How Jithin is getting pre-registrations for his habit tracker app

Meet Jithin Jude.

Jithin is a 27-year-old independent app developer from Kerala, India.

His entrepreneurial journey began in 2017 during college when he published his first app. After college he worked 4 years at two startups in Bangalore and Delhi.

His current project is Habit Card, a habit tracker. Jithin is handling all aspects of the project, including the concept, design, development, and marketing.

The story told Jithin Jude

During the year I’ve developed several apps, including;

• Game Of Zeros

• Predict Gender from Photo

• Promise Box

• Personality Test with Images

Now, I’m focused on Habit Card.

What is a Habit Card?

Habit Card is a simple yet powerful tool designed to help users build healthier habits without distractions. Unlike traditional habit trackers with cluttered interfaces, Habit Card reimagines the process by showcasing each habit as a visually engaging card, making tracking effortless and enjoyable.

Why does Habit Card stand out?

I find the following to be the main selling points of Habit Card.

Focus and Simplicity

Habit Card offers a straightforward, intuitive approach to help you start and stick to the habits you care about. The design makes it easier for users to focus on one habit at a time, reducing cognitive overload.

Creator-Friendly Design

Inspired by GitHub’s heatmap design, Habit Card caters especially to creators and entrepreneurs.

Habit Health

The app prioritizes habit health. Users can track their habits at their own pace while maintaining a clear visual understanding of their progress.

Lightweight and Privacy-Focused

The app is under 4MB and gives you the option to turn off analytics.

The business model

The core offering includes a free version with basic habit tracking features. To generate revenue, the app offers a premium subscription that unlocks advanced features, such as detailed analytics such as habit health, comparisons between the last 28 days and the previous period, the ability to back up and restore habits, and the option to mark habits as achieved rather than permanently deleting them.

In the future, I will be adding more icons and colors, which will be available exclusively to premium users.

Early days of Habit Card

The Habit Card journey began in late October 2024, with a focus on building the app while embracing the #BuildInPublic approach on X. Updates on development progress were shared on @jithin_jude, celebrating each completed feature.

When Habit Card was released for open testing on Google Play, around 25 beta testers joined, many likely discovering it through the #BuildInPublic channels on X and Bluesky. Their feedback was invaluable, helping resolve issues such as notification bugs before the production release. This supportive community played a crucial role in shaping Habit Card into what it is today.

Pre-Registration

I began pre-registration for Habit Card on December 3, 2024. My announcement on X looks like this:

The app is now available for pre-registration on Google Play, with 152 users already signed up. The official launch is scheduled for January 1, 2025.

Pre-registered users will receive lifetime access to premium features, including habit health, monthly comparison charts, habit archiving, backup and restore functionality, and VIP support.

Marketing Habit Card

My main struggle in marketing the product has been scaling it with zero marketing budget. Without the ability to invest in ads or paid promotions, I rely heavily on organic growth strategies like the following.

Habit tip of the day

I’m sharing a “Habit tip of the day” daily on X and Bluesky - example below.

Polls

I’m conducting habit-related polls on X - example below.

Development updates

I’m sharing development updates for the #BuildInPublic community - example below.

Habit quote

I’m sharing a daily habit quote on X and Bluesky - example below.

Submitting the app

I’ve been submitting the app to launch sites, blogs, and subreddits to be featured and get backlinks.

One example is a post I submitted to the subreddit r/getdisciplined. The post recieved 34 upvotes, 21k views, and 66 shares, resulting in 32 additional pre-registrations for Habit Card that day.

Additionally Habit Card has been featured on AlternativeTo and listed on f6s.com.

#100DaysOfCode community

I engage with #100DaysOfCode community, appreciate their work, and recommend Habit Card for tracking progress - a few examples below.

• Bluesky

• X

Contact information for Jithin Jude:

• Bluesky

• Reddit

• LinkedIn

• X

• Email

See you next time,
Jakob Jelling

I’m on Bluesky. Come out and play.