Luke Downie

Electrician turned App builder

[Luke Downie @LukeDownie5]

Day 1 of building in public.

Today's numbers:

- Users: 0
- MRR: $0

This is a new app so a new adventure. My goal is 2kMRR so we will see. Main objective at the moment is pushing my app out as fast as possible but still make sure it functions and looks visually great.

[Luke Downie @LukeDownie5]

Im no expert when it comes to building apps, hopefully one day I will be but here is what I found help alot when making a new app

KEYWORDS DO ALOT

I always explain it to people like this:

"Think of every keyword as a street, and our app as a shop we want to open on one of them.

Popularity is how many people walk down the street each day. Difficulty is how many shops are already open there, all competing for those people.

Normally, the busier the street, the more shops there are. Busy streets attract lots of shops, and quiet streets don’t have many."

[Luke Downie @LukeDownie5]

Day 14 of building in public

Today’s numbers

-Users: 0
-MRR: $0

I finally have my app done (for IOS) and once it is approved I will be happy to give everyone a full deep dive into it. Here are the things that I have learned in this process

I spent 2 weeks building and testing and the app will always be bad, you NEED to publish something and fix it as it is live, take each bad review or bad comment as a opportunity to make it better because 6 months of that will make your app one of the best

MARKETING IS THE NAME OF THE GAME.

That is something that I have always struggled with especially social media content. I have always said that if I am getting ANY money, I would immediately invest into a marketing team.

Ill make a post on how I find app ideas and the method I go through but I am excited to get this launched to see what the future holds. My end goal is 30kMRR, but right now my eyes are set to getting it to 1kMMR

[Luke Downie @LukeDownie5]

Day 13 of building in public

Today’s numbers

-Users: 0
-MRR: $0

I took a day break to get what I needed to do next settled. My website is now done and tomorrow I start making App Store screenshots.

Getting the app out ASAP is still the goal however I’m not willing to push something that I know is bad just so it gets out a couple of hours sooner

[Luke Downie @LukeDownie5]

Day 12 of building in public

Today’s numbers

-Users: 0
-MRR: $0

People who usually do this, do you guys have jobs and then just quit them when your app takes off or do you have a 9-5 and then do this after?

I’m curious how you balance this and if it’s easy or hard for people.

[Luke Downie @LukeDownie5]

Day 11 of building in public

Today’s numbers

-Users: 0
-MRR: $0

Not every day is a glamorous one. Just some bug fixes and quality of life improvements to make it look better

One question, I just finished watching my TV show and need a new one.

Any recommendations?

[Luke Downie @LukeDownie5]

Day 10 of building in public

Today’s numbers

-Users: 0
-MRR: $0

The point of this is to keep it and real and to be honest with everyone about my progress

I didn’t get a lot done but I’m able to start a grind now for the rest of the night.

I also learned that I need to check on updates to the software I use because I realized that everything (including my Mac) was VERY far behind on updates

[Luke Downie @LukeDownie5]

@ChalithaWi Once I get the onboarding done then I plan on doing a showcase, but no it’s not for electrician

[Luke Downie @LukeDownie5]

Day 9 of building in public

Today’s numbers

-Users: 0
-MRR: $0

Big day ABSOLUTELY HUGE!!!!!!

I pretty much settled on my plan fully and completed a BIG part of the app. Other than bug fixes and the onboarding then I’m ready for a review

Once it’s in review then I’ll do a full overview of my entire app. I’m really excited to show you but I’m more excited to listen to stuff I should do or shouldn’t do.

The entire point of doing this on X is to share but also to get help from people.

[Luke Downie @LukeDownie5]

Day 8 of building in public

Today’s numbers

-Users: 0
-MRR: $0

Not productive at all, I spent way to much time trying to get some details that are not important AT THE MOMENT

I’m 100% for having everything look amazing however when you are launching a brand new app, the most important thing is to get the app out.

It can be the coolest and most beautiful app ever constructed but if nobody can see it then it’s worthless. I have to be better on this.

[Luke Downie @LukeDownie5]

Day 7 of building in public

Today’s numbers

-Users: 0
-MRR: $0

Trip is done and now I’m back to the grind.

Luckily I was back in time to see the Super Bowl bound PITTSBURGH STEELERS 🟡⚫️ WIN!!!!!!

[Luke Downie @LukeDownie5]

Day 6 of building in public (kind of)

Today’s numbers

-Users: 0
-MRR: $0

To be honest, I thought I would have hit my goal of 5K MMR on at least one if my apps but that hasn’t happened yet. This trip has been a good reality check of just being patient.

AS LONG AS YOU DON’T GIVE UP, IT WILL HAPPEN

[Luke Downie @LukeDownie5]

Day 5 of building in public (kind of)

Today’s numbers

-Users: 0
-MRR: $0

Hear me out, we all just stoping making apps and go outside???

[Luke Downie @LukeDownie5]

Day 4 of building in public

Today’s numbers

-Users: 0
-MRR: $0

Even though I just stated documenting the process, I’ve still been working on it for a while. Taking a 3 day camping trip break will hopefully bring in new ideas that can help.

[Luke Downie @LukeDownie5]

Day 3 of building in public.
Today's numbers:
- Users: 0
- MRR: $0

I could give a timeline of 1 week worth of work then this is a fully functioning app ready for the app store. .

[Luke Downie @LukeDownie5]

Day 2 of building in public.
Today's numbers:
- Users: 0
- MRR: $0

In the building phase and trying to get it out as fast as possible. Under my experience, having a "Early access / signup page" never worked out for me. My most success came from launching a app and UGC Ads.

If it worked for anyone else let me know and give me advice, ill take and try anything

[Luke Downie @LukeDownie5]

@CODMW4Informer @CODMW4Store Code please

[Adam Lyttle @adamlyttleapps]

Now you can do free app SEO analysis on 11,673 apps and 151,001 keywords

* App Keyword Rank Checker
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Check it out here:
https://t.co/RR0AY15Gpy

And you can dive deeper by downloading Everank and linking your DataForSEO api key

[Leo Mercer @leo_mercerr]

Build in public – Day 19

0 users
0 paying users
$0 MRR
1,142 followers on X (+34 today 🥳)

No more breaks. I’m back at 100%.

A lot of people under my last post said it was weird that my products are still at $0.

But this is exactly the problem.

X is full of posts about startups making $10K in a month, and real builders start thinking they’ve failed after 2 weeks with no revenue.

I’ll keep posting the real numbers even on Day 365 even if they’re still $0.

We haven’t even launched yet.

Be patient. Be kind. Success doesn’t happen on Day 2.

Work and consistency. That’s it.

Building AI, SaaS, or cool tech? Let’s #connect and keep each other motivated.

[Luke Downie @LukeDownie5]

I built my first app, and people actually pay for it.

But I made a few mistakes:

1. I built it before checking whether anyone was searching for it. Turns out, barely anyone was.

2. I spent too long getting it onto the App Store.

3. It looked obviously vibe-coded. It worked, but the design needed more thought.

I’m proud of it, especially for a first app. But I’m ready to take what I learned and build something new.

Officially day 1: finding the next app idea.

What’s an app you wish existed—or one you use that needs a better alternative?