App Store Optimization (ASO) Services at a glance
Our app store optimization services grow installs from the App Store and Google Play — keyword research, titles, screenshots, ratings and conversion testing — as part of wider mobile app marketing that also covers web SEO, paid user acquisition and retention.
Get a free audit →- ASO keyword research
- Title & subtitle optimisation
- Screenshot & icon testing
- Ratings & reviews
- Google Play & App Store
- Mobile app marketing
Most apps are found through store search — and most apps are invisible in it
A large majority of app discovery still happens through browsing and searching within the stores themselves. Yet most teams treat store listings as a publishing formality rather than a ranking surface: default titles, unoptimised subtitles, generic screenshots and no keyword strategy. Meanwhile paid user acquisition costs keep climbing, making organic install growth the difference between viable and unviable unit economics.
- Thin store metadata
Unoptimised store metadata
Title, subtitle and keyword fields are the strongest ASO ranking inputs and are usually filled with brand copy rather than the terms users actually search. It is the cheapest fix available and the most commonly skipped.
- Paid-only installs
Paid acquisition carrying everything
Install costs rise as you exhaust the cheapest audience segments. Without organic install growth the blended cost per install climbs until unit economics stop working.
- Ratings drag
Ratings suppressing conversion
Store ranking and install conversion both respond strongly to rating and review velocity. A mediocre rating suppresses both simultaneously, compounding the problem in each direction.
- No web presence
No web presence for the app
A large share of app discovery begins with a web search. Without an indexable web presence and app indexing you are invisible to everyone who starts on Google rather than in a store.
Two stores with different rules, plus the web search that precedes both.
App SEO combines App Store Optimisation — ranking inside Apple’s App Store and Google Play — with web SEO that captures the searches happening before anyone opens a store.
The two stores rank differently and require separate work: Apple uses a dedicated keyword field and weights title and subtitle heavily, while Google Play indexes the full description more like a web page. Treating them identically leaves ranking on the table in both.
- Brand-only titleTitle carrying search terms
- Same copy on both storesPer-store optimisation
- Generic screenshotsConversion-tested creative
- Reviews left to chanceCompliant prompting system
- No web presenceIndexed pages + deep links
- Paid installs onlyCompounding organic installs
Both stores factor install conversion rate into ranking. Better screenshots do not just win more installs from the same traffic — they lift your position, which brings more traffic.
- Store keyword research
- Search volume and difficulty per store, since terminology and competition differ meaningfully between Apple and Google.
- Metadata optimisation
- Title, subtitle, keyword field and description engineered per store rather than copied across both.
- Creative & conversion
- Icon, screenshots and preview video tested for install conversion, which affects ranking as well as downloads.
- Rating & review strategy
- Compliant in-app prompting timed to positive moments, plus structured response handling that lifts rating over time.
- Web app SEO
- Indexable landing pages, app indexing and deep linking so web searches convert into installs.
How we grow organic installs
Six workstreams covering both stores and the web search that precedes them.
Store keyword research
Separate research per store, since Apple and Google use different models, different terminology patterns and different competitive sets. One keyword list across both leaves ranking unclaimed in each.
What’s included
- App Store and Google Play keyword research
- Search volume and difficulty
- Competitor keyword gaps
You receive: An ASO keyword list
Metadata engineering
Title, subtitle and keyword field optimised for Apple; full description optimised for Google Play’s indexing. Written per store rather than duplicated across both.
What’s included
- App title and subtitle keyword optimisation
- Keyword field and description copy
- Localised metadata for each store
You receive: Optimised App Store and Google Play listings
Creative testing
Icon, screenshots and preview video tested for install conversion. Because conversion feeds ranking, creative work compounds — better assets bring both more installs and more impressions.
What’s included
- App icon and screenshot A/B tests
- Store listing copy variations
- Conversion rate tracked for every variant
You receive: An app store conversion test plan
Rating & review programme
Compliant in-app prompting timed to moments of demonstrated satisfaction, plus structured response handling. Rating affects ranking and conversion simultaneously.
What’s included
- In-app review prompts at the right moment
- Replies to user reviews
- Rating trends tracked
You receive: An app review strategy
Web app SEO
Indexable landing pages targeting app-related queries, app indexing and deep linking so the significant share of discovery starting on Google converts into installs.
What’s included
- Web version of the app indexed in Google
- App indexing and deep links
- Landing pages for app keywords
You receive: An app web presence plan
Iterate on data
Store console data, keyword position tracking and conversion analysis feeding a continuous testing cycle. ASO rewards iteration more than most channels.
What’s included
- App store keyword rankings tracked
- Listing updates based on conversion data
- A monthly optimisation cycle
You receive: An ASO performance report
Get a free audit →Both stores, plus the web search before them
Most ASO providers work one store and ignore web discovery entirely. That leaves a large share of the opportunity untouched.
