The No Barrier Reef 🪸

[2.5 minute read]

Hey Reader,

I’ve been running dozens of Shopify app audits over the past few months.

Different apps. Different categories. Different founders.

Same three problems every time.

Mistake #1: You’re writing for yourself, not merchants

Open your app listing.

Now imagine your drunk grandmother logs in at 4am.

Can she understand what you do in 5 seconds?

Most app listings fail this test.

They hide behind jargon. They list features instead of solving ONE clear problem. They assume merchants will read three paragraphs to figure out what this solves.

They won’t.

Attention is the scarcest resource in the App Store.

You get 5 seconds. Maybe less.

If a tired person at 4am can’t immediately understand what you solve, you’ve already lost.

Mistake #2: Too much information kills conversion

I was reviewing listings with a founder recently.

He pulled up screenshots of a competitor.

“When I see those images, my mind goes numb. There’s too much information.”

This is a technical founder. If his brain shuts down, merchants are already scrolling past.

Your app listing isn’t product documentation. It’s a 6-second attention test.

Most technical founders fail because they can’t stop themselves from explaining. Every feature. Every edge case. Every technical detail that makes the product “complete.”

But completeness kills conversion.

The best listings feel almost too simple to the founders who made them.

That’s usually the right amount of information.

Mistake #3: Your pricing is attracting the wrong customers

Most Shopify app founders are chasing rankings and volume. More visibility means more installs means more revenue.

Until it doesn’t.

Talked to a founder who raised prices. Went from cheap to premium.

“We were previously a lot cheaper… We’re just drowning in support from basic stores.”

The basic stores churned. Premium merchants stuck around.

Better merchants. Fewer support headaches. Cleaner product roadmap.

Cheap pricing attracts tire-kickers who install 47 apps and ghost your support team after three days.

Your entry plan should be expensive enough to scare away problem customers.

The App Store isn’t Amazon. You’re not trying to be the cheapest option. You’re filtering for the merchants who actually need what you built and will stick around.

Anyone can tell you what’s wrong.

The hard part is figuring out what your listing should actually say.

That’s what working with me uncovers.

Want me to look at your app?

Reply “audit” and I’ll send you the deets.

Ohad.