Pingo AI · B2C · AI language speaking app
Bill US users through web checkout to keep more of each sale
What they did
In their words
Morrie Schonfeld - How I built a $500k/mo ai app (so you can just copy me)
Morrie Schonfeld… equivalent, like side by side, to try and show that the yearly plan is better. The other main one that we've tested recently, so this was the first one we tested when we were doing a multi-page. Again, same first two pages, and then like just, "Join over 3 million learners." Like we kind of anchor like, there's a lot of people using this app. Here's a real review. We have this many ratings, this many stars, like little accolades people like.
Morrie SchonfeldAnd you again, like you reinforce like it's like user psychology. Like, "No commitment. Cancel anytime." Like this is this is really nothing for you to do, and like here's proof that you should do this. What we found um I know a bit disjointed in like the organization here, is like that trial timeline one has worked best, and then we've segmented by the US and other countries. The main reason we started with that is cuz we want to use Stripe web checkout in the US cuz the margins are a lot better.
Morrie SchonfeldLike that's been a new thing that Superwall added and we've been trying. So right now we're slowly shifting our whole US billing to Stripe, but you can't do that internationally, so we were forced to segment by the US and international users.
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More from this episode
- Only build an app whose main feature looks interesting on videoTalking to the AI became the core of every video; app reached ~$500K/month
- Film yourselves talking to the app on TikTok, one account per languageReached $20K MRR in about 3 months with almost no outside creators
- Show people using the app in every video, not just talk about the topicLanguage-topic videos without the app flopped; app-demo videos went viral and converted
- Tie videos to beginner lessons and culture moments, like K-dramas or the TikTok banA 'basic Korean quiz' got 77K views; a TikTok-ban/RedNote video got 1M
- Film the AI tutor roasting a learner until they cry on cameraTop video hit 52M views; the format has worked in every language since September
- Let users write their own scenes for the AI so creators can script funny videosCreators found the viral 'mean Pingo' format with it; users now ask for a mean mode
- Post language-tip slideshows that end with a pitch for the appSome hit 1M views, but accounts burned out fast; weak-CTA slides converted far worse
- Have assistants DM small creators learning the language, then move them to emailBuilt a roster of ~100 creators across ~20 languages
- Pay creators a base per video plus bonuses at 50K to 1M viewsKeeps creators paid for their time and chasing viral hits; no numbers
- Treat creators like investments: drop the weakest, keep the stars, train the middleTop 20-30% of ~100 creators drive most views; cut 30-50 who drove none
- Coach creators on lighting, camera angle, sound and doing something on cameraJust started; small tweaks tend to help good creators, no numbers yet
- Scale winning formats through a pay-per-view creator network; test ideas with core creatorsWinning variations get scaled quickly; spend is easy to flex; no numbers
- Make viral videos for learners of RussianAbout half of new users came from Russia and couldn't pay; Russian content killed
- Show a timeline on the paywall: free today, reminder before billing, cancel anytimeBeat social-proof and yearly-vs-monthly paywall versions; no numbers given
- Offer the free trial only on the yearly plan and hide the monthly one
- Test a 3-day against a 7-day free trial, US and abroad separatelyNear-even in the US; 7-day converted ~2% better internationally (early data)
- When someone backs out of a 3-day trial, offer 7 free days at a lower priceConverts better than showing the 7-day trial first; exact lift not given
- Join Y Combinator, then raise quickly on strong revenue and CAC/LTV~100 investor meetings booked; round closed in about 3 days
Tags: web-checkout, stripe, margins, geo-segmentation