Applications
Boosting app sales by targeting inactive users via custom store listings
Mumbai: In today’s rapidly evolving app ecosystem, developers face the challenge of creating innovative products and ensuring their visibility and engagement among target users. One powerful tool that aids in this endeavor is Google Play’s custom store listings (CSLs), introduced in early 2019. These CSLs empower developers to craft alternative versions of their default store listing pages, offering tailored experiences to specific segments of their audience.
Custom store listing activity:
Custom store listings allow developers to create alternative versions of their default store listing, enabling them to modify all text fields and creatives used on the default page across various languages available in the Play Store. This comprehensive customisation includes alterations to essential elements such as:
1 App name
2 Short description
3 Full description
4 App icon
5 Screenshots
6 Feature graphic
7 Video
Each custom store listing can be tailored in all supported Play Store languages, allowing marketers to create specialised versions of their store listings for different audience segments. With the ability to create up to 50 custom store listings, developers have significant flexibility to precisely target users with specific offers and value propositions that resonate with their diverse audience base.
Furthermore, Google is developing an AI-powered description generator specifically for custom store listings. This innovative feature will assist developers in drafting custom store listings by generating text based on the description provided in the default listing.
Expanding customisation choices
This unparalleled level of customisation enables developers to tailor their app’s store listing to resonate with different user demographics, ensuring maximum appeal and engagement. By adjusting elements such as the app name, descriptions, icons, and images, developers can craft a compelling narrative that speaks directly to the interests and preferences of their target audience. Furthermore, modifying feature graphics and videos allows developers to showcase the app’s unique selling points and key features, further enhancing its attractiveness to potential users.
Targeted reach:
With the help of country-specific custom store listings, app developers can modify their listings in the app store to better suit the tastes and needs of customers in particular nations or areas. Developers can improve relevancy and audience engagement by customising components like discounts, promotions, and featured content. To ensure that the material reflects local tastes, a streaming app might, for instance, present various movies or series to users in different Latin American nations.
This degree of personalisation raises the possibility of app downloads and engagement across a variety of geographical areas and enhanced user experience. Developers may successfully engage and resonate with their audience on a localised level by utilising country-specific custom store listings, which will eventually drive app success and growth.
Innovative targeting:
Custom store listings can be made by installing state-target pre-registered users who anticipate the app’s launch in their area. This integration enhances conversion rates by ensuring users see listings tailored to their interests and needs. By linking ads to CSLs, developers can optimise their marketing efforts, potentially reducing the cost per install (CPI) and maximising return on investment.
This targeted advertising strategy aligns with Google’s aim to enhance the user experience by delivering relevant content to users based on their interests and behaviours. Overall, custom store listings by install state and Google Ads campaigns present innovative opportunities for developers to reach their audience effectively and drive app downloads.
Maximising efficiency:
To maximise the efficiency of CSLs, developers should prioritise segments in their user base that engage the least with the default store listing messaging. Clear goals should be established for each custom store listing, ensuring measurable outcomes. Running A/B tests using Google Play Experiments is essential for iterating on creatives and text metadata to enhance conversion rates. Moreover, tailoring messages to specific countries or regions can significantly improve relevance and engagement.
Wrapping up:
Google Play custom store listings offer developers a powerful tool to enhance app visibility, engagement, and conversion rates. By leveraging the customisation options and innovative targeting features CSLs provide, developers can effectively reach and resonate with their target audience segments. As the app landscape evolves, embracing CSLs early and testing various combinations of a segment, CSL type, and messaging is crucial for app growth and success.
The article has been authored by AdCounty Media chief strategy officer Kumar Saurav.
Applications
With 57 per cent single new users, Ashley Madison rebrands as discreet dating platform
Platform says majority of new members now identify as single
INDIA: Ashley Madison is shedding the “married-dating” label that defined it for two decades, repositioning itself as a platform for discreet dating in what it calls the post-social media age.
The rebrand, unveiled in India on 27 February, 2026, marks a structural shift in business model and identity. Once synonymous with married dating, the company now describes itself as the “premier destination for discreet dating” under a new tagline: Where Desire Meets Discretion.
The pivot is data-driven. Internal figures show that 57 per cent of global sign-ups between 1 January and 31 December, 2025 identified as single: a notable departure from the platform’s married core. The company argues that its community has already evolved beyond its original positioning.
“In an age where our lives have been constantly put on public display, privacy has become the new luxury,” said Ashley Madison chief strategy officer Paul Keable. He framed the platform’s offering as “ethical discretion” for singles, separated, divorced and non-monogamous users seeking private connections.
The shift also taps into wider digital fatigue. A global survey conducted by YouGov for Ashley Madison, covering 13,071 adults across Australia, Brazil, Canada, Germany, India, Italy, Mexico, Spain, Switzerland, the UK and the US, found mounting discomfort with hyper-public online lives.
Among dating app users, 30 per cent cited constant swiping and messaging as a source of fatigue, while 24 per cent pointed to pressure to curate public-facing profiles and early personal disclosure. Some 27 per cent said fears of screenshots or information being shared contributed to exhaustion; an equal share cited unwanted attention.
The retreat from oversharing appears broader. According to the survey, 46 per cent of adults actively try to keep most aspects of their life private online. Only 8 per cent feel comfortable sharing most aspects publicly, while 35 per cent say they are becoming more selective about what they disclose.
Ashley Madison is betting that this cultural recalibration towards controlled visibility can be monetised. By doubling down on privacy infrastructure and reframing itself around discretion rather than infidelity, the company is attempting to convert reputational baggage into a premium proposition.