Per-store strategy
Apple and Google rank differently and we work them separately. Copying one listing across both is the most common ASO shortcut and it leaves ranking unclaimed in each store.
Web SEO included
Landing pages, app indexing and deep linking, because a large share of discovery starts on Google. Pure ASO providers simply do not cover this.
Creative testing as standard
We test icons and screenshots for conversion rather than treating creative as a design decision. Conversion feeds ranking, so this compounds in both directions.
Compliant review practice
In-app prompting within both stores’ policies. Incentivised or gated reviews risk removal from the store, which costs far more than slower rating growth.
Reported on installs and CAC
Organic installs, blended acquisition cost and retention — the metrics that determine unit economics rather than keyword positions alone.
Continuous iteration
ASO rewards testing more than most channels because feedback is fast and isolated. We run a standing test cycle rather than optimising once.
Why Businesses Choose SDM for App SEO & ASO
Same budget, very different outcomes. Point by point, here’s how a specialist partner compares to a typical agency or going it alone.
| What actually matters | With SDM | Typical Agency | In-House / DIY |
|---|---|---|---|
| Senior specialist on your account | Always | Often a junior | Stretched thin |
| Custom strategy built for your goals | Tailored | Templated | Guesswork |
| Deep audit before any work begins | ✓ | Surface-level | Skipped |
| White-hat, penalty-safe methods | Guaranteed | Varies | High risk |
| Plain-English reporting tied to revenue | Monthly | Jargon PDFs | None |
| Direct access to your specialist | ✓ | Account-manager relay | N/A |
| Separate strategy per app store | ✓ | One listing copied | Copied |
| Web app SEO & deep linking | ✓ | Not covered | Overlooked |
| Creative tested for conversion | ✓ | Design decision | Untested |
| Compliant review prompting | ✓ | Risky tactics | Ad-hoc |
| Installs & CAC reported | ✓ | Keyword ranks | Unclear |
| Ongoing competitor gap analysis | ✓ | One-off | Manual |
| Conversion-focused, not just traffic | ✓ | Traffic-first | Unclear |
| Premium tools included (Ahrefs, SEMrush) | ✓ | Sometimes | Costly extra |
| No long lock-in contracts | Flexible | 6–12 mo lock-in | N/A |
| Established agency, operating since 2017 | ✓ | Varies | Learning curve |
| Fast onboarding & early quick wins | ~2 weeks | Slow | Trial & error |
| Human, SEO-led content (no AI spam) | ✓ | Outsourced / AI spam | Time-heavy |
| Focus on compounding, long-term ROI | Core promise | Short-term wins | Slow & ad-hoc |
| Recovery from Google penalties | ✓ | Sometimes | Very hard |
20 reasons growing brands make the switch. See the difference for yourself →
Keyword positions explain it. Installs and CAC are the result.
We report the metrics that determine whether your acquisition economics work, with store-level diagnostics behind them.
Organic installs
Installs attributed to store search and browse rather than paid campaigns, separated per store.
Blended cost per install
How organic growth shifts blended acquisition cost — the number that decides whether unit economics work.
Keyword rankings per store
Position on target terms in Apple and Google Play separately, since they move independently.
Store conversion rate
Impression-to-install conversion, which drives ranking as well as volume and responds strongly to creative testing.
Rating & review velocity
Rating trend and monthly review volume, which affect ranking and install conversion simultaneously.
Four stages, then continuous testing
Metadata first because it is fastest, then creative and web presence where the compounding happens.
Audit
Store listing teardown against competitors, keyword research per store, creative and conversion analysis, and web discovery assessment. You get a prioritised plan across both stores.
DeliverablePer-store audit + keyword setsOptimise metadata
Title, subtitle, keyword field and description engineered per store. Fastest measurable win in ASO and usually where the first ranking movement comes from.
DeliverableOptimised listings liveTest creative & build web presence
Icon and screenshot testing for install conversion, plus indexable landing pages, app indexing and deep linking to capture web-originated discovery.
DeliverableTested creative + indexed pagesIterate
Store console data and keyword tracking feeding a continuous test cycle, alongside the rating and review programme. ASO compounds through iteration more than most channels.
DeliverableInstall report + next test cycle
App SEO in action — three apps
Different categories, the same method: fix metadata, test creative, capture web discovery. The scenarios below are composites drawn from situations we encounter repeatedly — they illustrate method, not the account of any single named client.
The questions we get asked most
Practical answers on ASO, store differences and what drives install growth.
Further reading
Guides, terms and related services
Go deeper on the methods behind this service, with guides written by the specialists who run them, plain-English definitions and the services that usually work alongside it.
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