My 1st app, 100,000 downloads within first 3 months.0 money spent on advertising

Hi,I would love to share my story if i get a few comments asking about it 
As it is lengthy I don't know if i should write it or not.Without knowing if there is demand for it.
And by the way,my app now comes under top 20 results when you search for a music player.

Edit:
Please note I am the only person responsible for designing + developing + marketing.

I wrote this story so that my friend can sell it off to get a job and he did get it 

So here is the story:



It was my first app and since I was just a student ,that means I didn't had any money to advertise.
However I managed 150$.

1. The selling point for my app was the UI/UX. And for me the presentation was everything. I knew I was short on budget,and I wanted to convert every click into a download (i mean there is a high probability that if a person clicks on the link,he may not download it because of poor screenshots)

So good,professional looking screenshots were important.So for that I needed a photoshop professional
(although I designed the app myself,I wasn't very good at photoshop) so I hired a guy from freelancing websites.
I paid the guy 50$ for 5 screenshots

good icon

I then hired a guy for the video.
Now if you don't know how most of the videos are made,you may end up paying 150-400$
there are websites from where you can buy templates for virtually everything.
So we purchased a 25$ template,hired a guy for 40$ to do the changes to it.
So the whole video was done for 65$


2 I got fake facebook likes(40,000 likes for 40$ people are real but they don't come to know when they liked the page,there are scripts for fake facebook likes) as we thought it can be used as an audience,but turns out it was a waste,as facebook has changed it algorithms,and a post's visibility only increases if it gets enough momentum(i.e comments and likes).And it is quite obvious that no one would be interested in a post from a page which they never liked themselves.
The post never reached 40,000 people which was our intended target.

3. I got the description done,ourselves.There are websites for SEO (or ASO ,app search optimization)like sensor tower which can be used for figuring out which keyword to use.

4. Added 1000+ friends on facebook from my college before the launch
5. I launched the app.
6. I gave credit to those people on how they were so supportive and accepted our random friend requests and then sneaked in the download link with very pretty images.People like to take credits for no reason ,just like they want to feel good and superior and want to be a part of something, without any reason,I just exploited it.
7. The early downloads and reviews were quite important
8. They reviewed and downloaded.About 200-300 of them.
9. Just after I launched it,I changed my schedule and started sleeping 9 hrs in 2 days .i.e 4.5 hrs a day,with 3 hrs of sleeping shifts.
i searched for lists of websites which review android apps.Sent them a copy pasted message and often making intentional mistakes while typing the subject like "Android 'ApP' Review",to get their attention as you are not the only one sending them emails. we tried to make it look as professional as we could.But tried to keep the message friendly.I posted them 100 each day.

10. Spamming on facebook groups.The post here doesn't have to be professional and the screenshots should not look professional,if they are 
,(these screenshots were differnt from the ones one the app page) you will give an impression that your app comes from a company and it won't appear as a personal request but like an advertisement which you don't want.I posted them 100 each day
11. Sending messages to youtubers to review it and then posting on their new videos ,asking people to try it and asking the channel owner to review it.I posted them 100 each day or maybe more.
12. Posting on reddit,forums, qoura etc.
13. reviews from fiverr.
14. backlinks.
15. update regularly.



We did this for 20 days.
The rest of the downloads were all organic(means they were due to people searching for a music player etc,rather than clicking somewhere)




13. Now the app is getting 2000+ downloads per day on average (for the last 20 days).All of them are organic.

As of now,(i.e 14th october,the app stands at 97,000 downloads

Currenlty when you search for a "music player" our app ranks at the number 20.
And it is the only app within the top 20 with a range of 50,000-100,000 range.
All other apps have atleast 1/2 million downloads.With the maximum at 500 million.


https://play.google.com/store/apps/d...sicplayer.free

What can I learn/know right now in 10 minutes that will be useful for the rest of my life?

It will take you 1 year of serious study to be in the top 60% of anything in life. 
It will take you 2 years to be in the top 50% (the learning curve slope starts to flatten)
It will take you 3 years to be in the top 30% (where you will start making money at your passion)
It will take you 4 years to be in the top 10-20% (where you will start to make real wealth)
It will take you 5+ years to be in the top 10% where you will make real wealth. I've switched careers many times. Even if you have every lifehack in the book, this is what it takes to be GREAT at something you love doing. Great enough to make a living or even wealth at it. 

