bookmark_borderApp promotion tips: 11 expert tips on how to promote your app

  1. Write about the application you are building
    Tracy Osborn, designer, developer, and author of Hello Web App, has found that the best way to promote your app is to write the following:

the challenges you face
Solutions to your problems
Activities you attended (and lessons learned)
Programs, lessons, and challenges you take part in (and of course, lessons learned)
How do you apply what you’ve learned to your application
In short, it’s time to #publicstartup.

“It’s marketing that doesn’t look like marketing,” explains Osborn. “It will be easier for you and your readers to share and promote because it won’t be considered a blatant ad, it’s a marketing Trojan horse to introduce your product to potential customers.”

It’s a marketing that doesn’t look like marketing.

Tracy Osborn
The downside, Osborn admits, is that it takes time to write, but in her experience, the time invested always pays off several times over compared to other, more traditional marketing campaigns.

“Once you get into the habit, it’s easier to keep posting on social media, blogging, writing articles about what you’ve learned and what you can teach others,” she said.

You might also like: How to Get More App Downloads in the Shopify App Store.

  1. Set up automated marketing
    It was also important for Osborn to build as much automated marketing as possible when designing, developing and promoting all of her products so she could spend more time on the products.

“I usually spend my marketing time writing informative and instructional blog posts that I can share to relevant communities, such as specific Reddit subreddits. The blog post is then shared naturally on dedicated social media platforms.”

Osborn recommends including an image in your blog to maximize engagement, and preferably syndicating blog posts on other writing platforms like Medium or Dev Community to increase their visibility.

“Once you spend time doing app promotion work, like writing an article, make sure to take advantage of every opportunity to share that article, especially if it can be done automatically after publishing.”

YOU MIGHT ALSO LIKE: 5 Social Media Automation Tools to Increase Your Business’ Online Presence.

  1. Write case studies and get client testimonials
    The numbers are proof, says Kelly Vaughn, founder and developer of The Taproom Agency.

Whether you’re pitching directly to the CEO, or to the technical decision makers responsible for execution, you should get help from a few key users who can make great case studies for your app, she suggests.

“Let them test the app and gather some use cases and customer testimonials,” she advises. “Apps with social proof are more attractive when your app competes with the vast number of potentially similar apps already on the market.”

Apps with social proof are more appealing when your app competes with a large number of potentially similar apps already on the market.

Kelly Vaughn, The Taproom Agency
If you’re not sure who to ask for customer testimonials, you can try getting testimonials through social media, such as Facebook groups and Twitter. Explain your app and ask for some help while testing your app in exchange for a review.

When asking for a review, make sure to follow the guidelines set out in the Partner Program Agreement, as there are some things you can do and some things you can’t. Read our guide on how to get reviews for your Shopify app.

You might also like: Social Proof: How to Make the Most of This Powerful Marketing Asset.

  1. Know your unique value proposition and be prepared to promote it
    Your purpose for building your application is clear. Maybe it’s an unprecedented new idea, maybe it’s an improvement over an app that’s already on the market today. Whatever the purpose, Kelly Vaughn recommends making sure you articulate clearly what makes your app stand out.

Make sure your value proposition is articulated and understood by any potential customer.

Kelly Vaughn, The Taproom Agency
Vaughn warns: “You may only have 10 seconds to get a potential customer’s attention, and you only have one chance to make a good first impression. Whether it’s talking to others about your app or doing it via Twitter App promotion, make sure your value proposition is clearly articulated and understood by any potential customer.”

You might also like: Shopify App review experience and tips to help you pass the app review quickly.

  1. Write clear and concise copy
    Knowing what your product does is critical to writing application copy. Product strategist, designer and author Andi Galpern recommends speaking directly to your target audience.

“Make the benefits of using an app obvious so people are motivated to download it. Don’t overwhelm people with rhetoric. Use plain language so everyone gets the same information. For example, I use Hemingway a lot. This simple online word processor to build and edit paragraphs of copy. It assesses sentence readability and encourages authors to write with a positive tone.”

People will buy from people they trust.

Kelly Vaughn, The Taproom Agency
Above all, Galpern advises being authentic: “People will buy from people they trust. You want to sound like a real person who really cares about the people who use your product.”

You might also like: 10 UX Writing Tips for Creating Effective Content.

  1. Optimize the material on the product page of the app
    Lifesum Product Page Health app LIFESUM’s product page helps you understand exactly what the app does at a glance.
    Ludo De Angelis, founder of digital and app promotion agency Orto marketing, warns that it’s not enough to just optimize copy on product pages. The real focus, he suggests, should be where the eye catches the eye: videos and pictures.

“Did you know [on the Apple App Store] that little ‘more’ button that expands the text box in the list?” he asked. “Only 2% of people click on a listing to read a full description of an app’s functionality when entering a listing. They want faster information transfer than plain text.”

De Angelis explained that people want to see what your app looks like, how it works, and what it can do for them as quickly as possible.

“Videos and images are the best way to convey these messages, and consumers know that, and they’re going through those images faster than you can say ‘curly braces’,” De Angelis noted.

Listings on the Shopify App Store support videos and images, which give you the opportunity to create compelling media assets that quickly illustrate what your app does. Read our guide on getting more downloads on the Shopify App Store to learn more about optimizing video and visual media footage.

“The name of the game here is, don’t make people think too much to download,” De Angelis said. “Good luck!”

You might also like: How to Brand Your Shopify App and Get More in the App Store.

  1. Make it easy for merchants to find your app in the app store
    Shopify has learned through research that merchants compare their list of apps side-by-side before making the final decision to install an app. Optimizing your listings at this stage of the merchant journey will help increase lead conversion rates, advises Erin Marchak, director of engineering at Maple.

“You should structure your app description in a way that clearly promotes the value you bring,” she explains. “The main benefits section of the listing allows you to really advertise the benefits you’re offering and get the merchant’s attention quickly.” .”

“Merchants do a side-by-side comparison of app listings before making the final decision to install an app. Optimizing your listings at this stage of the merchant journey will help increase lead conversion rates.”

  1. Create beautiful and memorable app icons
    A collection of app icons A collection of app icons designed by MICHAEL FLARUP
    Crafting a unique graphic design that users can interact with every time they see your product can be a daunting task. According to designer and entrepreneur Michael Flarup, a beautiful, recognizable, and memorable app icon can have a major impact on an app’s popularity and success. So investing time and effort does pay off in the long run.

Michael explains: “The app icon is like a little visual anchor for the product that has to solve a series of tasks. It needs to act as a strong and consistent branding element. It needs to be scalable and available in multiple sizes. Ideally down, it should align with the rest of your design language, and it needs to stand out from other apps competing for attention.”

Gabe Kwakyi, CEO of mobile app development and marketing agency Incipia, found the following best practices for app icon design:

People process images faster than text. Use visual cues to help users immediately understand what the app does. Flight apps use airplanes, GPS apps use globes, and chat apps use bubble dialogs. This is especially important when your icon is placed alongside a variety of similar products (for example, the Staff Picks collection in the Shopify App Store) compared to inherent use cases (such as keyword searches)
With high-resolution interfaces and large pixel counts, icons have the opportunity to be more noticeable. Adding gradients or shadows can hint to users that your application is professional and detail-oriented. That said, think about your target market: while regions like Japan and China may appreciate more sophistication, the current trend in Western culture is minimalism
Make sure your icons stand out. If all apps use the same polish and visual cues, how do you differentiate between them? Take the time to do competitiveness research and design something unique
Make sure the visual identity used in the icon meets your guidelines. Branding is all about consistency, without consistency you lose the opportunity to benefit from your brand building investment
To learn more about good app icon design, visit Michael Flarup’s applypixels.com for resources, articles, and video lessons on the subject.

You might also like: Everything you need to know to design great app icons.

  1. Create introductory tutorials for long-term applicability
    Interaction designer Krystal Higgins recommends creating app introductory tutorials that go beyond the first experience because she finds that too many apps don’t provide guidance after the first run.

She explains: “First impressions matter, but sometimes we’re so focused on building the app’s first-run experience that we fail to design an introductory tutorial that supports users as they evolve. A true introductory tutorial isn’t a one-off, one-size-fits-all approach; It’s a process of slowly walking the user through multiple events, using different methods in different situations. When done right, there’s a seamless transition between onboarding tutorials and day-to-day user education.”

When done right, there is a seamless transition between introductory tutorials and day-to-day user education.

Krystal Higgins
To create an introductory tutorial that incorporates daily instruction, Higgins recommends defining a successful end state for the user.

Once key actions are identified, Higgins recommends providing guidance. This involves figuring out how to trigger the action, walk the user through the action (and any issues they may have), and end the action in a way that leads the user to the next step.

