Locked · B2C · gamified self-improvement to-do app
Turn a to-do list into a game with XP for Gen Z
Became his best app at $14K+/month
Workedpositioning-nicheproduct-activation
What they did
Idea came from a friend who struggled to focus. Designed onboarding and main screens in Figma with co-founder Alex Malaj, then built with Claude. Applied video-game mechanics (XP, competing with others) to daily tasks.
What happened
Locked reached $14K+/month, well beyond earlier apps.
“So I figured, why not create a gamified app to help people stay on task? I've played video games before. They're very addictive.”
Related topics
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More from this episode
- Locked: Try Reddit, X, paid ads and influencers, then go all in on influencersInfluencers won clearly; no numbers given for the other channels
- Locked: Pay day-in-the-life creators to check off each task in the app on cameraOne ~1M-view video made $3K+ and the first $1,000 and 1,000-download days
- Locked: DM 500 creators a day from several verified accounts with 1,000+ followers3-4% reply rate on Instagram, ~2% on TikTok; 5-10K creators contacted
- Locked: Start creator DMs with 'Paid promo?' and always move the deal to a callFounder says it stands out in flooded inboxes; no numbers
- Locked: Pay creators a flat fee, but they keep posting until a view target is hitBest of four deal types; works out to $1-2 per 1,000 views
- Locked: Pay creators $1-2 per 1,000 views with a cap, below what 1,000 views earns$1-2 CPM paid vs $3-4 revenue per 1,000 views
- Locked: Pay a flat $500 a video ($1,200 for four) only to reliably big creators
- Locked: Pay creators $250 per video plus $250 more at 250,000 views
- Locked: Post 'What's the app called?' under the video; creator replies with the name and pins itFounder says curious viewers find the app through it; no numbers
- Locked: Have creators show the app within 15 seconds; approve posts, then re-sign winners biggerProfitable creators renewed and moved to bigger deals; no numbers
- Locked: Pick creators by real comments and 5K+ views per video, not followersEarly follower-based picks with weak comments were the biggest mistake
- ProblemPal: Reuse your old TikTok account for each new app and pitch it head-onOne 200K-view 'finish homework in 10 seconds' video drove ProblemPal to $2K/month