The App I Built In 12 Hours Now Makes $15K/Mo
Hello! Who are you and what business did you start?
I’m Louis, and I’m the founder of AudioPen. I’m a part-time indie hacker on the internet.
During the day, I work with my family business in the offline world, and at night I build assets on the internet. As of right now, my most successful product has been AudioPen.ai – a tool that transcribes and transforms voice notes.
Currently, it makes about $15,000 each month.
What's your backstory and how did you come up with the idea?
I’ve always been a dabbler. I’ve been dabbling online for a few years, and I tried my luck at a range of experiments. I started newsletters. I built websites. I built web apps. I even built web apps for other people.
In March 2023 I was (as usual) experimenting with the latest wave of AI APIs. I built 4 tiny products within a week, and hosted them on my personal website (since I wanted to save money by not purchasing domains).
They’re still all available for you to see.
I shared each of those tools with people on Twitter. One of the tools struck a chord more than the others. That was AudioPen.
So I decided I’d build it as a standalone product.
AudioPen has been profitable since day 1. I keep my costs low because I’m a team of one. I don’t spend on ads or paid marketing. I only spend on tools that will help improve the customer experience.
Take us through the process of building the first version of your product.
I’m not a designer. I’m also not a developer. However, I like to think I have good taste (don’t we all!). And I can be quite scrappy and piece together MVPs using No Code tools without too much of an issue (if you’re curious, my preferred tool is Bubble.io).
My first design in figma
I set about designing AudioPen.ai in Figma (free to use), and after some trial and error, I began building the actual product in Bubble (costs approximately $30 per month).
The MVP took me about 12 hours to build. But I’ve spent months refining it ever since.
Describe the process of launching the business.
I built the first version of AudioPen.ai during an event that I used to organize called Half Day Build – a hackathon in which people aimed to go from idea to revenue in 12 hours.
Because of this, I was forced to build the simplest version of the product that people might pay for. And I did. And they did.
I live tweeted throughout the build. That helped me create some hype around it. I shared images of what I was building, and shared the process with folks. It helped me get my initial set of beta testers, some of which actually paid for the product!
Here’s the thread on the Half Day Build!
Since launch, what has worked to attract and retain customers?
I’m a one person team, so I like to keep things simple. My main focus has always been on the product. Since day 1, I’ve relied mainly on word of mouth to find new customers. Besides that, I also have an affiliate program, which helps incentivize word of mouth.
In order to keep existing customers engaged, I use email updates. I think they’re underutilized, especially for young products. I do my best to write regular update emails, and add a personal touch to each one.
It helps existing users become a part of the product’s journey, and also opens up a direct line of communication with them, one that is invaluable for a fledgling product.
How are you doing today and what does the future look like?
AudioPen has been profitable since day 1. I keep my costs low because I’m a team of one. I don’t spend on ads or paid marketing. I only spend on tools that will help improve the customer experience.
The biggest cost comes from the AI APIs I use, but the business wouldn’t be possible without them, so I gladly pay their bills each month.
As the product grows, I might hire a person to help me manage it, but for now I am still enjoying the process.
Through starting the business, have you learned anything particularly helpful or advantageous?
The biggest takeaway I have is that life is random, so don’t get too emotionally attached to ideas in their infancy.
The second biggest takeaway is that momentum should never be taken for granted. If you have momentum, grab it with both your hands and hold on for dear life.
What platform/tools do you use for your business?
Bubble to build. Figma to design. Loops for email.
What have been the most influential books, podcasts, or other resources?
Naval’s twitter thread about how to get rich without getting lucky comes to mind. It shaped my worldview into one where I thought of myself as a builder of assets on the internet.
Advice for other entrepreneurs who want to get started or are just starting out?
Just start, and keep throwing darts at the wall. It’s always been difficult to find ideas that stick. But it’s cheaper than ever to experiment with new ideas.
An approach that works for me is to keep trying new ideas till one works. Then, I double down on that one. Would recommend.
