After some time running search results campaigns on Apple Search Ads, it might feel like you’ve maxed out all your keywords and potential to grow. But with Apple now offering three placements beyond search results ads, there’s even more room to scale the channel. The best strategy is leveraging them all together to engage different audiences in both performance and brand campaigns. Here are a few tips for scaling up campaigns across multiple Apple Search Ads placements.
Quick recap
There are currently four Apple Search Ads placements that help advertisers reach users across their entire App Store journey:
- Search results ads are the bread and butter of your Apple Search Ads strategy - they’re the original Apple Search Ads placement and the one advertisers usually start out with. It works by displaying an ad relevant to a user’s search query at the top of the App Store search results.
- Search tab ads appear at the top of the Suggested list on the Search tab, before users enter a search query.
- Today tab ads appear on the front page of the App Store, and feature your app icon, name, and subtitle. These ads get more exposure from the start, getting the most impressions from users.
- Product pages - while browsing ads appear on an app’s product page at the top of the “You Might Also Like” list and reach users when they’re exploring and researching apps on the App Store. Product pages ads typically have the highest IPM, after search results ads.
Strategy 1: Combine Search results ads and Today tab ads to increase brand awareness
If your app doesn't have much brand recognition, the bulk of your spend is likely going to generic and competitor campaigns on search results ads - because they’re intent driven and great for acquiring high quality users. To start generating more brand recognition and more search queries, you want to close the gap by running on other placements - like Today tab ads.
Running Today tab ads is a great first-touch opportunity for engaging users who you might not have reached in previous campaigns. Gradually with time, this boost in brand awareness can positively impact your search results campaigns by increasing search volume for your app.
Strategy 2: Combine product pages ads and Today tab ads to leverage users exploring
Product pages ads are one of the most intent-driven Apple Search Ads placements - so while they may reach fewer people, they can generate a much higher CVR than other placements. That’s because users acquired through this placement are actively researching for and seeking out new apps, and are so engaged that they’ve scrolled to the bottom of the page. To increase CVR even more, pair product pages ads with Today tab ads. That way, potential users who see your app on the product page placement already recognize and know your brand from seeing it on the front page of the App Store. Essentially, the high traffic and volume from Today tab function to help with brand awareness and drive more users to engage with your product page ad.
Strategy 3: Pair Search results ads and Search tab ads for lower CPI costs
Use Search tab ads, which tend to have the lowest CPI of all the placements, to balance the higher costs of search results campaigns. If you can’t afford the high CPIs and you’ve hit your cap on search results ads, Search tab will help you expand delivery and scale cost-effectively.
This can be especially useful for the hyper-casual game genre which rely on low CPIs to acquire users and grow at scale.
