10 Aug Screenshot Localization for Mobile Games
Screenshots play a big role in influencing users to download your mobile game.
Many users will base their final decisions solely on the appeal of your screenshots. Unique, eye-catching screenshots can make them download your game in a snap but poorly designed ones can cause users to simply walk away. This is due in large part, to the fact, that users think they will like your game if they like your screenshots and sadly it can also go the other way around.
The reason to have screenshots is because they present a better perspective of your game than what can often be said in words within your description. And screenshots also make up close to 75% of your actual app store listing! Think of it as gaining a competitive advantage by emphasizing unique features of your game in your screenshots. Incorporate your key characters into the screenshots to add a more compelling story!
People nowadays are more visual than ever before. In fact, most prefer browsing through screenshots rather than reading lengthy descriptions.
Given that, it is imperative that developers pay extra attention in conceptualizing how their screenshots should look. Both Apple and Google tend to give favor to apps that have good-looking screenshots. Just check out the top apps in each of the respective stores to see how they created their screenshots.
Localize your Screenshots
One of the best ways to go deeper in harnessing the use of screenshots is to localize. Screenshot localization is slowly becoming a non-negotiable part of every developer’s marketing strategy today. Don’t just localize the title, description or keywords but localize the words on the actual screenshots. If your game is targeting multiple regions and languages, test this out for yourself by localizing a few of your screenshots. You might be pleasantly surprised with the results. Most data collectors have reported that games with localized screenshots enjoy a significant boost in downloads as compared to their counterparts that only use English.
Put together localized texts and taglines for a clearer marketing pitch. Giving potential customers the convenience of reading those captions in their language removes a great barrier for them to download your game. It can also eliminate the possibility of misunderstandings as to how your game functions, which could lead to user dissatisfaction. And we all know that user dissatisfaction can lead to bad reviews. And so far most of the data collected points to poor reviews leaving a negative effect on your rankings and therefore your downloads.
Now just to point out, there could be one small potentially negative aspect to localizing your screenshots and that is that some users will think that your entire game is also localized. And so those users may be greatly disappointed when they open your game only to find out that the inner workings of your game are not in their native language. So, you might get a few angry users. But you can use that drawback to your advantage by reading your reviews, looking at downloads and see if perhaps the next step should be to actually localize the inner workings of your game. So think of it as just another way to analyze your potential target markets.
CONCLUSION
Localizing your screenshots is a rewarding endeavor especially if you are serious about getting your game out globally. With a few extra hours of careful planning and designing your screenshots, you will be well on your way to more downloads and over the long haul, enjoy increased growth and profit opportunities for your game. And it could also lessen your user acquisition costs which is always a good thing!
However, keep in mind that the screenshot is not the only determining factor for your game’s success. Aside from having a great icon, a perfectly written description, targeted keywords and title – nothing is more important than a feature-packed, robust game to begin with.