How to promote an app in the App Store: step by step 

From the title and screenshots to first downloads and reviews. A practical plan to lift an app in search and recommendations.

Building the app is half the job. The other half is being found. Thousands of apps are published in the App Store every day, and without promotion a new one gets lost by day two. Here's a practical step-by-step plan.

1. Title and subtitle

The most important fields for search. Format: brand + the keyword you'll be searched by. Not «Radobo» but «Radobo: online client booking». The subtitle — more keywords plus the main benefit. Together they decide which queries can find you at all.

2. Keywords

The App Store has a hidden 100-character field. Write keywords comma-separated with no spaces, don't repeat words from the title, don't duplicate singular and plural. Pick queries people actually search but where competition is weaker — a new app can't break through the most generic words.

3. Icon and screenshots

They decide conversion — how many of those who see it tap «Get». The first 2–3 screenshots matter most: not bare screens but a screen plus a short benefit caption. The icon is worth testing — it gives the biggest lift in clicks.

4. First downloads and reviews

The algorithm loves speed: a spike of downloads over a few days matters more than a slow trickle over a month. So it's worth concentrating the launch into one day and bringing people from everywhere. And the first 10–20 honest 4–5★ reviews make the app stop looking «dead».

5. Ads and external traffic

Apple Search Ads (ads in store search) is the fastest way to get first downloads, and they also lift organic ranking. Plus drive traffic from Instagram, your site and a bot via App Store links. At RADOBO we help both build the app and prepare it for promotion from day one.