Nobody finds your app: why the two stores search differently

Do the App Store and Google Play search the same way?

Most teams writing store copy prepare one text and paste it into both stores. That guarantees a loss on one of them, because the two search engines feed on different fields.

The practical consequence: the long description you write for the App Store is purely persuasion and contributes not one word to search. The one you write for Google Play is both persuasion and a search field. Putting the same text in both means needless length in one place and missing words in the other.

Do I need to localise my app listing?

Not localising. Even with the app live in a national storefront, if the copy stayed in English, search matches on English words. The user types in their own language while the app is listed in another; no match is made and the app never appears in results.

This is the cheapest item to fix and the fastest to show an effect — it does not even require a new release, since store copy can be updated on its own. It is nevertheless missing from a large share of apps live in local storefronts.

Should I put keywords in the app name?

In measured form yes, but there is a limit. The "brand — what it does" pattern works in both stores and contributes meaningfully to search. Turning the name into a string of words, though — five terms after the brand separated by commas — falls under misleading metadata in both stores' guidelines and can be grounds for removal.

A healthy test: if the name sounds like an app name when read aloud, it is fine; if it sounds like a word list, the store reads it that way too.

What most affects app store ranking?

Stores do not build ranking from text alone. The heaviest signal is behavioural: if a user saw you in search, installed and opened the app, you are treated as relevant for that search term. A user who installs and never opens, or removes it immediately, produces the opposite signal.

In practice that means the store screenshots and the app's first screen have to make the same promise. Exaggerated screenshots raise installs but lower opens and retention; the net is usually negative, and you cannot see it by looking at the download count.

Do app ratings affect downloads?

Indirect for ranking, direct for taps. When an app rated 4.6 sits next to one rated 3.2 in the same result list, users choose the first almost every time — meaning you win the ranking and lose the tap.

The only method of collecting reviews that works is asking at the right moment: immediately after the user completes something successfully. A rating prompt on app launch both produces low scores and annoys the user.

What happens if I stop updating my app?

Not as a direct ranking factor, but it affects two things. First the user side: an app whose last-updated date looks old reads as abandoned and loses taps in the same result list — a loss no copywriting can fix. Second the discoverability side: an app behind the technical thresholds stops being listed on new devices, so however perfect your listing is, on those devices you do not appear at all. The schedule for those thresholds is in our Google Play account guide.

Where should I start with ASO?

• Complete the localisation — it is the cheapest step and the fastest to pay back.
• Write separate copy for each store; use the keyword field on the App Store and the long description on Play.
• Bring the name to the "brand — what it does" pattern rather than a word list.
• Match the promise in the screenshots to the app's first screen; exaggeration breaks retention, not installs.
• Move the rating prompt to the moment a task completes, not to launch.
• Put the target API level schedule into the annual plan; falling behind technically also lowers discoverability.

Does the app icon affect downloads?

It is the most-looked-at element in a result list and affects taps directly. The icon has to be readable at small size: in the results it appears roughly the size of a thumbnail. Icons trying to fit words inside become a blur at that size. The test is simple: view the icon at real size on a phone screen, and if it is not recognisable, change it.

How many screenshots should there be?

The first two decide it, because most users judge without scrolling. Put your two strongest screens first and add a short line above each saying what it does — a bare screenshot says nothing without context. If the promise in the images does not match the app's first screen, installs rise and retention falls.

How do I know I picked the right category?

Category affects both ranking and discovery. The test for the right one: would your target user, browsing that category, expect to see you? Escaping into an unrelated low-competition category buys ranking in the short term but brings the wrong users, raising install-then-delete rates — and that signal works against you in search too.

Can I use a competitor's keywords?

Using brand names is against both stores' guidelines and grounds for removal. The generic words a competitor targets, however, are free — "parcel tracking" belongs to nobody. The distinction: does the word point to a brand or to the job? If it points to the job, you can use it.

“The long description you write for the App Store is persuasion; the one you write for Google Play is also a search field.”