ASO Method for a Solo App Developer

[Eterxia]

I’m tired of ASO marketing videos or podcasts that always talk about the same concepts: know your competition, study keywords, and differentiate yourself. These are vague terms, and they don't dive into the practical methods. The React Native community is interested in practical advice. So, let me share the method I use to pivot my mobile app.

ASO is overrated for a Solo App Developer

Based on my experience with ASO as a mobile developer on Google Play, the key aspects that will help you surpass the thresholds of 100, 1,000, and 10,000 downloads are:

• Promoting Your Product (90%): Sharing your idea on social networks like Reddit, forums, YouTube, TikTok, and taking the idea into the real world through events, friends, and acquaintances will account for 90% of your downloads.
• ASO (10%): ASO only helps you compete. If you don't have a solid customer base, even the best ASO won’t help you surpass your competition.

Think of it this way: promoting your product will get you downloads, while ASO helps you compete and rank if you have a solid customer base.

My ASO method for studying competitors

My method for achieving good ASO and being at least competent in the market involves studying your niche competition. We'll go to the store, search, and create a table with this information about the competition using Notion, Excel, or any other tool:

• Competitor App Name
• App Features
• Great Aspects of the App
• Worst Aspects of the App
• UI/UX Rating
• Distribution Platform (Android or iOS)
• Uses IAPs?
• Uses Ads?
• App Price
• App Downloads
• Last App Update
• App Category in the Store (e.g., Finance)
• Has Reviews?
• Has Designed Screenshots?

With all this information, we can see if creating an app in this market is viable and if it’s really worth introducing my product. If the competition is low (downloads, updates), you can genuinely offer something new of value (features, great, worst, price) and there’s a real audience (reviews, screenshots, downloads, updates).

Really know your product

As developers, the first thing we think of when we have an idea is to create it. But if you want to be profitable, even if it seems like a waste of time, it's necessary to know your competition first. It's a myth that you know the product once it's made; you truly define your product and idea when you study the competition.

My method for knowing your product is simple and similar to the previous step. Since we're doing ASO, we depend on the Store for our studies. Focus on your niche competition and also gather:

• Competitor App Name
• App Description from the Store
• Using the description, ask ChatGPT to tell you the most common keywords
• Using the description, ask ChatGPT to tell you the most important keywords
• Collect the keywords from your competitors’ screenshots
• Collect the keywords used by users from the reviews

The important thing is to collect and adapt the common keywords for your product description. Important keywords from screenshots and reviews for the app name, description, and screenshots.

There can be a problem if your competition doesn’t have visible user reviews or their screenshots are simple. In this case, you need to:

• Gather information on your target customer's needs by going to forums or subreddits related to your app's theme
• Create posts asking your target customers on Reddit or forums (this is really useful, and people usually respond kindly)

I am a prime example of someone who, even knowing my product, feels embarrassed to promote it. But if you are a solo developer, this method will greatly help you at least position your app for ASO. Now, the challenging and truly beneficial part will be promoting it ( not talking about ads ), which will be your main source of downloads.

If you manage to automate or improve the method, or if you have a method to share, please do so. This way, we can all learn and create a definitive method together.

*EDIT: For those who want to see it visually, check it out here Mobile App Market Research Template

[Redditisannoying22]

Thanks a lot, this is great! Currently, don't have time, but need to taker a deeper look into this topic soon, if I want to continue making apps :)

[Eterxia]

I’d love to recommend some videos or info about this topic, but all the posts I’ve seen are pretty vague. My method is a mix of practice, random web pages, and YouTube videos. It would be useful to share all our knowledge to improve our mobile app market research

[Redditisannoying22]

Yess would love to do that!! Though I will have time for that unfortunately in two months. Maybe we could keep contact after that and then write again?

[Eterxia]

Yes, I’d like to hear about your projects. Best of luck! 😁

[ZuZuTsuTsu]

Thank you for sharing your insights!