When doing this, consider the different situations the user might encounter, or if a critical operation is being performed. You may need to utilize more than one coaching method to meet their needs.

Krystal concludes: “Tie onboarding tutorials to the end state that users expect to ensure that you create onboarding tutorials that not only solve short-term problems, such as getting users to sign up, but also serve users long-term.”

For more information on designing permanent introductory tutorials and other introductory tutorial tips, read Higgins’ article on introductory tutorials.

You might also like: Effective App Onboarding: How to Convert Free Trial Users to Paying Customers.

  1. Create campaigns for user retention and upselling
    Ben Harper, CEO of market research firm Clarity Stack and founder of Meet Hugo, found that when you launch any app and people are installing it, one of the biggest ways to increase revenue over time is to maximize the use of your user base.

“People have already spent time trying your app, so you have to give them the best experience at every touchpoint so they can come back for more features,” he explained. “It all starts with understanding your data and paying close attention to it.”

Clarity Stack’s web app, Hugo, accepts subscriptions through Stripe, which has metrics built in, such as teams tracking their churn rate and customer lifetime value.

“We can see different groups of customers based on when they sign up, and why they might decrease,” explains Harper. “Combining this data with login and usage data within the app, we can see which customers are most likely to churn and re-engage them, and which customers are the most loyal and likely to accept upgrade packages.”

The result of looking at all this data is improved touchpoints with customers, primarily through automated marketing channels to connect with users, re-engage them, and remind them of what they might be missing out on by not logging in.

Harper said, “By continually adapting and measuring our customer touchpoints throughout the customer lifecycle, we have seen tangible improvements in all areas.

bookmark_borderThe four best ways to promote apps, how many do you know?

In recent years, with the development and expansion of apps, the competition among major app publishers has become particularly fierce. How to quickly promote their own apps and increase their exposure has become the most troublesome issue for publishers. There are more and more channels for app promotion, and it is more and more testing the level of promotion if you want to achieve good results. Taking games as an example, now no matter we open Weibo, Toutiao or WeChat Moments, we can see Gu Tianle, Jackie Chan, “Zha Zhahui” and other big-name celebrities doing endorsements for various mobile games. Although celebrities can bring a certain amount of traffic to the app, in the end, the quality of the app itself can only retain users, otherwise even the best celebrity endorsements will be futile. However, the purpose of celebrity endorsement of App products can only play a role in attracting new ones. How companies turn fans into effective users is the key issue. Besides celebrity endorsements, what other ways are there to promote the app?
Throughout the entire Internet, there are not a few celebrity endorsement apps, but is celebrity endorsement the key to the app’s occupation of the market? The picture below shows the results given by nearly 100 CPs in the user growth private sharing event of Aiyiying in August. voting results. From the results, it is not difficult to see that information flow, ASO and short videos still account for a large proportion.

In fact, celebrity endorsement is only one of the new promotion methods of the app. The celebrity endorsement of the app is a double-edged sword. If there is negative news about the product endorsement star, it will also have a great impact on the promotion of the app. There are various ways to promote apps. For example, the information flow, ASO optimization, short video, etc. mentioned in the above figure are all ways of app promotion. Then I will introduce these four mainstream promotion methods one by one. .

  1. Celebrities promote the App
    Some commercial event App publishers will invite endorsement stars to participate in the event on the spot. This method is relatively common, such as e-commerce apps (JD.

I am especially impressed by the advertising words of Ganji.com: Ganji! ~ (I have a small donkey, I never ride it…) Looking for a house, looking for a job, looking for a decoration, looking for a babysitter, looking for a pet, looking for a move. . . Buy and sell used goods. Ganji.com, everything! I feel that no matter what I do, it is right to go to Ganji.com. Being deeply brainwashed by this advertisement will naturally leave a deep impression on people. And recently the very popular girl group “Rocket Girls 101” endorsed the activities of Jingdong 618, which also attracted a large number of fans for Jingdong.

The cooperation between JD.com and Rocket Girl 101 has really seamless coverage. I did some rough statistics. Before the 618 event started, I saw it on CCTV, subway, bus station and many other media advertisements. This full-scene coverage is also in line with the transformation of JD.com’s retail subgroup from open shelves to full-scale retail. Just like advertisements, JD.618 is also covering the entire scene, becoming a ubiquitous carnival.

Not only that, stars such as Are You Hungry, ofo Shared Bikes, Beauty Cameras, and Mogujie all have their endorsements and promotions.

Secondly, celebrities promote their own apps

In addition to their careers in the entertainment industry, many celebrities will also start their own businesses. Generally speaking, they endorse their apps and use their fame to promote new apps.

The promotion of information flow
The advantage of information flow advertising is that it “integrates advertisements in the content”. For consumers who “eat soft and not hard”, they can unconsciously accept advertising information when browsing the content, retaining the inherent user experience. At the same time, the information flow advertisement also has the advantages of effectively reducing the interference to the user, delivering it to the target customers more accurately, easily stimulating the audience’s initiative, prompting and active sharing, and simple operation!

The feed advertisement is closely integrated with the content, which can effectively improve the click effect. The unique advantage makes the feed advertisement more and more popular, just like Baidu, Weibo, QQ Zone, Toutiao, Sohu, Momo, etc. that we can reach every day. Even WeChat advertisements have also opened the native promotion page advertisements in the circle of friends, showing diversified development, and the competition between advertisements has become more and more fierce!

So, what are the popular delivery channels for news feed ads?

  1. News information:
    Today’s Toutiao, Yidian Consulting, Zhihuitui (Tencent Information Client, Daily Express), Sina Fuyi (Sina News Client), Sohu Accounting (Sohu News Client), NetEase News Client. These are all information-based information flow advertisements.

Its characteristics are:

Users use it for a long time, with high frequency and strong stickiness.

As consulting products are the first to launch information flow advertisements, advertisements are sold in various forms and there are many styles of advertising spaces.

Accuracy is limited, suitable for strong exposure.

  1. Social media:
    Weibo Fantong / Fantoutiao, Guangdiantong, Momo, Tieba, etc., are characterized by ① strong user interaction, and information can be disseminated twice. ②Has a large amount of user registration information, and the user’s natural attributes are determined with high accuracy. ③Because it does not have multiple channels like consulting APPs, the forms and styles of advertisements are relatively simple.
  2. Search engine:
    At present, mobile phone Baidu is more representative, and mobile phone Baidu currently belongs to the dual overlay function, search function + news information. Its characteristics are:

Due to the dual overlay function (search + information), the users are huge.

Marketing is highly accurate and can lock in users’ recent purchase needs.

The ROI (return on marketing investment) is high. Due to the large number of users, the traffic cost is reduced, and the accuracy is high. Compared with other information flows, the ROI is slightly higher.

It started late, and the delivery form and style are still relatively simple.

  1. Video category:
    iQiyi, Tencent, LeTV, Youku, etc. In view of the increasing prospects of the Internet online video market, it is currently one of the more concerned news feed advertisements. However, the characteristics of news feed native advertisements make the production cost of video-based news feed advertisements high, and multiple resources need to be integrated. At present, a more representative one is the online drama “Ghost Blowing the Lamp” interspersed advertisements (play actors + advertiser products + video producers + video delivery parties).
  2. Browser:
    UC browser, Baidu browser, Sogou browser, etc., which are characterized by:

The user base is large, and it is mostly integrated with other platforms, such as UC+Ali.

Only the home page is triggered, and user attention is low.

  1. Other content alliances:
    WIFI key, almanac weather, etc. Such products (services) have large and single functions, few user groups, and low frequency of use. Therefore, news feed advertisements are generally launched jointly for multiple products. Compared with other types of news feed advertisements, the delivery scope, accuracy and conversion rate are slightly insufficient.
  2. ASO optimization
    ASO optimization has existed for a long time, but ASO is really valued and developed at the end of 2014; if an APP wants to get a good ranking in the search platform, it can increase the downloads of the application, increase brand awareness and popularity Of course, improving the ranking of APP applications is inseparable from ASO optimization and promotion, and needs to be assisted by some ASO optimization work.

When there were few apps in the early days, a simple category list was enough, but at present, there are more than 1.8 million apps in the App Store, and according to our statistics, only about 14,000 apps can be displayed. less than 1%. At present, about 60% of the downloads in the App Store are from search, and with the further increase of the number of apps, based on the consideration of the app ecology, the proportion of downloads outside the list will further increase, and the importance of ASO is self-evident.

  1. Definition of ASO
    The English full name of ASO is App Store Optimization, and the Chinese translation is App Store Optimization. At present, the definition of ASO is divided into narrow and broad.

In a narrow sense, ASO refers to the process of improving the ranking of apps in the rankings and search results in the app market.

