ASO AgencyProductivity · US iPhone listing
Does their ASO suck?
Listing creative score · first three captured iPhone screenshots
Microsoft To Do spends its opening pair completing a tilted list. The third offers an illustration of devices. A product built to organise work should not need three assets to avoid demonstrating a finished task.
Gab’s verdict · 3/10Gabriel Machuret
One storefront, one language and a dated capture. This is an independent editorial audit, not a client case study.
Gab’s take · Five criteria. Two points each.
The daily-planning purpose is clear. That is worth credit. The split composition uses two screenshots to introduce very little extra information, so make each frame carry a useful task action. Rebuild around capturing one task, adding a reminder and finding it in My Day. Use complete readable screens. Cross-device artwork should become a real continuity example if it is going to carry the pitch.
Daily planning is clear but generic.
The visible list supplies partial evidence of the planning product, even though the split device does not demonstrate cross-device continuity.
Tilted split screens sacrifice useful readable detail.
The second frame mainly completes the first composition.
Anywhere is an availability message, not a demonstrated advantage.
0: not earned · 1: useful but incomplete · 2: clearly demonstrated. Judged on the dated opening creative; public metadata provides context. These points assess creative execution, not private conversion or ranking performance. Read the scoring criteria · See all ten verdict levels
Inspect the numbered original, read the problem, then compare the proposed fix. The publisher’s creative stays unchanged.
What the visitor sees → what I’d change
Look at the original: The list mixes several personal and work-related tasks, including a completed item.
Why I’m flagging it: A tilted partial view weakens a straightforward planning proposition.
Show one complete readable My Day decision with a specific benefit caption.
What the visitor sees → what I’d change
Look at the original: The image completes the opening composition rather than presenting a standalone workflow.
Why I’m flagging it: It spends another position without introducing a useful action.
Replace it with a task capture or reminder step.
What the visitor sees → what I’d change
Look at the original: Two device types accompany a broad availability message.
Why I’m flagging it: The final frame asserts availability rather than demonstrating it.
Show the same task continuing across devices with accurate sync context.
Proposed copy for discussion. These are not current listing fields or tested winners.
Observed listing
Capture Tasks & Set Reminders
Proposed alternative
Plan your day. Remember tasks.
Name 15/30 · Subtitle 30/30 charactersKeep the Microsoft identity and connect day planning to remembering tasks. The proposed copy mirrors the visible daily list without promising calendar functions or a particular integration.
The tradeoff: The current subtitle explicitly names task capture and setting reminders. The alternative is more outcome-oriented but less literal about those features, so test comprehension and query relevance before adopting it.
Read the sequence from top to bottom on mobile, left to right on desktop. These are message-layout sketches, not screens from Microsoft To Do or tested results.
Proposed headline
Put this in the frame: A verified current mobile task-entry screen with one fictional everyday example.
Why it earns the space: Make the first action obvious rather than relying on an already-populated list.
Proposed headline
Put this in the frame: The same task appearing in a verified My Day workflow, with readable surrounding context.
Why it earns the space: Connect capture to a day plan without implying automatic prioritisation that has not been verified.
Proposed headline
Put this in the frame: Authentic current interfaces showing that same task under the required account setup.
Why it earns the space: Demonstrate continuation only after testing the actual sync and access conditions.
The test: Does a capture-to-My-Day opening pair improve conversion compared with the current panoramic daily-list pair? The sketch gives the designer a direction; the actual product and access conditions decide what can ship.
Bring the listing. I’ll help you decide what to keep, what to fix and what to test.
Observed competitor metadata
Task manager & Reminders
Todoist explicitly combines a to-do list, calendar, task management and reminders.
The lesson: A dense feature list is not automatically clearer. Microsoft To Do can show the daily capture-and-prioritise job concretely.
Observed competitor metadata
Task remind, planner,countdown
TickTick combines lists and calendars with planner and countdown language.
The lesson: This signals several planning methods. Distinguish what To Do actually supports instead of copying calendar expectations into its copy.
