Grow your Shopify app in 2025 – Part 1: Marketing & Traffic Acquisition
Part 2: Shopify App Conversion Optimization
Every time a Shopify merchant encounters a decision point in your Shopify app funnel — like clicking a “Next” button — some will drop off. When these moments add up across the typical Shopify app’s multi-step funnel, it’s no surprise that the average conversion rate is around 3%, and the median falls below 1%.
In practical terms, most Shopify apps convert fewer than 1 out of every 100 app store visitors into paying customers.
But here’s the good news: top-performing Shopify apps consistently achieve conversion rates well above 5%. These apps have highly efficient funnels that allow them to acquire traffic aggressively while maintaining positive ROI. They grow fast, often becoming category leaders with MRR exceeding $100K.
This article — Part 2 in our Shopify app growth series — explores proven funnel optimization strategies to help you double your conversion rate, maximize customer acquisition, and fuel sustainable growth.
Also read part 1: Shopify app Marketing & Traffic Acquisition for 2025
Improving your funnel’s performance has a compounding effect on growth:
Takeaway: If you double your Shopify app’s funnel conversion rate, you can triple your new customers.
Each step in your Shopify app funnel contributes equally to your overall conversion rate. For example, a 25% improvement in Step 2 increases overall conversions by 25% — the same as a 25% improvement in Step 7.
Funnel optimization is a game of multipliers. Improvements at any point have a compounding effect across the funnel. Incremental gains stack quickly: improving three steps by 25% each can double your overall conversion rate, as (1.25)³ = 2.
The key to impactful funnel optimization lies in focusing on the weakest steps. Identifying and addressing these underperforming areas ensures you achieve maximum impact with minimal effort.
Prys shows you where you stand in each funnel step compared to the average and top quartile of all connected Shopify apps. You can easily identify your weak steps and focus on the highest impact potential.
For traffic originating from Shopify, merchants first encounter your app card before clicking through to your Shopify app store page.
Optimize for clickthrough rate — not just SEO. Weave in your unique value proposition. Stand out from your competition. Give merchants a reason to click.
You need a landing page if you plan to run Google ads. For at least some search keywords, you’ll only be allowed to run ads in Google if they do not lead to the Shopify domain — disqualifying your Shopify app store page.
Your landing page’s header should feature your app’s value proposition for Shopify merchants. It should include a product image, references to Shopify reviews and satisfied customers, and a clear call to action inviting users to install your app.
Below the header, showcase your app’s key features, pricing details, user testimonials, social proof, and address frequently asked questions. If your landing page is lengthy, reiterate your value proposition and calls to action throughout the page.
Your Shopify app store page is the first major step in the funnel. It’s where merchants decide whether to try your app or leave.
On average, only 20% of app store visitors click “Add App.” Top-performing app store pages, however, achieve conversion rates above 40%.
Why it matters: Reviews are one of the first things merchants notice. They build trust and demonstrate product maturity.
How to improve:
2. Informative and persuasive Visuals
Why it matters: Merchants skim. Persuasive visuals make an immediate impression and help conversion.
How to improve:
3. Persuasive Value Proposition
Why it matters: Merchants often compare multiple apps. Your value proposition should grab their attention and differentiate you.
How to improve:
4. Simple, Transparent Pricing
Why it matters: Confusing pricing can deter merchants from proceeding.
How to improve:
The most important thing you can do to optimize your install-to-subscribe conversion rate is to get merchants to subscribe as soon as possible after installing.
The best options after installation are to go straight to the subscription page or through one page in between: your pricing page.
Apps that do that tend to have a 50%+ conversion rate from Install to subscribe.
To optimize onboarding, focus on clarity, simplicity, and delivering immediate value.
Guide Users Step-by-Step:
Break the onboarding process into manageable steps. Use progress indicators to show how far along they are, reducing the perceived effort. If your app has complex features, start with the essentials and introduce advanced capabilities later.
Automate Setup Where Possible:
Pre-fill information or offer intelligent defaults based on user input to streamline the setup process. Automation minimizes effort, which reduces drop-offs.
Embed your Shopify app:
Shopify’s embedded apps capability helps conversion by allowing apps to mimic Shopify’s look and feel, and to interact with merchants from within Shopify’s admin panel.
Provide Interactive Tutorials:
Incorporate in-app tooltips, walkthroughs, or guided actions to demonstrate how features work in real-time, particularly the trickier ones.
Highlight Immediate Value:
Get users to their “aha moment” quickly by showcasing how your app solves their specific problem. For example, show live data, generate quick results, or enable a key function within the first session.
Offer Support:
Make it easy for users to get help by integrating FAQs, live chat, or a contact button.
The dashboard is the user’s command center, making its design critical to the success of your Shopify app. An effective dashboard should prioritize clarity, relevance, and actionable insights to empower users.
Showcase Key Metrics First:
Display the most important metrics or actions prominently. For example, performance stats on sales and orders related to your app. Users should immediately see data that aligns with their goals.
Maintain Simplicity and Focus:
Avoid overcrowding the dashboard with excessive data. Group related information and use tabs or collapsible sections to allow users to dive deeper if needed. Visual hierarchy, whitespace, and intuitive navigation help keep the dashboard clean and easy to understand.
