Work / 03
Growing a consumer app through 30,000 partner shops
Trusted Shops reaches consumers through the online shops that carry its badge. I owned the apps and web portal where those consumers land, and the strategy for getting more of them there.
- +27%sign-ups from a growth strategy across 30,000 partner shops
- #1App Store ranking for brand keywords in 10 markets
- 4.7star rating held steady through a full rebrand
Situation
Trusted Shops certifies online shops and collects their reviews. On the consumer side, shoppers use its iOS and Android apps and a web portal. Most of them find it through the roughly 30,000 partner shops that carry the Trusted Shops mark.
What made it hard
This is a business-to-business-to-consumer product. Consumer growth runs through partners whose main concern is their own shop. At the same time the apps were being rebranded, which is a reliable way to lose ratings and search position, in ten markets at once.
What I did
- Owned iOS, Android and the consumer web portal end to end.
- Worked on app store optimization until the apps ranked #1 for brand keywords in 10 markets.
- Managed the rebrand of the apps while keeping the rating at 4.7 stars.
- Initiated a growth strategy across the 30,000 partner shops.
- Outlined a two-to-five-year strategy for the department.
- Used n8n automation and Claude tooling in day-to-day product work.
Result
Sign-ups rose 27%, and the apps came through the rebrand with their rating and search position intact.
What carries over
A lot of products reach customers through someone else: installers, retailers, platforms, integrations. Growth then depends on making the product worth it for the partner first. That holds for an AI tool sold through platforms just as much as for a heat pump sold through a regional installer.