March 2025 - Shipped 🚀
End to end product design
Development
Distribution
3 Months
Growth design
AI tools
Distribution
What I did
I designed, built and distributed an iOS app from scratch completely solo that solved a real problem that I faced in my everyday life.
In less than a year, Binder grew to over 2,000 active users and $1,500 in monthly recurring revenue - entirely through organic channels and intentional design decisions
This is the story of how thoughtful product design, not marketing spend, powered that growth.
Spreadsheets too clunky for casual use
Marketplaces too complex for personal collections
Collectors needed a fast, intuitive way to scan, track, and share their cards — without friction or noise. That gap became the opportunity.
What makes a good product for collectors?
The guiding principles were simple:
Zero Friction: Easily scan a card within the first 10 seconds
Visual clarity: data should feel beautiful, not overwhelming
Built-in distribution: Every feature should be added with growth in mind
The reason I started this project was to push my skills further and learn about growth and distribution. This meant that growth was never an afterthought but was designed and baked into every interaction and feature.
Intentional onboarding
Onboarding was one of the areas I chose to over-invest in. It’s the user’s first impression, and I wanted it to feel thoughtful and personal; like Binder understood the type of collector they were before they even used it. The flow asks about their favourite sports, how long they’ve been collecting, and what kind of cards they focus on. The goal here was to get users to put some skin in the game and in turn, feel a connection with the product before even using it.
By the time they finish onboarding, they’ve already built a small profile that reflects who they are as a collector. That sense of input gives them a personal connection to the product and makes Binder feel tailored from the very beginning. Instead of dropping users straight into a blank screen, they arrive with context and the app already feels like it fits them.
The share loop
Each scanned card could be instantly turned into a shareable image optimized for TikTok, Instagram, and Discord - complete with player name, year, and set details.
This created an organic distribution loop: users shared their collections → followers asked “what app is that?” → new downloads followed.
Card collectors love to brag and show off their collection, the idea was that if Binder could be part of that process, then growth would follow.
Clean UI built for credibility.
By nature, collectors trust polish. They value good, clean design and I used this to my advantage. Other offerings in the market were clunky, felt outdated and didn't scratch the itch that collectors had for something simple and modern.
Every visual choice supported shareability - layouts framed cards beautifully, typography made data legible on small screens, and motion feedback made scanning feel premium.
Monetisation strategy
Monetisation was treated as a design challenge, not a financial one. From the beginning I wanted to offer so much value and with low running costs, give that value for as little as possible. I wanted users to get so much value from the app that paying for it felt like stealing. This was approached by using a free first approach and adding purchase options to power users
The goal: earn revenue without introducing friction that slowed growth.
Binder adopted a free-core, premium-upgrade model:
Free users get full functionality but no stats on their collection.
Subscribers unlock detailed analytics about their collection plus some design upgrades like custom app icons.
Every paywall moment was deliberately positive and contextual:
This timing turned frustration into motivation, resulting in strong conversion rates without hurting retention.
The pricing design aligned with Binder’s growth loop:
Free users fuel distribution through sharing.
Power users fund sustainability through upgrades.
Both experiences feel generous, not gated.
*Pricing not accurate
Organic marketing
Binder’s growth came mostly from social content. Instead of relying on paid ads, we focused on building genuine interest through Instagram and TikTok. The approach mixed broad, sports-related content that appealed to collectors in general with more product-focused videos that showed off Binder in use. This balance helped the brand feel native to the hobby rather than like a startup trying to sell an app.
The content performed well - averaging around 250,000 weekly views across platforms - and became the engine behind exponential user growth. Each viral clip acted as a lightweight demo, showing the product in action and leading directly to downloads. Binder’s visual design played a big role here too; it photographed well, felt credible, and naturally stood out in a fast-scrolling feed.
Designing binder to be sticky
Growth was only half the goal - the real challenge was keeping collectors engaged after their first upload. Binder was designed to be sticky in a natural way. The more cards users added, the more value they built into the platform. Each scan deepened the sense of ownership and made it harder to leave. The collection itself became the reason to stay.
To support that habit, Binder surfaced meaningful updates over time. Weekly notifications highlighted changes to a user’s collection - new additions, completed sets, or movement in stats. The Stats page amplified that feeling. Watching numbers climb gave users the same dopamine hit they’d get from sorting cards in real life, creating a positive loop between collecting and using the app.
Real world, in app content
We also kept Binder relevant by updating in-app content alongside real-world card releases. As new sets dropped, checklists and databases were refreshed so collectors could use Binder as their source of truth. That sense of timeliness made it feel like a living tool that grew with the hobby, not just an app that stored cards.
The result was a product that didn’t rely on daily streaks or artificial engagement - it earned retention through genuine value, habit, and trust; ultimately, becoming a core tool in a card collectors workflow.
The results
Binder has a low churn rate when compared to other consumer apps sitting at approx. 2.4%. The median churn rate for apps in a similar category is closer to 5-9%. Ultimately, the goal is to lower this as aggressively as possible but the good foundations come from deliberate decision making in the pricing and feature offerings. I want my users to feel like they're stealing by using binder and this is reflected by the data.
What Worked:
Binder was a reminder that good design doesn’t stop at usability, it drives distribution, retention, and revenue when it’s done with intention. Every part of the experience, from the first screen to the way users share cards, can act as a growth lever if it’s built around genuine value.
I’d spend more time on data visibility and analytics early on; understanding user behaviour in more depth would have helped prioritise features faster and identify drop-off points more precisely. I’d also introduce a stronger feedback loop sooner, like in-app prompts or lightweight surveys, to capture collector insights while they’re still fresh.
I also should've backed myself earlier; initially, I moved slowly out of fear but as I got positive feedback, the engine started turning.
Design is distribution. When something looks and feels great, people want to show it off - and that’s how new users find you.
Friction is expensive. The fewer steps between curiosity and reward, the faster trust builds.
Generosity scales. Giving away more value than expected built credibility, which made monetisation easier later.
Timing matters. Growth came from consistency - shipping updates, posting content, and showing up for the community over time.
Thanks for reading!
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