- Waiter's pads. I have about 300 waiter's pads. I order them for about 10 cents a pad in bulk on restaurant supplies website. 

How come? 
   a. I like to write ideas on pads. I write down at least 10 ideas a day. The idea muscle is a muscle like any other. If it's not exercised, it atrophies. If it's exercised then within six months you're an idea machine. Try it. It's amazing what happens. Don't keep track of the ideas. Just become an idea machine. 
  b. Why a pad? A screen messes with your dopamine levels. I like the visceral experience of putting pen to pad. 
  c. Why ten ideas? Four or five ideas on any theme is easy. It's the final five or six that makes the brain sweat. This is how you exercise the idea muscle. 

- Watch standup comedy before every meeting, date, dinner, media appearance, conversation, public talk. 

  I watch Louis CK, Daniel Tosh, Anthony Jeselnik, Jim Norton, Andy Samberg, Seth Rogen, Marina Franklin, Ellen, Bo Burnham, and maybe a dozen others. 

Investment Advice: What is the best way to maximize profit using my 20K?

If you are resourceful and hard working, the very best investment you can make is to invest in yourself.

If you are under 50 and have less than $10 million in assets, you should spend less than a few hours a year on what people traditionally call “investing” in hard assets (on things like stocks, bonds, real estate, angel investing, etc.).  

Even if the more time you spend is directly correlated with getting a better return on your hard assets, your assets likely will not grow fast enough to be worth your effort.  This is especially true if your goal is build real wealth.  If you have spare cash, I would advise investing it in the safest thing possible so you don't lose it and concentrating your time on investing in yourself (so you can grow your revenues long-term).  

Growing your portfolio an extra 2-3% a year, while nice, likely does not compare with the exponential growth you can achieve by making investments in your soft assets.  The younger you are, the better an investment in yourself is because it can grow over a longer time horizon. 

Investing in your education continually to get educated and investing your time (your rarest resource) in education, training, and growth.  This can be done by reading (and yes, reading this counts) and putting yourself in situations where you learn.  You need to prioritize learning and building skills as this will significantly increase your value over time.  

You can also buy time.  Since time is the scarcest resource for most people, spending at least some of your hard-earned dollars on getting you more time will go a long way.  If you can avoid it, try not to drive to work.  Also: try to stop doing the things you absolutely hate to do.  If you invest the saved time in your career or your personal happiness, it will likely yield a better long-term return than the stock market.

And while What You Know is now more important thank Who You Know [http://www.quora.com/In-business...], who you know still has value. Investing in your network and relationships is very important.

And, of course, invest in your health and your emotional well being — so you can be around to enjoy the fruits of your investment.

What's it like to be a billionaire?

billionaires tend to be really good at understanding systems of value creation and placing themselves into those systems more effectively than anyone out there.

Billionaires tend in fact to view the world as a tangibly fungible place. They see the world and want to move the puzzle pieces entirely around. They look for the faults in the ecosystem and identify massive holes and what could be added to fully capture that value. Then they spend about 10 years maniacally attacking the gap, organizing people, recruiting and generally creating a “cult”. They create a bible so to speak of values and ideas that bundle together in such an appealing way to attract the smartest people around (aka the future millionaires).

 It’s all one big chain that supports their vision of the future and tying up the value. This is a different internal programming than most people have out there.


Well, I see billionaires having 3 types of focus

1) Inner/self: a keen sense of where you want to go, and self discipline to get there.
2) Empathy and the ability to inspire others.
3) Awareness of where the greater world is going, and what can be done to shape it.

The young millionaires I know seem to spend a lot of time working on 1 and 2, talking about emotional self discipline & company culture.

The billionaires & ultra high net worth power players have on the other hand mastered all 3, particularly the 3rd. They are the “unreasonable” ones who adapt the world to their vision. They are absolutely fearless. Perfectly willing to move mountains, change cultures, lobby regulation to achieve their vision and kick real ass..

They are outcasts from regular society and most probably will always be.

