r/vibecoders_

I see the same question a lot lately: "app's built and live, but nobody's using it. What do I do?" I comment on these a fair bit, so I figured I'd put the thinking in one place. None of it is magic, but it's what I keep coming back to.

It always comes down to the product. There's no universal channel. Instagram can be great, if your audience is actually there. But if your app is for, say, a business person in a specific job function, Instagram probably isn't where you start. Are you already in a bigger community that would be a perfect target audience? Start there, and collect feedback while you're at it.

Have a strategy before you spend. The most common mistake I see is throwing money into ad spend and hoping. Even if you're running it all yourself, it's worth having someone with a marketing background help you shape the strategy first, and it usually pays for itself versus burning a budget testing blind.

When it underperforms, look at the funnel first, not the app. It's completely normal that your first setup doesn't perform like the biggest apps out there. Before you conclude "the app is bad," trace where people actually drop off: are they responding to messages, clicking the ad, spending time on the page, hitting download, getting through onboarding, starting a trial? Once you know where it breaks, you can fix the right thing. Sometimes it's the landing page, sometimes the ad creative, targeting, platform, or the paywall. Track, test, optimize. Repeat.

Free channels are real but limited. You can reach target-audience communities for free (Reddit, FB groups,..) and lean on friends, connections and family for the first push. But if you want to stand out in an already-crowded niche, relying only on free channels is usually a long shot, honestly. It's a start, not a plan.

And if you're starting to doubt the app itself; run a quick QA round, or just put it in front of a few people (ideally without telling them it's yours) and watch what they do. Cheapest signal you'll ever get.

Curious what others have found:

What was your first channel that actually worked?

Did you start marketing before or after launch, and would you do it differently now?

Good luck with your projects! 🙂

I am in the process of creating agentic workflows in consulting industry. I am looking for vibe coders to brainstorm and collaborate. Thanks!