App Store Optimization for is under utilized as a growth method for @Shopify Apps, and it really shouldn’t be. It can provide meaningful advantage to any app very quickly, and the change is evergreen.

There’s lots of misconceptions out there though.

Here’s a practical thread:
Shopify has put out a few posts about optimizing app listings. These posts are fine but they’re fluff, and not how you should be thinking about optimization. You’ll have a beautiful, underperforming page.

https://www.shopify.ca/partners/blog/optimize-app-listing

https://www.shopify.ca/partners/blog/shopify-app-store-downloads https://www.shopify.ca/partners/blog/app-store-success
How to be Successful on the New Shopify App Store

To help you take full advantage of the benefits of the new Shopify App Store, we’ve put together some pointers on how you can improve your app discoverability and messaging to set your app up for...

https://www.shopify.ca/partners/blog/optimize-app-listing
App Name and Tagline. As far as ranking is concerned, that’s all you care about. Everything else should be focussed on accurately describing your app and actually selling it once merchants land. This is where Shopify’s blog posts actually help.
But what we’re after is more eyeballs, so we care about App Name and Tagline. These are given the heaviest weight in the ranking algorithms for search terms. They’re short – 30 characters and 62 characters, respectively.
That’s not a lot of space to work with, but let’s break it down.

Every character needs to serve a purpose. These purposes are:

- Primary function (“UGC”, “upsell”, etc.)
- Other words merchants are likely to search for
- Coherence (making it at least semi-readable)
Your most important keywords go in to your App Name – use every character if you can. The most extreme tactic here is to not even include your brand in the App Name. I don’t really like this aesthetically, but it works. Use every character you can.
All other keywords go in your Tagline, with just enough characters to glue them in to a readable sentence. You don’t say “and”, you say “&”. You leave your Oxford comma at the door. Hell, use emojis if you’re feeling particularly feisty.
Looking at the front page today, and given our criteria, there’s two examples right away that stand out:

“Gamified loyalty, referrals, and rewards”

“Create professional product videos in minutes!”
Neither is perfect, but the former is much better than the latter. It both perfectly describes the product, and includes 3 (arguably 4) words merchants might realistically search for. The latter has wasted lots of characters to try to sell. That’s the long listing’s job.
My process for coming up with an App Name and Tagline is simple:

1) Come up with a list of words I want to rank for and prioritize them. I prioritize based on estimated search volume combined with my current ranking for that keyword.
I’ll then throw the keyword in to the App Name and Tagline, save the listing, and see my new ranking. If it was a material improvement, I’ll give it a higher priority. Rinse and repeat for all the keywords.
2) Now that I have my keywords listed and prioritized, the fun begins. I write a bunch of iterations of App Name and Tagline, trying to cram as many of my keywords in as I can. I edit, and try to remove characters where appropriate.
Finally, I implement the new Name and Tagline, and ensure the ranking for my keywords did what I expect. Then, I wait and see. I use tools like Google Analytics and https://www.appstoreanalytics.io/  from @drsim to measure the impact over time.
App Store Analytics: Track your ASO performance in the Shopify App Store

What is App Store Analytics? It's the 'Google Search Console for Shopify apps'. It gives you the tools you need to effectively optimize your Shopify App Store listing.

https://www.appstoreanalytics.io/
Couple quick facts: when you search and filter by Most Relevant, this is a lie. Relevance is a factor, but it’s also still heavily weighted by populatity. So all the optimization in the world won’t get you on top alone. Reviews and installs still matter a lot.
The changes to an app listing impact your ranking immediately, so you can test many iterations very quickly to determine what keywords you can have the most impact on.
I would also have a well-written, sales-focused tagline ready to go. You should implement this one if you’re getting featured on the front page of the App Store, because that traffic will be much better than any optimization you’ve done. When the feature is over, flip it back.
You can follow @blairbeckwith.
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