Interviews with the experts behind the biggest apps in the App Store. Hosts David Barnard and Jacob Eiting dive deep to unlock insights, strategies, and stories that you can use to carve out your slice of the 'trillion-dollar App Store opportunity'.
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On the podcast I talk with Josh about red flags that tank app valuations, why subscription-only apps are leaving money on the table, and how bootstrapped founders are cashing out for millions in months, not years. Top Takeaways: 🎯 Build to sell, but build smart Flipping an app in under a year is still possible, but the skill that matters most now is marketing. With AI lowering the barrier to development, distribution has become the real differentiator. Founders who master organic channels, comm...
On the podcast we talk with Mathias about running Subway Surfers' marketing machine on salaries, not ad spend, leaving money on the table to protect player experience, and why more apps should try rewarded ads, season passes, and other tactics from gaming. Top Takeaways: 🎨 Viral flywheels can out-perform massive paid campaigns Relying on salaries instead of ad budgets, a lean team can ship constant creative that rides cultural waves. Most experiments flop quietly, but the occasional viral hit f...
This episode features Ora Levit, VP of Product Management at LinkedIn, who shares insights into their value-driven growth philosophy. She explains how LinkedIn focuses on continuously adding features that genuinely help members achieve their professional goals, leading to sustainable acquisition and retention. The discussion also covers balancing free and paid offerings, the complexities of running over a thousand A/B tests annually, and leveraging AI for personalized user experiences and win-back strategies for "boomerang" users. Ora emphasizes optimizing for long-term revenue and using partnerships to enhance premium value.
On the podcast I talk with Eric about how measurement dysfunction paralyzes growth, why diversifying channels for the sake of diversification actually hurts performance, and the futility of trying to interpret why ads win. Top Takeaways: 📊 Broken measurement kills growth The biggest pitfall isn’t creative or channel choice—it’s disorganized measurement. When finance, product, and UA each use different models, growth stalls. The fix isn’t another dashboard; it’s alignment. Build one coherent, in...
On the podcast I talk with Thomas about using signal engineering to optimize ad spend, how AI is changing creative testing, and why most people should avoid app2web… for now. Top Takeaways: 🧠 The biggest AI opportunity in ads is smarter analysis, not faster production AI is now good enough to produce ad-quality video and variants at scale — but that’s where 95% of the industry focus stops. The underused frontier is AI for analysis : spotting winning hooks, predicting performance, and even pre-t...
On the podcast I talk with Lucy and Nicole about how customer-driven iteration led Zumba from VHS tapes in 2001 to launching an app in 2024, their app2web experiments that boosted LTV by 17%, and how they are able to charge for content when countless Zumba classes are available for free on YouTube. Top Takeaways: 🗣️ Listening has driven 24 years of product evolution Every Zumba breakthrough — from instructor certifications born out of VHS buyer calls, to an app tailored for shy beginners — came...
Hosts David Barnard and John Gruber trace Apple's complex 40-year journey with developers, revealing how the company's near-bankruptcy in the 1990s profoundly influenced its modern, control-centric App Store policies. They discuss the historical importance of third-party developers, the App Store's revolutionary launch, and why its current fee structure and lack of flexibility are fostering resentment. The conversation highlights the critical need for an 'App Store 3.0' reset, emphasizing that restoring developer enthusiasm is crucial for Apple's long-term innovation and the success of future platforms like VisionOS.
On the podcast we talk with Eric about his journey from a failed first app to success with his second, the advantage of building for problems people are already talking about, and why he turned down a lucrative acquisition offer to keep building. Top Takeaways: 🔍 Demand-first discipline wins Testing for willingness to pay before writing a line of code can spare you five years of false starts. Quick interviews or landing pages that capture real purchase signals reveal genuine demand—an indispens...
David and Charlie discuss the key takeaways from WWDC 2025, including reflections on Apple's developer relations and PR strategy. They dive deep into new opportunities for apps with Liquid Glass, the potential and limitations of on-device AI models, and the significant enhancements to App Store Analytics and Offer Codes. The episode concludes with insights into the overall WWDC vibe and optimism for Apple's future platforms.
