Steven Cravotta is doing $40,000 in MRR (monthly recurring revenue) from his mobile app, Puff Count, without being a coder.
He's gone from a series of failed businesses to a viral app.
Busines is hard, but this man has succeeded. Let's jump into the insights & strategies that helped him succeed.
The App Idea: Solving a Personal Problem
Cravotta’s approach begins with finding a problem worth solving. Rather than following trends, he bases his ideas on issues he encounters in daily life, positioning himself as the ideal user. For Puff Count, an app aimed at helping people quit vaping, he researched similar apps on platforms like Sensor Tower and Google Trends, validating the concept before investing time and resources. Additionally, observing viral TikTok content on the topic further confirmed its potential popularity.
Design and Development Without Coding
To bring his idea to life, Cravotta developed his app’s user interface through 99designs, where designers submitted mockups based on his requirements. For technical development, he used Upwork to find a developer, specifically hiring from Eastern Europe to balance quality with cost-efficiency. Cravotta recommends starting simple and using existing templates when possible to keep initial costs low—his MVP (minimum viable product) cost under $5,000.
Marketing: TikTok as the Winning Strategy
Cravotta stresses that “95% of a mobile app's success is in the marketing.” His marketing approach centers on TikTok, where he researches successful vaping-related content and mirrors viral elements to appeal to a broad audience. Instead of overtly selling the app, his videos are entertainment-first with a subtle call-to-action at the end, a strategy that has driven tens of thousands of downloads. For paid advertising, he repurposes high-performing TikTok content, which algorithms on platforms like Facebook optimize effectively.
Monetization Strategy
Cravotta uses a “hard paywall” in Puff Count, where users commit to a free trial before accessing any features. Testing different price points and paywall styles with tools like Superwall allowed him to A/B test and identify the optimal pricing to maximize user lifetime value (LTV). This focus on data-driven monetization shifted his app’s revenue drastically upward.
Advice for Aspiring Entrepreneurs
For those considering mobile app development, Cravotta emphasizes simplicity and persistence. Starting with a straightforward MVP allows founders to collect valuable user feedback before expanding features. He also advises building a trusted team to fill skill gaps, treating them well, and iterating based on user insights. His key takeaway: even with zero coding experience, success is possible with the right team and dedication.