"The first time someone paid for one of my apps was an enormous thrill"

Matteo Spada is a developer currently working on Astro, an App Store Optimization (ASO) tool for indie iOS developers. He is also building apps himself, like Cleaning Mode MacOS App and Store Redirect ASO Explorer.

Matteo is active on Twitter/X where you can follow his journey as builds in public.

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What is your tech stack and why?

I try to keep things as simple as possible. I mainly use Swift and SwiftUI, while for creating simple static websites I use Astro and Tailwind CSS.

What does a productive day in your life look like?

A truly productive day is when I manage to complete a task that I consider difficult or stressful. Usually, when I have a list of things to do, I always try to tackle the most challenging tasks first. Once those are done, everything else seems easier.

How and when did you get your first customer? And how are you getting people in the door today?

The first time someone paid for one of my apps was an enormous thrill. The initial customers came through my work on Twitter. I simply shared what I was doing, and several people became interested in me, becoming customers and, in some cases, even friends.

Today, Twitter still serves as my main marketing channel. Engaging with people is probably the most underestimated marketing strategy in history, but it works and will continue to work in the future.

How do you stay up-to-date with technological developments, and how do you incorporate this knowledge into your projects?

Personally, I don't believe that staying updated is necessary to create good products. I'm not interested in spending days studying a new technology just for the sake of it. I don't feel the need to learn every single Apple framework just to prove my knowledge. If a technology is useful to me, I'll study it; otherwise, I prefer to invest my time in things that truly bring value to my users.

How do you come up with new project ideas?

I always try to start with a real problem. Then, I conduct ASO research to understand if there is actually a demand for what I want to create. After that, I try to identify a subscription price that is as high as possible. If I realize that people wouldn't pay a high price, I move on to the next idea. Otherwise, I start developing it.