On the podcast we talk with Charlie about why React Native has become the default for VC-funded apps, how AI is accelerating development cycles, and why speed of iteration matters more than programming language. Top Takeaways: ⚡ Instant iteration cycles unlock agility React Native and Expo supercharge development by collapsing long build times into mere seconds. With tools like Expo Go enabling live updates, teams can experiment, test, and improve their apps in real time. This instant feedback l...
Tim Dikun, COO of Teaching.com, discusses the 28-year journey of their educational brands like Typing.com and Reading.com, highlighting their shift to consumer apps. He details successful experiments with pricing, replacing free trials with money-back guarantees on web funnels, and finding success with expert marketing contractors instead of in-house teams. The episode also covers their unique parent-involved learning philosophy and navigating the challenges of the kids app space.
Chris Hulls, CEO of Life360, discusses the company's freemium strategy, emphasizing the importance of providing genuine value to free users while monetizing safety features. He shares insights on balancing data-driven decisions with intuition, building user trust, and the challenges of scaling a company while maintaining product quality and innovation. The conversation also covers Life360's approach to advertising, data privacy, and future growth plans beyond family location sharing.
Daphne Tideman discusses how understanding users' "jobs to be done" can significantly boost app conversion and retention by focusing on user goals, emotional drivers, and social connections. She emphasizes the importance of user interviews, review mining, and message testing to align app messaging, onboarding, and pricing with meaningful user outcomes. The conversation also explores practical examples from apps like Ladder and Tractive.
Dan Layfield discusses estimating ROI of product changes, calculating growth ceilings based on churn, and avoiding assumptions about what works in other apps. He emphasizes ROI-first thinking, iterative development, focusing on UX improvements, and moving quickly to validate ideas. He also covers understanding churn, activation strategies, and the importance of product-market fit for long-term retention and profitability.
On the podcast, I talk with Ajay about the fresh opportunities AI is creating for app developers, how they built a cost-effective TikTok growth engine, and why being forced to monetize helped improve their product decisions. Top Takeaways: 🤖 New tech, new apps – AI isn’t just making apps smarter. It’s enabling new categories entirely. Apps built around real-time interaction, emotional context, and personalized content wouldn’t have been possible just a year ago. That means product-market fit ca...
David Barnard and Jacob Eiting analyze RevenueCat's 2025 State of Subscription Apps report, discussing trends in AI app monetization, the iOS vs. Android landscape, and the rise of hybrid monetization. They explore factors impacting app retention and pricing strategies, while emphasizing the importance of delivering unique value to combat cloning and maintain a competitive edge. The conversation also covers cross-platform development frameworks and active renewal rates.
Sylvain Gauchet shares key insights on paywall optimization for subscription apps. The discussion emphasizes the importance of a compelling onboarding story, leveraging loss aversion, and testing multi-screen paywalls. Gauchet also highlights the need to differentiate between onboarding and post-onboarding paywalls, and to balance aggressive monetization tactics with user experience to avoid a "scammy" feeling.
Shane Ly from AppsFlyer discusses the state of user acquisition in 2025, focusing on major channels like Apple Search Ads, TikTok, Meta, and Google. He explains how improved measurement and attribution are boosting confidence in ad spend, despite iOS signal loss. The conversation covers strategies like web-to-app funnels and highlights Reddit as a potentially overlooked acquisition channel, offering actionable insights for subscription app operators.
Lucas Lovell from Paddle discusses strategies for maximizing web subscriptions for mobile apps, highlighting the flexibility in billing models, pricing experimentation, and user acquisition. He emphasizes the importance of optimizing the entire funnel, from onboarding to retention, and leveraging win-back campaigns. The conversation also covers the benefits of offering flexible payment options and creating better customer experiences on the web compared to app stores.
Tammy Taw from Google Play discusses strategies for app developers to increase revenue, including diversifying beyond subscriptions with consumable IAPs, using localized pricing, and optimizing purchase flows. She emphasizes the importance of understanding user behavior and experimenting with hybrid monetization models to capture different buyer segments and increase overall revenue.
