I can use android-market-api to get nearly all information about my app from Android Market.
But with published function from android-market-api, I cannot get download count number as it is in the Publisher's page (market.android.com/publish)
Is there any way to get this number with my android market developer account?
Thank you.
You can try using Google Analytics in your app (you'll get a lot of useful stats) and then use Analytics API to track download counts and source.
Are you looking for the exact numeric download count or a range? Because downloadsCountText (which you can get) will give you the latter.
I'm confusing by how you asked the question. If you have no access to the Google Developer Console, you can only search for it on Google Play and get an estimated range.
If you do, select the app, then click the first tab at left called "Statistics". It will give you a more detailed sales graph.
Related
I have a published android app.
On the first page I go to on developer console it has some stats.
One of the is "crashes and ANRs".
Are these automatically reported by android/play services out of the box?
Or do I need to opt in to them somehow?
mine reports '-' character under this stat. Does that mean zero, or like no data?
Thanks
Yes, you don't need to opt in.
However, to my knowledge, these are only crashes when the user has pressed the submit crash report error when the app crashed.
- means zero or no crashes for that matter
As Google states (https://support.google.com/googleplay/android-developer/answer/6083203?hl=en-GB):
"You'll see all ANRs collected from Android devices whose users have opted in to automatically share usage and diagnostics data. Data is available for the previous two months. For more information about how Android users opt in to share data, go to the Accounts Help Centre."
In the Accounts Help Centre's article, Google explains how users can enable and disable sharing the information and what information is shared.
Introduction
I've deployed the first version of my app to the Play Store and now I'm going to change the version code and publish the next version. So, in general case, the Google Play will notify users about the update. But I want my app itself to check for the updates and take user to the Play Store.
Studies till now
I have read about the workaround , here , where the app checks for the latest version with your server but I don't want that.
Requirement
I just want my app itself to directly compare its version with version available on the Play Store, and if it is different, then prompt user to update the app. On confirmation, it will take the user to the Play Store.
Is there any way to achieve this?
Is there any way to achieve this?
Probably, but I would not try to implement this if I were you and here is why.
Users configure update settings themselves through google play app settings.
If they want app updates right way they can say so. If they want to confirm first they can say so. If they don't want to be notified of updates at all, they can say so.
In most cases users are already notified of an update of your app through google play notifications. There is no need to add a 2nd notification. Even worse - users that don't want to be notified of updates will be annoyed when you notify them yourself. You want to avoid that.
You will need a service call to
https://androidquery.appspot.com/api/market?app=YourPackageNameOnPlaystore
for example:
https://androidquery.appspot.com/api/market?app=com.google.android.youtube
the respnse which will be returned by playstore will contain version information which is present on playstore.
compare it with local app version and take further steps
Hope this helps!
Good luck!
Short answer: No. There is no such official API yet. But you can go for an unofficial one.
But still as you have mentioned you can go for your own API implementation and prompt the user to update the app. But take into consideration that users have their own preferences about updating the app and they may find such prompts annoying. #Tim Castelijns's answer explains it in detail.
The Google Play Developer Console offers the Tracked Channels (UTM) view under User Acquisition → Performance which should be able to show a breakdown of which tagged links users clicked to get to the store listing, etc.
I have generated several different links to my app using the Google Play URL Builder, e.g.:
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.vandenmars.colortrek&referrer=utm_source%3Dso%26utm_medium%3Dlink%26utm_campaign%3Dlink%26utm_content%3DTBk
I did a couple of tests last week where I opened the Play Store using these links and installed the app on new devices immediately from there. Still, the Tracked Channels (UTM) list shows no entries.
A bit more background that may be relevant:
My app itself does not use the Google Analytics SDK and does not register a receiver for the INSTALL_REFERRER intentI would assume that the Play Store handles the links directly without requiring app interaction, especially since it can track store listing views that don't lead to installs, but maybe this is incorrect? Or maybe the store disables tracking based on the app manifest?
I opened the links in Chrome on my PC and clicked "Install" thereMaybe the links only get tracked if they are opened in the Play Store App on the actual device? Seems strange, but I am running a test on that right now, the data just hasn't updated yet.
The tagged installations I did were on days that have been processed alreadyIt sometimes takes Google a long time to update the "Performance" data, but the data I can see already includes this Sunday and the tests were done on Friday. So, unless the UTM tracking data takes even longer to get processed, it should already show up.
Do I need to enable something somewhere for this to work? Or am I doing something else wrong?
UPDATE 1:
Meanwhile, one entry has started showing up in the Tracked Channels (UTM) list. Unfortunately, as the help-text states, "UTM-tagged links that have a single store listing visitor [...] are included in the “Other” category." So I have no idea which of my test links it is, if any. The entry is only showing as a Store Listing Visitor, but not as an Installer.
The last day included in the stats is Wednesday (supposedly), which is also the day when I did the test of opening the link directly in the Play Store app on a device for the first time. I did install the app during that visit, but it was after I had uninstalled a previous installation.
So, here's what I learned from this:
It doesn't look like there is some on/off switch for UTM tagging that I need to enable.
Including the Analytics SDK and registering an INSTALL_REFERRER is not strictly needed for just the tracking of Store Listing Visitors, but it might be needed to track Installers/Buyers.
There may be a difference between visits to tagged links from a PC vs. from the Play Store app on a device.
This leaves the following questions:
Are UTM links only tracked by the Play Store app, or also by visits to http://play.google.com/...?
Does an app need to use the Analytics SDK to forward information about installs and purchases to the Play Store, or do these get tracked independently of the app like the store listing visitors?
Is only the first installation of an app on a specific device counted under Installers, or is a fresh install after an uninstall also counted? How about after a factory reset of the device?
