/keyword-optimizer

Keyword Selection Criteria

How to evaluate and select keywords for maximum impact with achievable rankings.

The Indie Developer Strategy

From successful indie devs building $200-2,000/month apps:

Find keywords with:
- Popularity > 20 (enough traffic)
- Difficulty < 60 (beatable competition)

Build simple, single-feature apps around those keywords.

Understanding Scores

Popularity Score (0-100)

From Apple Search Ads. Represents search volume.

Important: Popularity is exponential, not linear.

• Score 50 is NOT 2x traffic of Score 25
• Score 80 could be 10x traffic of Score 40

Difficulty Score (0-100)

Estimated from competitor strength and count.

The Sweet Spot Matrix

        │ Difficulty
        │ Low (<40)  │ Med (40-55) │ High (>55)
────────┼────────────┼─────────────┼──────────────
Pop     │            │             │
High    │ GOLD       │ WORTH IT    │ LONG-TERM
(40+)   │ Target Now │ Target Now  │ GOAL
────────┼────────────┼─────────────┼──────────────
Pop     │            │             │
Med     │ GREAT      │ GOOD        │ SKIP
(25-40) │ Target Now │ Consider    │ Too Hard
────────┼────────────┼─────────────┼──────────────
Pop     │            │             │
Low     │ MAYBE      │ SKIP        │ SKIP
(15-25) │ Easy Win   │ Not Worth   │ Not Worth
────────┼────────────┼─────────────┼──────────────
Pop     │            │             │
V.Low   │ SKIP       │ SKIP        │ SKIP
(<15)   │ No Traffic │ No Traffic  │ No Traffic

Opportunity Score Formula

Calculate opportunity score for comparison:

Opportunity Score = (Popularity × 2) - Difficulty

Bonus: +20 if Pop 20-50 AND Diff <40 (sweet spot)
Bonus: +10 if Pop 20-50 AND Diff <50 (good range)
Penalty: -30 if Diff >70 (very competitive)

Grading Scale

Example Calculations

"brown noise" - Pop 25, Diff 30
Score = (25 × 2) - 30 + 20 (bonus) = 40 → Grade B

"meditation timer" - Pop 35, Diff 45
Score = (35 × 2) - 45 + 10 (bonus) = 35 → Grade C

"podcast app" - Pop 70, Diff 85
Score = (70 × 2) - 85 - 30 (penalty) = 25 → Grade C (despite high pop!)

Keyword Categories by Opportunity

Tier 1: Target Immediately

• Pop 25-50, Diff <40
• Pop 40-60, Diff <50
• Score 60+

Tier 2: Good Opportunities

• Pop 20-40, Diff 40-55
• Pop 50-70, Diff 50-60
• Score 40-59

Tier 3: Long-term Goals

• Pop 60+, Diff 60-75
• Build app strength first, then target

Tier 4: Skip

• Pop <15 (not enough traffic)
• Diff >75 (too competitive)
• Score <20

Finding Keywords to Analyze

Tool: Astro (Recommended for Indies)

1. Search a seed keyword
2. Note Popularity and Difficulty
3. Check "Related Keywords" suggestions
4. Look for sweet spot matches

Seed Keyword Strategy

Start with generic terms, find specific variants:

Seed: "timer"
├── pomodoro timer (Pop 35, Diff 42) ✅
├── study timer (Pop 28, Diff 38) ✅
├── focus timer (Pop 40, Diff 55) ⚠️
├── interval timer (Pop 32, Diff 35) ✅
└── countdown timer (Pop 45, Diff 62) ⚠️

Best: "interval timer", "pomodoro timer", "study timer"

Category-Specific Opportunities

Based on Nov 2025 App Store data:

Competitor Keyword Analysis

Finding Keyword Gaps

1. In Astro, tap on competitor apps
2. See what keywords they rank for
3. Find keywords where:
   • They rank #20-50 (not optimized)
   • You don't rank at all
   • Pop >20, Diff <50

Steal Strategy

Target keywords competitors rank for weakly:

• Their rank: #30-100
• Your potential: Top 10 with good ASO

Trademark Considerations

Check Before Targeting

Some keywords are trademarked:

• "Divvy" — Bill.com trademark
• "Splitwise" — Brand name
• "Venmo" — Brand name

Safe vs Risky Keywords

Rule

If a keyword shows high popularity but is a brand name:

• Traffic is people looking for THAT app
• Even if you rank, conversion will be poor
• May get trademark complaint

Quick Evaluation Checklist

For each keyword:

• Popularity >20? (enough traffic)
• Difficulty <60? (beatable)
• Not a trademark/brand?
• Relevant to your app?
• Makes sense in title/subtitle/keywords?

If all yes → Target it If any no → Skip or deprioritize

Keyword Tracking Template

keyword,popularity,difficulty,opportunity_score,grade,current_rank,action
pomodoro timer,35,42,48,B,-,Target in subtitle
study timer,28,38,38,C,-,Add to keywords
interval timer,32,35,49,B,-,Target in title
meditation,65,78,-31,F,-,Skip - too competitive

When to Re-evaluate

• Weekly: Check ranking changes
• Monthly: Re-run opportunity analysis
• Quarterly: Major keyword strategy review
• Seasonally: Add seasonal keywords (holiday, summer, etc.)