This episode is shorter than usual and will be featured in RevenueCat’s State of Subscription Apps report. On the podcast: why some apps see 30 times higher revenue on iOS versus Android, the challenges of running a business on multiple platforms, and why you should consider offering a free Android device to employees. 📱 Android expands global reach, but iOS drives early traction iOS dominates in U.S. and premium markets, making it the best platform for an initial launch. Android, however, is e...
This episode is shorter than usual and will be featured in RevenueCat’s State of Subscription Apps report. On the podcast: why optimizing for user success drives more revenue than conversion hacks, how to maximize the impact of annual plans, and why relying too heavily on discounts is a trap. Top Takeaways 🏋️♂️Segment early to acquire the right users Long-term retention starts before users even download your app. Ladder segments potential users through quiz-based onboarding, tailoring messagin...
Caroline Walthall from Quizlet shares actionable strategies for re-engaging churned subscription users. She emphasizes understanding churn reasons through surveys, delivering personalized value, and offering flexible subscription options like pausing or shorter durations. The discussion covers targeted discounts, social proof, and the importance of user control to build trust and increase retention.
This episode is shorter than usual and will be featured in RevenueCat’s State of Subscription Apps report. On the podcast: how onX Maps tailors freemium and trial strategies to different user needs, the role of user education in driving upgrades, and why experimenting with features and tiers is essential for subscription growth. Top Takeaways: 🔎Educate users about paid features Don’t assume users know they’re on the free tier or understand the value behind premium features. Clearly communicate ...
This episode is shorter than usual and will be featured in RevenueCat’s State of Subscription Apps report. On the podcast: Keeping users engaged through habit-forming experiences, Duolingo’s approach to reactivating churned users, and why building daily habits is the foundation for long-term retention success. Top Takeaways: 🏎️ Act fast - most users don’t come back after a week The best time to re-engage a churned user is within the first three to four days . Duolingo found that users who stay ...
This episode features Anton Derlyatka, CEO of Sweatcoin, discussing the strategies behind the app's viral growth and user retention. Anton explains how Sweatcoin incentivizes physical activity by converting steps into a virtual currency, fostering emotional connections and positive habits. The conversation covers building sustainable growth loops, the role of influencers, gamification techniques, and the transition to a subscription model, offering insights applicable to various app businesses.
This episode is shorter than usual and will be featured in RevenueCat’s State of Subscription Apps report. On the podcast: why the Big Mac Index falls short for app pricing, how Flo Health’s regional pricing strategy drives profitable user acquisition in emerging markets, and the importance of aligning pricing with long-term user retention for sustainable growth. Top Takeaways: 💭 Know your audience - not just the economy Don’t rely on basic indexes like the Big Mac Index. Instead, understand yo...
This episode is shorter than usual and will be featured in RevenueCat’s State of Subscription Apps report. On the podcast: balancing freemium and premium experiences, how The Weather Company uses AI to predict subscriber behavior, and why focusing on user value rather than monetization is the key to subscription success. Top Takeaways 🎯Target high-value users with personalized experiences Identify your most valuable cohorts through deep segmentation and user research . Tailor paywalls and premi...
On the podcast I talk with Ashley about what makes Google App Campaigns so effective for growth, proven optimization strategies, and why lower CPMs can sometimes be a warning sign rather than a win. Top Takeaways: 📈 Google App Campaigns: Big reach, but fewer levers to pull Google’s ad platform delivers massive scale - search, YouTube, the Play Store - but hands much of the control to machine learning. That tradeoff can work in your favor, but only if you guide the system with structured testing...
On the podcast I talk with Sherina about why performance marketing eventually hits a ceiling, how to think about measure brand marketing, and why sometimes ignoring A/B test results leads to better outcomes. Top Takeaways: 📈 Freemium can’t feel cheap Deezer once took a hardline approach to converting free users – limiting features to push them toward paid plans. The result? Users didn’t upgrade; they just left. The best freemium models strike a balance: give users real value, build habit and tr...
