Subscription League

Episode Overview TomTom’s seasoned experts reveal the evolution of an iconic brand—from pioneering satnav devices to becoming a cutting-edge location data company powering premium mobile navigation. In this episode, Managing Director Pim Spaanderman and Head of Mobile Growth Kees Oostinjen share their insights on transforming traditional hardware into innovative app solutions like GO Navigation. T...

Episode Overview In this episode of Subscription League , we continue our conversation with David Heinemeier Hansson (DHH), co-founder of 37signals and creator of Ruby on Rails. We dive into the subscription business model , its pros and cons, and why some apps might be better off without it. DHH shares his unfiltered thoughts on pricing strategies, SaaS fatigue, and the evolution of software mone...

Episode Overview David Heinemeier Hansson (DHH) joins the Subscription League podcast to discuss his fight against App Store policies and monopolistic practices. From launching the HEY email app to addressing challenges in the subscription space, DHH shares his bold perspectives on app distribution, developer rights, and the future of platforms like iOS. He emphasizes the need for competition in t...

Episode Overview Francescu Santoni, CEO of Mojo, shares the journey behind building a leading social media tool for creating reels and stories. From overcoming early challenges in virtual reality to pivoting to Mojo’s current success, Francescu dives into key growth strategies, the role of user-generated content, and Mojo’s subscription model. This episode also explores the balance between user ac...

Timestamps [00:00:20] - Introduction to Robyn Exton and HER [00:02:10] - Robyn's Early Days and Learning to Code [00:04:55] - Early User Acquisition Strategies [00:07:50] - Competitive Landscape and Differentiation [00:11:00] - User Behavior and Market Size [00:14:30] - Current User Acquisition Channels [00:17:00] - A/B Testing and Onboarding Insights [00:19:30] - Brand Partnerships and Authe...

Episode Overview Eleanor Hughes shares insights into the successful marketing campaign at Freeletics. Discover how the introduction of the Base Streak into the Freeletics app enhanced user engagement, making it more interactive and motivational. The episode also delves into the importance of incorporating user-centric features and the impact of the enhanced onboarding process on campaign performan...

In this episode, Megan Cohen, Growth Marketing Manager at IFTTT shares her journey from immersive art marketing to tech. She talks about using AI and video content to boost engagement, and the importance of focusing on key metrics like the AARRR Pirate Metrics.  Megan delves into how IFTTT leveraged segmentation to monetize its large user base, with a surprising campaign success in Brazil. She als...

Felix takes us through his creation of Fastlane, which began as a college project to solve his own frustrations with app deployment and grew into a major tool used by developers worldwide, eventually being acquired by Twitter and Google. He also introduces us to ContextSDK, his latest venture designed to make apps smarter by understanding the user's context. Felix offers a peek behind the cur...

All about scaling an app by leveraging both web and app subscriptions! In this exciting episode, we chat with Yeva Koldovska, the product manager at Headway, the world's most downloaded book summary app with over 18 million downloads.  Yeva shares valuable insights into Headway's journey and its strategic decision to offer web and in-app subscriptions.  Listen to the episode to uncover t...

In this episode, we sit down with Thomas Clavelloux, Chief Data Officer at Molotov TV, a groundbreaking French TV streaming platform. Thomas shares captivating insights into how Molotov TV is redefining the way we consume television in the digital age. From seamless cross-device viewing to innovative features, Molotov TV brings the charm of traditional TV-watching to the modern world. Join us as w...

These are examples of successful apps in Kovalee’s portfolio.  Bend , the #1 stretching app worldwide: 9x User LTV, 150x MRR  PepTalk , a 5-star motivational companion: 22x MRR, 5x User LTV, 10x active subscriptions WeBurn , a workout app for women: 4x User LTV, 10x monthly recurring profits  PLAW , a phone customization app: 5x User LTC, 20x monthly The secret sauce for such remarkable growth? In...

Who could have imagined that walking could become a source of income?  It may sound unbelievable, but Sweatcoin makes it possible. Back in 2015, Sweatcoin burst onto the scene with an impressive $6.3 million in funding. Since then, it has experienced exponential growth, boasting an astounding user base of over 120 million people worldwide. So, how does Sweatcoin work? The app, available for free,...

