Indie Interviews
Can you tell us more about yourself and what led you to become an indie maker
I’ve always loved tinkering with tech and coding. Even as a boy before coding was accessible to me, I was always playing with Excel on my first laptop, figuring out what all the functions did before then moving onto learning Visual Basic to make it do more. I’ve always loved creating things. I tend to fall in love with a problem when they come up in my projects and I love the process of coming away from my computer, sitting and figuring it out. I get a lot of joy from it. I’ve been lucky enough to also become a Software Engineer in my main job, which I also love. Creating things in my spare time, such as websites and apps, was just a natural next step for me.
Since deciding to focus solely on iOS app development, I’ve loved the process of creating and shipping apps. The community is also amazing. I’ve made some good friends in the #buildinpublic community along the way. I feel I am happiest when I am in my flow, working on an app that excites me.
As much as I do it for enjoyment, my ideal future would be to do this full time. To work for myself, on projects that are my own and that I love, would just be the best. I know this is a long journey that I am at the start of, but it’s a journey I am loving being on.
How did you come up with the idea? How do you generate ideas for your apps or projects, and how do you identify the problems or needs your app can address?
Ascend was born in my head a couple of years ago, I just hadn’t equated it to an app yet (because I hadn’t even considered making apps at that point in time). When the UK was in covid lockdown, as with most places, we were restricted as to where we could go and how often we could go outside to exercise. During this time, I read an article online about a man who had climbed the equivalent height of Mount Everest, all from his own home using his staircase. I thought this was amazing, but I couldn’t afford the equipment he had to track this. Fast-forward a couple of years and while doing an online indie app development course, the idea came back to me and I realised that I can develop something that would enable anyone to do this, just with an iPhone or an Apple Watch.
I’ve learned recently just to look out in my own life for any problems or slight inconveniences I face and note them down. If I can solve them with an app that would make my life easier, then I’m hoping someone else might benefit too. A bit more fun, sometimes I will also just look at two random apps on my iPhone and imagine combining them into one app and what that would be, merging the features etc.
How is your day-to-day app development workflow look like?
As I work full-time as a Software Engineer for a tech company in the UK, my time on Indie projects can sometimes be limited, but I do take days off to work on my own projects occasionally, and then the rest of my indie work is on evenings and weekends.
On those Indie days, I have to start with coffee. I can’t function without it! I will then usually check in on how my apps are performing, and take note of anything that jumps out, such as if an app is doing well in a particular country. I will then take note of any actions that I might need on the back of that, such as creating a localised version for that country. I keep a backlog of all the tasks and features for my apps so this will be added there.
I will then usually get to work on a new update for one of my apps, but just recently it’s all been about developing Ascend and getting it to the point of release. So my days recently have been working through my large feature backlog for that app to get it to the MVP stage. I aim to tick off three of my backlog items per day, as well as do a little on social media to promote and get the app idea out there a bit, like an X post or two.
I love nothing more than to end the day and get into bed knowing that I kept moving forwards with my projects, so managing a prioritised feature backlog like this and setting the goal of three complete each day allows me to feel accomplished and measure how long an app will take to get to release.
How do you launch and market your app?
I’ve recently started thinking more about marketing my apps, in particular because I want Ascend to get out there to as many people as possible. In the past, I’ve run App Store Ads but they just weren’t a feasible long term strategy as they were costing way more money than they were bringing in. I think I spent about $100 on my first campaign for an iOS app and it made me about $20, so a loss of $80. I’m sure if they are done right, they are great, but for me this wasn’t a good start to Apple Ads on the AppStore.
With Ascend, I have more of a plan that I created from researching online. This includes tasks leading up to launch, such as setting up and sharing details for a ProductHunt launch, sending out promo emails to App review sites and relevant target market blogs, such as fitness and climbing blogs, setting up an X account for the app itself and following the target market etc. On the day of go live I will be publishing a press release to various media organisations and then after the release I will be working on updates. All the while, results will be share on X so the #buildinpublic community can also benefit and try the app.
This is the first time I’ve tried this strategy, so not sure how it will go, but alongside good keywording for ASO, I’m hoping to see good results, and share them on X.
What are the future plans for your app?
I have plans to make Ascend more of a competitive app by allowing users to create private groups and invite friends to those groups. A group can then choose a shared expedition, like climbing K2 together. They can either all work together to reach the top, so everyone contributes, or it can be a competition (first to reach the top). This is a long way off yet, but I can’t wait to get this feature in. More short-term, I will be making the branding more prominent in the app and acting on any feedback from the Beta testers, such as creating different widget sizes instead of just the one currently available.
There is also a secret in Ascend that when you complete all expeditions, a final badge unlocks. When you tap on this badge, it gives you a unique code to DM me on X in exchange for a real life gift in the mail. I’m working on this gift at the moment, so that’s also coming soon.
Do you have any interesting lessons learned or tips for other indie makers?
My advice for other indie makers is to make something that you’re going to fall in love with. I think it shows to the user if you’re invested in your product and it’s not something you have just put together in 5 mins to make money. Taking the time to make it work but also to make it impressive is key for me, but just because I enjoy making it feel quality and giving people something they enjoy using and looking at.
Do it for the love and enjoyment, and it will shine through in your work.
Looking back, are there any decisions or actions you regret not taking before or during the development and launch of your apps? Is there anything you would have done differently?
I try not to have regrets generally. If something fails, I try look at it as a learning of something not to do in future. I recently deleted one of my apps from the app store because it just wasn’t getting downloaded and seen, and it didn’t provide a lot of value to those people that did download it. It was actually costing me a small amount of money because it used the ChatGPT API. I spent about two months on this app overall, which is a lot of time spent, but I learned a ton by making it. I don’t see this as a failure, it’s just one more step on the journey towards reaching my goal that I had to take. Nobody makes it first try, so this was just bringing me closer.
I have made small errors that I regret, such as not pushing my code to a repository often enough and sometimes losing days of work, but again I try learn from these things as best I can. I now push my code every day!
Are there any other products that you are particularly proud of? Could you share some details about them
I will always love my first app, just because it was my first dive into the world of iOS development. It’s a Focus Timer (Pomodoro Timer) but it also plays relaxing lofi music in the background. A fun fact is that the app features an artist called Gomez Duz on Spotify. This is also me! I make music sometimes in my spare time so thought this would be a good fusion.
I’m proud of it even though it hasn’t made a lot of money etc. It’s a symbol for me that I can do this if I keep trying.
Are there any indie makers or creators whose work you admire and follow closely?
I follow and enjoy watching so many journeys on X, but I do admire Aviars Meijers. I love watching his content on YouTube and whenever I feel like I’m losing at this iOS development game, I watch his content. He is someone who has worked in the corporate world, like me, but who has turned to iOS development and now does it full time (freelancing and from his own apps). This is the life I want to build for myself, so I would count Aivars as one of my top inspirations.
Could you recommend any specific tools or resources that you believe are helpful for other indie makers, especially those just starting out?
Yes!
- Astro - For keyword research when doing ASO on your App Stroe listing
- Aviars Meijers has a great course on his website for getting started with indie app development
- Ascend - To make sure you get your exercise in while working at home on your projects
Thanks for reading til the end. Hope you enjoy the interview as much as we did.
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