A leading ASO platform
for retail

The shape of search in this category

Most searching in shopping is done by brand name. No list built without separating those works here.

The most pronounced feature of shopping is brand weight. A large share of searches carries a specific store's name, and ranking for those is not possible unless you own the brand.

The practical consequence: the top of the popularity list is full of brand phrases. A team that looks at that list and works the top three is spending its time. No ordering here means anything until brand phrases are moved to a separate list.

The second feature is seasonality. The category moves markedly in certain parts of the year, and when popularity rises so does the number of apps entering those phrases. The comparison has to be against the same period last year rather than last month - and a seasonal move has to be made a few weeks before the season, because the index takes time to settle.

The third is locality. Store names, payment methods, shipping and returns terms are country-specific. Divergence between countries is higher here than in most categories - which turns country selection into a strategy on its own.

Five ways into a crowded category

The measurement is done and the category came out crowded. That does not mean stay out; it means change how you go in.

First, niche phrases. Three-word phrases are searched less but their relevance is very high and competition is low. Alone they bring little traffic; gathered in clusters they produce a real total.

Second, country selection. A phrase's density varies widely by country. One crowded in a large market can be nearly empty in a smaller one - the same metadata, a different result.

Third, rival reviews. In crowded categories everyone feeds from the same pool. Users' own words are not in that pool and nobody looks there.

Fourth, empty country fields. The first move in a storefront where you get downloads but the keyword field was never filled is usually the highest-return move there is, because it builds relevance from nothing.

Fifth, waiting. If the strength threshold is far above you there is little distance to take with metadata; what ASO should say is that the work has moved to the product - and it should say it.

• Gather niche phrases in clusters; little apart, a lot together.
• Country selection is a strategy on its own.
• Rival reviews are the most valuable source in a crowded category.
• An empty country field: the highest-return first move.
• If the strength threshold is out of reach, ASO stops and says so.

Frequently asked

There are thousands of apps in my category. Is it hopeless?

No. App count is not the measure of competition; most never appear in the first 200 for anything. What matters is how many actually show up for the phrases you are aiming at.

Which phrase should I start with?

One you already rank 11-30 for, whose popularity could be measured, and whose strength threshold is reachable. The most popular phrase where all three hold is this week's work.

How long until I see a result?

The first measurable one usually lands in the second month: one move, the index settling, and a week's comparison. Meaningful learning takes three months.

How many countries should I start in?

One. Run the loop for a month where you get the most downloads, then add the second. Starting in ten at once ends with measurement in none of them.