On this episode I breakdown the frameworks for building a $100K MRR mobile app. We dive deep into how to find a niche daily habit to serve, validating demand before building, and creating a strong first-win experience for users. We discuss proper pricing strategies (typically $7-40/month), retention mechanics like streaks, and a multi-channel growth approach combining organic content, referrals, and eventually paid acquisition.

Timestamps:

00:00 - Intro

02:06 - Overview of $100k Mobile App Blueprint

04:57 - Finding a daily habit to serve

06:27 - Validating demand

09:58 - User experience and onboarding flow

12:32 - Pricing strategies and monetization

13:46 - User journey from first use to advocacy

16:24 - Distribution and marketing channels

18:56 - 30 Day Monetization Blueprint

19:44 - Metrics to Measure

20:59 - Feature Development Framework

22:16 - North Star Metric

25:10 - Startup Idea 1: Dog Allergy Scanner

26:58 - Startup Idea 2: Migraine Weather Guard

28:07 - Startup Idea 3: Silent Study Timer

30:05 - Startup Idea 4: Plant Watering AI Coach

Key Points:

• Focus on serving a daily habit with a narrow wedge use case, ideally incorporating AI

• Validate demand through Reddit, TikTok, and other platforms before building

• Optimize for first-win experience within 24 hours of app download

• Use a combination of organic growth, owned channels, and paid acquisition

• Monitor key metrics like retention, conversion, and LTV/CAC ratio

The #1 tool to find startup ideas/trends - https://www.ideabrowser.com

LCA helps Fortune 500s and fast-growing startups build their future - from Warner Music to Fortnite to Dropbox. We turn 'what if' into reality with AI, apps, and next-gen products https://latecheckout.agency/

Boringmarketing - Vibe Marketing for Companies: boringmarketing.com 

The Vibe Marketer - Join the Community and Learn: thevibemarketer.com

Startup Empire - a membership for builders who want to build cash-flowing businesses https://www.skool.com/startupempire/about

FIND ME ON SOCIAL

X/Twitter: https://twitter.com/gregisenberg 

Instagram: https://instagram.com/gregisenberg/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gisenberg/

Find $30k/mo local businesses you can start. Get the guide: https://startup-ideas-pod.link/AI-Boring-Business

Join me as I chat with James, the Boring Marketer, as he shares how to use AI to identify profitable "boring" local business opportunities that are overlooked by most entrepreneurs. He demonstrates a workflow that scrapes Google Maps data to validate market demand and customer pain points, then uses that information to create targeted content. James emphasizes focusing on underserved niches with high customer value in growing mid-sized cities rather than competing in saturated markets.

Timestamps:

00:00 - Intro

02:30 - AI Powered Boring Businesses are Gold Mines (Underserved Niches)

06:37 - Boring Business Finder AI Agent

10:16 - Example of the Output

11:04 - How start a Boring Business

14:51 - The Market Opportunity

16:59 - Using Hostinger for Self Hosting AI Workflow

19:39 - Unique Boring Business Opportunities

22:13 - Creating AI-generated newsletters from Google Maps data

Brought to you by:

Hostinger - Self Host your AI Workflows https://www.hostinger.com/sip10 (coupon code: SIP10).

Key Points:

• Using AI to identify underserved, high-value local business niches in tier 2/3 cities
• Leveraging Google Maps data to validate market opportunities through review volume, velocity, and sentiment
• Creating niche-focused local media assets (newsletters, directories) to generate leads for service providers
• Setting up cost-effective AI workflows using Hostinger instead of more expensive hosting options

The #1 tool to find startup ideas/trends - https://www.ideabrowser.com

LCA helps Fortune 500s and fast-growing startups build their future - from Warner Music to Fortnite to Dropbox. We turn 'what if' into reality with AI, apps, and next-gen products https://latecheckout.agency/

Boringmarketing - Vibe Marketing for Companies: boringmarketing.com 

The Vibe Marketer - Join the Community and Learn: thevibemarketer.com

Startup Empire - a membership for builders who want to build cash-flowing businesses https://www.skool.com/startupempire/about

FIND ME ON SOCIAL

X/Twitter: https://twitter.com/gregisenberg 

Instagram: https://instagram.com/gregisenberg/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gisenberg/

FIND JAMES ON SOCIAL

X/Twitter: https://x.com/boringmarketer 

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jadickerson/

Join me as I chat with Cody Schneider where we dive deep into how brands can leverage short-form content creators instead of traditional influencers to achieve better marketing ROI. He breaks down the economics of creator partnerships ($900/month for daily content across platforms vs. $2,000 for a single influencer post) and demonstrates how the for-you-page algorithm allows creators with zero followers to potentially reach massive audiences. The strategy works particularly well for mobile apps, e-commerce products, and services with straightforward value propositions.

