App Store Optimisation — SEO for apps, and just as neglected
Your app could have a million downloads waiting for it. But if your App Store listing is bad, nobody clicks install. ASO aka App Store Optimisation, determines whether you show up in search results, whether your title captures the right keyword traffic, and whether your first screenshot converts a browser into a downloader.
I chose two of India's most well-known fitness apps for a head-to-head audit: Cult.fit and HealthifyMe. Both have millions of users. Both have strong product reputations. And both are making the same ASO mistakes that smaller, smarter competitors could exploit.
Cult.fit — Title: "cult.fit Gym Workout & Fitness" | Subtitle: "Health, Weight Loss & Yoga"
HealthifyMe — Title: "Healthify: AI Calorie Tracker" | Subtitle: "Weight loss, diet, fitness app"
Where each app wins and loses
Title: Exactly 30 characters ✓
Every character used intentionally. Strong keyword placement in both title and subtitle. Description opens with what the app does clearly. Overall more trustworthy feel — 4.8 stars, 136K ratings.
Title: "AI Calorie Tracker" is smart ✓
"AI" is a high-intent keyword with rapidly increasing search volume. 40M+ users is extraordinary social proof. But the listing buries it in the wrong order — leading with the number before explaining the benefit.
Both apps ranked 12th and 13th for "fitness." This isn't failure, it's strategy. Both have likely optimised for specific long-tail keywords ("AI calorie tracker," "gym workout app") rather than fighting for a broad term everyone is competing for. That's the right call.
Cult.fit first screenshot — leads with 600+ fitness centers in 27 cities
HealthifyMe first screenshot — leads with 40M+ users, then the feature
The first 3 lines are the only ones most people ever read
Cult.fit description — explains what the app does immediately
HealthifyMe description — "simplify their health journey" tells you nothing specific
HealthifyMe's opening: "Healthify is trusted by over 40 million users globally to simplify their health journey." This is passive and vague. "Simplify their health journey" tells a first-time user nothing about what the app actually does. They have to click "more" to find out and most people don't.
HealthifyMe — what I'd actually change
"40M+ Users trust Healthify"
then the feature
Social proof first. But a first-time user who doesn't know the app yet doesn't care about the number first. They care about what it does for them.
"Count calories from your camera.
40M+ people already do."
Same information. Completely different order. Benefit first, social proof validates it. Someone deciding in 2 seconds gets the answer immediately.
"Healthify is trusted by over 40M users globally to simplify their health journey."
Passive, vague. "Simplify their health journey" says nothing specific. Forces the user to click "more" and most users don't.
"Track calories, plan meals, crush fitness goals — all in one place."
Answers: what does it do, who is it for, why trust it within 3 lines. Then adds the 40M+ figure as validation, not introduction.
Why this matters beyond app stores
The same principles that govern App Store listings govern product listings on Blinkit and Zepto, where D2C brands like Grovly will eventually need to compete for shelf space. The first image is the first screenshot. The product name is the app title. The short description is the subtitle.
Benefit first. Social proof validates. Specific beats vague. Every character counts. This isn't just ASO knowledge — it's listing optimisation that applies across every digital marketplace.
The insight that connects everything: ASO is about conversion in a constrained space. You have a title, a subtitle, three lines of description, and one screenshot before someone decides. Every word choice is a conversion decision. That's not app-specific, that is marketing.