Rebuilding the Overwolf App Store into an acquisition channel
The App Store was serving existing users well, but wasn’t attracting new ones. I redesigned both sides of the marketplace, discovery for gamers, and additional listing tools for developers, so new users could actually find it and convert.
Organic Search Share
+15pp
Sessions from organic sources
Mobile Bounce Rate
−20pp
First-Visit Download CTR
+8pp
First-time visitors clicking download
Project Snapshot
TIMELINE
October–December 2024
ROLE
Lead Product Designer (end-to-end, IC)
TEAM
PM, 2 Engineers, Developer Relations
PLATFORM
Web (desktop & mobile)
USERS
PC gamers, App developers
challenge
A two-sided marketplace that wasn’t bringing in new users
The Overwolf App Store is a two-sided marketplace where gamers discover in-game apps and where app developers distribute their creations. The store gets about 15,000 sessions per day. The desktop user journey is strong, with around 70% of sessions that reach an app page clicking the download CTA in the same session.
The problem was not that users stopped converting on desktop. Instead, growth was limited earlier in the process, during discovery, SEO, and mobile, so many new users never made it that far.
Grow acquisition without breaking the desktop funnel
Grow new-user acquisition by making it easier for people to find us, improving SEO, and enhancing the mobile experience.
What we couldn't change
Guardrail
Where we started
Organic Search Share
35%
Sessions from organic sources
Mobile Bounce Rate
75%
Users leaving on mobile
First-Visit Download CTR
65%
First-time visitors clicking download
DISCOVERY
Five usability tests, and a conversation with DevRel
The store worked for insiders but was invisible to everyone else
After reviewing analytics, testing with 5 gamers, and working with Developer Relations, we found that the main issue was not traffic volume but the system’s architecture.
The homepage is overwhelmed instead of guiding
The homepage feels overwhelming, entry points are confusing, it’s hard to find less popular games, and the search feature is not very visible or effective.
Organic search was low because app pages weren’t built to be found
Organic search made up only about 35% of app-page sessions. The main reason was the site’s structure. App pages were set up as pop-ups rather than SEO-friendly landing pages. App developers could not set their apps apart, so high-quality apps looked the same as less impressive ones.
15% of mobile traffic hit a wall and bounced
Mobile accounted for 15% of all traffic, yet users saw a ‘not mobile-friendly’ screen. This led to a 75% bounce rate and resulted in a loss of about 11% of total sessions.
The App Store wasn’t reliably bringing new users. It was a place where people who already knew about Overwolf went to download it.
Solution
Organize around games, not features
The first decision was to strengthen a Game-First approach. I simplified the navigation to highlight “Browse by game,” refined the homepage structure, and improved game hubs.
After launch user testing confirmed this was the right move. The participants said the new information architecture fit clearly how they expected to find apps.
Show trust signals first
Some stakeholders wanted the app pages to start with large, media-only hero sections. However, user research found that people look for trust signals like ratings, downloads, and compatibility before making decisions.
I worked through this difference by meeting with stakeholders and sharing research findings during design reviews. In the final design, we placed the key trust signals at the top of the page while ensuring rich media remained visible and well integrated.
Make mobile useful
Given the Overwolf client’s Windows-only status, there was a real question about the level of mobile investment. Testing the responsive approach revealed that trust signals got pushed below the fold.
I chose a mobile-optimized approach and saved a “Get app” button, enabling cross-device install handoff via email.
000000
After launch, mobile bounce rate dropped from 75% to 55%, confirming that treating mobile as a discovery surface rather than a dead end was the right call.
Let developers have more control over how their apps appear
On the app developers’ side, we wanted to help creators stand out without relying on the existing listing. By working with stakeholders, we found that creators needed more flexible settings options.
I added new sections to the app page, including a Hero image, YouTube video, “About the creator,” multiple download options, and cross-promotion pairing, and designed the tools in the Developer Console so developers could manage it all themselves.
Within the first month, over 60% of active developers adopted the new tools.
RESULTS
The numbers
Organic Search Share
+15pp
35%
50%
Sessions from organic sources
−20pp
75%
55%
Users leaving on mobile
First-Visit Download CTR
+8pp
65%
73%
First-time visitors clicking download
Guardrails held
Desktop CTR held steady at about 70% overall, while first-visit CTR improved from 65% to about 73%. The redesign grew acquisition without hurting the existing funnel.
Scaling acquisition without breaking the funnel
The redesign made the App Store a stronger acquisition channel by growing organic traffic, recapturing blocked mobile users, and improving first-time activation, while keeping the desktop funnel stable and scaling creator differentiation without manual effort.
How we know
After launch, I ran moderated sessions with 9 gamers. These sessions showed that our trust-first approach helped people make decisions faster, and the game-first information architecture fit how users think. We measured all metrics using internal event tracking.
"I have to comment on how well this platform is put together... I can see exactly which apps work with my game, what other players are using, and I trust what I'm looking at."
Post-launch research participant, January 2025
How the work spread
More than 60% of active app developers started using the new Developer Console listing features within 3 months. I also documented all patterns, so they can be reused across Overwolf products.
rEFLECTION
What I’d do differently
Start validating with both gamers and app developers from the very beginning. In this project, we got feedback from gamers before launch, but waited until after launch to hear from creators. This order led to some blind spots.
What didn’t move
What I took from this
Let’s collaborate
Senior, Lead, or Founding Designer roles.
Complex B2B preferred. AI-augmented teams welcome.
On-site or hybrid. Israel-based.
