SaaS •Entrepreneurship

My App Made $120K in 24 Hours

Starter Story • • 23 min • #146
My App Made $120K in 24 Hours

Most app founders launch in silence. Umberto made $120K in 24 hours from an app that wasn't even finished. This is his exact launch playbook.

Summary

  • Ombberto
    • Founded Floa, a mobile app for yoga teachers and practitioners.
    • Studied economics, briefly worked in corporate, raised seed funding for a startup that failed, stepped away from tech, worked as a fashion photographer, then returned to startups as an advertiser and growth strategist.
    • Started PlayosB with his girlfriend during COVID as a yoga card-deck brand for mindful, screen-free practice.
    • Launched the first physical product on Kickstarter and generated more than $200K in the first month.
    • Turned the physical-product knowledge into a mobile app after seeing that the brand could evolve through technology without losing its mindful core.
  • Floa
    • Helps yoga teachers and practitioners build and practice yoga sequences.
    • Includes a sequence builder with yoga styles, poses, filters by category, chakras, and benefits.
    • Suggests poses that make sense after the selected pose.
    • Includes pose detail videos and information for teachers and practitioners.
    • Lets users personalize sequences, adjust timing, set right and left sides, and start guided practices.
  • Metrics
    • Pre-launched in May 2025 with a lifetime deal.
    • Generated more than $120K in 24 hours.
    • Launched on May 5 at 2 p.m. and generated $17K by the end of that day.
    • Got roughly 500 to 600 early customers.
    • Has about 4,000 active users across paid and free.
    • Makes about $9K to $10K per month after moving to a recurring model.
  • Lifetime deal strategy
    • Defined the long-term app vision before choosing when to monetize.
    • Chose to monetize as early as possible while building the product and revenue engine together.
    • Identified the minimum feature set needed to convince early adopters to buy a lifetime deal.
    • Planned email, landing page, videos, ad creative, lead generation, and audience warming as one launch machine.
    • Presented the app honestly in a YouTube video, showing current features and explaining future planned features.
    • Offered lifetime access with no refunds and told users they could wait for subscriptions if they wanted to try later.
    • Used early customers as committed feedback sources who helped shape later features.
  • Launch sequence
    • Ran a pre-launch for about one month and one week.
    • Started with storytelling that built interest without revealing the product.
    • Added curiosity by showing the physical product in the background and another hidden product in front.
    • Revealed the app later, explained why it existed, and linked to a video presentation.
    • Explained lifetime deal mechanics near launch, with limited quantities and limited timing.
    • Avoided showing the price before launch day so users evaluated the product around features and vision first.
  • Launch playbook
    • Validate before building by talking to five to 10 target customers without leading them toward the answer.
    • Define the minimum launchable product that creates enough value for early adopters to pay.
    • Build the content machine before promotion, including emails, graphics, videos, landing pages, and clear user education.
    • Structure pricing instead of guessing, using three tiers around $109, $199, and $349.
    • Use lower tiers as reference points that help sell the highest tier while still capturing skeptical buyers.
    • Be transparent about what exists, current limitations, and future improvements.
    • Set no refunds, limit the deal to five to seven days, and limit the number of spots to reduce procrastination.
  • View on lifetime deals
    • Does not regret the lifetime deal because early-stage founders do not yet know LTV, churn, or real demand.
    • Sees a lifetime deal as turning assumptions into cash in the bank.
    • Believes lifetime buyers are more committed than monthly subscribers and more likely to report bugs and give detailed feedback.
    • Created a Telegram group for early adopters and got significant product feedback from it.
    • Views lifetime deals as customer-funded capital without giving away equity, control, or board seats.
  • Tech stack
    • Uses Flutter for development.
    • Uses Firebase, which costs about $25 per month.
    • Uses RevenueCat for subscriptions.
    • Hosts video on Vimeo.
    • Uses OneSignal for push notifications.
  • Advice
    • Stop waiting for perfect because perfection can hide fear.
    • Put unfinished work in front of real people sooner.
    • Ship earlier, gather feedback, and learn faster in public than in private.
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