A millionaire might have more sense about her-himself and scale back to preserve wealth and “quit while they are ahead” sort of speak.

The billionaire mindset defies logic and decisions are made against all outside reason. They really don’t give a rat’s ass about the money and frankly have a clean detachment to it, therefore with that clarity of thought mixed with pursuing their passion, make most of the money.
One common theme that I see all the time in my billionaire friends and that’s the theme of failure before success. Self-made billionaires NEVER give up if they fail. They just go on and on and on until they stop failing and become a success.

Now that you know the basics of the billionaires psyche, go use those priceless tips to make a killing and never turn back.

How do I create a successful personal growth strategy?

Most really smart people right out of college grow only 10%/year.  That is WAY TOO SLOW for a 22-year-old.  If you are old like me (and presumably have a have base), 10%/year is great but at 22 one should be growing at at least 25%/year.

Most people grow way too slowly because their rate of failure is too low.

If you were trying to improve your tennis game, you should not be playing against my 13-month-old son.  You are going to cream him every time.  And while that might make you feel good temporarily, it will not improve your game.  

You grow the most when you have a 33-66% chance of failure.  To improve, you want to be in a position where success is not guaranteed. When success is difficult to attain, people push themselves much harder.   If you are playing chess, you’ll learn the most playing people within 100 points of your score (in the chess Elo ranking, a 100 point difference means a 2-to-1 advantage).  

For your job, you should find an organization that will give you projects where there is a high chance of failure.

From the perspective of a CEO, what are the most underrated skills most employees lack?

From a start-up CEO perspective, the #1 skill you should develop isownership.

But up until you have 500 employees or so, the CEO is looking for owners.  People that don't just play a role, but truly own something, that make 100% sure it comes in ahead of time and ahead of expectations -- with as little drama as possible.

This isn't the same as "taking the initiative", it's a superset of that.  It's delivering.  And it's very, very easy to do in a start-up actually.  Vs. almost impossible in a BigCo.  Just overdeliver on everything you're given to do.  See where others are falling behind, and help them.  Folks around you will naturally gravitate toward that.  You'll become a natural leader, over time.

That is the greatest gift to a start-up CEO any employee, at any level, can provide.

And one way or another, over time, your career will skyrocket.

Android (OS): How do I make passive income with Android apps?

Ankit Srivastava

Here is how I did it.

I made an app. I had a few goals, one of which was to make it one of the best apps. It was my first app. Now, there were a few things I realized. I didn't have money to advertise. So, I couldn't decide what to create? So, I decided to create something that everyone, literally everyone will download if they find it good.

There were thousands of similar apps already available, so what could I offer extra or different? The UI (looks)! So, here is the thing. I realized, I had to make something which everyone would use and that it had to look good. Then I decided that it will be a Music Player that I'll create. To make things easy, it decided had to be free. I am not a good seller and it doesn't hurt anyone's pocket to try a free app. But then how would I've earned if I distributed the app for free? Well, via ads.

There is an advantage of ads as well. As the user base increases, with each month passing, the income increases as well. If your app is good, users will use it for a long time and each and every month your income will increase. I learned to make android apps in 7 months. I also did freelancing side by side to earn some cash for videos, some screenshots, websites, etc.

Then, I finally launched my app, spammed the shit out of internet, while I slept only for 4 hrs, the rest of the time I used to go spam the world wide web! SPAM SPAM SPAM!!! I did it 20 hours a day for 20 days. I slept only when my eyes were too heavy and they couldn't stay open anymore. Then after that I did nothing.

My app gained momentum and now has 320,000 downloads within 6 months of its launch, getting 6500+ downloads these days.

And these have been my earnings:
1st month: 100$
2nd month: 200$
3rd month: 420$
4th month: 670$
5th month: 1400$
This month (December): 2200$

The app has started generating 100$ a day for me, so, I am expecting 3400$, the next month. (These earnings are not cumulative).

The key factors: presentation, video, screenshots, website; all look good.
And app? I rate it among the prettiest of all the music apps.

I expect that the app will be earning me around $5K - $10K  per month after 6-8 months.

Now, let me tell you something to inspire you:
If you go to the android store and search for a "Music Player", my app ranks above Google's own music player. And I achieved it all within 6 months. :)