Observed competitor metadata
Reminders, Calendar & Tasks
Any.do names lists, planning, reminders, calendars and tasks.
The lesson: The category vocabulary is crowded. A short real workflow can differentiate the experience more credibly than another broad productivity promise.
Intent candidates grounded in the listing—not fabricated search-volume or difficulty scores.
Visitor’s job: Capture something to do and remember it later.
Evidence: The subtitle names task capture and reminders; the opening shows a task list.
Decision: Verify the current capture and reminder steps before claiming a specific input method or automatic scheduling capability.
Visitor’s job: Choose a manageable set of tasks for today.
Evidence: The opening centres on My Day and mixes tasks from several contexts.
Decision: Research how newcomers distinguish a daily list from a calendar or time-blocking planner.
Visitor’s job: Use tasks across people or devices.
Evidence: People icons appear in the opening pair and the third frame depicts a laptop and phone.
Decision: Treat these as capabilities to verify in the current product, not proof of unrestricted sharing, instant sync or offline parity.
The unseen keyword field may already cover some of these terms. Build an evidence-backed keyword shortlist before making a metadata change.
The selected accounts span 2019–2024 and focus on capture, cross-device use and list organisation. They are historical motivation and comprehension leads. They do not demonstrate current feature availability, sync reliability or measured productivity gains.
Sample: 3 selected accounts from 8 displayed reviews. Dates: 16 October 2019–13 July 2024. No sentiment percentage is calculated.
27 May 2021 · 5/5 stars
“thoughts organized”
A May 2021 reviewer described capturing many kinds of tasks and using a personal emoji organisation method.
What I’d investigate: Use the capture motivation as a research lead; the reviewer’s custom system and productivity claims are not built-in feature guarantees.
Listing review source · Review ID 739526664916 October 2019 · 5/5 stars
“multiple platforms”
An October 2019 reviewer valued cross-platform use and also requested features and reported a date issue.
What I’d investigate: Verify present behaviour independently. Historical requests and claims about sync do not establish today’s capabilities or defects.
Listing review source · Review ID 495570569813 July 2024 · 3/5 stars
“sort options”
A July 2024 reviewer wanted more control over sorting important items across grocery lists.
What I’d investigate: Investigate current list-organisation expectations without treating the old feature request as proof of a present limitation.
Listing review source · Review ID 11486456231A displayed review can be old, unusually positive or internally inconsistent with its star rating. These accounts suggest questions; they do not establish current defects or typical customer experience. Use the Review Research Desk to keep evidence and interpretation separate.
A tilted partial view weakens a straightforward planning proposition.
Deliverable: Show one complete readable My Day decision with a specific benefit caption.
Creative brief and current-product checkIt spends another position without introducing a useful action.
Deliverable: Replace it with a supported task capture or reminder step.
Creative brief and current-product checkThe final frame asserts availability rather than demonstrating it.
Deliverable: Show the same task continuing across supported devices with accurate sync context.
Creative brief and current-product checkDoes a capture-to-My-Day opening pair improve conversion compared with the current panoramic daily-list pair?
Check Apple’s current product page optimization guidance and custom product page guidance before configuring a test. Write your experiment brief.
1–3: thumbs down · 4–6: thumbs up and down · 7–10: thumbs up
The basics need a serious rethink.
Too many obvious things have been left unfinished.
There is a useful product here. The listing needs to show it.
Some basics work, but the opening wastes attention and under-explains the benefit.
There is usable creative here, but too much of the sales argument is left to the visitor.
Real strengths, undermined by meaningful gaps in the opening story or execution.
A clear, useful demonstration with specific refinements still needed.
The main promise is clear and supported. Refinement matters more than reinvention.
Clear positioning, thoughtful choices and very few loose ends.
An unusually clear, convincing storefront worth learning from.
An editorial verdict on the captured storefront, not a measured ASO score or an assessment of an agency’s private work.
No private analytics, search-rank dataset or internal keyword field was supplied. Review quotations are short excerpts; explanations are our summaries. App names and screenshots belong to their respective owners. We are not affiliated with Microsoft To Do. Read our editorial methodology.
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