Clear 30 · B2C · app to quit or cut down weed
Try organic posts, influencers, Reddit and SEO to get first users
Useful for early feedback, but hard to convert; the first $1K was the hardest
Mixedorganic-short-videoinfluencercommunityseo
What they did
Early on tried many channels: organic content, influencers (with referral codes in onboarding), Reddit and SEO.
What happened
Got first users and feedback, but converting them was an uphill battle
- Stage
- early
- Effort
- Many channels tried; spend and duration not given
In their words
The Superwall Podcast · Asher Herbstman & Thatcher Clough - I Built a $30k/mo App That Helps You Quit Smoking“We tried a million things. A lot of people start organic, posting free content on the internet, we tried influencers, we tried Reddit, we tried organic content, we tried SEO. In the end, it was like an uphill battle to convert people.”
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
- Clear 30: Grow with paid Meta and TikTok ads once the app converts wellBecame the growth engine; founders say they 'cracked paid ads' and are scaling
- Clear 30: Film your own funny ads that call out a very specific momentSpecific callouts grab attention; calm ads with an older speaker convert best
- Clear 30: Check which ages and quit reasons pay most, then aim ads at them26-30 year olds convert at almost double the 18-20 rate
- Clear 30: Ask users where they found the app, and also run proper ad trackingShows cost per trial by platform to rebalance spend daily; founders call it very helpful
- Clear 30: Track users from the first screen, not only after they sign inRevealed drop-offs; intro screen passes 85-90%
- Clear 30: Make onboarding a conversation: use their name, echo goals, show proof and quick winsPart of the 2-month push that took revenue from $10K to $30K a month
- Clear 30: Keep the slow 'what do you want to achieve?' questions in onboardingUsers spend 20-30 seconds on them with almost no drop-off
- Clear 30: Give users a free personal report on their habits before asking them to payFounders call it a big point of value; no numbers
- Clear 30: Ask new users which features they'd use, to show them off and learn
- Clear 30: Say up front the app costs money, next to what the habit costs themOnboarding conversion up about 3%; fewer 'it's paid' complaints
- Clear 30: Ask for a star rating during onboarding, right before showing reviewsReviews went from ~50 to almost 1,000 and keep climbing
- Clear 30: Sign users up by phone number and text them funny, personal messagesNo results given; founders cite ~95% of texts read within 5 minutes
- Clear 30: Open the paywall with a day-by-day plan for the first 7 days, not featuresPaywall conversion rose from ~20% to 30% with only this change
- Clear 30: Tell users 'no payment due now' and remind them 2 days before the trial endsMost users choose the yearly plan with the 3-day trial; no conversion numbers
- Clear 30: Test $30, $40 and $50 yearly pricesSettled on $30/year; no test numbers shared
- Clear 30: Run ads inviting people to take a quiz about their weed habitDidn't work; tried half-heartedly while onboarding was weaker
- Clear 30: Study which ads Meta and TikTok spend most on, and reuse their hooksAd with a woman beat one with a man; camera-shot look beat polished
- Clear 30: Offer the app to universities and addiction services, and add paid extras