Use Visualizations Effectively:
Replace dense text with charts, graphs, and other visual tools. Ensure they are easy to interpret and provide clear takeaways. For instance, use line graphs for trends and bar charts for comparisons.
Highlight Actions and Next Steps:
Include buttons or prompts for key actions like generating reports, starting tasks, changing settings, or fixing issues. Notifications or insights (e.g., “Your sales dropped by 10%, consider…”) can drive user engagement.
Responsive and Fast:
The dashboard must perform well on all devices and load quickly to ensure a seamless user experience.
The in-trial experience is a pivotal stage in converting trial users into paying customers. A well-optimized trial journey should demonstrate value quickly, guide users effectively, and foster a seamless path to purchase.
Once the trial starts, the customer is yours to lose. Use your app’s dashboard to present graphs and stats showcasing your app’s value. Checking data can be very addictive, especially in the beginning when it is accumulating. Use email marketing to keep trialists interacting with your app. Interaction increases familiarity, perceived value, and conversion.
Focus on Time-to-Value (TTV):
Users should experience your app’s core value within the first few minutes of starting their trial.
Engage Users with Milestones:
Break the trial period into achievable goals, offering step-by-step guidance. Celebrate small wins with notifications or badges, such as “Your first campaign is live!” This encourages continued usage and highlights the app’s utility.
Provide Proactive Support:
Incorporate in-app chatbots, tooltips, and contextual help to assist users without interrupting their flow. Send personalized email nudges, such as tips based on their activity or reminders about unused features, to keep them engaged.
Showcase Value with Insights:
Use your dashboards to highlight the app’s impact during the trial. For example, show metrics like “Your sales increased by Y% using our tool.”
Smooth Transition to Paid Plans:
Ensure the upgrade process is simple and transparent. Display the benefits of paid plans within the trial and offer time-sensitive discounts or bonuses to create urgency.
Optimizing your Shopify app funnel can transform your business. Doubling your conversion rate doesn’t just improve customer acquisition — it lays the foundation for sustainable growth by making traffic acquisition more profitable and scalable.
Whether it’s fine-tuning your app store page, simplifying post-install steps, or creating compelling landing pages, each improvement brings you closer to becoming a Shopify category leader.
Stay tuned for part 3: Shopify App Pricing & Monitization Best Practices for 2025. Follow me on Medium or connect with me on LinkedIn for updates.
Need expert help? Convert2x specializes in Shopify app funnel optimization, helping apps double their conversion rates and scale efficiently.
Grow your Shopify app in 2025 – Part 1: Marketing & Traffic Acquisition
How to grow your Shopify app to $100K MRR and beyond
B2b SaaS: How we multiplied conversion rate by 16x and scaled to a $100M exit
We’ve been helping Shopify apps achieve exceptional growth since 2018.
Our team at Convert2x offers a comprehensive solution to scale your Shopify app:
– Grow organic and paid traffic
– Optimize your Shopify funnel
– Maximize monetization
Convert2x was founded by Boaz Lantsman, a repeat entrepreneur and conversion rate optimization expert. Since our inception, we have focused on Shopify apps, perfecting every aspect of scaling: from SEO and paid traffic acquisition through end-to-end funnel optimization that maximizes monetization.
Before founding Convert2x, Boaz led marketing at a B2B SaaS startup, where his strategies multiplied the conversion rate by 16x and increased sales by 7x, leading to the company’s acquisition by DocuSign for nearly $100 million. Following this success, Boaz co-founded RoutePerfect, a travel startup where he achieved a 12x increase in conversion rate and scaled the platform to 5 million users and $500K MRR.
In addition to his work at Convert2x, Boaz co-founded Prys, a breakthrough Shopify app growth platform (https://www.prys.io). Prys provides end-to-end attribution, showing which search terms and campaigns drive your revenues, and offering actionable insights to scale your Shopify app.
At Convert2x, we apply Boaz’s proven methodologies and our team’s extensive expertise to help Shopify apps thrive. Join us, and let’s grow your app to new heights.
We help Shopify apps find and prioritize keywords, scale traffic with SEO and paid ads, maximize monetization, and optimize the Shopify app store page and post-install funnel.
We had a great experience on our funnel optimization project. Boaz was instrumental in helping us improve our funnel, which ultimately led to doubling our conversion rate and tripling our sales.“
Boaz helped us build a cohesive digital funnel and improve our customer experience. He is a seasoned marketer who understood our brand positioning, value, and the competitive landscape.”
Boaz and his team delivered a highly rigorous, professional, and impactful project to optimize our conversion funnel and we would not hesitate to recommend Convert 2x to other businesses looking to realize exponential returns.”
I’ve worked with many consultants before, who are just in it to sign another client and make another dollar. Boaz is far from that type of person. There haven’t been many people in my career who I’ve worked with that “get it” quite like Boaz. He uses a data-driven approach and industry knowledge to provide strategies that work. He helped us optimize some areas of our business better than I could have imagined. I thought some of the projections he proposed to us were impossible, but we’ve actually outperformed these and are still on our way up. I couldn’t recommend Boaz more (unless you are a competitor, in which case he sucks…)