Bonus question: Is there a way to expand the "Other" category? :)
UPDATE 2:
Now I'm back to square one: 3 days ago, I opened more test-links on different devices (including the one that I thought was the one that showed up last time), directly in the app store, installing the app immediately. The data shown includes everything up to and including two days ago, so these visits and installs should be tracked by now. Yet, the list does not show any additional entries beyond the one from update 1 above.
So, either I have absolutely no clue what should be going on, or this whole tracking system is one giant buggy mess... Some things I've read in random forums suggest the latter, but maybe I am missing something, too?
UPDATE 3:
This is getting stranger and stranger. Now, all of a sudden, I see an entry showing 14 store visits and 10 installs for "zedge/android"! Why would someone make their own utm tagged link for my app?!? On top of that, none of my other tests have ever shown up (still just the original entry under "Other") and I don't even see the 10 installs in the statistics... Looks like this whole thing is just plain broken... Correction welcome.
We're in the same situation too now. No Google Analytics set up, need to run some ads this weekend, so I'm going to try to use UTM tags to track the app installs.
There may be a difference between visits to tagged links from a PC vs.
from the Play Store app on a device.
Found this in their documentation
"Note: Over-the-air and web (play.google.com) impressions aren’t
tracked on your app’s User Acquisition page at this time."
If you want, send the link over and I can test it out.
Before direct user to Google Play app page, send GET request with UTM params to your own site. Register this site to Google Analitics. It will count page visits only.
I am going through the same problem. I wanted to test if the UTM source and UTM campaign from the new Dashboard required some SDK or API installed in the app itself. So I contacted Google Play Devs, I asked specifically if we needed Google Analytics and their response was:
this not the case and also there is nothing further that you can add to the app itself.
I did try downloading my own app and sent the link over to a couple of dozen people (bare in mind that the app does have a Google Analytics setup, but it is from 2016, so old version) with the following link
Power my Robot with UTM links setup
I put random words, and all the visits and downloads on both UTM Campaign and UTM Source showed under "Other" and not the words I put. I managed to get around 20 downloads from this link.
However, after questioning Google why it was showing under "Other" and not the word I put in the link, they said it is because of a minimum threshold, which they don't know the amount.
As mentioned above, I used this form to get the Google Play with the UTM tags.
And also, I agree with a comment above, that Apple simply works. From the campaign section in the dashboard, you can open the "Link Generator" and they specifically say that the minimum amount in order to show the number is at least 5 installs using the link in order to protect users' privacy. Google Play can learn something from Apple in this case.
I will try to keep this updated if anything changes on my stats. And feel free to click on the link above and install the app, open and then de-install, just to build up the numbers and see if I can cross the threshold and discover what is the minimum amount they require.
I confirm that the Google Play Store UTM tracking doesn't work with your configuration, as I have the same (no Google Analytics SDK, but firebase-core) and I can't see any installation listed in the Acquisition view of the Play Store.
I note that the Play Store documentation part about UTM tag has a link to an url builder on the Google Analytics Guide, so may be the solution in to install GA SDK.
Have found google page that suggest how to build url with utms: https://developers.google.com/analytics/devguides/collection/android/v4/campaigns?hl=es#google-play-url-builder
This is an example:
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id={application_id}&referrer=utm_source%3D{source_id}%26utm_medium%3D{medium}%26utm_term%3D{term}
I have an app that I am making and have uploaded to the Google Play through my console and would like some people to test it.
I have created a Google Group and also added a different account for myself but get the following error:
BM-PPH-01
Has anyone else seen or know what this means?
I had the same problem after paying for an app and after that the download process didn't start.
My solution:
I visited the http://play.google.com/ website through my PC, searched for the app and selected the target device through the install-button.
BM-PPH-01 error message is usually shown when there is an incompatibility between any of the three App,Google Pay, Device.
The incompatibility can be the device's location such as Google play features not available when device is in China . An app can be restricted for downloading in US only.
The following links might provide some insights about this problem and possible workarounds.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2181359
http://codekiem.com/2013/02/13/market-helper/
I just now received the same error code [BM-PPH-01] when trying to push a paid app from the Play Store using my desktop web browser to my compatible mobile device.
As a workaround I was able to visit the Play store from my compatible mobile device - the app began downloading as soon as I opened the Play Store app. I had planned to click the app's Install button from the Play Store app but didn't need to.
I think I found the solution.
Change your main address in Google Wallet according to the country whose store your are trying to buy/download.
Ex: I was trying to download a film using the German store but my main Google wallet address was set to Portugl. I changed the address and now it works.
I know I can add a referrer parameter to the Google Play URL to track downloads from a specific source, but can I track which keyword searches users used to find my app on Google Play?
Before Google Play, i.e Android Market, I was receiving in the referrer all the relevant information to help me understood how my app was found.
It could have been keywords, tops, similar applications, etc.
It was really, really useful.
Since Google Play, I do not receive anything anymore. The only referrers I get are the one I set manualy when I do some campaigns. I spent a lot of time trying to understand why, but it looks like Google Play just doesn't send this information anymore. Doesn't make sense to me, however.
However, you'll get keywords of how users found your application on Google Play from Google search engine (if they hit "Install on my phone" button).
Referrer example utm_source=google&utm_medium=organic&utm_term=my+keyword
(doesn't work if user is using https Google search)
Not exactly, because your app is found by keywords defined by YOU.
-> If you're selling navigation based app, you may enter "navigation". Therefore it appears under keyword navigation and in that case, the result would be relevant.
If they open something related to app that is related to your app, will you be interested in the first keyword that could have been something totally different?
-> If there's an app with keyword "children", they open it and Google Play then recommends something else with children, they open it. Then, this second app, having also keyword children could have a tag "navigation". Then Google Play could recommend YOUR app. I don't believe that tag "children" would be your concern :-)