Hey,

When developers think about what makes an app successful, they usually focus on features, UX, and pricing.

These factors are important, but they’re just scratching the surface.

To make a really successful app, you need triggers.

Think about a trigger like the spark plug to an engine—Triggers spark desire and pull users to your app.

The problem is that most developers get this totally wrong, which means their app fails to gain traction.

Think about it like this.

25 year old James sees an ad featuring a ripped celebrity. He now wants to get fit and gain muscle. This triggers him to download a macro tracking or fitness coach app.

60-year-old Samantha sees a photo of Barcelona in her Meta feed. This triggers her to download a language learning app to brush up on her Spanish before travelling to Europe.

If your app is linked to a daily trigger, users will be motivated to open it.

Most developers create apps without any strong daily triggers. Because of this their app is forgotten in the sea of downloads, they make no money from in-app purchases, and the project fails.

Good apps focus on UX. Addictive apps focus on triggers.

You might be thinking that all the strong triggers are already taken by other apps.

This is false.

One of Natively’s users is building a carnivore diet app.

The same daily triggers for health and fat loss still apply; it’s just targeting a specific niche.

So you’re probably wondering how to start finding triggers. You should begin by mapping all your behavior and actions.

What natural moments happen in your day that would trigger you to open an app?

Once you’ve written a list, it’s time to focus on the next factor.

If you want your app to be irresistible, then triggers are just the beginning.

What’s the point if you’re able to trigger a user to visit your app, but they don’t love the experience and feel the need for more?

This is why you need to understand variable rewards.

Variable rewards are what keep users once the trigger brings them.

Take X.

X’s feed of limitless content gives users a strong reward for doom scrolling.

You might’ve found yourself up at night scrolling through mindless posts you don’t care about.

The reason you do this is because X has tapped into the powerful and primitive urge in the human brain to hunt.

Evolutionary biologists believe early humans hunted animals by isolating slower pack members and chasing them until they got tired and couldn’t escape.

Ancient hunters could chase for hours in the sun because their brains would release a strong biochemical reward.

When you stumble upon exciting news, it hits you with dopamine because you have to scroll through a bunch of boring content to reach it.

It’s the variety of bad and exciting content that produces unpredictability and makes the experience more interesting.

Think about gambling.

Gambling is exciting because you don’t know whether your money is going down the drain or will win you millions.

You can also introduce rewards of the self, which involve completing tasks and objectives.

Adding variable rewards to your app isn’t difficult.

Duolingo’s streak counter just adds up the consecutive days you spend learning a language.

If you miss a bunch of days, it guilt-trips you with sad messages.

It’s simple yet effective, and keeps users coming back for more.

The most important thing to remember is that reward systems need to satisfy your users’ needs, while making them want to re-engage.

If you do this, you’ll build an app users can’t live without.

I’m going to be releasing a lot of new content soon that covers other essential knowledge for building apps that win investment, attract users, and build income for you.

Stay tuned.