B2C · recipe organizer app

How CookBook grows

5 tactics and 2 figures from 1 interview.

CookBook is a recipe and meal planning app whose tactics all come from its work on App Store screenshots. The team moved from wordy, hand-made images to one bold benefit per screenshot, keeps a screenshot test running at all times, and shows different first screenshots to people searching for different things. Few results were reported in numbers.

CookBook replaced paragraph-long captions with one feature and one large benefit caption per screenshot, with zoomed-in screens; the founder said the new set is far clearer but gave no conversion numbers.CookBook
CookBook always has a product page test running, changing one caption or the order at a time and letting low-traffic tests run long; the guest said winners often differ from what the team likes.CookBook
CookBook uses custom product pages for separate searches, such as importing recipes from social media or meal planning, with a first screenshot matched to each; no result was reported.CookBook
CookBook localized its store screenshots in about 7 languages using real app screens in each language, not just translated captions; no result was reported.CookBook
The founders tried AI-generated screenshot images and dropped them because the AI often changed the app's screens and the images could not be edited or localized.AppScreens

Summary written 2026-10-08 from the tactics below. Figures are as founders stated them.

About CookBook

What it is: Recipe manager that imports recipes from social, the web and scanned cookbooks, with meal planning, grocery lists and AI recipe variations
Who it's for: Home cooks who want their recipes in one place
Launched: 2016
Team: Husband-and-wife founders (Sam and Ralph)

As described in the interviews, not independently verified.

CookBook's 5 tactics

CookBook · B2C · recipe organizer app

Swap wordy screenshot captions for one big, bold benefit per screenshot

Founder says the new set is far clearer; no conversion numbers

CookBook's first screenshots were made one by one in Photoshop with paragraph-length captions. Current set: one feature per screenshot, large bold caption stating the benefit rather than the feature name (e.g. 'see which campaigns drive installs', not 'analytics dashboard'), big black device frame, zoomed-in UI. The first three screenshots get the most care since most visitors stop there.

Unknownaso

App Masters · 2026-07-25

CookBook · B2C · recipe organizer app

Always keep a screenshot test running, changing one small thing at a time

Winners often differ from what the team likes; no numbers

Always running App Store product page optimization (PPO) tests on CookBook's screenshots. Small iterations one at a time: a caption change or reordering screenshots. With low traffic, test a single variant (PPO allows up to 3) and let it run a long time (Apple suggests up to 90 days), since results swing day to day. The team competes on whose idea wins. New variants made by duplicating the screenshot project and changing screenshot one.

Unknownasoexperimentation

App Masters · 2026-07-25

CookBook · B2C · recipe organizer app

Change the first screenshot to match what people searched for

CookBook runs custom product pages for separate search intents, e.g. importing recipes from Instagram/social media and meal planning; the first screenshot changes to match the intent. Social proof as the first screenshot is another variant idea.

Unknownaso

App Masters · 2026-07-25

CookBook · B2C · recipe organizer app

Localize screenshots with real app screens in each language, not just captions

CookBook took raw app screenshots in each of its ~7 languages and used them in the store screenshots alongside translated captions. Guest advises only localizing store screenshots if the app itself is localized, since translated captions over an English app break trust.

Unknownlocalizationaso

App Masters · 2026-07-25

AppScreens · B2B · App Store screenshot maker

Make App Store screenshots with an AI image generator

Didn't work: it often changed the app's UI and can't be edited or localized

The founders tried having AI generate finished screenshot images.

Failedaso

App Masters · 2026-07-25

CookBook by the numbers

Metric	Value	Context	Said in
users	45K users/month approximate	Monthly active users, 10 years after launch	App Masters 2026-07-25 3:40
count	7 languages approximate	Languages the app and its screenshots are localized in	App Masters 2026-07-25 12:51

Topics

App Store optimization (ASO)5 App localization and international growth1 A/B testing for apps1

Interviews

Why App Store Screenshots Matter for ASO · App Masters · 2026-07-25