Best Practices

Optimize your app store presence and keep your credentials secure.

Security Best Practices

API Key Management

• Use environment variables — Never hardcode API keys in source code
• Rotate keys regularly — Generate new API keys periodically and revoke old ones
• Use scoped keys — Create keys with minimal required permissions
• Separate environments — Use different keys for development, staging, and production

# Good: Use environment variables
export ASC_API_KEY="asc_live_xxx"
asc push

# Bad: Hardcoded in commands (visible in shell history)
asc push --key asc_live_xxx

Store Credentials

• Service accounts — Use dedicated service accounts for automation
• Least privilege — Grant only the permissions needed for specific tasks
• Secure storage — Store credentials in your CI/CD platform's secrets manager

App Store Optimization (ASO)

Title & Subtitle

• Include primary keyword — Put your most important keyword in the title
• Keep it memorable — Balance SEO with brand recognition
• Use subtitle wisely — Include secondary keywords and value proposition

Keywords (App Store)

• Use all 100 characters — Don't waste valuable keyword space
• No spaces after commas — Maximize character usage
• Avoid duplicates — Don't repeat words from your title
• Research competitors — See what keywords successful apps target

# Good: Efficient keyword usage
fitness,workout,exercise,health,tracker,gym,training,weight,loss

# Bad: Wasted characters
fitness, workout, exercise, health, tracker

Description

• Front-load value — First 1-3 lines are visible before "Read More"
• Use formatting — Break up text with bullet points and headers
• Include social proof — Mention awards, press coverage, user numbers
• Call to action — End with a clear CTA to download

Screenshots

• First three matter most — Users often don't scroll past the first few
• Show real UI — Use actual app screenshots, not mockups
• Add context — Use captions to explain features
• Localize everything — Text in screenshots should match the locale

Localization Best Practices

Translation Quality

• Provide context — Use the --context flag to improve AI translations
• Review translations — Have native speakers review important markets
• Localize, don't just translate — Adapt messaging for cultural relevance
• Test character limits — Some languages expand 20-30% in length

# Provide context for better translations
asc translate --from en-US --to ja \
  --context "This is a fitness tracking app for casual users.
  Use friendly, encouraging language. Avoid technical jargon."

Priority Markets

Focus your efforts on high-value markets first:

Automation Best Practices

CI/CD Integration

• Validate before pushing — Run asc validate in CI before deployment
• Use dry-run mode — Test workflows with --dry-run first
• Version control metadata — Store metadata in your repo for history
• Automate release notes — Generate from commit messages or changelogs

name: Validate Metadata
on: [pull_request]

jobs:
  validate:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@v4
      - run: npm install -g @appstorecopilot/cli
      - run: asc validate --strict
        env:
          ASC_API_KEY: ${{ secrets.ASC_API_KEY }}

Error Handling

• Check exit codes — CLI returns non-zero on failure
• Parse JSON output — Use --json for programmatic access
• Implement retries — Handle transient API failures gracefully
• Monitor status — Check submission status after publishing

Performance Tips

• Batch operations — Use --all flags instead of multiple commands
• Cache translations — Only translate changed content
• Compress screenshots — Optimize images before uploading
• Use webhooks — React to events instead of polling for status

# Efficient: Single command for all locales
asc translate --from en-US --all

# Less efficient: Multiple commands
asc translate --from en-US --to es-ES
asc translate --from en-US --to fr-FR
asc translate --from en-US --to de-DE
# ...