Most brands think running Apple Ads means picking the right keywords. And just like that, they believe their campaign is set for success. But they should think twice.
What they’re actually doing is bidding on keywords and hoping for the best. Or worse, they’ve left Search Match on and let the algorithm decide which keywords to target and how to bid. That usually means burning budget without real growth.
We’re sure it sounds familiar. You invested heavily in an Apple Ads campaign, selected a bunch of keywords, and waited for the results, only to find that nothing really moved the way you hoped.
Here’s the reality: keywords without context don’t convert. Not if you ignore what the user actually wants. That’s the real issue. Most brands skip the most important question: what mindset is this user in right now?
Relying on keywords alone is not only lazy, it’s costly. Because when running an Apple Ads campaign, what matters is when, where, and why you show up.
Are they searching with a clear goal in mind, just browsing, or killing time on the Today Tab? Each moment reflects a different mindset, so how you show up needs to shift accordingly — not just in how you bid, but in the experience you deliver. That’s where Custom Product Pages make a real difference, turning attention into action by matching what the user sees with what they’re actually looking for.
The problem is, most strategies are built around words, not people. What marketers must understand is that Apple Ads only deliver groundbreaking results when they’re built around behavior, ongoing experimentation, and tracking of performance variables.
Not every tap means the same thing
If there’s one mindset shift brands need to make, it’s this: users don’t behave the same across the App Store, and your Apple Ads strategy has to reflect that.
The Brazilian market is where this change is already happening. We’ve seen major impact with brands like Globo, Magalu, Beep Saúde, Netshoes, and Renner — all growing through behavior-led strategies that go beyond keywords.
How? It starts by recognizing the differences in user intent across placements.
Someone scrolling the Today Tab isn’t in the same mindset as someone typing “running shoes on sale.” One is casually browsing, maybe open to discovery. The other is problem-aware and ready to act. If you treat those two moments the same, you’re wasting both budget and opportunity.
Each Apple Ads format reflects a different level of intent, and your strategy needs to follow that structure. Here’s how to think about it:
👉 Search Results is where intent peaks. The user is actively looking for a solution. This is where your category and competitor keywords need to hit hard, and where your message has to be razor sharp.
We applied this mindset with Beep Saúde. We focused on Search Results only and used Custom Product Pages to create tailored experiences based on what users were actually searching for, like “vaccination at home.” That alignment helped drive a 49% lift in installs.
It’s a great takeaway for any brand starting with just one format. Even in what seems like a basic setup, there’s still room to innovate. Rocket Lab stands out by turning intent into performance and pushing results beyond industry standards.
That’s the real advantage of Custom Product Pages. They help you match what the user sees with what they actually came looking for. If someone came through a promo, show them the promo. If they searched your brand, deliver the value. Every tap has context, and when the landing experience reflects that, performance follows.
At Rocket Lab, we help brands design and activate CPPs that make every placement work harder. It’s how we turn attention into installs, and installs into long-term value.
We applied this approach with Magalu during their “Liquidação Fantástica” — and in just two days, turned a historically low-performing week into one of their most successful campaigns, surpassing even Black Friday results in momentum and revenue.
We didn’t just activate every format. We prioritized them strategically: Search Results led the way with high-intent conversions. Today Tab expanded reach, boosted brand recall, and played a key role in re-engaging existing users — contributing to 16% of total revenue thanks to smart audience selection. Product Pages reinforced the app’s value while users explored similar listings. And while Search Tab helped identify users more likely to download, we approached it as a discovery tool, not a performance driver.
The result? A 77% increase in purchases per install — all by treating each format as part of a full-funnel strategy, not as isolated inventory.
Let’s be clear: keywords still matter. But only when they’re part of a bigger picture.
Most brands treat keywords like a checklist.
Branded? ✅
Category? ✅
Competitor? ✅
They throw everything into a single campaign without structure or intent.
But a smart setup goes further. It splits keywords by intent — into branded, category, and competitor campaigns — each with a specific match type and bidding strategy. Then comes the Discovery campaign. Its goal isn’t just performance, it’s exploration. Using broad match and Search Match, it helps uncover new search terms worth adding to your main campaigns.
But keywords only work when they’re aligned with behavior. You need to know what the user is doing, why they’re doing it, and what kind of message or landing experience will push them forward.
That’s exactly how we approached it with Netshoes. We protected branded keywords to maintain visibility during peak demand, while also activating category and competitor terms during high-intent seasonal moments. At the same time, we matured a parallel data-driven test to evaluate the incrementality of secondary attribution methods, including View-Through Attribution and SKAN, and how these signals, tracked via MMPs, contributed to post-install outcomes.
This wasn’t limited to brand campaigns. We extended the analysis across other campaign types, showing how strategic depth and strong measurement can turn Apple Ads into a real performance engine. The result was a 49% increase in App Store impressions while keeping CPI steady at R$2.
It worked because it wasn’t just execution. It was strategy, validation, and data at the core. That’s how we turn what looks simple into a competitive edge.
Apple Ads needs strategy, not autopilot. What worked last month might flop next quarter. User behavior changes. So does the competition. Your strategy has to keep up.
The real advantage comes from how you adapt. From the placements you prioritize to the CPPs you test and the keywords you refine, every part of your campaign should evolve as the signals change. We go further by syncing organic efforts with paid efforts, aligning launches and feature releases with media spikes to maximize impact, and actively monitoring competitors and market trends with our unique tech tools to spot opportunities before they peak.
That’s what we do at Rocket Lab. We treat Apple Ads as a live system — always thinking, testing, and adjusting. That’s what turns performance into sustained growth.
It’s not about flooding the App Store with keywords and hoping something lands. It’s about understanding who the user is, respecting their journey, and showing up with purpose at every stage.
Everything starts with behavior. The strategy follows the funnel. The format fits the moment. And every move is backed by intent, built to drive real results.
That’s how we’ve helped brands like Netshoes, Beep Saúde, and Magalu turn attention into installs, installs into purchases, and purchases into long-term value.
No tricks. No guesswork. Just a strategy built with purpose, powered by intelligence, and driven by data.
Now’s the time to move smart, move fast, and grow the right way.
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