The App Store has added new app tags, CPP can bind keywords, and screenshots affect search rankings... New features closely related to promotion have arrived after WWDC25!

With the various events held during WWDC25, in addition to the new iOS 26 system, the "heavyweight" features of the App Store and App Store Connect have also been announced one after another! Qimai Research Institute has urgently compiled several major features/updates closely related to promotion. Without further ado, let's take a look!

01 New App Tags in the App Store

This year, Apple has made multiple updates to the App Store and launched a major new feature. Let's first take a look at the newly added App tags!

According to official information, the launch of App tags is to help users better understand the features or functions of apps or games. These tags are mainly generated by Apple's large language model using a series of data sources (including app metadata), and the quality of the tags has also been manually reviewed and checked.

The tags automatically generated by the system will be displayed in the App information section of the App Store Connect backend. Developers can select or deselect which tags to display in the App Store at this location.

After the tags take effect, they can be displayed on the product page. When users tap on a specific tag, they will be able to view a curated collection of apps or games related to that specific tag.

In addition, to improve the discoverability of the tags, these tags will be displayed in key areas of the App Store, such as on the search tag page along with app categories, and in search results along with apps.

Launch status:

It will be launched in phases. Currently, a limited number of apps and games on the US App Store already offer English search tags. This year, the feature will be extended to all apps and games on the US App Store and cover app stores and languages in other markets.

Impact on app store promotion and customer acquisition:

① There is an opportunity to increase app exposure and downloads by using App tags. App tags will be displayed in the category recommendation section of the search tag page, which means users will be able to discover apps through specific features rather than just categories. For example, a fitness app may appear under the "Workout Tracking" tag, not just in the "Health & Fitness" category. After an app uses a certain tag, it will have the opportunity to appear in the keyword search results related to that tag, which in a sense increases the app's search weight under that keyword and the chance of exposure.

② Apple clearly states that one of the sources of these tags is the app's metadata. In addition to keywords, it may also include app descriptions, screenshots, user reviews, etc. If you want the system to automatically generate more accurate and relevant tags, it is recommended to optimize multi - dimensional metadata, such as adding relevant keywords in the description.

02 App Store Search Supports Natural Language Search

In addition to the new App tags, another major change in App Store search is the support for natural language search. That is, users can use everyday language to describe what they want according to their goals, or search for specific features or functions to find more accurate and relevant results in the search results.

Launch status:

Currently, this enhanced search feature only supports English and is applicable to a limited number of apps and games on the US App Store. According to Apple, this year, the feature will be extended to all apps and games on the US App Store, as well as to more countries/regions and languages.

Impact on app store promotion and customer acquisition:

① The traditional ASO optimization model that relies on keyword stuffing will be reconstructed. It is recommended to embed scenario - based descriptions in the metadata, design phrase combinations for segmented needs instead of stuffing a number of discrete keywords, and fully consider the localization differences in major markets.

② Phrase descriptions that appear frequently in user reviews may be associated by the algorithm. You can try to strengthen review analysis and optimize reviews through official - allowed measures such as in - app pop - ups.

③ The display volume of long - tail keywords in Apple Ads is expected to increase. In response to this, we can add some long - tail keyword tests, such as "Apps for child photo beautification", and at the same time expand negative keywords, such as "Free photo - editing software" and other non - core needs to reduce invalid clicks.

03 Keywords Can Be Added to Custom Product Pages

Since the launch of the custom product page function, it has mainly been used in two channels: one is as promotional materials outside the App Store (at this time, the custom product page cannot appear in searches, but it can be used in marketing activities or targeted at specific audiences through the URL link provided on each page), the other is as advertising materials for Apple Ads. However, this situation will change in the future.

In the latest document released by Apple, it is introduced that in the future, developers will be able to "assign" keywords to each custom product page in App Store Connect, and the custom product pages with assigned keywords can appear in the search results of these selected keywords.

We need to pay attention to why it is said to be "assign" instead of "create" here? You can take a look at the following picture.

It is introduced that the keywords of the custom product page come from the latest version of the app in the App Store. That is to say, we cannot "randomly" create keywords for the custom product page, but need to select and assign them from the keywords of the app's latest version to a specific custom product page.

In addition, there are several points that are also very worthy of attention:

① The custom product page with assigned keywords can be directly set to go live without review (because the latest version of the app and the custom product page have already passed the review).

② After assigning keywords to the custom product page, when the app appears in the search for these keywords, the custom product page will be displayed instead of the default page.

③ The App analysis section of the App Store Connect backend will display the search traffic of each custom product page.

④ Keywords can be selected for different language types.

⑤ Apple officially recommends assigning unique keywords to each custom product page, which is beneficial for displaying the most relevant content in the search results of that keyword.

