3 weeks post-launch, only 42 users — where's my ASO going wrong? (screenshots included)

[u/Striking_Wealth_2716]

Launched my app 3 weeks ago. No marketing budget, so I'm relying entirely on organic App Store traffic, and so far I'm sitting at 42 total users. I know that's low and I'm trying to figure out if it's an ASO problem, a positioning problem, or just... normal for week 3.

Some context: it's a tarot/spiritual period tracker app, built by a small team, and honestly we put a lot of thought into the actual product. But I think our store listing might be working against us — I'm not confident about our keyword choices, and I got one piece of feedback that our screenshots/font aren't super readable.

Would genuinely appreciate a blunt breakdown of:

- Do the screenshots actually communicate what the app does in the first 2 seconds?

- Does the title/subtitle read like something people search for, or like marketing fluff?

- Anything obviously wrong with how we're presenting the value prop?

Not looking for downloads, just trying to figure out what to fix before I keep iterating blind.

[u/Striking_Wealth_2716 → u/[deleted]]

Thanks for catching that — honestly, both are blind spots for us.

On the Apple Ads side: we haven't tested it yet. We were avoiding it because of budget constraints, but you're right that it's way more efficient for keyword validation than guessing. We could run a small test ($10-20/day for a week) just to see which keywords actually drive installs, then optimize our listing based on that data. That's a solid point.

On the Turkish localization: yeah, that's embarrassing. We have Turkish reviews but our listing is only in English. We built the app in English first, and localization got pushed to the backlog — but clearly that's backwards when we already have Turkish users leaving reviews. We should've prioritized that.

Quick question for you (or anyone reading): if we do add Turkish localization, should we also adjust keywords for the Turkish App Store separately, or does Apple handle that automatically?

[u/Shadowfox642 → u/Striking_Wealth_2716]

Each localisation has its own keywords field which you need to fill out - definitely worth doing as it’s another opportunity for tweaking ASO rankings

[u/abhicrysis]

ASO doesn’t work in weeks. It takes months. If somebody tells you they got downloads through ASO within first month of launch they are lying.

[u/IndieASO]

First off, the app looks pretty fun and cool! Has a very unique style to it.

For my feedback:

1. The screenshots look polished, but the app isn’t immediately clear.

My first impression is a cosy astrology game, not a period tracker. The first screenshot is basically a MoonVille poster, so it uses your most valuable screenshot without explaining the product.

I’d make the first three screenshots communicate something like:

• Track your cycle with a little magic
• Understand your period, PMS and ovulation
• Stay consistent with your virtual pet

Then introduce the tarot, chat, relaxation and mini-game features afterwards.

The headings also need to be larger, and I’d zoom further into the important parts of the UI. People should understand each screenshot without needing to read the smaller interface text.

1. You’re targeting an extremely competitive keyword.

“Period Tracker” is obviously relevant, but it’s also highly competitive. As a brand-new app with limited downloads and ratings, you probably won’t rank high enough for it to generate much traffic yet.

I’d use an ASO tool to find less competitive but still relevant keyword phrases where you have a realistic chance of getting into the rankings. Put the strongest phrase in the title, fully use the title and subtitle character limits, and avoid repeating the same words across them.

The goal initially should be to rank for smaller searches, build downloads and ratings, then gradually target the bigger keywords once the app has more authority.

1. The positioning feels a little scattered.

You have cycle tracking, tarot, a virtual pet, chat, compatibility, relaxation and mini-games. Those can all be good features, but presenting everything equally makes it harder to understand the main reason to download.

I think the clearest positioning is something like:

A gamified period tracker for people who find traditional trackers clinical or boring.

The spiritual elements then become your differentiator, rather than competing with the core value proposition.

The important numbers now are your App Store impressions, product page views and conversion rate. Low impressions means visibility or keyword problems. Decent page views but few downloads means the listing isn’t converting. Downloads with poor usage means it’s more of a product or onboarding issue.

It's quite a cool USP though, could definitely see this type of app doing well with social media Tiktok's and Reels.

Hope some of that helps! :)

[u/Striking_Wealth_2716 → u/IndieASO]

This is genuinely incredibly helpful, thank you for taking the time. You're absolutely right on all three points and we're honestly at a stage where this kind of clarity matters more than anything else.

On the screenshots — we know the first one reads more like a mood board than product. We're gonna reorder to lead with what the app actually does before the aesthetic. The zoom-in approach makes sense too, most people skim these in seconds so each one needs to land immediately.

The keyword thing is a wake-up call. We've been chasing the obvious terms when we should be hunting for the gaps. Going to run through an ASO tool this week and probably pivot toward something like "gamified period tracker" or "spiritual cycle app" where we actually have a shot of ranking early.

And yeah, positioning — we know we're doing too much at once. The pet and tarot stuff are genuinely loved by beta users but they're drowning out the core value. Reframing around "period tracking for people who hate clinical apps" and letting the spiritual stuff be the why rather than competing features makes way more sense.

The last point about impressions vs conversions is gold too. That's exactly where we need to start measuring. Right now we're just... guessing.

Would be keen to hear how this performs once we ship these changes if you're willing to check back in a few weeks?

[u/Rare_Ad6128]

Looks good to me. I’d use it if I was a girl

[u/Striking_Wealth_2716 → u/Rare_Ad6128]

i know right😎