Stop Guessing — Do This Instead

If you're tired of guessing which keywords to target or why your US App Store rankings aren't moving, you're not alone. Stop guessing—do this instead: use real search data (popularity + difficulty), align your title and subtitle to high-intent, winnable terms, and track daily. This post is the full playbook.

TL;DR — Replace guesswork with data. Use Apple Search Ads–backed popularity and Top 10 difficulty to pick keywords; put the best in title and subtitle; track daily. Stellar gives you that data and tracking for the US store—so you're not guessing anymore.

Table of contents

• Why Guessing Fails
• What to Do Instead
• The Three Steps
• How to Run It in the US
• What You Need in One Place
• Next Steps

Why Guessing Fails

Guessing fails because the US App Store doesn't reward "sounding right"—it rewards relevance to what people search. When you guess keywords from intuition or copy a competitor's list without checking volume and difficulty, you're often targeting terms that have no traffic or that you can't rank for. Result: flat rankings, low impressions, and no way to know why. The only way out is data: popularity (from Apple Search Ads) and Top 10 difficulty so you know which terms are worth targeting. Stellar gives you that for the US store—so you can stop guessing.

What to Do Instead

Do this:

1. Get real search data — Popularity (Apple Search Ads) and Top 10 difficulty for your seed keywords in the US. Try Stellar for unlimited keywords and fixed pricing.
2. Filter to winnable + valuable — Keep only terms with decent volume and difficulty you can reach. Drop the rest.
3. Align title and subtitle — Put your best 1–2 keywords in the first 30 characters and subtitle. Keep it readable.
4. Track daily — Use rankings and historical graphs to see what's working. Stellar gives you daily updates and history for the US and 60+ stores.
5. Revisit every few months — US search behavior shifts. Refresh your list and metadata with new data.

That's it. No guessing—just data, alignment, tracking.

The Three Steps

| Step | What it does | |------|----------------| | Data | Popularity + difficulty so you know what to target in the US. | | Alignment | Best 1–2 keywords in title and subtitle. Readable. | | Tracking | Daily rankings + historical graphs so you know what's working. |

Without Step 1, you're guessing. Without Step 2, you're not giving the algorithm the signals it needs. Without Step 3, you're not learning. With all three, you're playing the same game as the apps that win. Stellar gives you data and tracking in one place—so you can run all three steps without spreadsheets or guesswork.

How to Run It in the US

1. List seed keywords — From your app's features, benefits, reviews, and competitor keywords. US phrasing matters.
2. Run them through a data tool — Get popularity (Apple Search Ads) and Top 10 difficulty for the US store. Stellar does this for unlimited keywords.
3. Pick your top 1–2 — High volume + achievable difficulty. Put them in title and subtitle; keep it readable.
4. Set up daily tracking — Add your app and key keywords. Use rankings and historical graphs to see movement.
5. Review weekly — When something drops, adjust. When something rises, double down. Revisit your list and metadata every few months.

What You Need in One Place

To stop guessing, you need in one place:

• Search popularity — Which terms have traffic in the US.
• Top 10 difficulty — Which terms you can win.
• Daily rankings — So you know what's working.
• Historical graphs — So you can attribute wins and losses to specific changes.

Stellar gives you all of that: popularity from Apple Search Ads, Top 10 difficulty, daily rank updates, and historical graphs for the US and 60+ stores. That's what you need to stop guessing and start deciding.

Next Steps

1. Audit your current approach — Are you guessing keywords or using data? If guessing, get the data on Stellar.
2. Lock the three steps — Data, alignment, tracking. Run them every week.
3. Iterate — Use rankings and graphs to guide your next change. Repeat.

Stop guessing—do this instead. Stellar gives you the data and tracking so you can run the playbook in the US store.