In a broad sense, ASO refers to all the processes that can help apps get better exposure in the app store and get more traffic and downloads. Including ranking optimization, search ranking optimization, boutique recommendation, user comment optimization, etc.

  1. App Store
    App Store refers to Apple’s application store, where users can download a variety of applications. Up to now, the Apple App Store has more than 2 million apps, and the App Store has limited app exposure, mainly including rankings, app recommendations, search results and other positions, which has led to a large number of similar apps in the market. Competing for more exposure opportunities, ASO has undoubtedly become a sweet pastry.
  2. Ranking Factors Affecting ASO Optimization
    ranking factor

(1) APP application icon:

Logo images must be clear, intuitive, and highlight the brand. Image design is also an effective way to influence users.

(2) Subtitle settings:

The importance is similar to the website Title and Keyword, implanting keywords in the title is helpful for the ranking of the main keywords of the website. However, for APP application names, it is not so easy to modify the application name title and keywords. Therefore, when uploading an application, you must do a good job of keyword search heat analysis in advance, and standardize the title content.

Precautions:

①The distribution relationship of the keyword search weight in the title is subtitle>keywords

②The title should be natural and smooth, and no words should be piled up;

③The title should be one or two sentences as much as possible, and do not use short words to piece together the title;

(3) Description (brief description and detailed description):

The brief description is generally displayed on the application list page, and the detailed description is the detailed introduction of the APP application. Description is also very important for ASO optimization; when users see your app in the search listing page, the first thing the user sees is your iCON, subtitle and brief description, so how to use short sentences to arouse user interest and It is particularly important to click to enter the APP product details page, which can improve the click-through rate of the APP in the search results in the app store, and is also a factor affecting the ranking.

(4) User ratings/evaluations

There is no doubt about the importance of real user evaluation, which is reflected in:

①Not only APP, but also platform operation such as website operation and Taobao operation, user evaluation and rating all play a big role in ranking.

②Many apps will trigger pop-up windows to invite users to evaluate users; and there will be an evaluation entry in the personal center or settings section of the navigation. It can be seen that the importance of user reviews to the APP.

(5) APP application update iteration

In APP operation, everyone pays attention to the user’s activity, daily activity, weekly activity, more activity, etc.; as in the ranking of the application store, the update iteration of the APP is also an activity rate. Many APPs basically do not update and iterate much after they go online, which is a big taboo; APP update and iteration for a fixed time is very helpful for improving rankings;

(6) Application installation volume: the top priority of ASO optimization

The number of APP installations is a very important factor. Basically, the top-ranked APPs are ranked among the best in terms of downloads and installations. “App swipe list” is to boost downloads and installs, and its popularity shows the importance of app installs for ASO optimization; although the app store is very strict about swiping the list, its importance still exists.

  1. Data Analysis
    data analysis

(1) Competitive product analysis

Competitive product analysis is not only required in the field of ASO, but also in traditional industries, product design, and platform operations. For ASO, it is necessary to understand which words are optimized by competitors? What is the popularity of these words? How are their subtitles and descriptions set? How are their keyword rankings?

By understanding your competitors, you can better recognize your own products, make your ASO optimization plan more detailed, and avoid the pits that the former has stepped on;

(2) Industry analysis

Regarding industry analysis, it is more about red ocean and blue ocean strategies. More is to understand the competition situation of the whole industry, development direction, etc.;

(3) User Analysis

The selection of keywords and hot words is based on the user’s search behavior; the most popular words are searched by the user, and if the hot words can be optimized, the ranking of the hot words can be improved, and the download and installation volume of users can be increased; it is not a problem;

  1. External promotion
    External promotion

(1) Increase download volume: ground push and task recommendation are all good methods

For APP promotion, many of them adopt the methods of ground push, cooperation, task recommendation, and trial play, which can also play a significant role in increasing application downloads.

①A financial APP: Scan to download the APP, and after registration, you will get a box of Jiaduobao; this kind of cost is relatively high, but if the gift is not attractive, how can users download your APP?

②Scan it, download the APP, and drink tribute tea for free. By cooperating with some physical service stores, it can bring a win-win situation. This method is also what many APPs will try to do when they are initially promoted;

③ Trial APP: Now there are some third-party trial service platforms. After downloading and registering, users can get a reward of how much money they can get after hanging in the background for a few minutes. This method is more effective for increasing application downloads.

(2) Social marketing: more about building APP brand image

For social marketing, the platforms that operators usually choose include WeChat official account, Weibo, SEO soft article promotion, and self-media platforms (Toutiaohao, Zhihu platform, Netease We-media, Jianshu, Sohu media platform, etc.).

Social marketing needs to be supported by high-quality content to increase reading and brand exposure; for APPs, the content is more interesting, and of course, the direction of content type selection is also diversified.

For example, the Hequ APP that Box Fungi recently paid attention to is an APP about both genders; on the Zhihu platform, you can often see “yellow old wet” answering some shy questions, and use dirty content to arouse users to the author and the level of interest in the product.

For social marketing, without content, various platforms cannot survive.

(3) With the help of SEO/SEM, brand exposure and download volume increase

For users, most of them use computers to search during get off work, and they must use mobile phones to browse various pages after work, so SEO/SEM optimization is also very important; most APPs have their own official websites, but generally It is relatively simple, just guide users to download the APP; you can optimize the keywords done in the app store, and perform SEO optimization and SEM promotion on the official website on PC and mobile.

  1. Short video promotion
    Short videos are now in a bonus period, and many platforms have begun to produce their own short videos to gain traffic. But after the wonderful short videos are produced, the more important thing is to promote them, especially for some small/small platforms, how to better promote their videos?
  2. Upload the website
    Upload videos to video sites with high weight (Tencent, Youku, Tudou, Sohu Video, iQiyi, PPS, PPTV, Xunlei Kankan, Ku6, Xigua Video, Phoenix Video) for the first large-scale coverage . But the video title, intro, tags and cover

bookmark_borderHow to promote an app?

If we have an app, should we learn to promote the app first?

What should we pay attention to in app promotion, and how to promote it more effectively? Next, we will introduce some methods of app promotion in detail.

There are two types of marketing promotion: one is paid promotion and the other is free promotion. It is suggested that the two methods will work better when combined.

mobile computer-768696__340.jpg

  1. Ground push mode
    This is a very common promotion model. In crowded places, we often see people set up tents, put some gifts, and take flyers to promote their products. For friends who pass by, the promotion staff will introduce their products to them very enthusiastically, and tell them that downloading the APP will give them gifts.

mobile phone iphone-5537230__340.jpg

  1. Cross-industry cooperation model
    The essence of cross-industry cooperation is the cooperation of traffic. In this model, it specifically includes offline mutual promotion, online cooperation and brand alliance. In this year’s NBA game, a loan platform cooperated with the NBA. While we watched the game live on video, we also remembered those brands that cooperated with the Houston Rockets, such as “You and I Loan”, a powerful Internet financial platform.
  2. Advertising mode
    If you have money, you can say anything. When the free promotion method is not satisfactory, you can choose to advertise. Although it is a bit more expensive, the effect is still there. The advertising model is a very important part of the APP customer acquisition model. We still need to do a good job of cost control before placing advertisements, do some ideal effect analysis, and how much money should be invested to achieve what kind of effect.

Content can be published on the information flow platform, including articles, videos, atlases, questions and answers, small videos, micro-titles, posts, etc., and can also be charged based on clicks, displays, and conversions.

First, news platforms, such as Toutiao, UC, Tiantian, Baijiahao, Sohu Toutiao, NetEase Toutiao, Yidian Information, Jianshu, WeChat Official Account, Weibo, etc.

The second is audio and video, live broadcast (Betta, Huajiao, Yingke, etc.), short films (Kaishou, Douyin, etc.), audio (Himalaya, Lychee, etc.)

The third is some third-party advertising platforms, such as Guangdiantong, Wisdom Push, Fantong, etc.

Fourth, ASO optimization
ASO optimization can improve your APP’s ranking in various APP electronic market rankings and search results, and increase exposure and download conversion. For users, to download a certain APP, open the app store to rank high, and the one with high praise is definitely the best choice. Moreover, ASO optimization has low cost and good effect, which is the best choice for many enterprises.

Mobile hands-1851218__340.jpg

The mode of social communication
With the development of the Internet, there are more and more social platforms. There are many platforms that can do free promotion for us, such as Weibo, WeChat, etc. We can publish activities, set up red envelopes, referral bonuses, etc. to attract users to participate, thus Get downloads. Common modes include red envelope fission, relationship fission and group purchase fission. For example, the APP Pinduoduo has not been around for a long time, but the 400 million customers he has now must be inseparable from his promotion. First of all, when new users place an order, they can enjoy red envelope discounts. This is a common promotion method for many apps. Secondly, Pinduoduo can also make orders, and it is cheaper to buy together. Moreover, you will share the product to your social circle and invite friends to help you bargain, After the help, users can get more discounts, and at the same time, it also achieves the purpose of attracting new users to download the APP.

