New Opportunities for User Acquisition on iOS: Apple's Major Upgrade to App Store Discovery and Marketing Capabilities Redefines User Traffic Acquisition and Operation Logic

During WWDC 2026, Apple introduced a series of updates: a comprehensive upgrade of Siri AI, iOS 27, new-generation Apple Intelligence features, and improvements to Liquid Glass, etc. In addition, Qimai Research Institute found that Apple also launched a series of significant updates around the App Store Discovery and marketing enhancements section.

In this update, Apple not only opened up the marketing booths that were previously only available to editor - recommended apps but also optimized the material management process and reconstructed the traffic operation logic. From the perspectives of visual display, material management process, user distribution, and advertising ecosystem, it unlocks new exposure and customer acquisition opportunities for all - category developers, especially small and medium - sized teams and independent developers.

Creative Assets: Enhance the visual marketing effects of App Store organic traffic positions and Apple Ads advertising positions

Developers have always relied mainly on "screenshots" and "preview videos" for marketing materials on the App Store. In this update, Apple broke this limitation. Based on regular app screenshots and preview videos, it launched Creative Assets.

Creative Assets support both image and video formats. They can be deployed in App Store organic traffic positions and Apple Ads advertising positions to achieve marketing goals such as brand promotion, event promotion, and content building.

• Product page headers: This is the first visual area users see when entering the app details page, and it was previously an exclusive booth only open to Apple - editor - recommended apps. After the launch of Creative Assets, developers will be able to upload images or videos to this position independently to showcase product features. At that time, the top materials on the product details page will form a visual linkage with the app icon and screenshots, effectively increasing the page stay time and users' willingness to convert.

The right - hand image shows the new visual effect.

The top of the left - hand image is a picture, and the top of the right - hand image is a video.

• Search results page: The search results pages of the App Store and Apple Games will be completely redesigned. The platform will no longer display traditional vertical screenshots by default. Developers will be able to use horizontal images with stronger visual impact and automatically playing videos to replace the original materials. With stronger visual impact, it helps products stand out among similar apps, intuitively showcases the core advantages of products, and increases the search click - through rate.

The right - hand image shows the new visual effect.

• Custom product pages & product page optimization: Creative Assets are compatible with both custom product pages (CPP) and product page optimization functions. Developers can configure customized top and search materials for exclusive custom product pages according to different channels and search keywords. At the same time, they can use product page optimization to test the click - through rate and download conversion data of multiple sets of materials and select the optimal display plan with real user data.
• Apple Ads: Creative Assets also connect to the Apple Ads advertising background and will support the placement of ads on the Today tab and search results ads.

Apple has currently announced the relevant requirements for image and video materials used in Apple Ads:

• Both images and videos should use a 3:2 aspect ratio.
• The video duration should be controlled between 5 and 30 seconds and can only be used for search results ads.
• Videos can be uploaded with or without audio, but the audio will not play after placement.
• Embedded text can be added to images and videos, and the text can be localized according to the countries and regions where the ads are placed.

In addition, it is particularly worth noting that Apple Ads will support the placement of video materials at that time.

Launch time: Creative Assets will be gradually launched on the App Store Connect and Apple Ads platforms in the fall of 2026. It is recommended that developers prepare in advance, especially for the scenarios of Apple Ads placement. It is recommended to produce image and video materials in advance. After the function is launched, upload the materials to the App Store Connect and complete the review, and then they can be used in ads immediately.

Asset Library: Say goodbye to version binding and revolutionize material management efficiency

To facilitate the submission and management of marketing materials, App Store Connect will launch a centralized material management tool, Asset Library. Developers can upload and manage various visual materials such as images, videos, preview videos, and screenshots here. And materials can be submitted for review independently without being bound to the app version package.

According to the information released by Apple, after the launch of Asset Library, developers will be able to use the dual - review mode flexibly:

Mode 1: Submit for review with the app version (traditional method): The materials are reviewed together with the new version. After the version is released, the materials at the page header, search, etc. will be launched synchronously.

