BeReal · B2C · photo sharing app for friends
Hide friends' posts until the user posts their own
70% of users post; almost no passive users
Workedproduct-activationretentionproduct-virality
What they did
Friends' BeReals in the feed stay hidden until the user shares their own BeReal that day, so every viewer is also a poster. Pitched to advertisers as an engagement advantage.
What happened
70% of users post; no passive users. Also one of the main selling points to advertisers.
- Stage
- Launch (from launch)
“70% of our users actually post on BeReal, which means that we don't have any passive, you know, users on the app. Like, as you said it yourself, if you want to see your friends BeReal on your feed, you have to post.”
Related topics
Get tactics like this every Monday
New tactics from the week's founder interviews, each linked to where it was said.
More from this episode
- BeReal: Send users a monthly recap of their own past postsCalled one of the app's most successful and acclaimed features; no numbers
- BeReal: Let users post short videos using both front and back camerasOne of the fastest-adopted and fastest-growing features; no numbers
- BeReal: Send one push a day at a random time asking everyone to post nowKept as the core feature; drove 70M people posting at once at the viral peak
- BeReal: Show only friends' posts in a feed that ends, with no algorithm, filters or AICredited for users sticking 2-3 years after the viral peak; no retention numbers
- BeReal: Have the CEO ask users for ideas in comments on his own posts
- BeReal: Test each new feature on a small slice of users before releasing it to all
- BeReal: Show up on college campuses, in coffee shops and at mental health events
- BeReal: Sponsor local community groups and throw parties for creators and users
- BeReal: Recruit creators losing reach on other apps and bring their fans over
- BeReal: Show only a few ads a day, styled like friends' posts, and sell full-day takeoversAd click-through 5-10x other platforms; the only revenue source
- BeReal: Let brands sponsor the app's signature daily notification
- BeReal: Have creators and users make the ads brands run in the appSays UGC ads are the best-performing ads; no numbers
- BeReal: Sell optional paid extras to users of a free social appDidn't work; shut down quickly, and ads became the only revenue
- Take the free option off the paywall so only paid plans showRevenue doubled
- Make a separate Google Play store listing for each keyword or featureHost says it worked pretty well; no numbers
- Target keywords with popularity 5-20 until the app gets steady downloadsApp Masters reports pretty good results internally; no numbers