  1. Promotion of soft articles
    Press release promotion is also a major model for acquiring customer traffic. Press release promotion is a relatively direct and low-cost way. The audience area is relatively wide, and a soft article published on a popular self-media platform can also attract many people to download.

bookmark_borderThe most complete App promotion channel in history

  1. App store promotion
  2. App stores of mobile phone manufacturers: such as Xiaomi Store, Huawei App Store, Samsung App Store, Lenovo Music Store, HTC Market, Oppo, Meizu Market, LeTV App Store, etc. The channel department needs more operation specialists to contact the mobile phone manufacturer’s store.
  3. Mobile phone operator application store: The so-called operator channel refers to China Mobile, China Unicom, and telecom operators, such as Mobile MM, Unicom Wo Store, and Telecom Tianyi Space. Their main advantage is that they have a large user base. If your products are good enough , you may also get the support of the operator.
  4. Mobile phone system provider application store: It is the official application store such as Google, ios, and windowsphone.
  5. Third-party application store: The first type belongs to the third-party store. The channel specialist should prepare a lot of materials, test, etc. to connect with the application market. Such as Youyi Market, Android Market, Anzhi Market, Jifeng Market, Cross Cat, Wooden Ant, Netcom, Android Store, Nduowang, Peadoujia, 91 Mobile Mall, Cocoa Software Store, Feiliu, 3G, Android Market Amber Market, Android Online, AppChina, etc. Each application market has different rules. How to communicate with the person in charge of the application market and accumulate experience and skills is very important. In the case of sufficient funds, some advertising spaces and recommendations can be placed.
  6. Software download stations: such as Sky Download, Huajun Software Download, Baidu Software Center, Zhongguancun Download, Pacific Download and other download stations can also submit your app to get users.
  7. Network alliance promotion:
  8. Points Wall: Display various tasks in an application (download and install recommended applications, register, fill in forms, etc.), and then users complete the tasks in the game embedded with the point wall to get virtual currency rewards. According to CPA (Cost Per Action) billing, as long as the user completes the task of the point wall, the developer can get a share of the income.
  9. Interstitial screen: Also known as interstitial advertisement, when using the app, the action triggers full-screen/half-screen pop-up or embedding. Mobile games are suitable for this form of advertisement, and the click-through rate, conversion rate, and user activity performance have a good performance. By popping up in half-screen or full-screen form when the application is opened, paused, or exited, it can subtly avoid the user’s normal experience of the application. Because of its large size and stunning visual effects, interstitial ads have a very high click-through rate and good advertising effects.
  10. Network alliance & agency: If you buy by CPA, negotiate a CPA price with the other party (of course, the higher the price, the more users you will acquire), and it is best to set a KPI, such as the retention of the next day is not low With such an agreement, the quality of users will be guaranteed. Like IOS, platform-based online alliances are also companies such as inmobi and adwords.
  11. Mobile DSP: At present, only Limei and mediav are known to be doing mobile DSP. Because they are just starting out, students from these two companies do not recommend us to do it. Because there is no historical data, there is little basis for optimization, and the price is very high. By the way, their media resources are generally connected to big platforms such as google and inmobi. Whether mobile DSP will become a more reliable delivery method in the future is still unclear, please wait quietly~
  12. List promotion: This kind of promotion is an informal method, but it is very popular in China. After all, most Apple mobile phone users will use the APP Store to download APPs. If your APP is directly in the top positions, of course, you can quickly gain the attention of users, and at the same time obtain a high real download volume. However, the price of brushing the list is relatively high. The price of the top 25 in the domestic list is about 10,000 yuan per day, and the price of the top 5 requires more than 20,000 yuan per day. Since this kind of promotion cost is relatively high, it is usually done in conjunction with news hype, which is easy and fast to become famous.
  13. In-app promotion:
  14. In-app mutual push: Also known as exchange volume, it is to exchange traffic through BD cooperation. You push my app, I push your app, and everyone replaces users with each other.
  15. PUSH promotion: As an important means of operating mobile applications, push has attracted more and more attention from mobile game operators.

When the same content is sent to all users, the push is made regardless of time, and the performance of the push remains the same. When users receive such untargeted pushes for many times, they will gradually get bored. However, it is not the push function itself that users are annoyed with, and it has nothing to do with the number of pushes sent. What matters is the content sent.

  1. Pop-up promotion: a form of advertising that pops up when the app is opened, the effect is good, but it greatly affects the user experience.
  2. Focus map promotion: It can be simply understood that a picture or multiple pictures displayed in the application are the focus map. In an obvious position in the app, it is played in the form of a combination of pictures, which is similar to the focus news but with pictures. It is generally used on the homepage of the application or the homepage of the channel. Because it is in the form of pictures, it has a certain attractiveness and visual appeal.

15: Application recommendation promotion: Jinshan, Daquan, Daqu, APP123… The settlement method is mostly CPT. Due to the limited resources of IOS promotion channels, the price has been rising. Many cooperations of Jinshan in 2014 need to follow the annual framework, even according to the To cooperate with CPA, the price of e-commerce is also 12 yuan/activation. The quality of users of this type of channel is good, the channel is basically not mixed with water, and the data is still relatively reliable. It’s just that users will experience “aesthetic fatigue” after long-term deployment, and the promotion effect will gradually decrease. There are also some applications such as Toutiao and Best Buy, which can be embedded with content or talk about CPS. In the middle, I saw the figure of pocket shopping.

16: Jailbreak promotion: PP assistant, synchronous push, quick use, 91… The settlement method is mostly CPT, and CPA cooperation can also be communicated. The volume of these companies is still good, and I don’t have any channels to push jailbreak, so I know very little.

  1. Internet open platform promotion: Don’t underestimate the open platform! Submit your mature APP to the Internet open platform to enjoy massive users, such as Tencent Open Platform, 360 Open Platform, Baidu Open Platform, Kaixin Open Platform, Renren Open Platform platform etc. Add a different perspective to your users.
  2. Social promotion:
  3. Social marketing: a popular way of online SNS promotion. It is embedded in text, pictures, and videos that can spread quickly in a relatively soft way, and spreads in major SNS communities, bringing high-explosive traffic. . This is not impossible, what is needed is the topicality that the product itself can create, and the execution of the marketing team.
  4. Red people forwarding: (Promotion user quality: uncertain) Generally, the payment is based on the number of articles, and the price is negotiated by both parties in advance. Possibly the most cost-effective form of promotion if successful event marketing is conducted. There may also be cases where there is no effect. Pay attention to controlling the scale. It is too much. Now users are very smart.
  5. Malware latent installation market: This method is more evil, but it can also bring traffic.
  6. WeChat group promotion: There are many WeChat groups now. Many people download and send red envelopes by doing activities in the group. If the effect is good, it can bring hundreds of downloads every day.
  7. Promotion by swiping comments on human flesh: By swiping comments to improve the ranking, you can also get the number of users of the app.
  8. Offline promotion:
  9. Pre-installation by mobile phone manufacturers: This is the need to cooperate with mobile phone manufacturers to pre-install your application when the mobile phone is produced. This method has a high user conversion rate and is the most direct way to develop users. However, in the mid-term, the number of users is also relatively long. After all, from the cooperation of mobile phone manufacturers to the launch of new mobile phones, it takes a period of time for users to purchase, usually 3-5 months.
  10. Parallel import flashing: Android phone flashing has formed a market. If you use this method, users can start quickly, and you can basically see flashing users in 2-4 days. Companies in the industry include: XDA, Kule, Le Cool, brush machine wizard. The cost is not easy to control, the quality of users is poor, and it is not easy to monitor. Basically, the CPA of a single software for brushing is 1-2 yuan, and the price of a chartered machine is between 5-10 yuan.
  11. Licensed storefront: high user quality, high viscosity, high user payment conversion rate, and fast user speed. There are many stores, and the training of clerks is complicated, which requires a perfect assessment and reward mechanism. Basically, the CPA price is between 1.5-3 yuan, and the pre-installed price is between 0.5-1 yuan. Industry companies: Leyu, Zhongfu, Tianyin, China Post, Suning, etc.
  12. Offline media promotion: such as light boxes, knife flags, LED screens, etc.
  13. Offline store promotion: For example, cooperate with McDonald’s and KFC, download the app to send a KFC drink, etc.
  14. Promotion of exhibition materials: such as the promotion of small gifts by downloading the App at the exhibition.
  15. Ground push promotion: (Promotion user quality: high) Ctrip’s ground push staff’s daily job is to install Ctrip’s APPs at the airport. On average, they can install 30 to 40 apps a day, and in good times, they can install 1,000+ a month. The basic salary is 1000. After 600 pieces are installed, 1 piece per piece exceeds 1000 pieces and 3 pieces each. This form of promotion is very precise but also very tiring, and the stupidest method is often the most effective.
  16. New media promotion
  17. Content planning: The important point of content planning is to analyze users, grasp the psychology of target users, and focus on creativity in content.
  18. Basic brand promotion: Encyclopedia promotion: establish brand entries on Baidu Encyclopedia, 360 Encyclopedia, Q & A promotion: establish Q & A on Baidu Know, Soso Q & A, Sina iAsk, Zhihu and other websites.
  19. Forum post bar promotion: You can see many forums in the industry at the bottom of mobile phone related websites. Promoters are recommended to post promotions in two ways: official posts and user posts, and at the same time, they can contact the forum administrator to do some promotions. After posting, you should regularly maintain your posts, answer questions raised by users in a timely manner, and collect feedback from users so that the next version can be updated and improved.
  20. Weibo promotion: Content: Personify the product, tell stories, locate the characteristics of Weibo, and insist on the output of original content. Catch the hot spots of the week or the day to follow up on Weibo, and maintain a certain continuous innovation. Here you can refer to the successful Weibo accounts in the same industry and learn from their experience.