Launch status:

It will be launched later this year.

Impact on app store promotion and customer acquisition:

① It breaks the limitation that only one set of materials can be displayed in the natural search of the App Store. After this function is launched, we will be able to set product pages with different functions or content for different keywords to attract specific groups of people to click and download, thereby increasing the download conversion rate.

② It makes the effect of keyword optimization traceable. After setting specific keywords for the custom product page and going live, we can view the search traffic of the custom product page in the [Analysis] section of App Store Connect and track subsequent download, subscription and other behaviors.

③ Keyword optimization and Apple Ads placement complement each other. Through the analysis function of App Store Connect and the data panel of Apple Ads backend, we can comprehensively analyze which types of keywords and which page combinations can bring better conversions, thus forming a more complete attribution mechanism.

④ In addition to Apple Ads, the custom product page can be used as the display material for specified keywords in natural search. That is to say, when placing Apple Ads for a certain keyword, we can specify whether to display the same custom product page as the ad in the natural search to better harvest long - tail traffic.

⑤ It should be noted that there is a mutually exclusive relationship between the custom product page and the default page. That is, after assigning a certain keyword to the custom product page, the custom product page will replace the default page in the keyword search results. It is recommended to fully test the customer acquisition effect of a certain set of custom product pages and a certain keyword through Apple Ads before taking action.

04 Screenshot Keywords May Affect Search Rankings

Recently, there have been many speculations in the industry about Apple's adjustment of the App Store search algorithm, which has led to significant fluctuations in the rankings of some apps. One of the speculations is that Apple is using OCR image recognition technology to extract text from screenshots and using this text as part of the keywords, which in turn affects the app's search weight.

According to a foreign mobile app data analysis platform, keywords in screenshots can strengthen core keywords and introduce new keywords. That is to say, the keywords in screenshots will not conflict with the keywords in the name, subtitle, or keyword section, but will increase the search weight of relevant keywords in the above sections. Moreover, screenshots can be used to introduce more keywords combined with the main metadata. For example, if the app name contains the keyword "Photo Editor", we can add "AI Photo Editor" in the screenshot to strengthen "Photo Editor" and introduce "AI" into the metadata group. In addition, the platform speculates that Apple's OCR algorithm may not read the entire screenshot, but mainly focus on the top and bottom areas of the screenshot.

So far, there is no official information to support the above speculations, and there is not enough evidence and cases to verify their effectiveness. However, it doesn't prevent us from learning some screenshot design skills in advance to ensure that screenshots can be read by the OCR algorithm and be prepared for the future.

① Use high - contrast text. Avoid using light - colored text on a light - colored background or dark - colored text on a dark - colored background, because it is difficult for the OCR algorithm to recognize text with low contrast. At the same time, avoid placing text on complex app interfaces or soft gradient backgrounds, which may interfere with text recognition.

② Choose easy - to - recognize fonts. Do not use overly thin or fancy (such as artistic) fonts. And ensure that the text size is appropriate and suitable for reading. If it is not clear on the phone, Apple's OCR will also be unable to recognize it. Avoid overlaying or using too many shadow effects, otherwise, it will reduce the accuracy of OCR recognition.

③ It is recommended to place the key text at the top or bottom of the screenshot. Apple's OCR may only scan the top 1/3 and bottom 1/3 of the screenshot, and these two positions are the OCR - safe areas.

④ Each screenshot should focus on one keyword theme. Avoid over - stuffing information and do not repeat the same copy. Repeating keywords within the same screenshot has no additional benefits.

Impact on app store promotion and customer acquisition:

At present, it is still uncertain whether the keywords in screenshots will affect search weight. It is recommended that you do not blindly follow the trend. On the basis of continuously optimizing the main metadata areas such as the name and keywords, if you have the ability, you can try to add key keywords in screenshots on a small scale and track the test results, which can also prepare for future algorithm adjustments in advance.

05 New Accessibility Tags Added to App Store Product Pages

Apple has also added an accessibility tag function to the App Store product pages this time. This makes it easier for users to know whether an app provides the accessibility features they need before downloading it, and it also helps developers explain the supported features of the app to users.

The accessibility tags cover a total of 9 major functions: VoiceOver, Larger Text, Voice Control, Dark Mode, Captions, etc. Developers can choose according to the actual functions of the app.

Currently, the beta version of this function has been launched on App Store Connect. After clicking [App Accessibility] in the left - hand menu, we can see a detailed introduction to this function.

After clicking the [Start] button, you need to first select the device for which you want to set the accessibility tags, and then you can enter the accessibility selection page. At this time, just select according to the prompts.

After the settings are completed, the accessibility tags will be saved