Mode 2: Review independent materials separately (new method): The materials are directly uploaded to the Asset Library without being reviewed together with the new version. After passing the review, they are archived and can be called and replaced later without a second review. The decoupling of materials from version updates simplifies the processes of material management, review, and switching, and is perfectly suitable for short - term promotion scenarios such as festival marketing, limited - time events, and hot - spot operations.

In addition, materials uploaded and approved in the Asset Library can be used across multiple scenarios: the top of the product details page, search results, custom product pages, in - app activities, Apple Ads, etc., truly achieving the effect of using one production in multiple places and effectively improving the utilization efficiency of materials.

Launch time: Asset Library will be launched on App Store Connect in the fall of 2026.

Product page preview in App Store Connect: What you see is what you get, reducing the risk of going live

App Store Connect will launch a new preview tool that can help developers preview in advance the effects of the App title, App name, description, screenshots, and creative materials in search results before officially publishing the product page to the App Store.

It is understood that the product page preview tool supports multi - device adaptation preview, which means we can view the display effects of iPhone and iPad in both portrait and landscape modes simultaneously. It also supports switching between different regional language versions.

After the launch of the new preview tool, we can use it as a quality inspection checkpoint before the materials go live to avoid problems such as misaligned screens, disproportionate ratios, and inconsistent text and images after going live.

Launch time: The product page preview tool will be launched on App Store Connect in the fall of 2026.

Personalized Collections on the App Store: Drive traffic distribution by user interests

To help more users discover your apps and games, the App Store will provide new personalized collections based on users' interests. These customized recommendations can be displayed on the "App", "Games", and "Search" tabs. There will be explanatory text next to each app to explain why the app matches the user's interests, thereby enhancing users' trust and willingness to click.

It is reported that the collections and other App Store information will gradually change according to users' app usage and download situations to adapt to the ever - changing user needs. That is to say, the collections will be generated based on users' download records, usage behaviors, browsing preferences, etc. Even if a product does not have an advantage in the rankings, it still has a chance to appear in this position and obtain free organic traffic.

Launch time: Currently, a limited number of apps in some countries and regions can download the collections, and it is planned to expand gradually in the future.

Impact on developers: Opportunities and new operating directions

Apple's upgrade of the App Store discovery and marketing system this time is not simply adding a few display positions and functions. Instead, it reshapes the traffic rules and operating logic of the App Store and has a great impact on app customer acquisition. In particular, the following two points are very worthy of attention:

① Good news for small and medium - sized/independent developers: Break the resource barrier and achieve traffic equality

Previously, leading large companies and editor - recommended apps occupied the high - quality visual positions at the top of the product details page. Now, independent developers and niche products can also attract users' attention at this position with high - quality creative materials. The Asset Library makes materials independent of the review, which is very beneficial for small teams to achieve lightweight and burden - free operation. The above - mentioned personalized collections are mainly driven by users' interests and behaviors, giving more non - leading products the opportunity to obtain free organic traffic.

② The advertising placement efficiency of Apple Ads is expected to be significantly improved

This update may bring multiple benefits to developers who place Apple Ads:

First, Apple Ads will support the video ad format. Usually, the click - through rate of dynamic content is generally higher than that of static images. At that time, developers will have the opportunity to use more impactful visual materials to improve the conversion rate. In addition, Creative Assets support the use in scenarios such as search results and custom product pages. Developers have the opportunity to make the ads and the search results page as well as the details page achieve a more coherent visual effect, thereby improving the efficiency of the entire conversion chain of download, activation, and payment.

For the entire developer ecosystem, this update is both an opportunity and a challenge. With the official launch of the functions in the fall, the focus of competition in the App Store will continue to shift to the comprehensive competition of visual creativity, refined operation, and full - link conversion. It is recommended that developers make early arrangements to seize the opportunity in the new round of traffic transformation.

This article is from the WeChat official account "Qimai Research Institute" (ID: Qimaiyanjiuyuan), written by Xiao Qi, and published by 36Kr with authorization.