Founder Playbook · Starter Story
8 tactics from Lots
I Flipped 4 Apps and Made $500,000
Watch the full episode“step one is spotting trends in the app store...go to the app store and be able to see okay who is currently number one...are there other apps also let's say in the top 20 who are doing exactly the same thing but maybe for slightly different niches Then I go to sensor tower to be able to see okay what's actually the revenue numbers...if I see all of them are doing you know over 100k MR or over 500k MR then I know okay cool there's something here”
Validate Niche Apps With App Store Top-20 Plus Sensor Tower Revenue Proof
Lots validates ideas by reverse-engineering the App Store top charts: find the number-one app in a category, scan the top 20 for clones serving adjacent niches, then cross-check Sensor Tower revenue to confirm multiple competitors are clearing 100K+ MRR. Only then does he start hunting for an underserved niche to port the proven mechanic into.
“I now have an email list of 1.2 million Christians...Meta has this beautiful thing called lookalike audiences Makes it so much easier for me to get now a low cost per install...You're just going to create a new app and just put it into the same funnel that you have And then you can also cross-ell within your apps”
Compound A Niche Email List So Every Launch Gets Cheap Meta Installs
Lots only builds in one niche (Christian apps) so every launch compounds the same audience asset. A 1.2M email list feeds Meta lookalike audiences for cheap installs, his other apps cross-promote each new launch for free, and audience-building stops being a one-off cost — it becomes a moat across flips.
“make the app a single player...make your app single player something that someone could do on their own without having to invite anyone else in to get that initial value Yes you can do it afterwards as an added extra later on but it just makes things too complicated”
Build Single-Player Apps So Users Reach Value Without Inviting Anyone
Lots refuses to ship apps that need a second user to deliver value. Multi-player mechanics force you to acquire two cohorts before anyone activates, doubling marketing complexity and stalling first-use value. Social layers come later as a bonus, never as the gate to the first 'aha' moment.
“no one on this earth shares apps right no one's going to randomly be like 'Hey download this app.' ...what they tend to do is actually share an asset within the app...people would you know make a song about their friend cussing their friend Their friend listens to it...big green button that said create your own song”
Make The Shared Asset The Wedge And Hide The Install Behind A Web View
For Magic Music, users shared songs that opened in a web view recipients could play instantly — no install required. A prominent 'create your own song' CTA then converted listeners into downloaders. The shared artifact is the wedge; the install is the upsell. Nobody recommends apps, but everyone shares the thing the app made.
“I have a very specific route that I go down and it's normally UGC first So I have multiple UGC accounts and I like to create content that is kind of rage baiting where it's kind of like you show something and people have to maybe scroll back or watch it again...all Tik Tok sees is that oh that's engagement let's boost that...Once I have the right hook then I then launch it on meta ads...for price screen we were getting between 30 to 50 cents cost per install in the US market”
Mine TikTok Rage-Bait Hooks For Free Then Port Winners To Meta For 30-50c Installs
Lots's day-one playbook runs multiple TikTok UGC accounts producing rage-bait content that forces rewatches and comment arguments — TikTok's algorithm reads the engagement and amplifies for free. Only the winning hook graduates to paid Meta ads, where Pray Screen hit $0.30–$0.50 US cost-per-install. Free organic testing converts into cheap, proven paid scale.
“Prey Screen had a 60% day 30 retention which is kind of like unheard of...we literally blocked your apps So you kind of had to use us for you to unlock your apps Uh but also number two is something religious So there's also another pull factor”
Stack A Hard Utility Lock With An Identity Pull For 60 Percent Day-30 Retention
Pray Screen stacks two retention forces: a hard utility lock (you literally cannot open Instagram until you pray) plus an identity hook (faith). The combo delivered ~60% day-30 retention, far above the 5-10% consumer-app norm. Pair a functional dependency with an emotional or values-based pull and the curve flattens.
“even when I'm actually selling my app I don't like to sell to the highest bidder I normally like to sell to the third highest bidder and tell them that they have two other bids on top of them but if they're able to close in like 3 to 4 days I'll choose them”
Sell To The Third-Highest Bidder Who Can Wire Cash In Three To Four Days
Lots picks the third-highest bidder and frames it as a chance to leapfrog two higher offers if they wire cash within 3-4 days. Highest bids attract the longest, flakiest due-diligence cycles, and time kills deals. Certainty and speed of close beat headline price every time when you flip apps for cash.
“for me before I kind of start working on anything I always tell myself is this going to be my legacy or is this cash flow and that then dictates all further decisions going down the line...I would rather you know build something and then in the 6 to 12 months um exit it for like a cool 250k”
Decide Upfront Whether A Project Is Legacy Or Cash Flow Before Writing Code
Lots forces a binary call at idea stage: legacy or cash flow. The label dictates scope, ops complexity, and how cleanly the codebase and finances stay flip-ready. Without the upfront label, founders accidentally over-engineer their cash-flow apps and destroy their own optionality to sell.