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Google Play App Store Optimization (ASO): The Best Tool (Part 1)

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App Masters11:08Open on YouTube
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The bottom line

Mobile Action gives more accurate keyword data than Sensor Tower for optimizing on Google Play. Its chance score shows which keywords are winnable, where Sensor Tower's difficulty score marks almost every keyword as too hard.

Key takeaways

  • Good ASO means finding keywords with decent traffic and low competition. 2:59
    • Low competition is marked as a Sensor Tower difficulty under 3, or a Mobile Action chance score over 70.
    • One example keyword has a search score of 23 and very low competition.
  • Sensor Tower rates almost every Google Play keyword as hard. 2:44
    • Scores are never under 3 and usually sit around 5, 6 or 9 on a scale of 10.
    • That leaves no clear keyword to target.
  • Apps are already ranking for keywords that Sensor Tower calls too competitive. 3:52
    • The first client ranks for these keywords before any optimization was done.
    • Relying on Sensor Tower alone could mean skipping keywords that are in reach.
  • Mobile Action's chance score matches real rankings better. 6:15
    • One keyword has a Mobile Action chance of 98 and a Sensor Tower difficulty of 6.4, and the unoptimized app already ranks number 7 for it.
    • Chance runs on a scale of 100, while difficulty runs on a scale of 10, so a 98 means a very high chance of ranking.
  • Mobile Action is the tool to pick for Google Play, and a UK comparison is coming. 7:06
    • Traffic scores are harder to judge, because one keyword shows 41 on Mobile Action and little traffic on Sensor Tower.
    • Search volume can be checked against Google AdWords.

If you had to choose when you're trying to optimize for Google Play which ASO tool, I would recommend Mobile Action.

Steve Young, App Masters

Chapter summaries

0:00 Why Google Play needs its own tool test

Google Play is an important channel, and the right ASO tool depends on real rankings, not on a tool's own scores.

  • Real client rankings are the test for which tool is most accurate. 1:11
    • The data comes from a couple of client apps, with keywords and app names hidden.
    • The goal is to help anyone doing ASO alone choose a tool for Google Play.
    • Google Play is less fun than Apple because it lacks the localization hacks and the many keyword fields.
    • The agency is doing more Google Play optimizations and plans to share more stats.

1:44 Two client apps, before any optimization

Both tools were checked against where unoptimized apps already rank, and Sensor Tower's difficulty scores look too harsh.

  • The spreadsheet puts each tool's scores next to the client's actual rank. 1:44
    • Sensor Tower gives traffic and difficulty. Mobile Action gives search score and chance.
    • Other columns show keyword length, the apps that show up for the keyword, and the client's rank.
    • A higher chance score means a better shot at the top ten for that keyword.
    • Highlighted cells are the keywords Steve judged to be low competition.
  • Using both tools is the usual advice, and Mobile Action looks stronger on Google Play. 2:29
    • An earlier three-tool case study found Sensor Tower and Mobile Action the most accurate on iOS.
    • Rankings for the first app were taken before any optimization, so no Google Play work had touched it.
    • A follow-up video will show how the same keywords rank after optimization.
  • The second app shows the same pattern. 4:47
    • It had launched but was not yet optimized, and it already ranks for some keywords.
    • The columns are rearranged, but the rules are the same: difficulty under 3 or chance over 70 counts as low.
    • Steve is unsure whose traffic score is more accurate, because the two tools disagree on one keyword.

5:34 Checking the scores against real data

Traffic scores can be cross-checked outside the tools, while the chance score is the number that predicts rankings.

  • Traffic scores are trustworthy when both tools land close together. 5:44
    • One keyword scores 50 on Mobile Action and 5.9 on Sensor Tower, so it likely has decent traffic.
    • Google can be searched to see which tool is closer.
    • The 41 keyword stays unresolved: who knows we don't know yet.
    • Search scores can be verified against Apple and Google, so they are less of a worry.
  • The chance score is the number to watch, because real rankings back it up. 6:08
    • The app has not been optimized for the 98-chance keyword, yet it ranks number 7.
    • That keyword is now getting extra work to push the ranking higher.
    • Sensor Tower rates nearly all these keywords as very competitive, with nines common.
    • No outside source exists to verify difficulty or chance, so the real rankings are the test.

