Practitioner pattern · Ariel Michaeli (Co-founder and CEO of Appfigures, which sells the ASO tools (Keyword Inspector, Competitors Keywords) he recommends)
Pick launch keywords carefully, then try 4-5 keyword versions before judging
Guest says most who quit ASO stopped after 1-2 tries; results come later
Workedasoexperimentation
What they did
New 1.0 apps get about a seven-day boost where ratings count doesn't matter, only keyword relevance. Settle keywords before launch so the boost lands on relevant searches; a good icon and screenshots turn that visibility into downloads and ratings, which keep rank afterwards. After that, expect to spend time up front studying competitors, then run four or five keyword iterations before judging results; most people who say ASO doesn't work have tried once or twice.
What happened
Guest says results come at the tail end after several iterations.
In their words
Sub Club by RevenueCat · Maximizing Organic Growth with App Store Optimization — Ariel Michaeli, Appfigures“So, the boost takes away the ratings component, so you don't need to have as many ratings in order to still rank.”
“expect to spend more time on the front end thinking about things, maybe exploring the competitors, exploring opportunities, and then running four or five different iterations, and then seeing actual results.”
Related topics
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More from this episode
- Put your most important keywords first in the app name and subtitleGuest says early positions get the most ranking weight; seen weekly in teardowns
- Never repeat a keyword between your app name, subtitle and keyword listGuest calls duplicates the worst ASO mistake: the word only counts at its weakest spot
- Keep your app name to 26-27 characters if it has an ampersand or special dashAvoids the last word being cut; one recipe app ranked only for a half-word
- Promote an in-app purchase with your keyword in its name to boost search rankImmediate rank boost; keyword-in-name part works about half the time
- Count how many downloads competitors need per rating, then out-rate themGuest says more ratings beat more downloads in App Store search
- Pick keywords where your rating count matches the top 5, using competitors' keywords and reviewsGuest says new apps can reach top 5 on big keywords when rivals optimize badly
- If you're new to a crowded keyword, name the app around just that keywordGuest says fewer name keywords concentrate ranking weight; broaden once ratings grow
- Fill the Spanish (Mexico) listing with extra keywords to rank in the US storeDoubles keyword space; guest sees the same ranking weight as the main listing
- Show your target search words on your App Store screenshotsGuest says matching the searcher's words cuts 'is this for me?' doubt; no numbers
- Mirror: Name your app exactly the popular search word, like 'Mirror'4,000-5,000 downloads a day; guest says the exact-match boost still works, but weaker
- BBC: Check which words competitors rank for and use the phrasings you missedSaw results right away, per the guest; no numbers
- Dropbox: Put 'photo backup' words before a famous brand name in the app titleUndone after a few weeks; guest thinks that was a mistake. No numbers