--- static_export_time: "2026-07-30T17:35:34+00:00" title: "Organic Keyword Ranking Apple Search Ads" description: "In this blog, we'll discover how Apple Search Ads can help you grow your organic keyword rankings. Get that organic uplift!" url: "/en/aso-blog/how-search-ads-can-boost-your-apps-organic-keyword-rankings" locale: "en-US" image: "https://www.apptweak.com/img/2023/04/1200x627_with-title_social-media-How-Search-Ads-can-Boost-Your-Apps-Organic-Keyword-Rankings.png?auto=compress%2Cformat&q=95" --- # How Search Ads Can Boost Your Organic Keyword Rankings ![Lucas Riedinger](/img/2023/04/18102021-Lucas_Riedinger.jpg?auto=format%2Ccompress&w=200&h=200&fit=crop)by  **Lucas Riedinger** Product Manager at AppTweak Last updated on July 24 2024 — 6 min read Summarize with AI Subscribe to our monthly newsletter Subscribe to our monthly newsletter According to Apple, **about 65% of app downloads come from a search**. This makes the advertising placement in the top of the search results prime real estate. On top of that, when Apple Search Ads was released in 2016, some were relieved to find a cheat code that would automatically position your keywords between 8 and 10 for organic ranking when your ad showed in the search results. This, in turn, gave even more organic visibility to your app. Unfortunately, today, this is not the case anymore. However, there is quite some overlap between ASO and ASA. In this blog, we’ll discuss how Apple Search Ads can help boost your app’s organic keyword rankings and grow your app. * * * ## 1. Find new keywords with Apple Search Ads discovery campaigns By running discovery campaigns (search match), Apple will **identify keywords that might be relevant for your app to rank on**. This can reveal keywords that you didn’t think of and that might be worth bidding on or even trying to rank organically on. Additionally, if you already have in mind keywords that you are willing to target, you could use the search match feature to make sure you are not missing variant keywords worth targeting. [Learn how to run ASA campaigns with our Apple Search Ads guide](/en/aso-blog/guide-to-apple-search-ads) #### Expert Tip For broad match and search match campaigns, add all the keywords from your brand, category, and competitor campaigns as negative keywords. This prevents your discovery campaign from matching ads to keywords you’re already bidding on. ## 2. Improve organic conversion rate with exact match campaigns Once you’ve discovered new keywords, you can **run an exact match campaign targeting specific, highly relevant keywords**. By targeting specific keywords, you can improve your ads conversion rates and gain high-quality downloads. These additional downloads could also impact your organic visibility and **generate an organic uplift**. [Understand the different match types in Apple Search Ads to fine-tune your campaign](/en/aso-blog/what-are-the-different-match-types-in-apple-search-ads) Organic uplift can basically be triggered in 2 ways: ### Improved conversion rate & download velocity on keywords Apple Search Ads campaigns targeting relevant keywords **that you are already targeting organically** (keywords that are part of your [ASO strategy](/en/aso-blog/aso-strategy)) will likely have a **higher conversion rate** than more general keywords. Apple will recognize that users find these keywords relevant to your app and might take this into consideration in the ranking algorithm, which can, in turn, lead to **increased organic rankings** for those keywords. To achieve such an organic uplift, the key lies in identifying keywords upon which you can [improve your conversion rate](/en/aso-blog/how-to-increase-your-conversion-rate-with-apple-search-ads). There are 2 ways of doing it: - Start running Apple Search Ad campaigns on identified keywords to drive some additional downloads, improving the conversion rate. - Using [custom product pages (CPPs)](/en/aso-blog/how-to-leverage-custom-product-pages-for-apple-search-ads) to improve the relevancy of an Apple Search Ads campaign. #### Expert Tip It appears that when a custom product page is used in an Apple Search Ad, the organic result also displays creatives of the custom product page. This means that at the top of the search results, you would have the first 3 screenshots of the custom product page displayed. Then, wherever your app ranks organically, the fourth, fifth, and sixth screenshots of your custom product page would be shown. ### Global improvement in daily number of downloads Besides the impact Apple Search Ads can have on a keyword level, **the overall increase in downloads** that can **result from Apple Search Ads campaigns** may lead to an **overall increase in visibility**. As a matter of fact, with an improved download velocity, Apple understands that it should weigh your app more heavily in its algorithm. It follows that **your app may start ranking on a larger pool of keywords** and on **more competitive keywords**. ## 3. Get insights from your Apple Search Ads campaigns After running some exact match campaigns, you should **use Apple Search Ads data to provide your ASO team with keyword-level conversion rate measurement and test your organic relevance**. To maximize your chances of having an organic uplift, analyze your ASA campaigns and **look for keywords that could be added to your ASO strategy**. For instance, if you find out that the keyword “quick deliveries” converted well during one of your campaigns, it might be worth adding it to your metadata (subtitle or keyword field, for example). [Learn how you can leverage Search Ads Manager to optimize and scale your Apple Search Ads campaigns in one place](/en/aso-blog/new-tools-to-manage-apple-search-ads-campaigns) #### Campaign Manager Create effective campaigns, monitor performance, and find new opportunities to enhance your Apple Search Ads directly in AppTweak. [Try now](https://app.apptweak.com/accounts/new?locale=en&product=search_ads&recurrence=1month&plan_code=sa-business) ## Synergies between Apple Search Ads & ASO Everything we have discussed so far underlines the synergies that exist between Apple Search Ads and [App Store Optimization](/en/aso-blog/what-is-app-store-optimization-and-why-is-aso-important). It is really important to understand those to make the most out of both your Apple Search Ads & ASO strategies. ![Leverage synergies between ASA and ASO](/img/2023/01/1200x700-ASO-ASA-Synergies.png?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=scale&h=700&w=1200) _The loop between Apple Search Ads and ASO. Source: Advanced App Store Optimization, a work by AppTweak and Phiture._ - Using ASA data to support your ASO decisions might lead your app to convert better organically on some keywords. This can, in turn, help you **maximize your conversion on both organic and paid search results**. - Custom product pages operate as landing pages that you can show to store visitors searching for specific keywords. Create **custom product pages that match the search intent behind a keyword** to increase the relevance of your app and further improve your paid and organic keywords’ conversion rate. [Dive into these key insights on how to create successful synergies between ASO & ASA](/en/aso-blog/mau-recap-successful-synergies-between-aso-asa) #### Expert Tip Be careful of [cannibalization](/en/aso-blog/measuring-cannibalization-in-apple-search-ads). If your app ranks #1 on some keywords, bidding on these keywords could lead to cannibalization. You might end up paying to acquire users that you could have converted for free. * * * ## Conclusion The pursuit of user acquisition has never been so fierce on the App Store. Many will try to use all tools available, but only a few will succeed at combining them to conquer the App Store! To combine properly Apple Search Ads and ASO, you should: - Conduct **discovery campaigns** to reveal new keywords opportunities - Conduct some **exact match campaigns** to assess the potential of each keyword - Leverage **synergies between ASA and ASO** - Refine your **ASO strategy** and **keyword selection** to maximize the organic uplift generated from your Apple Search Ads campaigns [Start free trial](https://app.apptweak.com/accounts/new?locale=en) * * * by **Lucas Riedinger** , Product Manager at AppTweak Lucas is a Product Manager at AppTweak, helping to fuel growth for the world's most popular apps and games. He is passionate about rugby, basketball, and video games. [ ![](https://apptweak.imgix.net/assets/resources/guides/app-store-keyword-research-guide/app-store-keyword-research-guide-thumb.jpg?auto=format,compress&q=75&w=329&h=214) Your Essential Toolkit for ASO Keyword Research A deep-dive into ASO keyword research. Learn how to find and prioritize your target keywords, localization and ASO best practices. Download now ](/en/aso-resources/guides/essential-toolkit-for-aso-keyword-research) * * * More articles in App Keyword Research, Apple Ads - [ App Keyword ResearchApple Ads June 6, 2023 How to Choose Keywords for Apple Ads Campaigns? Learn how to choose the most effective keywords to maximize the performance of your Apple Ads campaigns. ![Suleika Vanmaele](/img/2023/03/24112022-Suleika_Vanmaele.jpg?auto=format%2Ccompress&w=300&h=300&fit=crop)Suleika Vanmaele ](/en/aso-blog/how-to-choose-keywords-for-apple-search-ads-campaigns) - [ Apple AdsProduct Updates July 29, 2026 Automate Apple Ads for trading apps based on Bitcoin, gold, and the VIX Trading and finance apps can now automate Apple Ads in AppTweak based on Bitcoin price, gold price, and the VIX … ![Georgia Shepherd](/img/2025/03/20240415-Georgia_01.jpeg?auto=format%2Ccompress&w=300&h=300&fit=crop)Georgia Shepherd ](/en/aso-blog/automate-apple-ads-based-on-bitcoin-price-changes) - [ App Keyword ResearchApp Market Insights July 10, 2026 Which platforms offer an API for app store data? Get the breakdown of native and third-party API tools. Learn what data you can access, use cases, limits, and how … ![Micah Motta](/img/2025/07/20250220-Micah_Motta.jpg?auto=format%2Ccompress&w=300&h=300&fit=crop)Micah Motta ](/en/aso-blog/app-store-api-tools) [See all posts](/en/aso-blog)