Timestamps:

00:00 Intro

01:26 - Why Short-Form Marketing?

02:55 - Creator vs. Influencer Marketing Explained

04:41 - Micro-Creator Strategy Overview

11:43 - Case study of Focus Tree app using creator marketing

16:04 - How to Find and Work with Creators

19:49 - The Drawbacks of this Strategy

20:27 - Tools for Managing and Tracking Campaign Performance

22:56 - Final Thoughts and Conclusions

Key Points:

• Creator marketing is more cost-effective than traditional influencer marketing, especially for mobile apps and B2C products

• For-you-page algorithms have changed how content reaches audiences, making follower count less important than content quality

• Working with multiple creators (5-10) creates a compound learning effect where successful formats can be shared across the team

• This strategy works best for products with simple value propositions that can be purchased impulsively on mobile devices

The #1 tool to find startup ideas/trends - https://www.ideabrowser.com

LCA helps Fortune 500s and fast-growing startups build their future - from Warner Music to Fortnite to Dropbox. We turn 'what if' into reality with AI, apps, and next-gen products https://latecheckout.agency/

Boringmarketing - Vibe Marketing for Companies: boringmarketing.com 

The Vibe Marketer - Join the Community and Learn: thevibemarketer.com

Startup Empire - a membership for builders who want to build cash-flowing businesses https://www.skool.com/startupempire/about

FIND ME ON SOCIAL

X/Twitter: https://twitter.com/gregisenberg 

Instagram: https://instagram.com/gregisenberg/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gisenberg/

FIND CODY ON SOCIAL Cody’s startup: https://www.graphed.com 

X/Twitter: https://x.com/codyschneiderxx 

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@codyschneiderx

Join me as I chat with Cody Schneider about the power of using YouTube Creators for influencer marketing. Cody explains a step-by-step playbook for acquiring customers through YouTube creator partnerships. The strategy involves reaching out to 100+ creators in your niche, offering a three-video package plus affiliate commission, identifying which creators drive the most conversions, then putting top performers on monthly retainers. This creates a scalable system where you eventually have dozens of creators regularly making content about your product, with trackable ROI through affiliate links.

Timestamps:

00:00 - Intro

01:03 - Why partner with Youtube Creators

04:38 - How to find and contact YouTube creators

08:11 - Crafting the email and follow-up strategy

09:26 - Overview of the Strategy

14:42 - The value of underpriced attention

19:12 - The numbers and scaling the process

22:06 - Biggest Bottleneck

22:50 - Automating the process

24:47 - Why start now

Key Points:

• YouTube creators + affiliate marketing is an effective strategy for getting initial customers, especially for SMB products with one killer feature

• The strategy works by reaching out to creators, having them make videos about your product, and giving them affiliate commissions

• This is a marketing arbitrage opportunity because many smaller creators (10k-50k subscribers) don't know how to properly price themselves

• The goal is to identify underpriced creators, test them, then put the best performers on retainer to create monthly content

The #1 tool to find startup ideas/trends - https://www.ideabrowser.com

LCA helps Fortune 500s and fast-growing startups build their future - from Warner Music to Fortnite to Dropbox. We turn 'what if' into reality with AI, apps, and next-gen products https://latecheckout.agency/

Boringmarketing - Vibe Marketing for Companies: boringmarketing.com 
The Vibe Marketer - Join the Community and Learn: thevibemarketer.com

Startup Empire - a membership for builders who want to build cash-flowing businesses https://www.skool.com/startupempire/about

FIND ME ON SOCIAL

X/Twitter: https://twitter.com/gregisenberg 

Instagram: https://instagram.com/gregisenberg/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gisenberg/

FIND CODY ON SOCIAL

Cody’s startup: https://www.graphed.com 

X/Twitter: https://x.com/codyschneiderxx 

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@codyschneiderx

Join me as I chat with Cody Schneider about AI Search. Cody explains that while AI search (GEO) is generating buzz, it currently represents a small portion of overall search volume compared to traditional search engines. The value lies in highly qualified leads, with conversion rates of 10-40% from AI search traffic. To optimize for AI search, businesses need to identify which URLs are being referenced by AI for relevant queries and work to get their brand mentioned on those pages.

