ASO mistakes are the listing errors that keep a good app from being found in app store search. The most common ones are skipping keyword research, using one strategy for iOS and Android, skipping localization, never A/B testing, ignoring ratings and reviews and optimizing only once. These aren’t tips aimed only at developers, since app store optimization is a type of marketing that any business owner or professional can use to make their mark online. Wix enables businesses to launch branded iOS and Android apps without coding. Below are 12 common ASO mistakes I’ve witnessed in my three years of studying this topic, along with what to do instead.
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TL;DR: 12 common ASO mistakes and how to avoid them
ASO mistakes are fixed with process rather than budget. Research keywords before writing a title, treat the App Store and Google Play as separate channels and give every optimization round four to six weeks before judging it. The title and subtitle carry the most ranking weight in both stores, so that is where guesswork costs the most.
What you’ll learn
Which listing fields affect ranking on iOS versus Android
How to A/B test an app page without muddying the result
How often to re-optimize and how long to wait before reading results
12 common ASO mistakes you might be making
01. Not conducting keyword research
Far too often, I see app creators rely on gut instincts when writing their app titles and descriptions. This leaves a lot of potential traffic on the table. Until these creators perform proper keyword research, most don’t realize the types of words that people are actually searching to find apps like theirs.
Part of why this happens is that the pool of app creators is much wider than it used to be. Aviran Mordo, VP Engineering at Wix, says, “The goal of Wix hasn’t changed at all. We’ve always wanted to empower people to do complex technological things without a technical background. Previously, this was primarily about building websites, and now it’s about apps.” More founders are shipping apps without a marketing team behind them, and the title field is usually the first place that shows.
The right keywords can ultimately increase your app’s visibility in the app stores, attract the right audience and increase your conversion rate (from impression to download). Therefore, you’ll want to thoroughly research high-intent and high-traffic keywords that are relevant to your audience. You can use tools like:
AppTweak
Sensor Tower
MobileAction
App Radar
Asodesk
Keep in mind that keyword research can help you prioritize new app feature development, too. You can prioritize features (or even decide on app and feature names) based on popular searches.
02. Not using keywords in the title, subtitle or description
Your app title and subtitle are the main fields that both the Apple and Google app store algorithms consider when ranking an app. Using keywords in those fields will increase your app’s ranking potential, and thus your visibility in the app stores.
To maximize your iOS app, make sure to use all the space available for the “keyword list” field since it affects rankings. (Note that the keywords field is hidden from users and only used by app developers to communicate with the algorithm. It’s basically a place to add the keyword that you're targeting.)
To maximize your app’s rankings on Android, use your keywords in the long description. While you can add a long description on both Android and iOS, only Android uses this field for ranking.
Some other best practices to keep in mind:
Add the primary keyword at the beginning of your description.
Avoid keyword stuffing, and use your description to clearly explain what your app does and why people need it.
It may be a good idea to share your support info and subscription prices in the description so that users have all the information they need upfront.
03. Using the same ASO strategy for iOS and Android
Using the same keywords and placing them in the same way on iOS and Android is an avoidable ASO mistake that, if left untreated, will likely hurt your app’s performance. The algorithms are different from one another, and you can’t assume that what works for one of them will also work for the other.
First, you’ll notice that some keyword fields are different between iOS and Android. iOS asks for a keyword list, while Android does not. Android uses tags, while iOS does not.
Second, some shared fields don’t have the same character limit. You have 30 characters for the iOS subtitle, and 80 for the Android one.
In addition, there are differences in the way you optimize for each app store. For example, you’ll want to avoid repeating keywords across your title, subtitle and description on iOS, but you’ll benefit from repeating important keywords on Android. On Android, you have the option of adding tags as well (whereas on iOS, you do not). You can choose up to five tags, which will help boost your organic visibility in the Google Play Store.
04. Not localizing your app
If your app is available in different countries and languages, you must localize your app store page. This doesn’t mean just using Google Translate to convert your app store assets to other languages.
Conduct thorough market research for each region. Consider local marketing strategies. Hire native content writers and designers who understand the unique qualities of the local culture (including the language, humor and values of the area) and can adapt your content appropriately. For example, they may be able to add local slang in your app description or local symbols in your app’s screenshots.
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05. Waiting too long to start working on an ASO strategy
An app should have an ASO strategy from day one. The Apple App Store artificially ranks your app for the first week. In other words, it guesses which keywords are related to your app, then waits to see if people searching for those keywords actually download your app. After that first week, it will correct itself and adjust your rankings.
For this reason, using the right keywords from the start can help your app rank higher (and stay ranked) on relevant keywords from the get-go.
The same logic drives search strategy on the web. Rebecca Tomasis, Head of Organic Growth Marketing at Wix, says, “SEO should be part of the website creation process from day one, not treated as an afterthought. Organic search continues to be one of the most powerful and sustainable traffic drivers, especially for B2B businesses, and when built into the site correctly, it creates a long-term growth engine that continues to deliver value over time.” Store listings work the same way, and the first week is the part you cannot redo.
It can also help to prime the pump by proactively using marketing strategies to attract users to your app. In particular, mobile marketing tactics like driving people to a dedicated landing page or reaching users through SMS can help you get your first downloads.
06. Not performing A/B tests
A/B tests allow you to test different app page assets and make a rational decision. You can identify which version of the tested asset brings more downloads to the app and better understand user behavior.
