Seven new languages, one growing search curve
A trip planning app had an English listing that ranked well at home and almost nowhere else. We localized its store presence into seven markets and turned search into its largest source of installs.
The challenge
The listing had been machine-translated into a few languages, keeping the English keywords. Locals searched for completely different terms.
Screenshots showed American cities, which did little for a traveler in Seoul or São Paulo.
What we did
- 1
Local keyword research
Native-speaking specialists researched how people search for trip planning in each market, from itineraries to travel diaries.
- 2
Market-specific screenshots
Screenshots were rebuilt with destinations popular in each market and captions written by local copywriters.
- 3
Seasonal metadata
Promo text and keywords were updated before each market's holiday season, from Golden Week to European summer.
- 4
Monthly listing tests
Each market ran its own icon and screenshot tests, so winners in Japan did not have to win in Brazil.
The results
- markets fully localized
- 7markets fully localized
- top-10 keyword rankings
- 3.1×top-10 keyword rankings
- average page install rate
- +22%average page install rate
“Our search installs used to be a rounding error outside the US. Now they are the largest line in the report.”
More stories
Got an app worth growing?
Tell us where it stands today. We reply within one business day with next steps, or with an honest no if we are not the right fit.