your app’s conversion fee, it is best to positively begin by reviewing and redesigning your app screenshots first.
Table of Content
On this weblog, you’ll discover a checklist of 8 suggestions that can assist you design the very best app screenshots that may encourage customers to obtain your app.
Why are your app screenshots essential for ASO?
Screenshots are some of the seen parts in your app web page, and thus are a necessary ingredient of ASO. Your app screenshots are the first impression that retailer guests have of your app, as they paint a transparent image of what your app is about.
The most effective app screenshots reveal your app’s worth proposition and show the most attention-grabbing options. Keep in mind that many customers would naturally fairly have a look at your app screenshots as a substitute of studying the lengthy description to get a way of what your app is about.
Tip #1: Screenshots ought to point out what your app is about
Generally, your app screenshots ought to:
- Clarify your app’s foremost options.
- Give prospects an thought of what they will anticipate after they obtain your app.
- Showcase the person expertise.
- Embrace brief titles to raised convey your message, guaranteeing the font is giant sufficient for individuals can learn it.
Some apps select to indicate actually easy screenshots, solely demonstrating the principle options and including some brief textual content. Whereas easy screenshots do assist showcase your app’s strengths, they have a tendency to lose visibility in very aggressive classes the place apps favor extra artistic visuals to draw customers. So even in case you design extra easy screenshots, be sure to keep away from solely together with direct screenshots of your app. This isn’t a perfect follow and reveals an absence of effort in aesthetically demonstrating your app’s foremost options.
For instance, Amazon Prime Video (Google Play, US) has added direct screenshots of the app, displaying solely person interface (UI) pictures. This isn’t significantly really helpful; when retailer customers examine these screenshots to others, they won’t see the total worth of your app and miss your foremost distinctive promoting factors (USPs).
Alternatively, Peacock TV (App Retailer, US) – a high competitor of Amazon Prime Video – additionally makes use of easy screenshot designs whereas incorporating further design parts to convey the app’s worth proposition. By including daring texts, a grid design to reveal media out there on its platform, and using UI colours in its screenshots, Peacock successfully conveys the app high quality to retailer customers.
Another apps create personalized posters that show further visible content material in addition to textual content to clarify extra clearly what the app does. The aim of that is to reassure your viewers and market your app with a catchy and informative description.
One other wonderful means to make use of screenshots is to reveal your app’s foremost options with a connected-style storyline. Connecting the screenshots with a storyline can actually arouse customers’ curiosity and immediate them to browse the next pictures, supplying you with extra room to pitch your story.
For instance, beneath, Chook (App Retailer, US) has constructed a “storyline” into their screenshots to speak the app’s total worth proposition. This steady story impact might be made by combining one picture into totally different screenshots to extend your customers’ consideration and conversion charges.
Tip #2: Place your most eye-catching screenshots first
When customers land in your app web page on the App Retailer or Google Play, they solely take a few seconds to resolve whether or not to obtain your app or go away. So it’s essential that you just make your first few screenshots depend. That is very true for the App Retailer, as screenshots seem straight within the search outcomes with the app icon and title. Make your first 3 screenshots eye-catching and clearly depict the app’s worth/benefits.
Professional Tip
Strive A/B testing to see which sort of screenshots have the best affect in your app’s conversion fee.
Deliveroo and Burger King (App Retailer, US) each make the most of current design traits within the Meals & Drink class, displaying actual meals that may be bought by the apps. This catches the eye of retailer customers and instantly showcases the gratification that comes with downloading their apps.
Bear in mind: Your app can also be competing with advertisements and featured tales. Subsequently, it’s extra essential to instantly seize your customers’ curiosity with visuals, as customers might need to scroll extra to seek out an app that matches their search intent.
Tip #3: Select between portrait vs. panorama orientation
It’s often difficult to decide on which orientation is the very best in your screenshots.
Video games, for instance, generally use the orientation that greatest depicts their gameplay. If the sport requires customers’ telephones to be turned sideways, the screenshots are usually optimized for panorama orientation.
For the App Retailer, there are 2 major units on which an app might be downloaded:
- On iPhone: Each panorama and portrait orientations are allowed. On desktop/iTunes, default screenshots are these from iPhone.
- On iPad: Each portrait and panorama screenshots are allowed.
In case your app is accessible on iPhone and iPad, you ideally must create totally different screenshots for every gadget in keeping with the proper measurement and pixels.
For every gadget, we see above that Indignant Birds 2 (App Retailer, US) has added the identical model of screenshots in numerous sizes. That is important to show a high-quality picture to retailer customers.
Google Play strongly recommends the next pointers when optimizing screenshots in your app or recreation:
- For apps, present a minimum of 4 screenshots with a minimal 1080px decision. These must be 16:9 for panorama (minimal 1920x1080px) screenshots and 9:16 for portrait screenshots (minimal 1080x1920px).