In the growth library

Steve P. Young, Founder of App Masters, app marketing agency. Compares Sensor Tower and Mobile Action keyword data for Google Play ASO using real client keyword rankings from before optimization. Mobile Action's chance score matched actual rankings better, so it is the tool recommended for Google Play.

More from App Masters · The whole library, and ask it anything

Transcript295 lines
0:00

coming up you're going to discover which ASO tool has the best data when it comes to optimizing for Google Play I'm gonna share real data with real keyword rankings stay tuned what is up app nation it is sleepy young founder of app masters in Co the place you go when you want action-packed content in the app marketing space so I dare say we have the best videos when it comes to growing downloads for your app now I don't talk a lot about Google Play but I'm going to today because it is one of the things that we're trying to get better at as well frankly it's not as fun on Google Play as it is on Apple because all the different localization hacks and all the different key word fields that we have but on Google Play you know it is an important channel obviously and something that I want to share more stats as we do more optimizations on Google Play alright so today I want to share some real data

1:13

that we have for a couple of our clients not showing you the actual key words or the app itself but the day that we have and where they fall in in terms of their keyword rankings based on this data and I want to highlight which tool ASO tool if you're trying to do a so on by yourself that you can use when you're trying to optimize for Google Play so real data to help you figure out which tool is the best so without further ado let's get in to the slideshow alright so let's talk about app number one here I'm showing you traffic and difficulty scores from Center tower and then search score is web mobile action calls it and chance which is a difficulty now anything that's highlighted it just means what I have deemed to be low competition this is me okay Stevie young but he has what I have deemed to be low competition so anything above under three in terms of difficulty on sensor tower anything under three in this

2:15

column or anything above a seventy in this column for mobile action right X mobile action is the higher the chance score the more likely you're going to have ranked in the top ten for certain keyword okay now here's the keyword length that just tells me how long a certain keyword is and then here the apps that show up for that particular keyword and here's the rank so this what like one of our clients is ranking for for that particular keyword as you can see what I never liked about sensor tower when I was doing when I was just using sensor tower is that most of the keywords on Google Play are difficult never under three they're always generally around five or six and nine so forth so really really difficult keywords all the time I'm like what keyword can I possibly use then right because it's secret to ASO is actually trying to find these types of keywords pretty decent traffic scores but you know pretty

3:11

decent competition so mid to high traffic low competition this is what 70 right on the border or even here right 23 search score low very low competition so what I want to highlight that is now mobile action is appearing so if you had a pick now what I always recommend is to use both Center tower mobile action there's a case study that I'll link up into the show notes of a video where I compared three different tools and Center tower mobile action seemed to have the most accurate on iOS so I want to share this for Google Play because we've just done a couple of different optimizations for Google Play so with this you can see this is where the client is currently ranking for these particular keywords you can see that hey you know what since your tower they're not as competitive as you're making it seem now we're not ranking high because this was their rank before we optimized it right but I just want to highlight

4:04

that but this before we actually optimize it he is already starting to rank whereas if I were to go in I might not even focus on these particular keywords so what we're doing is and I'll probably create another video on this is how well are they ranking now that we have actually officially optimized for that particular app so this is without me touching okay their actual app yet this is before Steve before Steve's magic touch okay I don't want to make sure you you know this so this is very important to let me go to the next app and this will highlight more importantly about I guess it give you it'll highlight that mobile actually has a better data if you're listening to this on the podcast guys do put this on podcast go check out the video because that way you can actually see the scores okay okay so next one is Center tower versus mobile action again same columns traffic difficulty apps search score

4:55

chance sorry the columns are a little bit funky now because there are two different clients and I always change the spreadsheet around but anyways difficulty traffic same thing if it's under three i've deemed it as low difficulty and then search score well I'm sorry chance if it's over 70 I've deemed it as low difficulty as well okay now again this is before I've actually optimized it for a client right they've launched already we had wouldn't do the optimization yet now we're starting to do the optimization now they're already ranking seven and thirty one for a particular keyword now I don't know which one's traffic score is more accurate because as you can see mobile actions saying this search for has 41 traffic-wise Center tower saying there's little traffic on this particular keyword who knows we don't know yet I can always look it up on Google just to see the other things when they're