Timestamps:

00:00 - Intro

00:51 - What is GEO/AI search?

02:18 - Who GEO is most effective for?

08:16 - How AI search actually functions

12:31 - Tools and strategies for optimizing for AI search

16:45 - Why are people obsessed with GEO

19:56 - Discussion of available tracking tools

22:41 - Final Thoughts on AI Search and GEO

Key Points:

• GEO (AI Search) refers to search queries through AI platforms like Perplexity, ChatGPT, and Gemini

• AI search works by expanding user queries into multiple derivative searches, then scraping top Google results

• Most effective for businesses with long purchasing decision timelines (SaaS, local service businesses)

• Success requires getting your brand mentioned on multiple high-ranking pages that AI references

The #1 tool to find startup ideas/trends - https://www.ideabrowser.com

LCA helps Fortune 500s and fast-growing startups build their future - from Warner Music to Fortnite to Dropbox. We turn 'what if' into reality with AI, apps, and next-gen products https://latecheckout.agency/

Boringmarketing - Vibe Marketing for Companies: boringmarketing.com 

The Vibe Marketer - Join the Community and Learn: thevibemarketer.com

Startup Empire - a membership for builders who want to build cash-flowing businesses https://www.skool.com/startupempire/about

FIND ME ON SOCIAL

X/Twitter: https://twitter.com/gregisenberg 

Instagram: https://instagram.com/gregisenberg/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gisenberg/

FIND CODY ON SOCIAL

Cody’s startup: https://www.graphed.com 

X/Twitter: https://x.com/codyschneiderxx 

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@codyschneiderx

Join me as I chat with Jack Friks, founder of PostBridge and marketer Gabe Fletcher about how to address PostBridge's 20% churn rate. Gabe provides a strategic framework for reducing churn, including creating a community around the product, embedding Jack's personality into the tool, collecting better user data, and developing a unique product metric. The conversation explores how positioning, pricing, and user experience can be optimized to increase retention.

Timestamps:

00:00 - Introduction and purpose of the discussion

02:47 - PostBridge Overview

04:17 - Old Way vs New Way

11:15 - PostBridge Positioning

16:17 - Getting More User Data

19:05 - Email Marketing

22:32 - Onboarding Flow

24:57 - Indie Founder Trend

32:32 - Clear Positioning/Gamifying

39:34 - Importance of YouTube

47:39 -Creating A Unique Product Metric

54:23 - Market expansion strategies

01:02:08 - Data and Mission Drift

01:05:42 - The Team Around Jack

01:07:14 - World Building Explained

Key Points:

• Jack Friks' product PostBridge is making $20,000 MRR but facing significant churn issues
• Gabe Fletcher provides a comprehensive analysis of how to reduce churn through multiple strategies
• The importance of creating a unique product identity and embedding the founder's personality into the product
• Strategies for data collection, user engagement, and expanding beyond a single platform

The #1 tool to find startup ideas/trends - https://www.ideabrowser.com

LCA helps Fortune 500s and fast-growing startups build their future - from Warner Music to Fortnite to Dropbox. We turn 'what if' into reality with AI, apps, and next-gen products https://latecheckout.agency/

Boringmarketing - Vibe Marketing for Companies: boringmarketing.com The Vibe Marketer - Join the Community and Learn: thevibemarketer.com

Startup Empire - a membership for builders who want to build cash-flowing businesses https://www.skool.com/startupempire/about

FIND ME ON SOCIAL

X/Twitter: https://twitter.com/gregisenberg 
Instagram: https://instagram.com/gregisenberg/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gisenberg/

FIND JACK ON SOCIAL:

PostBridge: https://www.post-bridge.com

X/Twitter: https://x.com/jackfriks

FIND GABE ON SOCIAL:

X/Twitter: https://x.com/makershelpdesk

Join me as I chat with Rowan Cheung about how he uses practical AI workflows that help his small team at The Rundown operate like a much larger organization. He demonstrates how they use AI for content creation (including AI avatars and writing assistance), business operations (meeting scheduling and email management), and team efficiency (onboarding and research). Each workflow includes specific tools, prompts, and implementation strategies that listeners can adopt for their own businesses.

