Big companies are spending over $500,000 to improve App Store ranking
For the last few years, Xu Huaizhe and Liu Xiong have been engaged in a business that strikes others as mysterious: app ranking optimization. They can use optimization to take an unknown app to the top of the App Store rankings in two or three hours, helping developers grab the attention of more users and attract investment.
Paying for optimization is the most effective way for app developers to reach the top ranks. According to Liu Xiong, developers using this method invest only a third of the cost of typical promotion channels. The app ranking optimization companies receive 30% of the profit for assisting developers reach a high rank.
The optimization companies feel they are running legal business since they don’t break the rules set by Apple. However, some app developers believe that the practice undermines fairness and hurts those developers who may have a good app but can’t afford to pay for optimization.
This criticism hasn't affected the success of Xu Huaizhe and Liu Xiong's growing businesses. Liu Xiong is considering expanding overseas to optimize app store rankings in the U.S., Japan, and Germany.
Millions of apps crossing a single bridge
App Store ranking is essential for an app. If an app can’t squeeze into the top ranking, it will end up an unknown “zombie app” regardless of quality.
According to analysis by AppYING, an app’s rank depends on downloads, DAUs, conversion rates, the number of accounts and other factors. However, other than the optimization companies, it is difficult for anyone to know the weight given to each element.
25 thousand to reach the top 5
Based on a price list provided by an App Rank Optimization company, we found that the optimization is divided into two categories: rush and maintenance. The price for reaching the top 5 in a rush is 25 thousand.
According to Xu Huaizhe, major ways of promoting apps include optimization, promotion on forums, word of mouth, Weibo micro-blogging, and more. Compared to the other methods, optimization is the cheapest and is the fastest way to achieve the desired result.
Big companies spend 500-600 thousand a month
Big clients of Liu Xiong's spend 500-600 thousand for app ranking optimization. Liu's company currently takes in over one million in income each month. He divides his clients into three categories: big clients, medium clients, and small clients. Big clients are the companies that plan to spend over 500 thousand a month for app ranking optimization. Medium clients buy optimization on a weekly basis, and small clients only do optimization on a daily basis for a maximum of two days.
Optimization companies' self-regulation
Some of the big optimization companies are planning to establish an association to strengthen the industry's self-regulation and also protect the App Store's ecosystem. Meanwhile, some optimization companies are planning for the future. Liu Xiong is determined to take his business aborad to Japan, the U.S. and Germany after the next round of investment.