Interaction: Follow relevant Weibo accounts in the industry, maintain interaction, and increase brand exposure.

Activities: When necessary, you can plan activities, repost on Weibo, etc.

  1. WeChat promotion: Promote on WeChat public accounts, such as looking for a public account similar to your app, the user traffic should naturally increase, and the conversion will be higher, such as the mobile Internet (chuangyingshe) WeChat public account, you can put some and Mobile Internet dating, marriage and other practitioners related app download advertisements.
  2. PR communication: PR is not a hard advertisement. It is very important to learn to tell a moving story in the right way. In the Internet age, everyone is a source of communication. Whether it is Weibo Kol, WeChat official account, columns on media websites or major social networking sites, I have to study how to use these platforms to tell the story of a good brand. Conversely, these platforms also It will be the best channel for users to generate UGC for the brand.
  3. Event marketing: Event marketing relies on the brainpower of operators and a keen sense of smell for industry information. Superficial understanding is hype, which requires the team to have certain media resources.
  4. Data analysis: promotion at any time is inseparable from data, and we must learn to find problems from data. Summarize good experience, do high-quality channels, and improve products.

bookmark_borderWhy is Huawei: No longer relying on international camera giants, authenticity and warmth are the main colors of XMAGE

On July 2, Huawei officially announced the release of its own imaging brand, Huawei Imaging XMAGE; on July 4, Huawei released the nova 10 series of mobile phones with the main imaging function, which is also the main Selfie imaging function. At the Huawei Influenced Media Exchange Conference on July 6, He Gang, COO of Huawei Terminal BG, was interviewed by media reporters including Phoenix.com reporters.

Get out of Leica, be your own
With years of accumulation of imaging technology, Huawei has established a good impression on consumers for taking pictures on its products. Through the release of this XMAGE imaging brand, Huawei has transformed the technology and experience accumulated in its imaging part into an independent brand. , and will continue to develop mobile imaging technology under this brand in the future.

“Huawei Imaging XMAGE will be the exclusive symbol of Huawei Mobile Imaging, announcing our leadership and maturity in the imaging field, and will also represent our continuous breakthrough and commitment.” said He Gang, Chief Operating Officer of Huawei Terminal BG. In the first half of this year, Huawei and Leica ended their 6-year cooperation, and the release of XMAGE also means that Huawei no longer relies on the cooperation of international camera giants for empowerment, but builds its own image brand in the field of mobile imaging. own technical system.

In this regard, He Gang said: “Through the cooperation with Leica, we have a better understanding of the needs of consumers, and at the same time, we have more opportunities to meet consumer expectations. After the cooperation period expires, we insist on our own I don’t know how others will do it, but Huawei will deepen and penetrate its technology, and continue to optimize key technology areas such as optical systems, imaging technology, and image processing.”

Why is Huawei: No longer relying on international camera giants, authenticity and warmth are the main colors of XMAGE

Huawei XMAGE builds an imaging technology system from three dimensions: optical system, imaging technology, and image processing
He Gang said that the strategic investment and direction of Huawei Imaging mainly focus on three dimensions: technological innovation, shooting experience, and image culture, while the technological innovation and shooting experience innovation represented by XMAGE mainly focus on optical systems, imaging technology, image processing and other fields. .

In these three key technical areas, Huawei has always had a solid technical foundation. For example, there are a number of core technologies represented in the optical system, such as the dual-camera system of the P9 series in 2016, the periscope telephoto lens of the P20 series in 2018, and the free-form lens of the Mate40 series in 2020.

The imaging technology is an intersection of photoelectric conversion, including the RYYB sensor of the P30 series, the full-pixel octa-core focus of the Mate40 series, and the hyperspectral image of the P50 Pocket.

Image processing is a collection at the algorithm level, including the AI ​​photography of the original Mate10 series, the XD Fusion image engine of the P40 series, and the XD Optice computational optics and other technologies introduced by the P50 series.

Huawei Imaging XMAGE is a further summary and development of Huawei’s accumulation and experience in the field of mobile imaging technology over the past years. It is also through the optimization of optical systems, imaging technology, image processing and other original technologies to become Huawei Imaging XMAGE to build images. key to the technical system.

He Gang also said that XMAGE will further exert its technological advantages in five aspects: optical design, mechanical structure, photoelectric conversion, image algorithm and image effect, and continue to invest in research and development.

Why is Huawei: No longer relying on international camera giants, authenticity and warmth are the main colors of XMAGE

Authenticity and warmth are the main colors of Huawei Imaging XMAGE
In addition, He Gang also said that reality, warmth, sharpness and high image quality will also become the unique image style of Huawei XMAGE, and become the trend and direction of Huawei’s photo style in the future, of which authenticity and warmth are the main colors of Huawei XMAGE. From the photos, users can perceive the subtle interlacing of light, and can also feel the real details and emotional temperature from the photos.

In addition to the presentation of photos, the tools for post-processing of images will also be optimized. At present, Huawei has launched petal clipping, and the next-generation products will continue to optimize the image editing tools, so that users can fall in love with Huawei through the whole process of photo effects and editing and sharing.

Huawei’s new image NEXT IMAGE: another expression of image culture
Why is Huawei: No longer relying on international camera giants, authenticity and warmth are the main colors of XMAGE

Most of the influential imaging equipment companies have held different forms of photography competitions. Of course, these manufacturers hold photography competitions for the purpose of promoting product sales, but they also objectively let more users understand and come into contact with photography, enriching the form of photography. People’s cultural life also records all aspects of the times and life.

Over the years, Huawei has created a brand new video culture exchange and learning platform for Huawei mobile phone users through brand cultural activities such as the New Video Contest, New Video Community, New Video Exhibition, and New Video Academy. A racetrack started. The new edition of the New Image Contest also focuses on youth, warmth, vitality, positivity, and seniority, encouraging more people to use their mobile phones to devote themselves to image creation to discover, express, and share the beauty around them.

After Huawei has been deeply involved in the field of mobile photography for many years, from focusing on product performance, paying attention to user needs, and then focusing on the humanistic spirit of mobile imaging, Huawei continues to talk about multiple expressions of imaging capabilities. It marks Huawei’s confidence and investment in the field of mobile imaging, and also represents the confidence and determination of a brand.

bookmark_borderChina’s 4K / 8K video encoding AVS3 became the world standard for the first time, saving 40.09% of the average bit rate compared to H.265

According to the New Generation Artificial Intelligence Alliance, the Digital Video Broadcasting Organization (DVB Project) announced today that it has officially approved China’s “AVS3” as one of the next-generation video codec standards in the DVB standard system. This is also the first time that DVB has absorbed Chinese video standards.

China’s 4K / 8K video encoding AVS3 became the world standard for the first time, saving 40.09% of the average bit rate compared to H.265

According to reports, DVB formulates technical standards for digital broadcasting (satellite, cable, terrestrial and broadband networks), which are widely used around the world. More than 150 organizations from 25 countries around the world have joined the DVB system.

IT House learned that since the establishment of the AVS working group in my country in June 2002, a team of thousands of people has persevered and overcome difficulties for more than ten years. AVS with independent intellectual property rights in my country came into being. AVS3 is the world’s first video coding standard for 8K and 5G industrial applications. With advanced technology and clear patents, it is the most suitable video coding standard in 5G+8K. It will be piloted on CCTV-8K channel for the first time in 2021.