Timestamps:

00:00 - Intro

02:53 - 1) AI avatars for content creation

13:56 -2) AI Tweet Generator

19:27 - 3) AI Newsletter Editor

22:53 - 4) Lindy AI Agent Personal Assistant

30:01 - 5) Perplexity AI Tutor

34:01 - 6) New Hire Onboarding GPT

37:32 - 7) Email Manager/Sponsorship Finder AI Agent

Key Points

• Rowan uses AI avatars (HeyGen + 11Labs) to create short-form video content, showing only the avatar briefly while using B-roll for most of the video

• Voice dictation combined with Claude AI trained on personal writing style creates Twitter/social media content that's "90% ready"

• Lindy AI serves as a meeting scheduling agent that works 24/7 without requiring Calendly links

• Perplexity Comment functions as an AI tutor for YouTube videos, allowing users to ask questions about video content

• Custom GPT for new hire onboarding eliminates repetitive questions by containing company SOPs, policies, and team information

The #1 tool to find startup ideas/trends - https://www.ideabrowser.com

LCA helps Fortune 500s and fast-growing startups build their future - from Warner Music to Fortnite to Dropbox. We turn 'what if' into reality with AI, apps, and next-gen products https://latecheckout.agency/

Boringmarketing - Vibe Marketing for Companies: boringmarketing.com 

The Vibe Marketer - Join the Community and Learn: thevibemarketer.com

Startup Empire - a membership for builders who want to build cash-flowing businesses https://www.skool.com/startupempire/about

FIND ME ON SOCIAL

X/Twitter: https://twitter.com/gregisenberg 

Instagram: https://instagram.com/gregisenberg/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gisenberg/

FIND ROWAN ON SOCIAL

The Rundown: https://www.therundown.ai

X/Twitter: https://x.com/rowancheung

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rowancheung/

Join me as I chat with Ben Benkhin, Creator of WOMBO, about how he built mobile apps that achieved over 250 million downloads by identifying emerging AI technologies and making them accessible through simple, user-friendly interfaces. His first app, Wombo, allowed users to animate selfies to sing popular songs, while Dream was an early art generator that predated tools like Midjourney. Ben emphasizes the importance of studying viral content formats and creating apps that help users easily produce shareable content.

Timestamps:

0:00 - Intro

02:00 - The "Copy What Works" Strategy

05:15 - Competition is GOOD

07:13 - WOMBO Demo

08:15 - Engineering for Virality

11:53 - Steps to creating viral mobile app

15:20 - WOMBO Story Continued

21:26 - Monetization strategy

23:57 - Optimization and Evolution of Wombo

29:22 - Advice for building an AI Mobile Apps

30:07 - Viral Content Creation and Studying Trends

Key Points:

• Ben created viral AI apps including Wombo and Dream by identifying open-source AI models and making them accessible through simple mobile interfaces

• His strategy involves studying what's already working in the market and putting his own spin on it ("mimesis")

• The most successful apps have a viral content creation loop where users create shareable content that drives new user acquisition

• Monetization came through subscriptions and ads, with only 2% of users paying while the other 98% drive virality

The #1 tool to find startup ideas/trends - https://www.ideabrowser.com

LCA helps Fortune 500s and fast-growing startups build their future - from Warner Music to Fortnite to Dropbox. We turn 'what if' into reality with AI, apps, and next-gen products https://latecheckout.agency/

Boringmarketing - Vibe Marketing for Companies: boringmarketing.com 

The Vibe Marketer - Join the Community and Learn: thevibemarketer.com

Startup Empire - a membership for builders who want to build cash-flowing businesses https://www.skool.com/startupempire/about

FIND ME ON SOCIAL

X/Twitter: https://twitter.com/gregisenberg 

Instagram: https://instagram.com/gregisenberg/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gisenberg/

FIND BEN ON SOCIAL

X/Twitter: https://x.com/benzion_b

W AI: https://w.ai

WOMBO: https://wombo.com/m/home

Join me as I chat with Lee Robinson, VP of Developer Experience at Cursor, as he shares practical tips for maximizing productivity with Cursor's AI coding tools. He demonstrates how to structure prompts, create custom commands, and leverage agents for everything from bug fixes to code reviews. The conversation highlights how AI tools are making software development more accessible while enabling developers to build higher quality products with less effort.

