How to Attract Users to Your App Without Wasting Time
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Chapter 1: Introduction
Recently, I developed an application in just six hours that generates $1,500 monthly.
It sounds like an amazing side project, doesn’t it? However, the reality is that I invested over 1,000 hours into marketing to attract users to this app. In this guide, I will share how to create an app that successfully acquires users.
My Most Significant Error
When I first started coding applications, my approach was simplistic: come up with a unique idea, create the app, publish it, and then wait for users to arrive. Unfortunately, they never showed up.
Eventually, I realized that this method was fundamentally flawed—every aspect of it was wrong.
The Formula for a Successful App
Rather than releasing a random app that seems intriguing, a more strategic approach is necessary. Here’s the process to follow:
- Identify a problem.
- Build an audience.
- Develop the app.
That's right; coding the app comes last. It requires extensive marketing efforts before you even start writing the first line of code.
Let’s delve deeper into this strategy.
Section 1.1: Identifying the Problem
Avoid creating apps just because you think they’re cool. Instead, focus on finding real problems that you can solve—issues that many people are actively seeking solutions for. This process involves thorough research.
You don’t want to address an issue that already has countless existing solutions, as it will be challenging to differentiate your app. Conversely, solving a problem that has no solutions at all is equally unwise.
Let’s consider an example.
Subsection 1.1.1: A Concrete Example
Imagine you want to develop an app that adds color to black-and-white images. While this idea sounds appealing, it's insufficient to justify building the app.
You need to confirm that there is a genuine demand for such an app. For instance, if you search “Black and white image…” on Google, it suggests “Black and white image to color,” indicating that many users are looking for solutions in this area.
Next, you can use Google Trends to check if the term is gaining traction. Searching for "Photo Colorizer" shows a growing interest over time.
Additionally, explore videos, forums, and other platforms where users seek solutions to validate your concept.
Don't overlook monetization either. If competing apps are free, it will likely be challenging for you to monetize your own. In the photo colorization niche, many apps charge $5 to $10 per month, which is promising!
Lastly, ensure that competition isn’t overly saturated. For example, a search on Google reveals around 1,000 image colorization tools, indicating demand and manageable competition.
In contrast, searching for photo editing apps shows over a million competitors, which is daunting!
In summary, the photo colorization app appears to be a viable idea—it's trendy, has low competition, and serves a new market niche. Once you’ve validated your idea, it’s time to focus on building an audience.
Section 1.2: Building a Large Audience
Marketing is the most labor-intensive aspect of attracting users to your app, and this should be done before you begin coding. You could consider various marketing strategies like ads, social media, or influencer outreach. However, I’m focusing on a free traffic source: organic search engine traffic.
This means you should create content that ranks well on Google. For our photo colorizer example, consider writing blog posts such as:
- How to Colorize an Image with AI
- Best AI Colorizer Tools
- Effective AI Image Enhancers
These posts will attract individuals interested in colorizing their images, creating a perfect opportunity to subtly promote your app.
To illustrate the effectiveness of this strategy, I wrote a list post about the best AI image colorizer tools, which now ranks at the top of Google search results.
This post has attracted over 15,000 views in a few months, providing access to a highly targeted audience.
Currently, instead of showcasing my own tool as the top recommendation, I’m testing the waters by promoting an existing product, Palette.fm, as the number one choice.
I’ve arranged an affiliate deal with this app, earning commissions for each purchase resulting from my post. So far, this has generated around $1,000 monthly for me.
This strategy provides invaluable insight into the revenue potential of such tools while simultaneously building an audience for my future app. If I decide to create my own tool, I can easily feature it at the top of this list.
I find this approach incredibly effective. I’ve identified a problem, validated it, and built an audience around it. I even have a sense of the customer base I can expect if I choose to develop an app.
Of course, trends can shift, and traffic may diminish, but this method significantly boosts my chances of success.
Chapter 2: Building the App
After establishing a large audience for your app's website, it’s time to create the app itself. To streamline the process and avoid unnecessary work, adopt the MVP (Minimum Viable Product) approach. Focus on developing a basic version that fulfills its purpose without overcomplicating it.
Feel free to utilize existing code, libraries, or APIs. For instance, there’s a free Python library for photo colorization that I could leverage instead of spending months creating my own.
From this point, you can iterate and enhance your app based on user feedback. Make decisions driven by data, scale up, and introduce additional features to boost your offering.
Your initial project, which may have started as a modest black-and-white image colorization tool, could transform into a lucrative AI image editing software.
Conclusion: The Key to Attracting Users
The only way to attract users to your app is through extensive marketing efforts. You must invest countless hours into this, even before the app is built.
The objective is to present your app to your target audience effectively. Simply creating an app and hoping users will come is a gamble that rarely pays off.
A much more effective strategy involves building an audience around a specific problem and providing a solution. That’s the essence of successful business!
Thank you for reading!
The first video, titled "How to Get Your App's First 10 Users [Must Do Pre-Launch]," provides essential pre-launch strategies for acquiring users.
The second video, "Rule #1 for Getting Your App's First Users," emphasizes the fundamental principles for attracting users to your app effectively.