App Growth Decision Playbook

Choose your next move from evidence, test it fairly, and learn from the result

Start with chapter 1 Download the PDF (92 pages, 1.9 MB)

No account or email needed. Every example in this book is fictional. App names, numbers and outcomes are invented for teaching; any resemblance to a real app is unintended.

Start with the question you have today

App marketing, ASO and growth measurement for independent iOS and Android developers. Choose one problem; each guide works on its own.

Why is my app not getting downloads?
Find the step that needs attention before changing your listing.
Improve your app store listing conversion
Turn a screenshot idea into a test you can actually learn from.
Compare your app with competitors
Read listings and reviews without guessing a rival’s results.

Written by Indevaro editorial. Platform sources checked 23 October 2026; access limits are recorded in the source ledger. Fictional worked examples teach the method; they are not customer results.

See a real app review

Follow Haven’s weekly onboarding review in Indevaro: read the metric, check the comparison and prepare a focused follow-up. Actual product screens, with the proposed next step clearly marked.

To work with the same context in your coding agent, connect Claude Code or Codex through MCP.

Chapters

How to choose your next app growth experiment
Separate what you observed from what you suspect and from what you decide. A one-page decision card keeps the three apart and tells you when the right move is to wait.
Why is my app not getting downloads?
Diagnose low app downloads: check discovery, listing conversion and missing data before changing screenshots or buying traffic.
App store keyword research and discoverability
Check whether people can find your app without confusing a keyword rank with demand for that keyword. A source checklist tells you what each console can and cannot show.
How to improve app store listing conversion
Improve App Store and Google Play listing conversion with one clear message, a realistic test and a result you can interpret.
Downloads but no paying users: what to check
Tell an acquisition problem from an activation problem from a paywall or payment problem using data you actually have, not a paywall you cannot see.
Did an app update hurt growth? Check crashes and ANRs
Connect a release, error evidence and a business metric before you blame marketing. Includes how to use phased and staged rollouts and how to rank a fix.
App competitor analysis: listings, reviews and positioning
Compare app competitors using public listings and review themes. Build a practical comparison and choose a positioning idea you can support.
How to measure an app growth experiment
Baseline, exposure, window, confounders and the honest verdict 'inconclusive'. Correlation, causation and small samples in plain language, with stated assumptions.
How to market your app after launch
Run small, honest experiments in communities such as Reddit, forums, X and Facebook groups: follow each community's rules, show useful work first, disclose your interest, and measure without spam or automated messages.
How to prioritize growth work across your apps
Compare possible work across one or several apps by goal, effort, confidence and opportunity cost, without inventing ROI, and leave a buffer.
How to learn from app growth experiments
Record the decision, what was actually done and what happened, then revise what you believe. A decision journal makes the next decision faster and more honest.
Your next two hours of app marketing
One complete offline worksheet that takes you from goal to evidence to one move and a way to measure it, with an optional shortcut through the free Next Move tool.

Worksheets

Print them or fill them in on paper; they work offline and without an account.

Download all worksheets (PDF) (28 pages, 449 KB)

Sources

Platform rules and definitions are cited to their primary pages, checked 23 October 2026. Read the source ledger.