Timestamps:

00:00 - Intro
01:49 - Using AI Agents in Cursor
08:21 - Custom Rules within Cursor
11:49 - BugBot and code review automation
17:19 - CLI and headless options for Cursor agents
19:29 - Tips for getting the most out of Cursor
21:09 - Examples of innovative software built with Cursor

Get Your Complete Financial OS at https://dub.sh/brex-sip

Key Points:

• Lee demonstrates how to effectively use Cursor's AI agents for discrete coding tasks

• Setting up proper linting, formatting, and testing helps agents self-correct their outputs

• Custom commands and rules can be created to enhance code reviews and writing quality

• Cursor offers CLI and headless options for running agents in automation workflow

The #1 tool to find startup ideas/trends - https://www.ideabrowser.com

LCA helps Fortune 500s and fast-growing startups build their future - from Warner Music to Fortnite to Dropbox. We turn 'what if' into reality with AI, apps, and next-gen products https://latecheckout.agency/

Boringmarketing - Vibe Marketing for Companies: boringmarketing.com 
The Vibe Marketer - Join the Community and Learn: thevibemarketer.com

Startup Empire - a membership for builders who want to build cash-flowing businesses https://www.skool.com/startupempire/about

FIND ME ON SOCIAL

X/Twitter: https://twitter.com/gregisenberg 

Instagram: https://instagram.com/gregisenberg/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gisenberg/

FIND LEE ON SOCIAL

X/Twitter: https://x.com/leeerob

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@leerob

Personal Website: https://leerob.com

Join me as I chat with Cody Schneider, where we go through a comprehensive marketing playbook for founders of "vibe-coded" startups, focusing on paid acquisition strategies that deliver immediate results. He walks through the exact process of setting up Google Ads campaigns with proper keyword targeting and conversion tracking, then explains how to create effective Facebook/Instagram ads using AI-generated content. The emphasis throughout is on testing multiple creative variations and optimizing for actual conversions.

Timestamps:

00:00 - Intro

03:29 - Validate Demand

07:00 - Google Ads Overview

11:43 - Finding Keywords

15:59 - Setting Up Google Ads Campaign

17:16 - Landing page best practices

19:25 - Google Tag Manager Tutorial

24:38 - Why RUN Paid Ads

28:29 - How to structure the funnel

31:04 - Meta Ads Overview

33:26 - Finding Pain Points with Perplexity

34:25 - Writing the script for the Ad

40:34 - Creating AI avatar with HeyGen and ElevenLabs

44:01 - Setting Conversion Tracking for Meta Ads

46:04 - Setting Conversion Tracking for Meta Ads

Key Points:

• Focus on transactional marketing (immediate signups) when starting out rather than long-term strategies like SEO

• Google Ads setup with phrase match keywords and conversion tracking is essential for SaaS products

• Facebook/Instagram ads work differently than search ads - they disrupt users rather than fulfill search intent

• AI avatar videos with compelling hooks perform best for SaaS marketing currently

The #1 tool to find startup ideas/trends - https://www.ideabrowser.com

LCA helps Fortune 500s and fast-growing startups build their future - from Warner Music to Fortnite to Dropbox. We turn 'what if' into reality with AI, apps, and next-gen products https://latecheckout.agency/

Boringmarketing - Vibe Marketing for Companies: boringmarketing.com 

The Vibe Marketer - Join the Community and Learn: thevibemarketer.com

Startup Empire - a membership for builders who want to build cash-flowing businesses https://www.skool.com/startupempire/about

FIND ME ON SOCIAL

X/Twitter: https://twitter.com/gregisenberg

Instagram: https://instagram.com/gregisenberg/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gisenberg/

FIND CODY ON SOCIAL

Cody’s startup: https://www.graphed.com 

X/Twitter: https://x.com/codyschneiderxx 

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@codyschneiderx