To set a proper A/B test, think about what you want to test, like your title or app icon. Focus on one change at a time. If you make too many changes, you won't know which change affected the test result. Having said that, the change shouldn’t be too small, otherwise you might get a tie.
Once you pick what you want to test, decide on two variations to compare (i.e., the original version and a hypothesis one). Comparing more than two variations at a time could lead to unclear results, and you will likely need to retest your hypothesis.
Test for at least a week. For low-traffic apps, the test will take longer to get enough data for proper analysis.
07. Forgetting to optimize your creative assets
Neither app store gives you much space for the app title and subtitle, and very few visitors ever tap to expand the full description. That puts the weight on your app page creatives, which are where you have room to explain what your app actually does.
For instance, you can show your app’s main features in the screenshots or show the user flow in the preview video.
In addition, app page creatives are known as one of the main factors that affect downloads and conversions from impression to download, according to the Advanced ASO ebook produced by a group of industry practitioners.
08. Neglecting reviews and ratings
Your app’s rating and reviews have a big impact on conversion rates (from impression to download). Users tend to download apps with a rating of at least four stars, based on my experience. Alchemer found that 79% of consumers check ratings and reviews before downloading an app, and that 90% consider star ratings an essential part of how they evaluate a new one.
Having bad reviews will result in a low conversion rate and a low number of app downloads. To combat this, I recommend:
Don't take too long to answer reviews. It looks bad if it takes you weeks to respond to a review, especially a negative one. Try to answer within a few days.
Don't copy and paste the same response to every review. Try to customize your responses.
Thank users for their feedback.
Acknowledge the user’s struggles, and be empathetic.
Answer professionally and show that you take feedback seriously.
Try to find a solution. If the feedback involves a complex problem, ask the user to contact your support team. Don't forget to leave an email or another way for the user to reach out to you.
Inform users about bug fixes, if possible.
09. Failing to monitor your app’s quality
Apple and Google both want users to have the best experience possible when using their app stores and therefore reward reliable, high-quality apps. High-quality apps have a greater chance of earning high rankings and being promoted in different areas of each app store, such as the “More apps like this” and “What’s new” sections.
To this end, you need to keep an eye on crashes, uninstall rate, number of active users, etc. The goal is to maintain high engagement with minimal performance issues.
10. Only optimizing once
While there are best practices when it comes to ASO, it still requires a lot of trial and error. That’s why it’s an iterative process, and you can’t expect it to succeed after only one round of optimization. It takes time to learn each algorithm and see how it responds to tweaks to your app page.
According to best practices, each iteration should be given four to six weeks to breathe. This gives the algorithm enough time to pick up on the keywords you’re using, understand how relevant they are and rank your app accordingly. It also gives you enough time to analyze your app’s performance and optimize your app’s textual assets.
In addition, working in iterations forces you to constantly monitor important metrics, such as impressions, downloads, conversion, rankings, etc. These metrics provide valuable insights on your app’s performance, and allow you to fix issues on time.
11. Turning a blind eye to your competitors
It’s easy to operate in a bubble and believe that your hard work will attract fans. But the reality is that more than 2,000 new apps a day are published on each of Google Play and the Apple App Store.
If you want to be the best in your niche, you must understand who your competitors are and what they’re doing. You can learn a lot from looking at competitors’ app pages, such as which keywords they target, which app features they emphasize, who’s in their targeted audience, etc. Use this information to optimize your own messaging and ASO strategy.
12. Not tracking algorithm changes
From time to time, both app stores adjust and update their ranking algorithms. If you don’t track those changes, you may quickly find yourself unranked for your most important keywords, something that is very hard to recover from. You need to monitor these changes and adjust your ASO strategy accordingly to stay visible in the app stores.
For instance, if you see that your rankings have suddenly dropped, do some investigation. This could indicate an algorithm change.
Additionally, check forums (like this ASO Stack Slack community) or use an algorithm change detector (like AppTweak) to stay in the know.
Common ASO mistakes FAQ
What is the most common ASO mistake?
The most common ASO mistake is skipping keyword research and writing an app title and description from instinct. App titles and subtitles carry the most ranking weight in both stores, so guessing at them leaves your highest-value fields working against you. Keyword research has a second payoff too, since search demand tells you which features to prioritize and what to call them.
Is ASO the same as SEO?
ASO and SEO both compete for visibility in a search result, but ASO applies to app store search and ranks on different fields. The App Store and Google Play weigh your title, subtitle and keyword list rather than page content and backlinks, and Google Play is the only one of the two that uses the long description for ranking. Ratings, reviews and download behavior also feed app store ranking in a way they don’t feed web search.
How many tags can you add to a Google Play listing?
A Google Play listing can have a maximum of five tags, according to Google’s Play Console Help. Tags come from a predefined list rather than free text, and Google recommends changing them only after a significant change to your app’s content or functionality. Google also assigns some tags automatically based on its own analysis of the app.
How long does app store optimization take to show results?
App store optimization usually takes four to six weeks per round before the results are readable, because each store needs that long to index new keywords and gather enough behavioral data to rank on them. Conversion changes like a new icon or new screenshots tend to register faster than keyword ranking changes. Reading a round earlier than that mostly means reacting to noise.
Do you need to be a developer to do ASO?
You don’t need to be a developer to do ASO, because every field it touches sits in the store listing rather than in the app’s code. Titles, subtitles, descriptions, keyword lists, tags, screenshots and review responses are all managed from App Store Connect and the Google Play Console. Wix’s app builder covers the same ground for business owners, since the app and its store listing are prepared from the same dashboard as the website.
