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These guidelines help maintain consistency across all ASO Skills following the Agent Skills open standard.

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Writing Style

Skills should be direct, actionable, and expert-level.

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Tone and Voice

Direct

Get straight to the point. No filler, no hedging.Good: “Use singular keyword forms.”Bad: “It might be a good idea to consider using singular forms for keywords in most cases.”

Actionable

Second person, imperative instructions.Good: “Analyze competitor titles for keyword gaps.”Bad: “The competitor titles should be analyzed.”

Expert-Level

Assume ASO knowledge, provide professional guidance.Good: “Title has highest keyword weight.”Bad: “The title is like really important for search.”

No Hedging

Be confident in recommendations.Good: “Don’t repeat keywords across fields.”Bad: “You probably shouldn’t repeat keywords usually.”

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Formatting Conventions

Use tables for comparisons and structured data:
| Platform | Title Limit | Description Indexed |
|----------|-------------|---------------------|
| iOS      | 30 chars    | No                  |
| Android  | 30 chars    | Yes                 |

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App Store Reference Data

Use these official limits in your skills.

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iOS (Apple App Store)

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Title
string
Limit: 30 charactersWeight: Highest keyword ranking factorNote: Appears in search results and product page
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Subtitle
string
Limit: 30 charactersWeight: Second-highest keyword rankingNote: iOS 11+ only
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Keyword Field
string
Limit: 100 charactersFormat: Comma-separated, no spacesRules:
  • Use singular forms
  • No trademark terms
  • Don’t repeat words from title/subtitle
  • Don’t include “app” or category names
Example:
photo,editor,filter,camera,collage,beauty,selfie,retouch,enhance
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Promotional Text
string
Limit: 170 charactersWeight: Not indexed for searchPurpose: Updatable without new version submission
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Description
string
Limit: 4000 charactersWeight: Not indexed for searchPurpose: Conversion-focused, feature/benefit listing

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Android (Google Play)

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Title
string
Limit: 30 charactersWeight: Highest keyword ranking factorNote: Previously 50 chars (changed 2021)
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Short Description
string
Limit: 80 charactersWeight: Indexed for searchNote: Appears in search results
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Full Description
string
Limit: 4000 charactersWeight: Indexed for search (major difference from iOS)Strategy: Include important keywords naturally

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Key Differences

iOS: Only Title, Subtitle, and Keyword Field are indexedAndroid: Title, Short Description, and Full Description are indexed
For Android, strategically place keywords in the full description. For iOS, focus all keyword optimization on title, subtitle, and keyword field.

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Content Structure

Every skill should follow this structure:
1

Role Definition

Start with expertise statement:
You are an expert in App Store Optimization (ASO) specializing in [specific area].
2

Core Instructions

Provide the main methodology, framework, or process:
## Keyword Research Process

1. **Seed Keywords**: Identify core features
2. **Expansion**: Use autocomplete, competitors
3. **Filtering**: Remove irrelevant terms
4. **Prioritization**: Balance volume vs competition
3

Output Format

Define exactly what the agent should produce:
## Output Format

**Title Options**
1. [Option] (XX chars) — [Rationale]

**Keyword Field**
term1,term2,term3
4

Examples

Include real-world examples:
## Example

**App:** Photo editing app with AI features

**Title:** "ProCam: AI Photo Editor" (23 chars)
**Subtitle:** "Remove Background & Enhance" (28 chars)
**Keywords:** `retouch,filter,beauty,enhance,collage,selfie,camera,picture,image`
5

Related Skills

Cross-reference relevant skills:
## Related Skills

- For metadata writing: `metadata-optimizer`
- For A/B testing: `ab-test-framework`

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Scope Boundaries

Clearly define what the skill covers and what it doesn’t. 
## Scope

This skill covers:
- Keyword research methodology
- Search volume estimation
- Competition analysis

For writing metadata copy, see `metadata-optimizer`.
For localization strategy, see `metadata-localization`.

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Version Control

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Commit Messages

Use conventional commit format: 
# New features
feat(keyword-research): add autocomplete scraping method

# Bug fixes
fix(metadata-optimizer): correct iOS character limits

# Documentation
docs: update contribution guidelines

# Refactoring
refactor(ab-test): restructure output format

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Branch Names

# New skills
feature/skill-name
feature/keyword-research
feature/ab-test-framework

# Fixes
fix/skill-name-desc
fix/metadata-optimizer-limits
fix/keyword-research-validation

# Documentation
docs/desc
docs/update-contributing

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Common Patterns

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Decision Tables

Help agents make choices based on context: 
## Keyword Strategy by App Type

| App Type | Primary Focus | Keyword Approach |
|----------|---------------|------------------|
| Game | Genre + mechanic | "puzzle match adventure" |
| Utility | Function + benefit | "pdf converter editor" |
| Social | Category + feature | "video chat messenger" |

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Checklists

Ensure completeness: 
## Pre-Submission Checklist

- [ ] Title ≤ 30 characters
- [ ] Subtitle ≤ 30 characters  
- [ ] Keywords ≤ 100 characters, comma-separated, no spaces
- [ ] No keyword repetition across fields
- [ ] No trademark terms without authorization

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Scoring Rubrics

Provide objective evaluation criteria: 
## Title Quality Score

**Keyword Efficiency** (0-10 points)
- 10: Every word is a valuable keyword
- 5: Mix of keywords and branding
- 0: Mostly generic or filler words

**Uniqueness** (0-10 points)  
- 10: Highly distinctive, memorable
- 5: Somewhat generic but clear
- 0: Completely generic

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Testing Your Skill

Before submitting: 
bash validate-skills.sh
Must pass with 0 errors.
Read your description aloud. Would an agent know when to load this skill?
  • Does it include trigger phrases?
  • Are scope boundaries clear?
  • Are related skills referenced?
Is the expected output clearly defined?
  • Specific structure provided?
  • Examples included?
  • Format matches ASO industry standards?
wc -l skills/your-skill-name/SKILL.md
Aim for under 500 lines. Move detailed references to references/ directory.

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Additional Resources

Agent Skills Spec

Official open standard documentation

ASO Best Practices

Industry guidelines for app metadata optimization

App Store Guidelines

Official Apple developer resources

Google Play Guidelines

Official Google Play developer resources

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