China’s 4K / 8K video encoding AVS3 became the world standard for the first time, saving 40.09% of the average bit rate compared to H.265

From May 2020, DVB has been working on its next-generation codec specification, including AVS3 into the NGVC candidate standard vision, and the AVS3 use case is also listed as one of the priority support use cases. During the nearly 2-year DVB selection process, with the strong support of the AVS Alliance and industry partners, it has been effectively demonstrated that AVS3 meets the commercial needs and technical requirements of DVB NGVC. Objective performance tests show that AVS3 saves an average of 40.09% in bit rate compared to HEVC (H.265) on 4K video, meeting important commercial requirements for enabling new technologies, and its superior performance has been fully recognized by DVB. In July 2021, DVB officially announced that it had prepared a development line for 4K/8K broadcast broadband TV, with AVS3 as one of the 3 candidate codec specifications it identified.

By July 2022, the two DVB Blue Book specifications A001 (Audio Video Coding Specification, DVB-AVC) and A168 (Adaptive Streaming over IP Networks, DVB-DASH) including AVS3 have been revised and approved by the DVB Steering Committee meeting . New versions of these DVB Blue Book specifications will be published shortly, with further publications to follow as new versions of the corresponding ETSI standards (ETSI TS 101 154 and TS 103 285, respectively).

After nearly 2 years of promotion and standard formulation, AVS3 has been successfully incorporated into the DVB standard system as the next-generation video codec specification. The AVS3 standard will be recommended to global TV and video service operators in the ultra-high-definition industry system. This is also a major milestone in the internationalization of AVS3, marking that the AVS standard has a major influence in international standards and industrial systems, and will effectively promote the industrialization and international application of AVS.

bookmark_borderTesla’s Asia-Pacific region adjusts its structure, and the general manager of China is also promoted to vice president

The reporting structure of Tesla’s Asia-Pacific region has been adjusted. The country manager of the Asia-Pacific market has changed from reporting to the United States to report to Zhu Xiaotong, president of Tesla Greater China. Wang Hao, general manager of Tesla China, who is in charge of sales, has been promoted to vice president of Tesla China. This is the only executive adjustment involving China.

Country markets included in Tesla Asia Pacific include Singapore, Japan, South Korea, Australia and New Zealand. Australia is the largest market in Asia Pacific in terms of volume. But these markets are still small compared to China, the US and Europe. Some of the Model Y and Model 3 sold in these markets come from the Shanghai Super Factory.

In mid-June, Tesla fired the original Singapore regional manager and opened new recruits locally, with more than 7 positions, including a marketing specialist in charge of public relations and retail activities in Singapore, a delivery business specialist, a sales assistants and a project manager responsible for corporate social responsibility. This is considered to be in preparation for this reporting relationship adjustment, and the size of the Singapore market is relatively the smallest in the Asia-Pacific region.

In this round of adjustment, Wang Hao, general manager of Tesla China, was promoted to vice president of China. After the promotion, his rank is equivalent to Tesla’s vice president of external affairs. Wang Hao is also the only Chinese executive involved in this round of changes. The position of Zhu Xiaotong, president of Greater China, has not changed.

Today, the China Passenger Car Association released June auto sales figures in China. Tesla China sold 78,906 vehicles, up 138% year-on-year. In June, Tesla’s domestic deliveries reached 77,938 vehicles, a year-on-year increase of 177%. In the first half of 2022, Tesla’s Shanghai Gigafactory will produce nearly 300,000 vehicles, and the half-year delivery volume has accounted for more than 60% of the full-year delivery volume in 2021, of which nearly 100,000 vehicles will be delivered overseas.

bookmark_borderShanghai’s new policy for the smart terminal industry has been released, accelerating technological breakthroughs in high-end chips such as CPU chips and MCU chips

The General Office of the Shanghai Municipal People’s Government issued the “Shanghai Action Plan for Promoting the High-Quality Development of the Intelligent Terminal Industry (2022-2025)” (hereinafter referred to as the “Action Plan”), proposing that by 2025, the scale of Shanghai’s intelligent terminal industry will exceed 700 billion yuan, There should be no less than 2 companies with a revenue of 100 billion, not less than 5 companies with a revenue of 10 billion, and not less than 20 companies with a revenue of 1 billion. No less than 200 new smart factories will be added, and 100% of OEMs will reach the level of smart factories.

The “Action Plan” clarifies the main tasks, including intelligent networked vehicles, intelligent robots, virtual reality interactive terminals, smart home terminals, smart wearable terminals, Xinchuang terminals, and basic software and hardware support systems.

Intelligent connected car
Internet of Vehicles nurturing action. Build a new industrial chain system around the core systems of intelligent driving, intelligent networking and intelligent cockpit. Promote the iterative upgrade of the intelligent driving system, cultivate full-stack solution providers, and expand the coverage of intelligent driving scenarios; strengthen the research and development of intelligent networked systems, carry out the verification of vehicle-road coordination technology, and accelerate the application of the Internet of Vehicles in mass-produced models; Cockpit integration research and development, promote the integrated development of cockpit and content providers, and create an integrated smart cockpit. Vigorously develop terminal components, focus on key components such as lidar, central domain controller and other core components for environmental perception and intelligent decision-making, and accelerate the implementation of industrial support; promote the large-scale application of in-vehicle computing platforms and artificial intelligence chips; improve drive-by-wire and braking Integration level, accelerate the formation of large-scale controller mass production capacity. Focusing on the collaborative requirements of the intelligent networked “people-vehicle-road-cloud” system, a batch of new intelligent road infrastructures with functions such as environmental status detection, traffic participant identification, and traffic flow monitoring will be deployed, and a batch of smart transportation demonstration roads will be built. ; Launch a new generation of vehicle wireless communication network application pilots, and promote enterprises to build a 5G vehicle networking communication environment.

Coordinate industrial ecological construction actions. Based on the link between vehicle integration and software platform, promote cooperation between vehicle enterprises and technology companies, social platforms, etc., promote the coordinated development of integrated circuits, software, communications and other industries, cultivate new formats such as smart travel and data services, and promote intelligent network connection. The integrated development of automobile terminals, smart tourism and smart commerce. Create a group of intelligent networked automobile industry clusters with complementary positioning and agglomeration of elements. Pudong will focus on the development of the Internet of Vehicles, vehicle operating systems and automotive chips, etc., to create a highland for the development of the core component industry; Jiading will build a comprehensive demonstration area integrating R&D, manufacturing, application, testing and certification of intelligent connected vehicles; Lingang Construction An intelligent networked vehicle manufacturing and export base with international influence. Accelerate the construction of public service platforms such as the Internet of Vehicles Information Security Laboratory, and promote third-party institutions to establish the testing and certification capabilities of intelligent and connected vehicles; build an industrial exchange, cooperation and display platform, and hold events such as terminal product release and application launch to promote talent and industry agglomeration .

smart robot
Promote breakthroughs in core technologies. Focusing on the three major systems of motion, perception and control, organize key component research projects, break through hardware systems such as high-performance motors, reducers, and controllers, and tackle software technologies such as cloud brain, knowledge engine, self-learning, and human-computer interaction. Aiming at intelligent cloud systems, chips, intelligent sensors and other fields, to seize the high ground of intelligent robot industry.

virtual reality interactive terminal
Improve the maturity of virtual reality hardware. Focusing on key technologies such as near-eye display, perceptual interaction, network transmission, and rendering processing, comprehensively improve indicators such as terminal power consumption, portability, and computing power, and promote breakthroughs in key links such as near-eye display screens, perceptual interaction devices, and development tools.

Xinchuang Terminal
Promote the breakthrough development of Xinchuang products. Relying on the advantages of domestic central processing units (CPUs) and focusing on industrial clusters such as Songjiang Xinchuang Industrial Park, support enterprises in the fields of finance, medical care, etc., focusing on the development of server and personal computer products used in edge computing, data centers and other fields, to create market acceptance A product system with high degree, strong brand competitiveness and excellent performance indicators.

Software and hardware basic support system
Improve core chip support capabilities. Accelerate technological breakthroughs in high-end chips such as mobile phone processor chips, high-performance central processing unit (CPU) chips, and automotive-grade micro-control unit (MCU) chips, and improve wafer manufacturing capabilities with advanced technology and characteristic technology.

Improve the technical capabilities of key components. Support breakthroughs in core components such as “three electrics” and “three intelligences” of intelligent networked vehicles, develop 5G communication modules, optical modules and other components, and speed up micro-organic light-emitting displays (Micro-OLED), micro-luminescent displays (Micro-LED), etc. Research and application of new display technologies, and promote the development of intelligent sensors such as biological signs, environmental perception, and image acquisition.

