How to Get Your First Users for a New App You Just Launched

The first users are the hardest to get and the most valuable. They show you what works and what does not. Here is a plan for finding the first ten, and then the first hundred, without ads.

Aim for ten, not a thousand

Your goal is ten people who really use the app. Ten users can teach you more than a thousand curious visitors. A visit is not a user. A user is someone who signs up, does the main thing and ideally comes back. Start by writing down ten people you know who have the problem your app solves.

Ask them personally

Send each one a short, direct message. Say what the app does, why you thought of them and what you are asking: try it for ten minutes and tell me what is confusing. Offer to help them get started. People say yes to a personal request far more often than to a public post.

Watch them use it

If you can, watch someone use the app, on a call or in person. Do not explain anything. Where they pause or ask a question, the app needs work. Take notes on the exact words they use to describe what they were trying to do. Those words belong on your page.

Fix the first-run experience

Most people leave in the first minute. Make the first screen clear. Reduce sign-up fields. Show the main result quickly. If people need a guide to start, add a short one inside the app. Test the whole path as a stranger, as described in How to Test Your App Before Launch Like a Real Customer Would.

Find the next group of people

Ask your first users who else has the same problem. Look for communities and places where those people gather, and take part before you share. Be useful and say that you built the app. Where to Post a New App So People Actually See It explains how to write the post.

Get listed where people browse

Directories and product boards help people find new apps while they browse. They are not instant, but a listing keeps working while you do other things. Include a short description, a screenshot and a link.

Ask for what you need

Ask happy users for a short quote, a review or an introduction to someone else who might like it. Many people are glad to help when asked, and a real quote on your page does more than any claim you write.

Keep in touch

Send a short update when you fix something someone asked for. That turns users into supporters. A simple email list helps here; How to Write a Welcome Email Sequence shows how to start one.

Measure the right thing

Track how many people come back in the first week, not only how many sign up. A small group that returns is a stronger base than a large group that never does. If few return, work on the app before you work on promotion.

From ten to one hundred

Repeat the loop: reach a small group, watch what happens, fix one thing, ask for an introduction. Add one new place each week. Keep a list of what each place brought.

Common mistakes

Waiting for a big launch day. Counting views as users. Not talking to users. Adding features before fixing the first minute.

Where to list it

Listing your app on PLTFORM is free, and every product gets its own page. List your app on the PLTFORM Promotion Board