How to Use Deep Links to Improve App Store Visibility and Organic Discoverability?

Developed an app and made it available on the App Store. Great! What next? A battle! A quest to increase your app’s visibility on the App Store and enhance its organic discoverability.

Honestly, ensuring your app appears in the top result on an App Store, particularly amidst a crowded app platform can be daunting. It is like whispering in a thunderstorm.

However, what if we tell you we’ve got a great way of winning this uphill battle?

Yes, and it is deep linking! Surprised? You don’t have to be. Deep linking can help you cut through the noise and give you the visibility advantage. Excited to explore how? Let’s start.

What is Deep Linking?

Or, let’s say what are deep links? Most of you would know as it has been around for a while. However, for those new to this space, let’s start from the basics.

Deep links are URLs that take users to a specific location within an app instead of taking them to the app’s homepage and leaving them to figure out where the content is.

When you use these links correctly, they can foster a drastic improvement in how people find your app and interact with it, whether internally or externally.

Why Leverage the Deep Linking Strategy to Make Your App Visible?

So, why do deep links matter, particularly concerning your app’s visibility in the App Store list? We’ve identified several reasons. Let’s look at them.

• Driving Targeted Traffic

When users click on a deep link from a social media post, an SMS, email or mobile web search, the app helps them bypass the app’s front page and transports them to what originally drew their interest – precisely, the content they wanted to see.

This refers to a focused experience that keeps users engaged and reduces the bounce rate.

It also means a seamless transition that helps enhance conversion rates from your web efforts, conveying to the App Stores that your app cares for its users, provides valuable content, and delivers a consistent experience. 

In short, it has what it takes to make users happy!

And what do delighted users do? They often post better ratings and reviews that the App Stores love. Great reviews attract even more people and more opportunities!

• Amplifying Social Media Campaigns

Amidst the crowded social media space, outshining competitors can seem more challenging than moving mountains. However, deep linking makes life easier. It makes sharing specific content from your app on social media phenomenally powerful.

Thus, instead of saying Download Our App, you can share a deep link to a particular product, an exclusive promotion, etc., within your app – something that offers users a definite value. So, when users click on the link, even if they do not have an app installed on their device yet, they can go directly to that specific piece of content after installation.

This is the impact of deferred deep linking.

The above exercise can help make your social media campaigns more effective and drive better leads with higher engagement or purchase intent.

• Indexing the App Content

When you implement deferred deep linking and app indexing, search engines can surface your in-app content in mobile search results. 

This happens even if the user doesn’t have the app.

So, let’s say you are an online travel agency, when a user searches for cheap air tickets to London may take them to your app’s airline ticket reservation page.

It can help increase app visibility even outside the App Store.

• Improved Email Marketing

Deep links prove as useful for email marketing as they do for social media campaigns. They increase precision even for email marketing. So, you can promote specific features, discounts, offers, etc., within your app in your emails.

Thus, when users click, they go to the relevant section, reducing interaction time, enhancing the experience, and increasing the likelihood of engagement.

• More Impactful Influencer Marketing

Hiring influencers to market offerings has become common these days. Influencer marketing has emerged as a powerful strategy to utilize a prepared base of target audience and leverage it as an outreach. Further, it also helps influence buyer decisions!

But how does the deep linking thing work in the case of influencer marketing? 

So, let’s assume you’ve partnered with an influencer who showcases a particular feature of your application. While doing it, the influencer can use a deep link in their content and direct their audience to the feature within your app.

The result can be a more impactful and direct call to action, encouraging engagement and measurable outcomes.

How Do You Use Deep Links to Benefit Your App’s Store Visibility?

This requires experts. However, we’d be happy to provide a fundamental insight into this.

Remember, sprinkling deep links everywhere and expecting magic isn’t reasonable. You must think strategically and use deep links appropriately. Let’s overview how to do it.

• Implementing App Links (Android) and Universal Links (iOS)

Considered modern deep linking standards, these ensure users go to the in-app content if the app is installed or to the Play Store or App Store if not. Further, pairing them with deferred deep linking can drive users to install the app and take to the in-app content.

• Linking to Deep Content from Outside Channels

This involves deep links to connect the message with the specific in-app experience, whether it is social media, email marketing, or other digital form of marketing.

• Indexing In-App Content

Using various indexing tools for Android and iOS to allow search engines to surface the in-app pages in search results. So, your content will not just stay in your app but Google too.

How Deep Linking Helps Improve Organic Discoverability?

Deep links don’t influence app store algorithms directly, as much as keywords do. However, they create a noteworthy impact. Let’s throw some more light on it.

• Enhanced User Engagement Metrics

Smoother onboarding experiences help enhance user engagement within the app. Users stay on the app for a longer time, discover it, and find value when they go to the content that interests them. Higher engagement metrics send a positive indication to app stores, enhancing rankings and discoverability over a period.

• Increased Word-of-Mouth

Positive and seamless experiences lead to better and more positive mouth publicity. It helps increase the app’s traffic and subsequently, its discoverability. 

• Improved App Indexing 

On Android, deep links can contribute to Google App Indexing, enabling Google to index specific content within the app, and potentially showcasing it in search results when users look for relevant terms. It can help expand the app's organic reach.

Prepared to Use Deep Linking as a Strategic Tool?

A developer’s conventional choice would be Firebase Dynamic Links. However, it is discontinuing its services from August 25, 2025. So, how do you leverage deep links?

The answer is ChottuLink – a seamless drop-in replacement for Firebase Dynamic Links.

It is universally compatible across all systems, supports deferred deep linking, provides custom domain support, and offers advanced analytics and Rest API support.

ChottuLink is now live — no more waiting! Sign up now and start building powerful deep links today.