Accelerate the layout of industry software. Develop real-time operating systems for the automotive and industrial control fields, and achieve breakthroughs in key links such as Electronic Design Automation (EDA), Assisted Analysis (CAE), and Assisted Manufacturing (CAM). Strengthen system reliability and security, and form a new supply of industry software for scenario-based, digital, and intelligent three-tier architectures.

Speed ​​up the layout of basic software. Promote the development of basic software such as operating systems, distributed databases and middleware. Focus on key technologies such as instruction set and kernel architecture to improve product energy level. Actively promote the research on cutting-edge technologies such as cloud native and multi-source heterogeneous data processing.

bookmark_borderAll beings behind the collapse of MCU chips: domestic players are rushing to the high end, and upstream manufacturers are still expanding production

Yesterday, the Japanese MCU giant Renesas Electronics Factory was affected by a lightning strike, and the production was stopped due to an instantaneous voltage drop, which will affect the production capacity for about 2 weeks. Some analysts believe that this will affect the supply of automotive-grade MCUs.

And on Wednesday, Bloomberg reported that semiconductor lead times fell in June. According to data from Susquehanna, a U.S. financial research firm, the average global semiconductor delivery time was 27.1 weeks in May and 27 weeks in June, a drop of about one day. This is the first time that semiconductor delivery times have fallen this year. Among them, the products with the most drop in delivery time are the most popular MCU and other chip products.

Chip delivery time (Image credit: Bloomberg)

▲ Chip delivery time (Image source: Bloomberg)

MCU is a micro-control unit, also known as a single-chip microcomputer, which is a chip-level computer that appropriately reduces the frequency and specifications of the CPU (central processing unit), and integrates peripheral interfaces such as memory, USB, and drive circuits on a single chip. In recent years, driven by factors such as the Internet of Things, autonomous driving and Industry 4.0, the use of MCUs in automotive electronics, artificial intelligence, Internet of Things, consumer electronics, and communications has increased significantly, with a global market size of $15.7 billion.

On the one hand, the market has reported that the MCU has collapsed and the price of the products of the world’s five major MCU giants has been cut in half; on the other hand, Mercedes-Benz and other car manufacturers still believe that there is a shortage of automotive MCUs, and it is difficult to quickly restore the supply.

When the hottest MCU chip before is rumored to be crashing, what is the truth about the shortage? What kind of judgment and performance do the semiconductor players behind it have?

Consumer MCU demand slows, automotive MCU still in short supply
Recently, news of MCU cutting orders has been reported frequently. According to the Financial Associated Press, MCUs with relatively rigid prices and short supply have experienced an avalanche of quotations. , especially the price of consumer-grade products fluctuated the most.

An executive of a major domestic MCU manufacturer was interviewed by a reporter from China Securities Journal and said that the price of some domestic MCU products with small capacity and small package fluctuated, and coupled with channel inventory processing, the MCU market has greatly eased compared with last year, but products in different application fields have greatly eased. The situation is not the same.

According to the application field of MCU, it can be divided into four categories: consumer grade, industrial grade, automotive grade and military grade. The categories most affected by this wave of slashing orders are consumer-grade MCU products. Industrial-grade and automotive-grade MCUs have relatively little impact, and there are even shortages.

On the market demand side, the demand in the consumer electronics market represented by smartphones is slowing down.

According to the latest data released by market research firm CINNO Research, in the first quarter of 2022, smartphone sales in the Chinese mainland market were about 74.39 million units, down 14.4% from the same period last year. IDC data shows that in the first quarter of 2022, global smartphone shipments were 308 million units, a year-on-year decrease of 10.85% and a month-on-month decrease of 15.01%.

Global smartphone quarterly shipments (Image source: Dongguan Securities Research Institute)

▲ Global smartphone quarterly shipments (Image source: Dongguan Securities Research Institute)

It is reported that when the global core shortage begins in 2020, MCU is one of the most tightly supplied chip products, and the price of some MCU chips on the market will increase by 5-20 times. While market demand is slowing, downstream end customers and distributors have stockpiled a lot of consumer-grade MCU chips when they are in short supply.

Some chip dealers told Xinxie that after May 1st this year, chip prices began to drop. Dealers who had stockpiled more chips before began to ship gradually, but downstream customers have a large number of stockpiles. As a result, many dealers began to cut prices to clear their inventories, resulting in a price war, resulting in a sudden drop in the price of consumer-grade MCU chips in the market.

However, it is really reflected in the market. According to industry insiders, the original quotations of MCU chips are different from those of different suppliers. Relatively speaking, the price change of the original chip factory is small, but the change of the dealer’s price is relatively high.

For automotive-grade MCUs, some product prices are still in short supply. According to the “Science and Technology Innovation Board Daily” report, the prosperity of automotive MCU products is still high, and even IDM (vertically integrated manufacturing) manufacturers have specially added automotive-grade chip manufacturing or packaging production lines for this purpose.

Domestic MCU players make efforts to 32-bit, turn to high-end industrial control and vehicle-level
On the whole, the wave of consumer-grade MCU products will have a certain impact on domestic MCU manufacturers, but it also gives domestic MCU players the motivation to hit the mid-to-high-end market.

Simply put, the higher the number of MCU bits, the stronger the computing power. Currently 8-bit MCUs and 32-bit MCUs are the mainstream products on the market. Compared with international chip giants such as NXP, Renesas Electronics, and STMicroelectronics, domestic MCU chip companies are weaker in the mid-to-high end, and the main market is 8-bit MCU chips, and these 8-bit MCU chips are mostly used in consumer-grade MCU products. .

MCU applications by number of bits (Image source: Shenwan Hongyuan Research)

▲ MCU applications classified by number of digits (Image source: Shenwan Hongyuan Research)

According to the prospectus of China Micro Semiconductor (Shenzhen) Company, the main players in the MCU business of A-share listed companies are Zhaoyi Innovation, Zhongying Electronics and Chipsea Technology.

Zhaoyi Innovation was established in April 2005. Its main business is memory, microcontrollers and sensors. Its 32-bit MCU products use Arm Cortex-M3, Cortex-M4, Cortex-M23 and RISC-V cores, which are mainly used in industrial Controls, user interfaces, motor drives, power monitoring, alarm systems, consumer electronics and handheld devices, etc.

With the news of MCU product cut orders, Zhaoyi’s stock price fell by more than 7% during the session on July 4, and the closing price was 130.19 yuan per share, a decrease of 6.24%. As of the close on July 8, Zhaoyi Innovation reported 135.28 yuan per share, with a total market value of 90.295 billion yuan.

All beings behind the collapse of MCU chips: domestic players are rushing to the high end, and upstream manufacturers are still expanding production

Founded in September 2003, Chipsea Technology is a full-signal chain chip design company. Its MCU products are divided into 32-bit and 8-bit, mainly used in industrial control, automotive electronics, smart home, consumer electronics and other fields.

Its deputy general manager Wan Wei and board secretary Huang Changfu answered in the investor relations event that the revenue share of Chipsea’s 32-bit MCU products has increased rapidly, from 10% in 2020 to 40% in 2021. The first quarter of the year accounted for about 50%, and it will continue to increase thereafter.

In 2020, Chipsea’s first automotive-grade MCU has passed the AEC-Q100 certification and has entered the new product design of front-loading companies. Currently, it is increasing investment in the research and development of automotive-grade MCUs. As of the close of A shares on July 8, Chipsea Technology reported 61.5 yuan per share, an increase of 2.11%, and a total market value of 8.601 billion yuan.

All beings behind the collapse of MCU chips: domestic players are rushing to the high end, and upstream manufacturers are still expanding production

Zhongying Electronics was established in 1994, and its main products are industrial control MCU and OLED display driver chips. Its microcontroller chips are mainly used in home appliance main control, lithium battery management, motor control, and the Internet of Things. According to the first quarter financial report of Zhongying Electronics in 2022, the sales revenue of industrial control chips accounts for about 80%.

On July 4, after the news of the MCU cutting orders came out, investors were also worried about industrial control MCUs, and Zhongying Electronics’ stock price fell 5.17%. On July 6, Zhongying Electronics stated on the interactive platform that its research and development is mainly used for the body control MCU part, and it is expected that there will be product tapeouts in the middle of the year. As of the close of A shares on July 8, Zhongying Electronics reported 46.80 yuan per share, down 1.47%, with a total market value of 16.007 billion yuan.