- For video games, present a minimum of 3 panorama screenshots of 16:9 (minimal 1920x1080px) or 3 portrait screenshots of 9:16 (minimal 1080x1920px).
You should utilize our Metadata Benchmarks to inform your choices with artistic greatest practices in your class. For instance, we see that the highest music apps, on common, add 6 screenshots to their app pages, whereas Spotify has 9 screenshots. It is usually attention-grabbing to notice the proportion of portrait and panorama screenshots utilized in every class so you’ll be able to resolve whether or not to make your app slot in, or stand out from the pattern.
Tip #4: Spotlight one foremost characteristic per screenshot
App retailer guests usually browse on small cellular units, so don’t make your screenshots too difficult. A fast tip that can assist you maintain issues easy is to deal with one characteristic per screenshot: select your greatest options and design a screenshot for every. For instance, Mailchimp (App Retailer, US) reveals one characteristic per screenshot to focus on its foremost functionalities in a transparent view.
Going one step additional, to assist customers higher perceive how they will profit from utilizing every characteristic, it’s typically a good suggestion to zoom in on sure parts. This helps focus customers’ consideration on what issues and can aid you talk your app’s foremost worth propositions. Above, we additionally see that Vrbo (App Retailer, US) makes use of magnification to broaden on among the app’s most essential options, in addition to further textual content to explain the advantages of those options.
Tip #5: Localize your app screenshots
If you wish to market your app in varied nations, it is very important add screenshots within the locale of the respective area. It’s at all times higher and simpler to persuade individuals of their mom tongue than in a international language.
Following ASO greatest practices, Airbnb (App Retailer) has localized its screenshots in numerous languages for its goal markets. For instance, within the US, they show screenshots each in English and Spanish (for 2 totally different audiences in a single nation). For Japan, the app has tailored screenshots within the native language.
Nonetheless, if you wish to maximize the affect of localization and goal worldwide markets, it’s not sufficient to easily translate your screenshots into the native language. Extra essential is to analysis the native tradition and adapt your design preferences in keeping with cultural patterns.
As we see right here, Journey.com (App Retailer) has gone one step additional by not solely localizing the language but additionally its creatives. The app incorporates tailored background pictures and journey places which are related to every nation. This culturalization of creatives helps native customers determine extra simply with the model and makes them extra prone to obtain the app.
Tip #6: Present real-life use of your app/recreation
The most effective methods to showcase the capabilities of your app/recreation is to figuratively put it within the palms of the shop person. This may be achieved by exhibiting actual individuals utilizing your app. It is a artistic tactic we don’t see typically, however may be very highly effective. By exhibiting your app’s options in a real-life situation, retailer customers can envision themselves utilizing your app and likewise think about their objectives being achieved.
Each Yousician (US, App Retailer) and Peanut (US, App Retailer) clearly reveal their apps’ functionalities by exhibiting actual individuals utilizing the app. The individuals proven in these screenshots are ultimate variations of who retailer guests need to be. Yousician demonstrates actual individuals utilizing their app to study guitar, so retailer customers can already think about themselves studying guitar in the identical method. Peanut reveals pleased ladies connecting by its app, serving to retailer customers think about discovering buddies in the identical method.
Tip #7: Monitor your rivals’ screenshot methods
It is very important monitor your rivals’ apps and take a look at what high apps in your class select to show and the way they accomplish that. Benchmarking is at all times an ideal supply of inspiration. A good suggestion is to collect all screenshots out of your most profitable rivals and attempt to perceive what actually works.
You can too check out your least profitable rivals’ screenshots and attempt to keep away from the attainable errors they could have made. Uncovering how your rivals use their screenshots and the way they carry out will aid you determine alternatives out there.
With our Timeline, you’ll be able to simply determine when one among your rivals has carried out a metadata change and consider the earlier than/after. With this, you’ll be able to determine some traits and seasonality results that you might additionally observe. For instance, we see that Temple Run 2 modified its screenshots from a Christmas design to a extra common winter design on January 6, 2022 (App Retailer).
Tip #8: A/B check your app screenshots
It’s at all times good to check what you do. Check totally different variations of your app screenshots to find out which colours, textual content, design parts, and imagery have the best conversion charges. Examine the outcomes and go for the best-performing variant.
You’ll be able to A/B check your screenshots on each shops. On Google Play, that is attainable with retailer itemizing experiments; on the App Retailer, you’ll be able to conduct A/B exams with product web page optimization. A/B exams will let you study which artistic parts drive extra conversions in your app, see how customers reply in a different way all over the world, check seasonal content material for increased downloads, and extra.
If we check out the Timeline for Gardenscapes (Google Play, US), we see that the app ran an A/B check on their first screenshot. Two days after their check ended, they carried out the alternate screenshot from the check, implying that the variant drove extra installs to the app.