5:48

actually pretty close together then you know that they have decent amount of traffic right this one has 50 for this keyword and the towers saying 5.9 but what I really want to highlight because we're really focused more on the chance score the search score we can kind of verify with Apple and with Google Play so look on Google AdWords to see what the search core is like for this particular keyword but the chance for is what I really want to pay attention to and what we see is that this particular keyword the chance score on mobile action is 98 whereas Center towered 6.4 so what you realize that is mobile actions actually more correct one because we haven't really even optimized for this particular keyword and worried number seven for it and I'm actually optimizing I'm doubling down on this particular keyword to try to rank us better for that so as you can see their chance scores tend to be more accurate than

6:40

sensor tower where they say almost pearly like if you round up all these keywords they're all around 96.4 there tend to be pretty competitive right nines really out of a non-skid it's out of a scale of ten so nines really really difficult whereas chances on a scale of 100 so ninety-eight percent chance it's going to rank high that's pretty accurate we're number seven we haven't really some eyes for it so that's that tend to be pretty accurate so if you had to choose when you're trying to optimize for Google Play which keyword tool which ASO tool I would recommend mobile action now there's more data that's coming out now I want to create two for you comparing the two tools when you're optimizing for UK so watch out for that but for now mobile action is more accurate when it comes to optimizing for Google Play all right okay so the last thing on a mention is the event that I have coming on I did all my calls today

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now know the exact number but we did ton of calls by 10 plus calls today with potential clients and just people who listen to the podcast and one that I can reach just get my advice on stuff so shout out to Keith shots at Dante and shout out to Marlon the via this I want to tell you guys about an event that I'm doing that's going to be happening September 13th and 14th Marlon I hope you make it but it is happening September 13 to 14 in Santa Cruz I wanted it's still in the bay area socially mouth familiar with California it's still technically in the bay area but it's a little bit further awaits about an hour drive from for me and it's far enough where I can't leave mid afternoon so that's what I wanted to do it out there it's very beachy town as well as far enough where I can't just leave in afternoon I kind of have to go and stay there as well but close enough where I can just literally drive there

8:25

in the bay area so it's happening it's with really awesome people the goal of this conference has always been to connect to build connections that last way beyond the event now hopefully into you know years beyond and the greatest thing that's happened is talking to a friend tomorrow he's going to be on the podcast I'm interviewing him he still keeps in touch with the people that we met there that's the greatest thing right like we did one in April and they've kept in touch and there's gonna be some amazing content so being know that it's going to be that's going to happen and also some amazing people and it's only limited to 30 so we're about 30 percent sold we've got about 20 tickets left give and take one or two and I hope to see you there if you're ever thinking about it if you on the verge you're like I got to book this I got to put book it now because 31 you don't want to be 31 I'm going to

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cut it off because the room we got is very intimate I don't want too many people you don't have to be sitting on each other and I don't want that to happen it's a very intimate setting it's going to be awesome first one was awesome in Vegas we're doing in Santa Cruz we're going to do two more next year that's when I'm committing to and I hope to see you there the pricing it's $4.99 per ticket it is my breakeven price it's what I have to pay for the venue it's what I have to pay for the food it's what I have to pay for all the activities that have planned there so it's our breakeven price I'm not trying to make money on this we're going to try to build it up build some momentum on it it's something that I want to be known for building legacy for me in my eye and not necessary revenue people of that it was just a good client source what are you doing this for honestly I pinch myself every day that I

10:04

have a business because I started interviewing some of my heroes and I believe in community I believe in connections that's why if you looked at my actions I speak loudly about this and I'm always look at my actions they're all geared towards community connections building the right meaningful connections because if I ever have a question about Apple search ads I can always have I always know somebody in my community and that's what I love about community and connections is that Julie free willingness so hope to see you there if you want to show up in masters connect comm at masters connect calm again it's happening Santa Cruz be there there's a bunch that are we're in Vegas are coming back for Santa Cruz I'm super excited about that and super excited to meet some of the people that I've known online but never in person Marlon go there at masters connect com anybody else that's listening if you

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want to come it is at masters connect dot-com thanks guys see you next time bye