Answer

What does a solo founder need before they can improve retention on my app?

The prerequisites that make improve retention on my app actually work for a solo founder. This page focuses on what has to be in place first for "What does a solo founder need before they can improve retention on my app?" Below are 7 concrete answers drawn from practitioner playbooks, each citing the brick + source. This is a focused sub-question of "How do I improve retention on my app?".

Answer 1

In terms of what has to be in place first: Framework-as-Diagnostic Overlay

Greg's 7-tactic framework overlaid on Yuri's current infra: | Tactic | Greg's framework says | We have | Verdict | |---|---|---|---| | 1. MCP server as sales team | Publish to Smithery/MCPT/OpenTools for $0 CAC discovery | Zero — neither BizBuilder/KPDD nor Solacian have an MCP server | **REAL GAP** — but applicability depends on whether the product answers a queryable question; Solacian (Maze-dissolving AI) plausibly does, KPDD (PMF discovery) plausibly does | | 2. Programmatic SEO at 10K-page scale | Next.js + Firecrawl + AI content for "best X for Y" patterns | Zero pro…

Source: src/lib/bricks/sources/greg-isenberg-bootstrap-distribution.md

Answer 2

In terms of what has to be in place first: PART III — THE TIPPING POINT

**Ch. 11 — Tinder (Tipping Point).** The Tipping Point = a **repeatable strategy** to launch network after network. Tinder: 2B+ swipes/day, 1M dates/week, $1B+ revenue. Dating has naturally high churn (happy couples leave). **[SOCIAL][BIZBUILDER] The USC party tactic:** the team threw an incredible birthday party for a hyperconnected friend; to get in you had to download the Tinder app (bouncer checked) — highest one-day download spike, but what mattered was it being "**500 of the right people**" — the most social, hyperconnected people, on Tinder at the same time. **95% of…

Source: src/lib/bricks/sources/andrew-chen-cold-start-problem.md

Answer 3

In terms of what has to be in place first: PART IV — ESCAPE VELOCITY

**Ch. 17 — Dropbox.** When networked products work, they *really* work — but Escape Velocity is furiously *sustaining* growth. Dropbox: IPO 2018 (NYSE: DBX) at $10B+; **fastest SaaS to $1B ARR**; 500M+ users in 8 years; launched April 2007 with a **4-minute self-narrated demo video** → beta waitlist 5,000 → 75,000 overnight (Reddit/HN/Digg). Classic "come for the tool, stay for the network" + a referral program giving storage. **[BIZBUILDER] Growth Team:** Dropbox built a cross-functional Growth & Monetization team (controversial in a product-driven culture). **HVA vs. LVA:…

Source: src/lib/bricks/sources/andrew-chen-cold-start-problem.md

Answer 4

In terms of what has to be in place first: Quick-reference — named tactics and when they work/fail

| Tactic | Works when | Fails when | |---|---|---| | **Atomic network** | Pick the tiniest specific group at a specific time; build density | "Peanut-buttering" across a whole geography/industry | | **Solve a Hard Problem** | Product nails the hard side's unaddressed need (Tinder for women) | Hard side churns → degrades for everyone | | **Come for the Tool, Stay for the Network** | Tool + network tightly integrated (Dropbox folders) | Tool/network divergent → low conversion | | **Invite-Only** | Curated connected users invite connected users | Used purely for hype; or kills…

Source: src/lib/bricks/sources/andrew-chen-cold-start-problem.md

Answer 5

In terms of what has to be in place first: Pattern 9: The Story-Not-Product Pattern

**What it is**: What gets press, creates word-of-mouth, and drives organic adoption is not the product - it's the STORY around the product. The story must be interesting independent of the product. **Evidence**: DoNotPay ("19-year-old builds robot lawyer"), Airbnb (Obama O's cereal), Telegram (founder vs. Russian government), Hey (fight with Apple), WePay (ice block at PayPal conference), mmhmm (1.4M view demo video -> 100K waitlist) **BizBuilder implication**: Every founder needs a story before they need a landing page. The proposer should ask: "If a journalist had 1 sente…

Source: src/lib/bricks/sources/first1000-pmf-patterns-library.md

Answer 6

In terms of what has to be in place first: 5. Benchmark Reference Table

| Metric | Benchmark | Source | |--------|-----------|--------| | Hook rate (ideal) | 50% | Artemy, DDM conf | | Hook rate (acceptable) | 22-26% | Artemy, DDM conf | | Hook rate (kill threshold) | <15% | Artemy, DDM conf | | Video retention | 3.2-3.6 | Artemy, DDM conf | | Kling rework CPA improvement | ~20% | Artemy, DDM conf | | Kling rework volume needed | 20-30 variations per winner | Artemy, DDM conf | | Typical waste per missed kill signal | $3-16K per creative | Kirill, DDM conf | | Kill signal fires at | $100-$3K spend | Kirill, DDM conf | | Sasha subscription price…

Source: src/lib/bricks/sources/perf-marketing-playbook.md

Answer 7

In terms of what has to be in place first: Enrichment Priority

See `_coverage-map.md` for detailed assessment. Tier 1 (enrich first): 1. **B065 Sensor Tower Model** — THE MOAT, needs architectural spec 2. **B081 WhatsApp / Telegram Broadcast** — unlocks LATAM/MENA/India 3. **B082 Server-Side Attribution** — without this, paid media is blind 4. **B086 Event Pipeline** — foundation for data-driven stack 5. **B050 UTM Attribution DB** — minimum viable attribution 6. **B001 Case Study Pattern Matching** — core of scout function 7. **B067 Meta-Cognitive Patterns** — diagnostic framework ---

Source: _reference/bricks/README.md