All beings behind the collapse of MCU chips: domestic players are rushing to the high end, and upstream manufacturers are still expanding production

Zhongwei Semiconductor was established in June 2001 and is headquartered in Shenzhen. Its main business is 8-bit and 32-bit MCU chips. The main application areas of its products are home appliance control, consumer electronics, motor and battery and sensor signal processing.

On June 25, 2021, China Micro Semiconductor’s IPO was accepted by the Science and Technology Innovation Board. On June 14 this year, it was registered on the Science and Technology Innovation Board and will soon be listed on the Science and Technology Innovation Board. According to the prospectus, the MCU chip of Zhongwei Semiconductor is still dominated by 8 bits, and its revenue will account for 84.27% in 2021, which is mainly used in the field of home appliance control. Although it already has 32-bit MCU chip design capabilities, its product line still needs to be enriched, and there are certain operating risks.

At present, China Micro Semiconductor is developing automotive-grade MCU products, and plans to use the domestic 110nm and below process to realize the research and development of automotive-grade chips such as vehicle instrument display control chips and realize import substitution.

Judging from the layout of domestic MCU players such as Zhaoyi Innovation, Chipsea Technology, Zhongying Electronics, and Zhongwei Semiconductor, most of them are shifting from 8-bit MCU products to 32-bit MCU products with more difficult technical development and wider market space in the future. And gradually from home appliances, consumer electronics and other fields to the more shortage of car-grade MCU products.

Upstream foundry capacity utilization still exceeds 90%, domestic and foreign material manufacturers are expanding production
How will upstream fabs and semiconductor materials perform amid easing global chip demand?

In terms of wafer fabs, market consulting agency TrendForce believes that 8-inch wafer products (0.35-0.11μm) are greatly affected by consumer electronics demand, and the capacity utilization rate of wafer fabs dominated by consumer chips may fall below 90% , the capacity utilization rate of the remaining 8-inch fabs is about 90%-95%.

In terms of 12-inch wafers, the capacity utilization rate of some mature processes also fluctuates, but due to the more diverse products of 12-inch wafers, the overall capacity utilization rate of 12-inch wafer fabs will remain at around 95%.

Foundry capacity utilization in the second half of 2022 (Image source: TrendForce)

▲ Foundry capacity utilization in the second half of 2022 (Image source: TrendForce)

On the whole, although the demand for consumer products has begun to ease, with the increase in the penetration rate of 5G smartphones and electric vehicles, the demand for semiconductors in the fields of 5G base stations, security inspection measures, cloud server requirements, and new energy vehicles will increase. Capacity utilization will remain above 90%.

At present, leading wafer manufacturing companies such as TSMC, Intel and Samsung Electronics continue to expand production.

TSMC announced last weekend that in addition to three 12-inch fabs in Arizona, Nanjing, China, and Kumamoto, Japan, it will build 11 12-inch fabs in Taiwan this year and next.

Although Intel announced that the groundbreaking ceremony of its fab in Ohio was postponed, local media reported that its fab has actually started. Samsung Electronics continues to increase investment in the semiconductor field, and plans to expand the wafer production capacity of mature processes above 16nm, the main application areas are image sensors (CIS).

All beings behind the collapse of MCU chips: domestic players are rushing to the high end, and upstream manufacturers are still expanding production

In the more upstream field of semiconductor materials, under the tide of fab expansion, price increases and expansion are the main theme of the industry.

In terms of materials, Japan’s Showa Denko, Shin-Etsu Chemical, Shenggao silicon wafer, photoresist, and chemical material leaders have all announced product price increases. The 2022-2024 production capacity of Taiwanese silicon wafer supplier Universal Wafers has been booked, and announced on June 27 that it will invest US$5 billion to build a 12-inch silicon wafer fab in Texas, USA to expand production capacity.

In addition to international semiconductor material giants, silicon wafer players in mainland China are also investing in expanding production.

Shanghai silicon industry plans to achieve 300,000 pieces/month of 12-inch silicon wafer production in 2024; Zhonghuan Co., Ltd. expects to achieve 600,000 pieces/month of 12-inch silicon wafer production capacity by the end of 2023, Leon Micro announced a new investment to produce 1.8 million 12-inch silicon wafers per year epitaxial wafer.

On the whole, for upstream wafer manufacturing companies and semiconductor material companies, the impact of the decline in demand for consumer-grade MCU products is not obvious, and it will take some time for the mitigation of downstream chip supply to pass to the upstream.

Conclusion: The demand for consumer-grade MCUs is declining, and the perception of foundry and materials is not obvious
With the decline in demand in the consumer electronics market, the supply of related chip products has eased. Consumer-grade MCUs, as a chip type that was relatively short in the past, not only attracted many domestic manufacturers to join, but also downstream terminal enterprises have higher stocking. This has caused a wave of orders and price cuts for consumer-grade MCU products today.

But at the same time, the demand for industrial control and automotive-grade MCU products is still relatively strong, and domestic MCU manufacturers are also making efforts in this field. The upstream wafer manufacturing and semiconductor materials demand is still relatively strong, and the overall slowdown of chip supply remains to be seen.

bookmark_borderShortage of high-quality semiconductor workers, South Korea’s Ministry of Education is looking for solutions

South Korean President Yoon Seok-won slammed Chang Sang-wan, vice minister of education, at a cabinet meeting in recent days, after the latter pointed out that the government is increasingly demanding that local universities open more semiconductor-related majors. The call was slow to respond.

“If the Ministry of Education cannot play a leading role in cultivating the talents needed by the Korean economy, then it will be the Ministry of Education itself that needs to be reformed,” Yoon Seok-hye told the meeting, according to the Korea Economic Daily.

At Yoon’s urging, South Korea’s education ministry is looking for a solution to the shortage of high-quality semiconductor workers, which could include major changes to regulations. The move comes as the U.S., Europe, mainland China and Taiwan are ramping up spending to develop their homegrown chip industries.

The Korea Semiconductor Industry Association said the South Korean semiconductor industry is expected to face a shortage of at least 30,000 workers in the next 10 years. During this period, the chip industry will create approximately 1,500 to 1,600 new jobs each year. But South Korea has only 650 fresh graduates of semiconductor or semiconductor-related majors each year, less than half of that number.

In an interview with the Korea Economic Daily on the 9th, a person from the Ministry of Education said: “In addition to opening employment-related majors in universities, various plans to expand (semiconductor-related) enrollment are being studied.”

But it’s not as simple as it seems. The “change of thinking” will be strongly opposed by non-metropolitan MPs and politicians.

First of all, the problem of student capacity at universities in Seoul and Gyeonggi has been a major obstacle to the increase of semiconductor-related majors in local universities. South Korea introduced the quota in 1994 to reduce population density in the capital region. About half of South Korea’s 50 million people live in the capital region.

Universities could potentially bypass the law by reducing enrollment in other majors, especially non-mainstream majors, to make room for semiconductor-related majors. But this proposal was strongly opposed by professors and alumni of relevant departments.

In addition, special standards can also be formulated to give special treatment to universities or semiconductor-related departments to expand the number of students enrolled. That said, they risk being excluded from the current population concentration mitigation laws.

Prime Minister Han Ti-soo visited SK hynix’s main production base in Icheon, Gyeonggi on the 9th, and said, “The government will significantly increase the number of students enrolled in universities in the capital region and other regions.” To this end, the government is willing to provide financial assistance to academic institutions.

However, these plans must be approved by Congress, and for the next two years, liberal democrats who favor balanced regional development will continue to hold a majority.

On the other hand, Seoul National University has always disagreed with the establishment of a semiconductor major. Graduates of this major can work in sponsoring companies such as Samsung Electronics, SK Hynix, etc., and can also receive scholarships, admission fees and tuition fee waivers. Most of the university’s professors opposed the proposal, arguing that the university was not a place to train skilled workers. Buy IOS reviews.

Beyond that, how to get the support of parliamentarians in rural areas is the most thorny issue. If universities in Seoul and surrounding areas increase their capacity, enrollments in other areas will decrease further. Universities in non-Seoul areas face greater financial difficulties due to lower enrolments as birth rates fall. As a result, lawmakers elected in rural areas are fighting to block the passage of laws that would increase student numbers or open semiconductor-related majors at capital-region universities.

Similar policies by former President Moon Jae-in have also not received support from Congress. “In order to achieve this goal, universities in the Seoul region should reduce their total enrollment while securing places for semiconductor-related majors,” said the president of a private university in Seoul. “It is necessary for universities in other regions to take a step back in the national interest.”

In response to the shortage of manpower, the South Korean government has decided to relax the selection criteria for universities that meet the requirements for establishing cutting-edge disciplines, in order to reduce the number of students enrolled. This comes after Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix made large-scale investments over the next five years in order to maintain their dominance in the semiconductor market.