Apple Business showcase: 38, 100, 100 characters and a 3-day review

An Apple Business showcase has a heading of at most 38 characters, a body of at most 100, and alt text of at most 100. Apple reviews it for up to three calendar days, and it can run up to 365 days (90 by default). That means a Black Friday showcase must be submitted at least three days before it should start. The code below checks copy lengths and counts back the dates.

What does Apple's page say?

The page names photos only. It does not mention video, so this post covers a still image.

How do I check copy and dates before I submit?

Count characters in code, not by eye. Emoji and accented letters can count differently in the Apple form, so treat the result as a first pass and confirm in the form.

from datetime import date, timedelta

LIMITS = {"heading": 38, "body": 100, "alt_text": 100}

copy = {
    "heading": "Gifts that arrive before the 24th",
    "body": "Order by December 15 and your gift is on its way, wrapped and ready to open.",
    "alt_text": "A wrapped gift box with a red ribbon on a wooden table",
}
for field, limit in LIMITS.items():
    n = len(copy[field])
    print(f"{field}: {n}/{limit}", "ok" if n <= limit else "TOO LONG")

start = date(2026, 11, 27)  # the day you want it live
print("submit by", start - timedelta(days=3))

How do I make the photo with Sume?

Generate the picture with the Image API and keep text out of it, since heading and body are separate fields. ChatGPT Image 2.5 (openai/gpt-image-2.5) accepts up to 16 image references and an optional mask_url, so you can keep the product from your own photo and change only the scene around it.

Write the alt text after you have chosen the final image. It should describe what is in the picture, in plain words, within 100 characters. Because the page does not give exact photo dimensions, read them in Apple Business before you export, and ask for the matching aspect_ratio in the request.

What about a longer holiday run?

The 90-day default is a fixed length: a showcase that starts on October 28 would run to January 26. If you plan separate showcases for Black Friday and for the last shipping days, set each run length yourself, and count three review days for each one.

What should I do the day before?

Leave time for the review and for one rewrite.

• Count the characters in all three fields.
• Check the dates against the calendar, including the review time.
• Have the image or clip ready at the size the form asks for.
• Keep a copy of the text that you submitted.