In this podcast episode with Michael Ribero, Chief Subscriptions Officer at The Washington Post, we talk about challenges and opportunities that arise when transitioning from print to digital. Michael shares his experience on how the new brand is succeeding through some time-sensitive challenges such as the COVID-19 pandemic and privacy policy changes. Listen to the full episode to learn about The...

Education apps for children have become increasingly popular in recent years with growing competition in the market. In a recent podcast, We sat down with Gonzalo Rodriguez, CEO of Papumba, to discuss the app’s growth secrets. Papumba is a digital safe playground designed specifically for kids aged 2-7, offering a variety of educational games, books, videos, and audio stories that engage and educa...

For episode 23 of the Subscription League Podcast, we had the pleasure of discussing tips and frameworks with a behavioral science expert and the founder of a product growth agency, Applica Sviat Hnizdovskyi. Sviat shared valuable insights on how companies can improve their app subscription, LTV (customer’s lifetime value), and monetization.  Listen to learn more about his tips for optimization su...

Mimo is an app that teaches coding through a gamified learning process. The company runs experiments to enhance its product by introducing new features and improving existing ones. In the Subscription League podcast episode 22, Ekaterina Gamsriegler , Head of Growth and Marketing at Mimo, shares her experience overseeing the development of the experimentation culture in the company and other valua...

App monetization is a hot topic in nearly any industry. While creating an app can be a lucrative business, it can be difficult to stand out and generate revenue with so many apps available. In the Subscription League podcast episode 21, Steve P. Young, an app marketing expert and founder and CEO of App Masters, shared his top tips for app monetization including the followings: target 100% paywall...

With over 50 million installs and a growing number of paying subscribers, PhotoRoom is scaling quickly across multiple markets across the globe. In our conversation, Olivier shares his insights on growth strategies in gaming and utilities, the challenges of scaling across markets, and the importance of experimentation and community-building. We discuss how subscription-based utility apps like Phot...

In this episode of the Subscription League, we explore the crucial balance between maximizing revenue and preserving subscriber satisfaction. Our guest, Vahe Baghdasaryan, a seasoned Growth Marketing Manager and 5-star Growth Marketing Mentor at CoinStats, offers invaluable insights into effective pricing strategies and monetization models for subscription apps. Join us as Vahe highlights the impo...

When it comes to funding a young app venture, folks often seek out angel investors, venture capital, or equity investors. But in this episode, we sit down with Martin Macmillan, CEO of Pollen VC, to talk about a totally new way to finance an app business. It's called "revolving line of credit" funding and it's fast, flexible, and data-driven.  Tune in to hear Martin share insig...

Despite a lot of doom and gloom out there about the slowdown of VC investment and how start-ups need to brace for the impact, smart and well-disciplined investors are still looking for home runs, and funding opportunities are still available for the best subscription app companies.  In this episode with Eric Crowley, partner at GP Bullhound, we talk about Consumer Subscription Software Flywheel, t...

With his background as a software engineer and app productization expert, Sunny Dulay was inspired by his personal journey with Headspace, a meditation app, and founded an app development and management studio, Breakthrough apps.  Breakthrough is dedicated to helping fitness coaches to productize their coaching into an app. Since its birth, the company has been growing exponentially, with a one-of...

Named to TIME ‘s list of the 100 Most Influential Companies of 2022, Together Labs is a Silicon Valley-based 3D social networking company that innovates technologies empowering people worldwide to connect, create and earn in virtual worlds. Jenny Pollock, Lead Subscription Monetization Manager at Together Labs, is involved in every aspect of interlocking subscriptions and revenue optimization, dri...

Tobias Boerner, now Chief Marketing Officer & Co-founder of a Luxembourg-based app  aggregation company, Appic, has been laying a series of remarkable stepping stones in his career. The most noticeable are his achievements at LOVOO, one of the biggest dating apps in Europe which he made an exit for about $70 million, and Fastic , a five-star intermittent fasting app used by over 26M users worl...

We are steering down the barrel of recession, but consumers’ appetite for subscriptions will likely continue to develop, and an increasing number of subscription businesses will share the pleasure.  Subscriptions account for 82% of revenue regenerated on average by non-gaming apps.  In the U.S., the annual spending on top subscription apps in the Apple App Store increased by ⅓ over a year, reachin...